Compare the difference and similarities between Taj mahal Redfort

So my Jaipur post is being pushed back, probably to the point where I won’t remember what anything was, but thankfully there is Wikipedia. I’m more excited to talk about what we saw yesterday, which was among the coolest places I’ve ever visited. It was really foggy in Agra in the morning, so we went to the Red Fort first. I’m having a hard time coming up with a good comparison. The walls of the fort were huge, I think 70 feet tall, made of large sandstone rocks.

It sort of reminded me of some of the fortress-type things in Cuzco, but much taller. Inside the fortress was a beautiful palace complex, with either red sandstone buildings or white marble buildings, depending on when they were built. The red sandstone is big in the region, a site we visited the day before was also all done in sandstone. I guess its pretty easy to carve because the designs on the buildings are beautiful. Most buildings are a combination of Hindu flowers and symbols as well as Islamic patterns. The white marble buildings have inlaid semi precious stone in the same types of patterns.

Its all really beautiful. The palaces were all empty, and partially in ruins, so the tour was similar to some older chateaus in France. From the top of the castle we could have seen the Taj, but it was so foggy still that we could hardly see the ground.
Even after touring the fort it was still too foggy for the Taj. I think it was about 10am at the time. We had time to kill so we went to a department store and to McDonalds. I looked at books and baby clothes in the department store, but most things were Dora books that hadn’t sold 5 years ago in the US so had made their way to India. The clothes weren’t particularly nice looking. I did buy some tea and spices, mostly since I had yet to buy anything the whole trip. At McDonalds, they were somehow out of the McVeg, so I went with the McSpicy Paneer. I don’t even know what to say about it.
When we finally made it to the Taj it was probably 11:30 already, but it was still foggy. I pictured the area around the Taj as actually being more touristy and more crowded. It actually wasn’t particularly worse than the Eiffel Tower (in case anyone’s not clear I don’t like the Eiffel Tower). I really loved the Taj but I think my favorite part was these signs:

I think a visit is a lot cheaper for Indians, and they have different security procedures which is why there is a separate line, I just think they could have worded it better. Indians also still leave their shoes outside the Taj, whereas foreigners get shoe covers.
At this point I should mention I left my camera on the bus. I got some shots with my iphone, and I’ll try to point out someone else’s blog who got better pictures. The Taj Mahal was gorgeous, and really does get better looking as the sun shines on it. Our guide said it was the most beautiful building in the world, and I think I agree.

I was trying to think of what else would even be considered. I’m open to suggestions in the comments section. Is Chartres the most beautiful cathedral in France? I downgraded it because I couldn’t even remember. The Acropolis is really neat, and probably was beautiful but doesn’t look like much anymore, and was covered in scaffolding last time I was there. Some of the temples in Egypt were very beautiful inside, but without the original paintings on the outside didn’t look like much. If I haven’t insulted your national treasure yet please let me know. The best comparison is probably St Peter’s and the Vatican. When you see St. Peters in a picture you have no idea of how large it is, or of how beautiful it is. All the colors you see from far away are actually pieces of marble. The Taj is much more striking and beautiful from the outside. Where St Peters has other buildings around, the Taj stands basically on its own, and as the guide mentioned is perfectly symmetrical from all sides. Its stunning from far away, and as you get closer the marble and the details become more apparent.

St. Peter’s probably wins on interior decoration. One of my favorite things about St Peter’s is how La Pieta is just sitting in a side chapel. Michelangelo’s David has an entire museum dedicated to it, and its not as nice. St Peter’s has probably 200 things inside that are museum-worthy. The Taj inside is very simple. There is no photography allowed inside, which my experience traveling means American’s don’t take pictures and everyone else does. That’s exactly how it happened. The marble piece that surrounds the tombs inside is really nice, but kind of gets lost inside as its dark and the simplicity of the building makes it difficult to have any understanding of scale.
As a group we made it 3/4 of the way through the visit with our dignity, but eventually we were taking all the classic photos holding the Taj, jumping up in the air, etc. Its just too much fun.
The day ended with a difficult drive through rush hour, in the dark, back to Delhi. We were all exhausted but managed to get out to do some bowling and get a drink. A beer or two definitely helps me sleep, but then I feel worse in the morning. I can’t tell if its worth it. I’ve definitely had a headache for the last week, which I attribute to jetlag, lack of sleep, smog, pollution, too much time in the car, lack of caffeine, noise, and possibly a shortage of meat, although that last one is debatable. Anything that makes Claire want to take me to Eddie’s when I get home:)