The Emperor and his wife conceived 14 children in the 16 years that they were married. Only 6 of the children survived childbirth though and with her last delivery, she became severely ill. The Emperor asked what he could do for her or if she had any last requests. Her only 2 requests is that he would always be merciful to their children and that he would not marry again after her death. He then asked what he could personally do for his wife- and not i regards to any one else. She explained that she wanted him to build a monument that would let everyone know how truthful their love was. It took 22 years to build the Taj, and the Emperor died 13 years into the construction of the monument. Every single aspect of the Taj is perfectly symmetrical except for the grave site inside the main building. The wife is in the center, and the Emperor was placed to her left. It was decided that it would be better for them to be buried together than to be separated due to symmetry. Also- the legend of the black Taj Mahal that was intended to be built is actually a world famous rumor that never had any roots.
We enjoyed hearing the history- but our fun really started when we were done with the tour and able to take pictures! The photo session was SOO much fun with jumping pictures, hand stands, cart wheels, and clapping from passerbyers (or even crowds)! It was great being able to sit on the back of the Taj also and look at the river and to feel the breeze on our faces.
We went back to the hotel to enjoy an amazing breakfast!! Which also had ice cold coffee that tasted amazing! (First coffee in nearly 3 weeks!). I left my swim suit in the states also, not realizing that I was going to need it for our weekend trips. When I talked to the tour guide about buying one at the market, he said that "swim costumes" would be for sell at the hotel fora bout RS. 400 ( = $8 U.S.). Sarah and I adventure to the place that had the "swim costumes" and we were excitedly suprised by how original they were!
We then had an adventure of riding an elephant! It was soo awesome! The elephant even got up in the middle of us "loading" onto the ride and it was really cool being able to get that close to such a huge animal. The owner had even painted with some chalk material onto the elephants head creating a crown look. It happens to be that riding an elephant was something that Sarah has on her bucket list- so she was EXTREMELY excited through the whole thing!
It was deffinantly a fun and full day. We are also going to end it at the hotel by attending a Hindu wedding! Apparently, being white, makes us almost "good luck" to have at a Hindu Wedding so we get to party all night!
Hindu weddings are all about how many people you can have at the their weddings, and often consist of having 2,000 + people. They can often last up to 10 days also- but it depends on how long the Hindu's want to spend with their celebration. I have been told that they consist of a lot of food, pictures, and go late into the night. The actual Wedding ceremony will take place on the last day and starts before the sunrise. Tonight, at the hotel, there are 2 different weddings! :-)
Within the past week, we have managed to go to a late night Hindu Festival in the village near Rising Star, worked in 3 different medical clinics, tutored the children for 2 days, travelled to New Delhi, saw the Taj Mahal in Agra, and about to go to a Hindu Wedding!
No comments:
Post a Comment