Everyone says that the Taj Mahal is beautiful and obviously we’d seen the pictures. Yet still there is something amazing about seeing it in real-life, something that photos just can’t capture no matter how much we all try.

It is so beautiful that despite the crowds, the only thing that you see is the building itself. The people disappear. It’s really difficult to actually look at any of the surrounding buildings even the very lovely entrance way.

Taj Mahal Surrounding Buildings

Maybe it’s just the beauty of the details of the building, the mosaics, the inlay precious stones. Many of which were made by specific Agra families/castes whose children have not chosen to follow in the tradition.

Or the beautiful proportions of the central building, the turrets and minarets.

The light changes through the day and dependent on the weather. The building is said to be pinkish in the morning and golden as the sun sets.

And there is the Taj Mahal mosque still in use by the moslems of Agra, living right next to the mausoleum.

Or maybe it’s the story behind the memorial, the fortune thrown away building a memorial for the favoured wife,  or the fact that overthrown by his son, he was imprisoned in the nearby Agra fort with a view of the resting place of his beloved.

But the intricacy of the surrounding buildings was also beautiful if very reminiscent of the Red Fort in Delhi.