No agra in Agra

After my exciting trip from Delhi to Agra (see last blog), it was a relief to finally check into the Taj View Hotel. True to its' name, the hotel provided me a "room with a view." In the evening haze the Taj Mahal looked like part of a dream. To quote my guidebook, "Its' perfect proportions and exquisite craftmanship have been described as, 'a vision, a dream, a poem, a wonder.'"...A 6am pickup and Bishan the driver and I headed to the Taj Mahal to watch the sun rise on this beautiful white marble creation. It was one of those experiences where it is difficult to think about taking pictures: it seemed more important to just experience the white shimmering beauty of the place. Unintentionally, I arrived in Agra just in time to celebrate the 350th anniversary of the Taj Mahal. It was built by by the leader Shah Jahan as a memorial to his wife who died in childbirth. It is open at night during the full moon (a photographer's dream), but my timing was off on this one.....Agra is so well known for the Taj Mahal, that I was surprised by our trip to the Agra Fort - a massive red sandstone fortress, complete with high walls, turrets, and a moat. It was built (1565-1578) by Shah Akbar and, unfortunately, it served as his prison for the last 8 years of his life, following one of the many invasions of India. I was intrigued by the Shah's solution to where his daughters could store their jewelry. They each have a large room with indentations built solely as a "jewelry box." We should all have this problem!......From Agra, I flew to Bagdogra, India for the tour guide and driver from the Kingdom of Bhutan to "fetch" me. Bhutan is a country like no other.......Happy Trails, Marion