THE FAMOUS TOMB
Welcome to the Taj Mahal. By far the most romantic tomb, created during the Mughal dynasty in the early 17th century. The mausoleum complex took 20 years to be constructed, and is located on the southern bank of the Yamuna River in Agra.
We woke up very early, and asked our magnificent driver, Yogi, to drop us off at the entrance by 5:30 AM, so we could be one of the first ones to go in. It seems that all the other tourists staying in Agra had the same genius idea, since it was so crowded in the front. The line was moving quickly, and the ticket was about 1,100 rupees ($13.50 USD) for foreigners with an additional 200 rupees ($2.75 USD) to visit the main mausoleum. When planning your trip to the Taj Mahal, DON’T visit on Friday, since its closed! The opening daytime hours are from 6:00 AM to 6:30 PM, while nighttime hours are from 8:30 PM to 12:30 PM.
Once we got in, we speed walked to the actual mausoleum, and watched the sun slowly revealing one of the magical sights yet seen. The suns rays slowly hit the white marble and the sky turned pink. Although there was no water in the reflecting pool, the view was perfect and serene. Then reality hit; tourists started pushing their way forward to take pictures, and we decided to keep exploring before it got too crowded and too hot. One each side of the Taj, there are two beautiful (and identical) buildings. This is by far one of the best places to take pictures of the Taj Mahal, since most tourists are taking pictures of the front side, and these two sides are completely empty.