In the last pictures, you saw some of the beautiful marble inlay on the Taj Mahal. We also went to Itmad-ud-Daula's Tomb (called the Baby Taj), which was actually the first one in India built entirely of white marble (pic 1). It was full of beautiful floral (Hindu) and geometric (Islamic) designs (pic 2). While there, it was so fun watching the dozens of monkeys running around freely, swinging in the trees, wrestling, climbing the walls, etc. (pic 3) I walked down to get a closer look and take pictures and one of them, I guess, mistook me for a tree. I just know that I felt something hit the back of my legs and then walk around looking at me, as if to say, "What are you doing standing there in the way?" The Taj Mahal AND a monkey encounter all in the same day- life is good!
Next, we made the predictable trip to the marble factory. It was amazing to see the craftsmen carving out the grooves in the marble and then with such precision, cutting out the intricate designs from the precious and semi-precious stones to make the inlay work (pic 4). This work is very precise and physically hard on the craftsmen - their hands as well as their eyesight. After watching them work, I can appreciate even more the designs we have seen on the buildings and the prices of the marble work in the stores. Of course, part of this visit was a sales pitch; they fairly quickly moved our group from the showroom with the several thousand dollar tabletops (pic 5) to the room with coasters!
Our last stop before catching a train to Jaipur was a trip to Agra Fort. This construction was commissioned in 1565 by Akbar (the one who built the city a couple of blogs back). This red sandstone structure has a total perimeter of 2.4 km and was never "taken" in battle by enemies. There were 3 gates going into it, each at a right angle to the one before it to help slow the momentum of an enemy (pics 6 & 7). There was also a 9 meter wide crocodile moat to create an issue before you even got to the gates. Inside the fort are numerous buildings, including the king's harem area, his public viewing area, and the prison where he kept his father, Shah Jahan in 1666 (white part in pic 8). If you are thinking, "Where have I heard that name before," remember that Shah Jahan is the one who built the Taj Mahal for the love of his life. His son, Akbar, was a power hungry young man who killed his brothers and imprisoned his own father so that he could be king. The story goes that Shah Jahan spent the last years of his life looking out the prison windows at the distant Taj and mourning his wife. I had always imagined him in a red sandstone cell with a tiny little window. His cell was actually made of white marble with a big open "porch-like" area. Sure enough, you can see the Taj Mahal off in the distance (pic 9). Today, the Indian army uses 75% of Fort Agra.
As a side note, the hawkers surround our bus as we get on and off at each stop. I actually bought something here - a snowglobe of the Taj Mahal (pic 10). The irony of snow in Agra made me smile.
We boarded a 6:30 train for a 4 hour trip to Jaipur. On our way to the platform, we heard all kinds of commotion and music coming down the stairs. Lo and behold, a little 10 or 12 person marching band, with trombones leading the procession (pic 11), was escorting an older gentleman wearing numerous flower garlands around his neck. Our guide told us that this man was retiring from the railroad and they were giving him this big send-off. We have been told that the train rides are new to the Fulbright program this year. We are encouraging the USIEF staff to continue to include them, as the rail life is such an important part of Indian culture. The British laid most of the 39,230 miles of track and today, they move 14 million passengers daily (pic 12). We will be in Jaipur through Tuesday, then back to Delhi. It has been a wonderful trip but folks are getting "antsy" to get home.
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