This is a trip that has been full of incredible moments. We stood on the Great Wall of China. We went for a treasure hunt around the Sydney Opera House. We jumped with the Masai in Kenya. We sat atop ostriches (or watched it happen ;))and elephants and horses and camels. We had high tea in the desert and floated on the River Ganges in India.Those moments and so many more are easily accessed in our recent memories, through our collective recall (“Hey what was the name of that guy we met who tried to tell me the future?”) and, for now, among the 50,000 plus photos on our hard drives.
Despite all of that, when I stepped out and saw the Taj Mahal, the sheer beauty of the white marble marvel stunned me. I had expected feelings of respect and appreciation but not the goosebumps that climbed up from my fingertips. We spent way longer than I expected exploring the grounds, discussing the technical prowess that would be necessary to not only build it, but allow it to stand and shine for so long.
The Taj Mahal
And while I would’ve been happy to sit in quiet contemplation of the gorgeous structure, the boys were all about the open space. With a surprising lack of crowds they could run and jump to their heart’s delight – a rarity on a trip where mom is often cautioning about being too close to the edge of this or that precipice.
Luckily our guide for Agra was a former teacher. Rajeev was as excited to teach them about the history and culture as he was to show them some great photo tricks. In his enthusiasm they found the perfect partner, especially when he took hold of the camera for the mandatory fun pictures that we’ll treasure.
Here are a few of our favourites:
The old holding up the building effect was popular….
Cam carrying the Taj Mahal
Ish's turn
There was the classic jump shot…
Getting ready for the jump shot
Jumping Cam
Jumping Ethan!
There goes Ish
Got me too :)
And then the mini-me attempts…
Always supportive Ish
Mom in the palm of thier hands
And the always popular through the key hole effect…
View through the lattice at the rear of the Taj
There are a ton of “photographers” in the park who will offer to take these or similar shots for a fee. Skip them. Book Rajeev as your tour guide instead. You’ll get the pictures plus the insights of a truly incredible guide who understands that the kids want to run as much as they want to learn.
Rajeev, our trusty guide, setting up the shots...
Amazing day with a guide who gave a little extra
Hooray for Rajeev!
You got the most beautiful day! My sister was there a few years ago and it was so muggy, hazy and crowded. You definitely picked the best day and the best time of year. So jealous. And those shots of the kids jumping are awesome. I’ll be doing that with my little guy one day soon. Just need to wait for his legs to get long enough to jump that high ;-)
It really was such a beautiful day! Clear and WARM which is a combo we haven’t seen a lot of this week in India. The jumpshot is infectious. At first, just the kids were going to do it but we couldn’t resist :)
That place is amazing! the weather is fine. the day is really perfect for exploring and discover different places.