What a trip Marianne and I just had. I thought I would never get up the nerve to fly a 15 hour trip to India. Marianne finally convinced me that it was imperative that we visit the Taj Mahal. She was absolutely correct. The Taj Mahal is one of the 7 wonders of the world.

Working the flight to Delhi was actually better than expected. A few passengers could not sleep, so they roamed the cabin all night. Our passengers’ drinks of choice were marsala tea and Jack Daniel. We did 3 meal services and in between the services we each were given a 6 hour rest break.

Upon arriving in Delhi’s baggage claim, we encountered so many beautiful dogs hanging in and outside the baggage claim area. I was told these dogs live at Delhi’s baggage claim due to many reasons, lack of widespread pet owner ship, uncontrolled breeding and legal protections that prevent the removal of dogs from their area. Some of these sweet dogs walked with us to our bus. We were told that the flight attendants have brought treats to these special dogs on numerous occasions. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a photo of this unique experience.

We got to our beautiful hotel around 11pm. Before walking into the hotel, we were instructed to put all our luggage in a scanner. I was told they were scanning for evidence of bombs. 🤪

Marianne and I had to go quickly to our rooms. We were meeting downstairs at 4:45am to go to the Taj Mahal. We were hoping to get a few hours of sleep!

4:45am came quickly! The hotel packed us a to-go-lunch for our 3 hour drive to the Taj Mahal. Sabash, our hired driver was superb. He had a well maintained SUV. Sabash explained to us that he used to be a priest. He had to get the bishop to release him from being a priest when his father died, in order for him to take over his father’s duties taking care of the family.

Comfy and cozy, we were ready for our adventure. I noticed, every time Sabash passed a car, he beeped. He said, it’s a friendly beep, letting the other car know that you are passing them. . You can just imagine, how many times he did his friendly beeping! We were lucky that the traffic was not too bad due to being a Sunday. Delhi’s traffic can be horrific.

I knew it was going to be a grand day when I saw the pink sunrise.

We arrived! Vinny our tour guide/photographer was waiting for us. He told us we had to hurry and put us in a cart to drive us to the entrance of the Taj Mahal . I was taken aback, when we drove by a huge cow walking down the street with other pedestrians. The cow owned the street. Cows are common sight in Delhi, India, and can be found in residential areas, on roads, and in dairy colonies. Cows are sacred in the Hindu religion and are revered as givers of life and symbols of prosperity.

The race was on. Marianne and I were running behind Vinny. He first brought us into a building to go through security and have our purses checked. Feeling embarrassed, the guard emptied out my entire purse. He took my altoids and candy. I didn’t realize they would be so strict on what you carried in. This is how they keep the Taj Mahal so beautiful.

When you walk into the entrance, you are definitely awestruck by the Taj Mahal’s beauty. The Taj Mahal is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the south bank of the Yamuna river in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1632 by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan to house the tomb of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died while giving birth to their 14th child, It took 22 years to build.

Vinny our tour guide and photographer was fabulous. Vinny, carrying both our purses and sweater had us running to each spectacular spot so he could take our photos before the crowds had accumulated. It definitely was amusing seeing how he was able to move people, so Marianne and I would get perfect memory photos. These are a few of our photos taken by Vinny at the Taj Mahal.

This is the famous bench at the Taj Mahal. It was on this bench in 1992 that Princess Diana posed for one of her most iconic photos.

The Taj Mahal is a perfect symmetrical planned building, with an emphasis of bilateral symmetry along a central axis on which the main features are placed. In addition to the stunning marble work, the Taj Mahal also features intricate inlaid designs made from precious stones such as lapis, lazuli, jasper, and jade.

It sure was a whirlwind day experiencing the breathtaking, well preserved Taj Mahal. Now, we understand why the Taj Mahal is one of the 7 wonders of the world. It is a masterpiece with its unique aesthetic qualities in balance, symmetry and harmonious blending of various elements. It gives you a sense of ease and tranquility. The Taj Mahal is also known as a timeless symbol of love.

Marianne and I were so happy that we were given this gift of experiencing the Taj Mahal because we are flight attendants for American Airlines. I know I would never have traveled to India on my own. I thank Marianne for taking me out of my comfort zone to experience such a beauty.

“The hardest thing to do it’s leaving your comfort zone. But you have to let go of the life you’re familiar with and take the risk to live the life you dream about.”