The statement has its relevance in many areas of my life, the most recent one being, my visit to the Taj Mahal (Agra). I have been a Delhiite by domicile for a good 23 years of my existence on this planet. In spite of that, never once did I manage to go to Agra which is only about 200 odd kms. (125 mi. approx.) away from Delhi. 
When I finally did visit the Taj in all her glory, I was living outside Delhi, a good 2200 kms. away in Bangalore (Bengaluru...if you insist) and was just back from a short and exciting trip to the United States of America (my first and which ofcourse included a visit to the other great monument....The Statue of Liberty).
After all these years of wanting to see the Taj, and never having made it due to a myriad of reasons, it was a terrific feeling to stand right there in the gardens and marvelling at one of the seven wonders of the world. Apart from the beauty of the Taj herself, it was this euphoria of actually having made it "finally", which added to the whole experience. And even more exciting was being there with my lady love.
The ride to Agra was on a trusty Toyota Qualis and en-route we stopped by at King Akbar's tombstone, which was also an architecturally appealing structure. I found the irony amusing, that here rests a king's remains, taking up real-estate enough to house atleast a 1000 families! But then that's exactly what royalty is all about...isn't it?
We spent about 20 minutes tops, in that place, because it did not have anything too exciting to see, and then made our way towards the Taj. All the excitement that was building up in anticipation of seeing the Taj, came crashing down, at the sight of the approach to probably the greatest monument of love in the whole world. The only way to reach the monument is through the narrow bylanes of Agra, which is full of small merchant establishments selling tea-snacks and other knick-knacks and of course the touts who want to make a quick buck from the impatient tourists. Perhaps the state took a little more interest in the monument and did something about clearing out the approach to the monument. Broader pathways would certainly add to the ambience and a good idea would be to involve the local families, educate them about the value of the great monument which is right next door (remember? Nearer the church...) and how they can contribute to make the area cleaner and more welcoming to the tourist (especially the international tourists) who would carry only pleasant memories with them when they return with lots of pictures and stories to tell.
I have read a lot that the Taj still looks astonishingly beautiful on a full moon night. I hope to catch a glimpse of her in her pristine glory on one such night sometime in the future. Mighty proud to have one of the seven wonders, right here in my country!
When I finally did visit the Taj in all her glory, I was living outside Delhi, a good 2200 kms. away in Bangalore (Bengaluru...if you insist) and was just back from a short and exciting trip to the United States of America (my first and which ofcourse included a visit to the other great monument....The Statue of Liberty).
After all these years of wanting to see the Taj, and never having made it due to a myriad of reasons, it was a terrific feeling to stand right there in the gardens and marvelling at one of the seven wonders of the world. Apart from the beauty of the Taj herself, it was this euphoria of actually having made it "finally", which added to the whole experience. And even more exciting was being there with my lady love.
The ride to Agra was on a trusty Toyota Qualis and en-route we stopped by at King Akbar's tombstone, which was also an architecturally appealing structure. I found the irony amusing, that here rests a king's remains, taking up real-estate enough to house atleast a 1000 families! But then that's exactly what royalty is all about...isn't it?
We spent about 20 minutes tops, in that place, because it did not have anything too exciting to see, and then made our way towards the Taj. All the excitement that was building up in anticipation of seeing the Taj, came crashing down, at the sight of the approach to probably the greatest monument of love in the whole world. The only way to reach the monument is through the narrow bylanes of Agra, which is full of small merchant establishments selling tea-snacks and other knick-knacks and of course the touts who want to make a quick buck from the impatient tourists. Perhaps the state took a little more interest in the monument and did something about clearing out the approach to the monument. Broader pathways would certainly add to the ambience and a good idea would be to involve the local families, educate them about the value of the great monument which is right next door (remember? Nearer the church...) and how they can contribute to make the area cleaner and more welcoming to the tourist (especially the international tourists) who would carry only pleasant memories with them when they return with lots of pictures and stories to tell.
I have read a lot that the Taj still looks astonishingly beautiful on a full moon night. I hope to catch a glimpse of her in her pristine glory on one such night sometime in the future. Mighty proud to have one of the seven wonders, right here in my country!
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