Agra, not nearly the biggest city in India, nor the holiest or oldest. Agra is seldom not on the mainstream tourist agenda. When the Taj Mahal is in your backyard, after all, people are going to come. Millions upon millions of people. A city intertwined with important events in India long before it was a Mughal royal stronghold. It is where emperor Shah Jahan built – or, rather, had his minion hordes build – one of the most instantly recognisable and indelible structures on the face of the Earth from 1632 to 1653.
Taj Mahal
When you gape at the Taj Mahal in person, finally and with inevitable awe, it is all too easy to forget that at the end of the day, one of the planet’s foremost architectural icons is a tomb. But, then again, so too are the Pyramids of Giza, a fellow wonder of the world. Needless to say, the vast shrine and complex built in memory of the Mughal regent’s third wife, Mumtaz Mahal, is impossible to adequately describe without falling into the usual banal, trite traps of hyperbole. Simply put, there’s a reason why upwards of 4 million people come to Agra year in and year out.
Other important attractions in Agra
Yet the Uttar Pradesh city of 1.7 million people has other attractions of note. Two other UNESCO World Heritage Sites grace the Agra urbanscape: Fatehpur Sikri, a remarkable Mughal-era city frozen in time, and the magnificent Agra Fort, which pre-dates the Taj Mahal by almost a century. Add a spectacular mix of ancient mausoleums, temples and monuments and Agra starts to emerge as much more than a one-trick pony. Indeed, there is enough here to amuse the average tourist for a few days and make the incessant, desperate deluge of touts well worth the trouble.
Agra’s top 10
- Marian’s Tomb is the tomb of the 16th century Mughal Emperor’s wife, Mariam uz-Zamani. Not quite the Taj Mahal but worth a look
- Ram Bagh is the oldest paradise garden, orcharbagh, in Agra
- Chini ka Rauza is one of many funerary monuments in Agra but a vital achievement in Mughal architecture nonetheless
- Jama Masjid is the most important mosque in Agra and one of the largest in India
- Mankameshwar Mandir is a temple dedicated to Shiva and one of the most venerable landmarks in Agra
- Tomb of Akbar the Great graces 48 Persian-style landscaped hectares of the city
- Itmad-ud-Daula’s Tomb is yet another fabulous Mughal mausoleum that dates back to the early 17th century
- Fatehpur Sikri’s UNESCO World Heritage Site status sits on the shoulders of the old Mughal capital’s arresting ensemble of architectural gems
- Agra Fort is the easy #2 destination of choice in the city. The red sandstone fortress complex is a UNESCO World Heritage Site as well
- Taj Mahal is a world wonder par excellence. Did you come to Agra for some other reason?
by Applenet 
