Our journey from Delhi to Agra was uneventful except for stops made almost every hour to pay tolls. In time for lunch time we checked in to
Amar Hotel. After a mediocre lunch at the hotel, we started our sight seeing by visiting the Baby Taj Mahal, the precursor to the Taj Mahal but termed 'baby' due to its small size. It was built by the queen Nur Jahan as a mausoleum for her family members. Made with white marble encrusted with jewels, the only asymmetrical features of the entire complex is that the tombs of her father and mother.
Having refreshed our selves from some petha, a delicacy of Agra, we headed to the red fort (agra fort) in the afternoon sun. This fort was built under the great Mughal Emperor Akbar in the 16th century. We mostly toured the living quarters (about 25% of the whole complex) that consisted three palaces for his three wives.
The rest fo the fort was occupied by military.The top of the fort and a great view of the river Yamuna though it has nearly dried out in the past few years. We also walked through the tower which had a nice view of the Taj Mahal that was used to imprison Emperor Shah Jahan by his son. Shah Jahan was imprisoned in order to prevent him from building another Taj Mahal in black marble as mausoleum for himself, thus bankrupting his kingdom. The entrance of the fort and the gates were strategically built with many means of keeping the enemy at bay.
Around 6.30am, next morning we were on our way to see the Taj Mahal before sun rise. It was truly breathtaking to see the amazing mausoleum built with white marble set against the grey sky.The entire structure was built so symmetrically with four identical gates on each direction and two mosque like structures (of one which actually funtins as a mosque) on each side.
After taking some initial photos from afar we entered the mausoleum by wearing foot covers to prevent dust on the site and spent some time walking about the premises. Built by the Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal, it is one of the greatest architectural tributes to love. This was definitely one of the highlights of our trip.
On our way to Jaipur we stopped at Fatehpur Sikri, a fort built by Emperor Akbar in honor of a Sufi saint who predicted the birth of his son.
At the entrance was the sacred mosque which was overseen by a priest who claimed to be a descendant from the family of the Sufi saint. This fort seemed more open and spacious than the Red Fort, possibly due its location and the presence of greenery. This complex also contained three places for his three wives. Though they differed in size, they had been built at the same cost. The pavilion where Akbar met with the general public was still maintained as a beautiful garden. Though this served as the empires capital for a few years it had been abandoned due to its poor water supply that could not sustain its growing population.
Our journey from Delhi to Agra was uneventful except for stops made almost every hour to pay tolls. In time for lunch time we checked in to Amar Hotel. After a mediocre lunch at the hotel, we started our sight seeing by visiting the Baby Taj Mahal, the precursor to the Taj Mahal but termed 'baby' due to its small size. It was built by the queen Nur Jahan as a mausoleum for her family members. Made with white marble encrusted with jewels, the only asymmetrical features of the entire complex is that the tombs of her father and mother. 
Having refreshed our selves from some petha, a delicacy of Agra, we headed to the red fort (agra fort) in the afternoon sun. This fort was built under the great Mughal Emperor Akbar in the 16th century. We mostly toured the living quarters (about 25% of the whole complex) that consisted three palaces for his three wives.
The rest fo the fort was occupied by military.The top of the fort and a great view of the river Yamuna though it has nearly dried out in the past few years. We also walked through the tower which had a nice view of the Taj Mahal that was used to imprison Emperor Shah Jahan by his son. Shah Jahan was imprisoned in order to prevent him from building another Taj Mahal in black marble as mausoleum for himself, thus bankrupting his kingdom. The entrance of the fort and the gates were strategically built with many means of keeping the enemy at bay.
Around 6.30am, next morning we were on our way to see the Taj Mahal before sun rise. It was truly breathtaking to see the amazing mausoleum built with white marble set against the grey sky.The entire structure was built so symmetrically with four identical gates on each direction and two mosque like structures (of one which actually funtins as a mosque) on each side.
After taking some initial photos from afar we entered the mausoleum by wearing foot covers to prevent dust on the site and spent some time walking about the premises. Built by the Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal, it is one of the greatest architectural tributes to love. This was definitely one of the highlights of our trip. 
On our way to Jaipur we stopped at Fatehpur Sikri, a fort built by Emperor Akbar in honor of a Sufi saint who predicted the birth of his son.
At the entrance was the sacred mosque which was overseen by a priest who claimed to be a descendant from the family of the Sufi saint. This fort seemed more open and spacious than the Red Fort, possibly due its location and the presence of greenery. This complex also contained three places for his three wives. Though they differed in size, they had been built at the same cost. The pavilion where Akbar met with the general public was still maintained as a beautiful garden. Though this served as the empires capital for a few years it had been abandoned due to its poor water supply that could not sustain its growing population.
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