October 25 - Sunrise at the Taj and then Goodbye India, Hello Dubai!

We got up at the ungodly hour of 5 AM to be in line for the Taj at sunrise.  When we got to the place the doors were still locked and there were already a few people in line.  On Fridays the Taj is closed, so all the visitors who had arrived yesterday were itching to see the main attraction.  By the time the gates opened about 20 minutes later a long line had formed.  The President of Gabon (I think he’s been following us around – everywhere we went yesterday he showed up) jumped the line with his entourage.  Rank has its privileges. 

We walked quickly through the main gate and there were very few people on the grounds.  I promise these will be the last pictures I post of the Taj.  Can you tell I’m in love with this building?  The thing is, it constantly looks different as the light changes and one notices the designs and inlays differently with the changing light.  In its own way it’s like the Grand Canyon which looks different from moment to moment.  Anyway, here are a few more photos of it as we sat and waited for the sun to rise.

Gupta captured this beautiful photo of the Taj with its reflection in the pool

Likewise this one of the main gate and it's reflection

You know who these two are

 

Sunrise, what we've all been waiting for

The sun adds a golden glow to the Taj.  Last photo I promise

Back at the hotel we said our farewells to Gupta who was a most excellent drive.  If you should read this Gupta, thank you for all the information you shared with us and for the time you spent with us.  It was wonderful.

After breakfast and checkout we met Jagga and were on our way back to Delhi.  Traffic was hectic again going through old Agra.  The expressway was less crowded and  as we passed through the farmland we saw many more people working in the fields.  Everything is done by hand.  We saw people beating sheaves of rice to remove the grains.  Diwali was over and people were back to work.

As we approached Delhi the haze grew thicker and traffic became like rush hour on I-95.  We stopped briefly at a shop that sells handmade things from Kashmir.  That’s a state in northwest India that India and Pakistan have been fighting over for a long time.  Not so very long ago they had a very devastating flood there as well.  To help the Kashmiri people the Indian government is subsidizing the sale of their handmade products.  We saw the most beautiful scarves I have ever seen, hand woven out of Kashmir wool and so fine that they weigh nothing and are like gossamer.  There were lovely rugs, including beautiful ones to be hung on walls.  The workmanship was exquisite.

We arrived at Delhi’s airport, checked in quickly and settled in the Emirates lounge.  Our flight was slightly delayed due to a “health check” – whatever that is.  We have never seen so many little children on a flight and they all seemed to be screaming or screeching.  Thankfully they settled down after we took off.  I thought it was interesting that several families were obviously traveling with nannies and maids in their entourages.

The flight was great and we arrived in Dubai well after dark.  On the ride from the airport to our hotel, we were astounded at the number and variety of architecture of the skyscrapers around us.  Dominating them all is the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world at the moment.  If you’ve seen Mission Impossible IV (I think that’s it), you’ll know the building I’m talking about.  In the darkness with the lights on it  looks like it’s made of metal.  We were pooped after we checked in.  After a snack we gave up for the day.