Agra Travel Guide

Agra Travel Guide
	by our India expert Paul Baderman For 400 years Agra was the capital of Mughal Emperors, one of whom, Shah Jehan, so mourned his wife Mumtaz Mahal who died in childbirth that he spent over two decades constructing a memorial that is arguably the best loved monument in the world. It is, of course, the Taj Mahal (Taj means crown). There are many other must-see sites in the city, including the tomb of Akbar (the 3rd Mughal emperor), the Agra Fort often confusingly called the Red Fort but not the one in Delhi, the Sikri Palace a world heritage site on the fringes of Agra. But the ‘Taj’ is paramount, not just for its romantic origin but for the quite astounding design and exquisite workmanship of the mausoleum. See it at dawn, see it at dusk, see it perhaps most interestingly from the other side of the Yamuna river where Shah Jehan (it is believed) planned a matching black tomb for himself. See it in crowds if you cannot avoid them, be photographed on the ‘Diana’ bench, but see it close up you must. The astonishing precious stone inlays into the almost crystalline marble, were painstakingly carved and hammered by workmen whose skills live on in the city today - yes, you can buy quite beautiful dishes created in exactly the same way. 360 Tour of Taj Mahal

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