Agravation

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^{The Taj Mahal reflected in one of the pools.
The white marble came from Makrana in Rajasthan and the red sandstone from Fatehpur Sikri.
Precious stones were brought from far-flung places in Tibet, China, Sri Lanka, Persia and Afghanistan.}

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Agra Fort

^{Take a picture please... It's a strange phenomenon in India - strangers ask to have their photo taken with you, on your camera!}

^{A camel bus}

^{Lovers viewing a lover's monument. The view of the Taj Mahal from Agra Fort - as Shah Jahan might have seen it.}

^{Beautiful architecture and beautiful people!}

^{A beautiful screen (a 'jali') carved from a single piece of white marble.}

^{The powerful 16th century Mughal fortress encompasses multiple palaces
and architectural wonders, like the Diwan-i-Am (Hall of Public Audience).}

^{A view from inside Agra Fort}

^{The outside of the red sandstone fort is illuminated at night.}

^{The history of the fort is captured in the hour-long performance -
but you may not stay awake all the way through it!}

^{Returning to our homestay after the Sound & Light performance,
we encountered this noisy band accompanying a wedding procession.}

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Tomb of Itimad-ud-Daula

^{The Tomb of Itimad-ud-Daula was the very first in India made entirely from marble (1622-1628AD).
This is a mausoleum, the tomb of Mirza Ghiyas Beg (later called Itimad-ud-Daulah or
'the pillar of the state'), a minister in the court of Shah Jahan.}

^{Often described as a 'jewel box', it's called the 'Baby Tāj' as it was to later influence the style of the Taj Mahal itself.}

^{The tombs of Mirza Ghiyas Beg (Itimad-ud-Daulah) and his wife Asmat Begum.}

^{A wall decoration inside the tomb.}

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Mehtab Bagh

^{Taj Mahal from Mehtab Bag.
To my mind, this is the best view of the monument - from across the Yamuna River as sunset approaches.}

^{A nomadic way of life. The 'Grey haired nomads' rest for a cuppa before braving the Mehtab Bagh.}

^{Mehtab Bagh - translation: 'The Moonlight Garden'. Shah Jahan identified this site as an ideal
location for viewing the Taj by moonlight from across the Yamuna River. We went just before sunset!}

^{The dome of the Taj Mahal, with birds swirling around it, viewed near sunset from Mehtab Bagh.}

^{Buildings close to the Taj Mahal on the opposite bank of the Yamuna River shone brightly as the sun set.}

^{The 'Grey haired nomads' strive to capture the changing light.}

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Taj Mahal (as if you didn't know!)

^{Cameras at the ready for the classic 'Ooh! Aah!' shot of the Taj Mahal from just inside the entrance.}

^{A 'Grey haired nomad' at the Taj Mahal.
The other half of the 'Grey haired nomads' was taking her own pictures away from the crowd!}

^{The 'Grey haired nomads', not as young as they used to be,
continue to photograph the Taj from a seated position!}

^Brothers

^{Calligraphy from the Qur'an (Koran) on the front of the building.
Higher panels are written in slightly larger script to
reduce the skewing effect when viewed from below.}

^{Pietra dura on this jewel of Muslim art.}

^{The white marble came from Makrana
(visited on our way to Roopangarh - see my blog: 'A marbleous place')}

^{Colour among the whiteness.}

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