Taj Mahal, India 1975

In Agra I was invited to visit this home which has a view of the Taj Mahal from its roof.

Some closer Taj Mahal pictures. The reflecting pool is normally empty except for the visits of special official visitors. The grounds are relatively small and not designed for huge crowds.
I suspect that much of the attraction is the relatively isolated river bank setting and the use of white marble. There are some lovely remantic stories about the tomb. I must point out though that even though Mumtaz Mahal was apparently Shah Jahan's favourite trusted wife, he did have nine other wives!
Also, you might like to have a look at the much earlier Humayun's Tomb in Delhi. Surely the Taj Mahal is simply a reworking of such Mughal Architecture designs with some added marble.

This looks at the neighbouring mosque and back towards the Red Fort. The setting is on the banks of the Yamuna River.
At the end of June 1975 I wrote: The Taj Mahal grew on me but after all that had been written and phoyographed about it my thoughts were "If this is all man can offer then Nature, at the grand Canyon or Coastal B.C., far exceeds anything we can attain." The best pictures of the taj aren't up close rather from 'The Fort', an immense Red sandstone building a couple of miles up the river. One of the interesting sights seen from the back of the Taj Mahal were some vultures eating a corpse on the side of the river, apparently 100 to 150 bodies are thrown in he sacred waters wach day. The dogs in Agra also seem the healthiest in India.

Some of the best pictures of the Taj are taken from afar. Agra's Red Fort provides an excellent vantage point.