Michelle's Year in Southeast Asia: Agra, India

Entering Agra, I was shocked at how poor the city is. With an attraction as popular as the Taj Mahal, you would think that the city would be all dolled up for the thousands of tourists that visit each year. That is not the case at all. From New Delhi to Jaipur to Agra, the cities became more and more impoverished. We quickly found a hostel and then headed right to the Taj Mahal. It cost about 15 dollars for the entrance fee, the temple slippers and a water bottle. We got to skip the massive line up as we headed to the ‘Foreigners special ticket’ line. Thinking that the Taj Mahal would be filled of mostly foreign tourists, that was certainly not the case. Shelby and I ended up being two of only a handful of foreign tourists in the whole place. It seemed at times that we were more of an attraction to people than the Taj Mahal itself!!

Local celebs

New friends

One of the funniest pictures of the whole trip After being stopped by numerous Indian families and locals to take picures with them, we were finally able to enjoy the beauty of the Taj Mahal. It is exactly how it looks in pictures except in real life! It was hard to wrap my head around the fact that I was actually there. We walked through the gates and their it was – a big, white marble mausoleum, shimmering in the sunlight. To add to its beauty, there is beautiful greenery, gardens and fountains surrounding it. Also, there is a water aisle leading up to the mausoleum, which displays the Taj Mahal’s reflection.

We had to wear slippers to go onto the actual Taj. The entire structure is pure marble, with two tombs on the inside. The whole temple was built by a early emperor in memory of his third wife. (He sure must of loved her quite a bit!!) But thanks to him, this beautiful masterpiece was created.

The temple slippers

The next morning, we went to see the sunrise on the opposite side of the Taj Mahal. Although we were further away then the day before, it was still spectacular.

Agra sunrise!

The rest of the day we did the remaining attractions in the city, including the Agra Fort and the Baby Taj. Shelby and I continued to be a main event at each attraction we went to, making many local friends along the way!