I saw Perito Moreno Glacier, but the other major place that blew my socks off this year was the Taj Mahal.

Everything has been written about the Taj Mahal, so I’m not going to write anything more. However, Husband J if you are reading, if I find a way to have fourteen children (NOT happening!!!), I think I will be worthy of a monument/masoleum like this. Really. Shah Jahan, my hats off to you, bro. Building this monument to your beloved deceased wife, Mumtaz Mahal, is definitely love. The Taj Mahal is something you can’t forget after you’ve seen it. It really is so beautiful that it must have been built because of love.

Team Ozzie and I entered at the South Gate. This is just the gate. Just the gate. 

I have to say that there was a sense of excitement for me. What is one of the most photographed structures in the world going to look like at first glance? I walked through the gate itself anticipating my first glimpse. I was thinking, “Am I really here? Will it look as good as the pictures?”

Then you realize that it does.

Then I thought, how many pictures of this can I take? Will there be too many? The answer is “no.”

Even with this historic structure in front of me, the grounds of the complex (yup, there’s more than one building), are worth taking in.

As Team Ozzie and I got closer, we realized that the Taj’s beauty is also in the details.

If you ever get a chance to see this stunning structure up close, make sure that you see it from every angle. One moment it seems larger than life and the other so very far away as if you’ve still not come close (and may never). I was there at the end of the day, and I loved the way the sun bounced off of the building and cast shadows.

While I didn’t get close to the other structures of the complex, they’re not exactly ugly either.  Go see them. The Jawab is to the right of the Taj.

I didn’t mean to take a picture of these guys. Looks like a min-Taj doesn’t it?

We entered the actual masoleum, and while nice, it wasn’t that spectacular. You’re not allowed to take pictures in there, so I have none to prove my case. Yet I get why the masoleum isn’t so appealing. I mean do you really want to be up close with Mumtaz Mahal’s body for an extended period of time? Probably not.

After a couple of hours wandering around, I knew I had to take some goofy pictures to prove I’d been here.

The wonders of angles, huh? Dorky me gets such a kick out of this picture below.

Seeing the Taj Mahal in person was definitely one of highlights of my trip to India and maybe even my year.

Have you been to any major world monuments? Did you enjoy them, or did they disappoint you?