Taj Mahal

Since I woke up at 2:30 AM, my brain was only half functioning off of 3 hours of sleep. Cherry, Stewart, and I were in one car. Maureen and Jade were in the other car. As we were speeding ahead against traffic, we wondered if Maureen and Jade were in the same predicament. The driver did skillfully evade oncoming buses and cars as if we were in a real-life Mario Kart game. The driver assured us that Maureen and Jade were on their way as well. We finally reached another grand hotel to greet our guide after 4+ hours of driving. We had to go through security checks and it was split by gender. The pat down was a bit of a jarring experience. We had our bathroom break and snapped a few photos. Our guide, Guru, set off with us to the Taj Mahal. The heat was starting to build. Guru warned us to avoid interacting with the vendors and we hopped onto another cart trolley to reach the ticket booth. We exchanged our tickets for a bottle of water and shoe covers. Once we passed through the security check again, I saw grandiose buildings built by Emperor Shah Jahan dedicating the Taj Mahal to house the tomb of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. The Emperor’s tomb also lies next to hers. The intricate walls of carved marble and adorned by precious stones was an amazing sight to see. Guru was an expert in posing us and capturing moments as the crowd started to spill into the long pathways in the garden. We also learned that Guru is a Airbnb SuperHost. The temperature reached 105F and we left to grab a late breakfast at the hotel. It was another 4 hours back and I was able to take a quick shower in Maureen’s room and set off to the airport for my way back home.