Day 2. Taj Mahal

I went to the world famous Taj Mahal today. I had a traditional breakfast at my hotel of Paratha bread and butter served with vegetables. Afterwards, I got my walking shoes on and got on a bus headed for the Taj Mahal. You could tell we were getting near because the traffic increased and there were a lot of peddlers selling miniature models of it as well as key chains and hats out of there rickety looking cart they pulled themselves. Somehow we got to the main drop off area, and they let us out. The first thing I noticed when I alighted from the bus were all the people, there were thousands of them everywhere, it was like a zoo! I apparently looked confused, because a nice young lady came up to me and asked me if I wanted a free tour of the Taj Mahal and the gardens. It was free, and the lady seemed nice so I accepted. Her name was Aashi and she was a grad student who showed people around the mausoleum on weekends and free days because she loved to share her knowledge with other people and she thought it was fun. Aashi told me that the Taj Mahal was built around 1648, which surprised me, I thought it was a lot older. It was built by the emperor Shah Jahan in remembrance of his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. She is buried there along with her husband. It is in the middle of a garden, which is very pretty. There are many flowers and shrubs, painting a vivid picture against the grays and whites if the city. After we were finished with the gardens, Aashi, who seemed to be an archetect as well as a botanist, told me all about the marble and the building structure. She also told me about all the carvings on the outside. The inside was just as wonderful, and it was cool to see the tombs of the two rulers from nearly 400 years ago. I loved the intricacy of the carvings, and I was not at all surprised it is one of the eight wonders of the world. It was a cool day and I was so glad that Aashi came and showed me around. I wouldn't have gotten half the information if I had gone myself. It was a great day, and my feet are sore from walking! The two people who are entombed in the Taj Mahal