The Mausoleum of Akbar the Great is situated about 10 km from Agra, in Sikandra. Akbar started the construction but it was completed by his son Jahangir in 1605. It is built partially in red sandstone and in marble, with a mixture of Hindu and Moslem design elements. It can be seen as a transition between the older architectural style, based on red sandstone and the new, with marble as the main element and finer ornaments and carvings.

The complex consists of two buildings, one being the mausoleum and the other a gigantic gate, connected to each other via a wide paved walkway.

The gate, known as Buland Darwaza (gateway of magnificence) itself consists of a huge archway and 4 marble minarets. It is more impressive than the mausoleum itself, which is wider but not as overwhelming. The architecture of the mausoleum is very interesting as is it a good example of the mixture of the use of sandstone together with marble. If you stand too long on the courtyard, you might be harassed by the many monkeys, which can become very aggressive. Inside the mausoleum, you find the cenotaph in a very small sober room.

While most people visit Agra to see the Taj Mahal, Agra, once the capital of all of India, has more to offer. Less than 2 kilometers from the Taj Mahal, on the same river bank, you'll find the impressive Agra Fort.

Agra's history goes back more than 2500 years, but it wasn't until the reign of the Mughals that Agra became more than a provincial city. Humayun, son of the founder of the Mogul empire, was offered jewelry and precious stones by the family of the Raja of Gwalior, one of them the famous Koh-i-Noor. The heydays of Agra came with the reign of Humayun's son, Akbar The Great. During his reign, the main part of the Agra fort was built. Construction of the fort started in 1156 and was finished in 1605. Shah Jahan, who built the Taj Mahal, erected most of the buildings inside the fortress.

The fort is built alongside the Yamuna river and stretches almost 2.5 km. It consists of a wall built in red sandstone and several buildings inside. The wall has 2 gates, the Delhi Gate and the Amar Singh Gate. You can only enter the fort via the Amar Singh Gate. Part of the fort is still in use by the Indian Army and are not accessible to the public, but there's still enough left to get an insight on the way the Mughals lived in the 16th century.

After going through the Amar Singh Gate you walk over a ramp and enter the Great Courtyard. On the right hand sight, there's the many pillared Diwan-i-Am (Hall of Public Audience). It was built by Shah Janan in 1628. Furthermore you find the Royal Pavilions. It contains beautiful mosques (Nagina Masjid & Mina Masjid), palaces (Macchi Bhavan, Khas Mahal, Shish Mahal, Shah Jahani Mahal) and the Zenana Mina Bazaar. Several of the buildings are made of pure marble with beautiful carvings. To cool off the rooms in the marble pavilions, the walls were hollow and filled with running water. From the balconies in the pavilions, you have a nice view on the Yamane river and the Taj Mahal.

As a matter of fact, the emperor Shah Jahan, who built the Taj, was imprisoned by his son Aurangzeb in the Agra Fort where he had a view on the building erected for his deceased wife. Shah Jahan is said to have died in the Musamman Burj, a tower with a beautiful marble balcony. From there you probably have the best view on the Taj. Between the many pavilions, you find small well maintained gardens.

Unfortunately I've not visited Fatehpur Sikri, a ghost city 37 km from Agra, simply because I didn't know it existed. I would encourage any future visitor of Agra to pay it a visit.

The site is founded by Akbar the great, who at 26 years did not have a heir. He went to a saint, Shaikh Salim Chichi who lived in a city called Sikri. His blessing gave Akbar 3 sons. As a gesture, Akbar built a whole new city in Sikri.

It was built between 1569 and 1585 and was intended to be the joint capital with Agra, but was soon deserted because the water system could not support any residents. It remained untouched for over 400 years now and its palaces are a remainder of the extravagance of the Mughals.

The Taj Mahal is probably the most famous building in the world. Its picture has covered many magazines and travel brochures, and everyone has probably seen a picture of it, but nothing really compares like the real thing - the Taj Mahal looks a lot better in reality than on a picture. Even those who come to see the Taj with high expectations never fail to be overwhelmed by its beauty.
The Taj Mahal was built by Shah Jahan to enshrine the body of his wife, Arjumand Bann Begum (Mumtaz Mahal) after she died in 1630 at Burhanpur in South India. The construction started in 1632 and was completed in 1653. The workforce of some 20,000 included craftsmen from Italy, Persia and Turkey. It is built by the bank of the Yamuna river not very far from the Agra Fort.

The whole structure is more than 55 meters high built in white and yellow marble. The Taj Mahal is flanked by two smaller red stone buildings, one a mosque and the other a rest house. Outside the walls surrounding the tomb, you'll be harassed by many hawkers, but the Taj and the surrounding gardens are haggler free, so even with the huge crowds visiting the mausoleum, it is a relaxing place. Most people spend several hours around the Taj or in the gardens, which are well maintained. One of the things that surprised me in India was that the lawn was not cut with a lawnmower, but cut manually! The gardens has a geometrical structure, and is believed to symbolize paradise.

To enter the mausoleum, you need to put a cloth around your feet like for any temple in India. You can rent it for a small fee just before the stairs leading to the tomb. If you want to go barefoot, you will certainly burn your feet on a sunny day due to the marble heating up under the Indian sun. Inside the mausoleum it is surprisingly chilly. The interiors are rather dark, and on first sight there's not much to see, but if you take a closer look you will see all the fine marble carvings decorated with many precious and semiprecious stones of any color (sapphire, topaz, coral,...) . If you're accompanied by a guide, he will certainly show you that a lot of the interior decorations are made of transparent marble. In the middle of the room inside the Taj, a screen of carved marble surrounds the cenotaphs of Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahan, also built exclusively in marble, with (calligraphy and other) inlay work.

If you like your photo to be taken in front on the Taj (where Lady Di's picture was taken), there's several professional photographers that will take your picture and have it developed by the time you leave the compound. I don't know the exact price, but it wasn't too exaggerated for a unique picture. Of course, you're free to take pictures yourself at that place, but you'll probably have to line up.