We visit the Taj Mahal today. It was a four hours bus ride from New Delhi. The Taj is described as one of the world's seven wonder. It is a historic site build by an Emperor in honor to his dead wife. He died soon after of a broken heart. Now, the couple body remains there. It is a sad and beautiful history. Sad because he order to decepate his workers arms or feet so that no one copy his building architecture. Beautiful because it is a true love history of a husband who had 13 children with his 3rd wife.
However the media does not portray the long trip to get there. I had mixed feelings of anger, pity, astonishment and compassion. We left very early. We saw lots of poverty. People living in slums or improvised houses. Crippled man crawling in the middle of a highway. Pollution was outrageous. There were pushy street vendors who chased us down. I felt like a movie start running away from the Paparazzis. In the beginning was fun and turned out to be annoying. Their desperation is due to their lack of options. Then, my astonishment feeling turned into anger. The vendors would not leave us alone. I felt pity for all the little kids who would always say " Madame, bla bla rupees, please." I was compelled to help them but doing so would only attract a mob of them to us. It was like a indirect type of beggars.
In addition the traffic was chaotic. We barely saw a traffic cop or anyone obeying the do not pass signs. The little cabs called Rickshaws that support four people would carry five or six all the time. There were cows in their backyards or crossing the highways, as if they were pets. According to the Hindu believers, the cow is a sacred object where they worship it. For this reason, there is not cow meat served in India.
Contrasty, it was rewarding to See monkey, elephants, camels and cows all the way. As soon as we got closer to the Taj we could already see beautiful temples and mosques. There were shrines and temples everywhere: in the streets, under a three, in the houses or in a mountain. I notices they worship the God Shiva the most.
As we got at Taj, we saw a fantastic budding made totally of carved marble and precious stones. The Muslin's style does not allow anyone of walking in with a shoe on. There was a guest house and a Mosque right next to Taj. A beautiful lake in right behind it. The place does not isolate any image just like the Muslim principles.
Right in front of our hotel there were two performans that I liked the most. They were a four year old boy dancer and a older man player and singer. The boy would dance fantastically moving his hips and his head like a snake. Their outfit were red and different. The boy would fix his look at someone and wink once in a while. But his look was deep and vague, as if he had been doing it for so long that that became a mechanic act for him. As if he is there only for the money. Even though his body was there, his mind did not want to.This incident represents to me the kids exploitation where they are obliged to go out and make money. Or I should say the face of poverty. We also stopped in this little shops were we were tested on our bargain skills. We got India products for 1/3 or US price..
I know that India is considered an emergent country. Its economy is booming now because of the advanced technology. However the poverty was unique to me. It was a peaceful one. The religions believes are very intricate into the society's mentality. The predominant Hindu followers definitely makes a big difference that despite gigantic poverty line, the violence is diminished.
However the media does not portray the long trip to get there. I had mixed feelings of anger, pity, astonishment and compassion. We left very early. We saw lots of poverty. People living in slums or improvised houses. Crippled man crawling in the middle of a highway. Pollution was outrageous. There were pushy street vendors who chased us down. I felt like a movie start running away from the Paparazzis. In the beginning was fun and turned out to be annoying. Their desperation is due to their lack of options. Then, my astonishment feeling turned into anger. The vendors would not leave us alone. I felt pity for all the little kids who would always say " Madame, bla bla rupees, please." I was compelled to help them but doing so would only attract a mob of them to us. It was like a indirect type of beggars.
In addition the traffic was chaotic. We barely saw a traffic cop or anyone obeying the do not pass signs. The little cabs called Rickshaws that support four people would carry five or six all the time. There were cows in their backyards or crossing the highways, as if they were pets. According to the Hindu believers, the cow is a sacred object where they worship it. For this reason, there is not cow meat served in India.
Contrasty, it was rewarding to See monkey, elephants, camels and cows all the way. As soon as we got closer to the Taj we could already see beautiful temples and mosques. There were shrines and temples everywhere: in the streets, under a three, in the houses or in a mountain. I notices they worship the God Shiva the most.
As we got at Taj, we saw a fantastic budding made totally of carved marble and precious stones. The Muslin's style does not allow anyone of walking in with a shoe on. There was a guest house and a Mosque right next to Taj. A beautiful lake in right behind it. The place does not isolate any image just like the Muslim principles.
Right in front of our hotel there were two performans that I liked the most. They were a four year old boy dancer and a older man player and singer. The boy would dance fantastically moving his hips and his head like a snake. Their outfit were red and different. The boy would fix his look at someone and wink once in a while. But his look was deep and vague, as if he had been doing it for so long that that became a mechanic act for him. As if he is there only for the money. Even though his body was there, his mind did not want to.This incident represents to me the kids exploitation where they are obliged to go out and make money. Or I should say the face of poverty. We also stopped in this little shops were we were tested on our bargain skills. We got India products for 1/3 or US price..
I know that India is considered an emergent country. Its economy is booming now because of the advanced technology. However the poverty was unique to me. It was a peaceful one. The religions believes are very intricate into the society's mentality. The predominant Hindu followers definitely makes a big difference that despite gigantic poverty line, the violence is diminished.
