The Baby Taj Mahal is a tomb in the Mughal style, burial site of many members of the royal family. 
The intricacy of the marble inlaid stonework is breathtaking. Chamber after chamber is decorated from the tiled floors to the arched ceilings.
The grounds of the Baby Taj are a pleasant garden.
Like all parks and monuments we've visited in India, a small entry fee guarantees a small crowd and no beggars or vendors. Burial monuments require that one remove one's footwear, and there is quite a lucrative little trade carried out by the Shoe Watchers. All in all, the Baby Taj and its grounds were a green and welcoming oasis after the immensity of the Agra Fort complex and the madness of the bridge crossing.
Finally, our driver took us to an lookout point on the riverbank where we could view the Taj Mahal by sunset. Here, with no entry fee charged, were both hawkers and beggars, but not too, too many. The sun was obscured by a cloud at this point so we didn't have the best viewing conditions, but I think that even in a monsoon, that view of the Taj would be magnificent.
Finally, our driver took us to an lookout point on the riverbank where we could view the Taj Mahal by sunset. Here, with no entry fee charged, were both hawkers and beggars, but not too, too many. The sun was obscured by a cloud at this point so we didn't have the best viewing conditions, but I think that even in a monsoon, that view of the Taj would be magnificent.
On our second day in Agra we decided to visit Fahtepur Sikri, about 30 miles away. Fahtepur Sikri was built by Akbar as his trophy city (some people have trophy homes; he had a trophy city in mind). Perched on a ridgeline overlooking the fertile Gangetic plain, Fahtepur Sikri--palace, religious buildings, housing for 3 wives and 300 concubines and 5000 harem girls--was a great success...but only for 15 years. Then a drought and bad ground water made it evident that Akbar had invested poorly. The capital had to be relocated to Agra, and Fahtepur Sikri was abandoned and more or less forgotten. Thank goodness it was fairly out-of-the-way, since it remained fairly unscathed by the years. It's now a World Heritage Site (our fourth in India!).
The drive to Fahtepur Sikri was interesting on many accounts. The driver that day was particularly cautious (not a professional taxi driver, we figured out by the end of the day) and our progress was markedly slow. The road was in dreadful condition, yet it serves as the main link between Agra and Jaipur, two key stops on the tourist circuit. The villages were humming with activity--cows, goats, pigs, camels all part of the mix. We did in fact see several camel-drawn trucks hauling goods up and down this particular highway!
Our final stop on the second day was to Akbar's Tomb. As we learned by heart after several tour guides instructed us, there were 6 great Mughal kings: Babur, Humayun, Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan, and the evil Aurangzeb. Akbar was the first really, really great king, and of course Shah Jahan was the Taj builder. Akbar's Tomb is a lovely yet immense structure (what were they thinking?? If everyone had a tomb like that...??) set in serene parkland. There are plenty of monkeys roaming about as well as some very interesting antelopes with spiral-curved horns. The pictures (soon, I promise) will show Owen feeding both the Good Monkeys and the Bad Monkeys. Luckily, the Bad Monkey was satisfied with the banana he received and didn't exhibit his bad side.
And so ended day 2 in Agra. I will finish with the description of our actual trip to the Taj Mahal tomorrow! I have so many pictures of Fahtepur Sikri that I'll have to put them on a separate page.
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