....Agra

The academic term of my MBA program brings me to India where I will spend the next 3 months travelling, studying and exploring India's capacity and tendencies. I blog my experiences both good and bad every so often. Feel free to contact me at valiantca@gmail.com.

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The 7 hr Volvo bus ride had made me very tired, not because the bus was uncomfortable but because i spent all that time counting how many times ppl can snore in a minute. Well, the bus traveled overnight and during that journey the dudes in front of me, to the right of me and the behind me all snored like no tomorrow. I was almost trying to make a symphony out of it but the night had to end and we got of the bus at ChaarBagh(Four garden) station where we are welcomed by an army of auto rickshaw drivers. SideNote: Auto rickshaw is an all terrain vehicle that travels at no more than 40 kmph and u can enjoy the all the elements of the universe when seated in it.

We were recommended to stay at Hotel Saniyaa close to the Taj by another Exchange student at IIM and so we showed up at the hotel at 6am looking for 2 rooms that we had reserved. Now the real fun begins, 1) there was only one room, 2) There were no rooms.  We were guided through narrow stairs that did not comply with the safety ratios of steepness to height where one slip meant a few hundred bones broken.  The room wasn't too bad and we looked around and asked if we should wait till 10am (chk out time) to get another room and freshen up in the mean time when I asked a very important question from the guy showing us the room, "what is that thing on the bed?". Oh! the man replied thats just another employee sleeping there, dont worry i will wake him up". What do u say to that really? we reserved 2 rooms, got only 1 that too with a person sleeping on it. I guess it was there way of keeping the bed and room warm, FML. I got out of there to be led to another hotel a block or so away that promised the following. 24h hot water supply, food, beddings etc etc and yeah! u guessed it, none of that was there! We are here to see the Taj, who cares what the room looks like. You do start caring after a day when there is no water in the bathroom to even flush! I'll just stop right there with the grossness.

Indians: Rs 20, SAARC: Rs 250, Everywhere else: Rs 750 read the board outside the ticket counter at the Taj, Whoever came up with these prices must have been high on something for I did not understand the prices, it sometimes doesnt hurt to be dishonest and plus i am cheap so I took the Rs 20 ticket for doing exactly what my other white canadian friend paid Rs 750 for only cuz of 2 reasons, 1) i am an indian (well not as per my nationality) and 2) cuz i can speak the language so i eliminated all room for doubt. It felt great to look at my buddy who was almost ready to yell out loud, HE IS NOT AN INDIAN, MAKE HIM PAY MORE!

Picture after picture we walked towards the taj slowly. Finally through the front doors, I saw the greatest creation of man by far, the Taj Mahal. I still get goosebumps thinking about it while i write this and i was completely lost in its vastness. Many questions arose in my mind then and for the rest of my life shall remain questions only. One such question was, So the dude built this and buried himself and his wife in there, what was he thinking? He left behind a monument that today symbolizes love but is that what was really intended? Then the normal Rohit questions came along, what is love? what is this and what is that.... I waited a long time before actually stepping into the taj and behind it was the YAMUNA, one of the biggest rivers in india. Just looking down faaaaaaar into the horison still made me wonder, what it would be to b here when the Taj was not there. If it symbolizes love then why is still so much bloodshed in the world. 

The closer i got, the more appreciative i got of this monument and i have to say this, its as beautiful inside as it is outside, the graves, a chandelier like thing that hung from the ceiling some 20 mts above us, the beautiful marble work that just made u smile n not want to leave. I stood still and tried picturing over a 1000 men @ work making this happen...  Just heard a lil ad on facebook and it seemed relevant so em posting it here...

kab se kehne ki himmat juta raha hun, ki tumse mohobbat hai kitni

jaane aaj aisa kya hua, ki dil ne kaha keh hi dalun

jab teri aankhon se meri aankhen kabhi milti hai dil, ruk sa jaata hai

jab teri hasi ki ik thandi lehar mere kaano tak aati hai, waqt tham sa jaata hai

jaane aaj aisa kya hua, ki dil na kaha keh hi dalun, kitni mohobbat hai tumse...

well i improvised a lil.. anyhow.. the next stop was the Agra fort, it was magnificent and told a whole different story than what Taj Mahal did. The mischievous kid in me told me to jump a closed door and get up on the roof top of this giant structure from where the gun men would shoot u if u were unwanted. Beautiful wind and a glorious look at the Taj from this roof was simply outstanding. We were NOT so politely asked to come down by the guards who gave us crap afterward, I almost got me and my friend into some detention/prison room but a few sad faces sufficed and we were asked to visit the rest of the place without causing trouble. My best moment was when I was on the deck that was the "Throne" of the King and right behind that was the Taj (see below).

An hour into exploring the place, I walked out of the front gates with only one thought in my mind, What would it be to live in that era? hw would life be different etc etc. 

The king @ that time temporarily moved the capital from Agra to a nearby town called the Fatehpur Sikri which was built in the honour of a Sufi Saint Salim Chisti who foretold the birth of a son to Akbar and to do so a fort was built alongside other things but because of scarcity of water the capital was moved back to Agra. 

That evening again, seated in a Volvo bus en-route back to Lucknow, I found myself asking myself a question? What would it be to be here "THEN"? Kings, slaves, common man every one built all these structures for something and they did their part.... Now What? what are we building for our future? ask urself that......