One wonder of the world..
The Taj Mahal was built by the mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his dear wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died whilst giving birth to their fourteenth child. The mausoleum was built between 1632 and 1653, employing up to 20 000 workmen and displaying the workmanship of the time at his finest.
The main entry gate. As a traditional islamic garden tomb, the mausoleum is enclosed in a garden, bounded by high walls with gateways - on three side, the river-facing side left open.
The gate is delicately adorned with floral drawings, geometric patterns and calligraphy of verses of the coran.
Beyond the gate, the Taj Mahal beckons us.. It looks quite surreal and dreamlike with the mist in the air.
Monumental Taj. As one gets closer to the mausoleum, it becomes gigantic.
Some pietra dura flowers on the mausoleum.
Inside the tomb, the workmanship with marble screens and inlay work of gemstones was minute, exquisite and delicate - but it was forbidden to take pictures.
As the court poet Abu Talib Kalim said :
"They set stone flowers in the marble
That by their color, if not their perfume,
surpass real flowers."
One would really love to see this place in silence and peace, but unfortunately the crowd of tourists is, of course, noisy and rowdy..
And again Ruben's delighted fans..
To the west of the mausoleum, a mosque is set. 
From the mosque.
In the garden. The garden is organised in four squares divided by waterways and fountains ; these four squares are themselves divided in four sunken gardens by raised pathways. A simple geometrical concept with great effects.
In the afternoon, we crossed the Yamuna river to visit Mehtab Bagh park. One gets a nice view over the Taj from there, and some respite from the crowd.
We could see the uninterrupted line of visitors to the mausoleum from there, and were quite happy we had visited the Taj in the early morning.
