Agra Fort

I've been trying to get back to the Agra Fort, the central palace/fortification for the Mughals, for the last six years. When my father and I visited it in 2004 it was brutally hot - around 106, which, ironically, is cooler than the 110 it was this time - and the combination of the heat and the long drive down from Delhi that morning led us to call off the trip to the Agra Fort, which is only a few minutes away by car. So, I was determined to see it this time - and then Annie began to feel poorly, so it looked like fate my intervene again. However, Dad and Annie graciously agreed to have the driver drop me off at the Agra Fort (along with our guide - before he and I had a big argument and I fired him, but that's another story - you know my temper), take them back to the hotel to cool off, and then come back for me. So, I finally made it to the Red Fort, but then, and this, of course, flies in the face of all logic (and thus makes it perfect for India), the folks at the front gate didn't have the right change to get in (because we had the ticket from the Taj the discount to get into the Agra Fort was only 250 rupees - a little more than five dollars - and all I had was 500 rupees notes), but we eventually worked it out - I just paid too much and came back later for change. But it did make me wonder if I was ever destined to get inside. Oh, since I'm remembering it now, it cost 750 rupees to get into the Taj Mahal if you're a foreigner, 20 rupees if you're Indian (which I actually have no trouble with - if I can justify paying the incredible price to see a game at Fenway Park, partially because it is a historical structure, then I can justify paying extra to see the Taj - we don't have those type things in the US). I wish I had more time to stroll aimlessly around the Agra Fort, but it was obvious the guide was trying to rush me through, which was only partially successful - I tend to ignore all efforts to rush me. I included a picture of myself (which I am normally opposed to doing, but I did because it shows some of the intricate craftsmenship on the pillar, and also me wilting in the enervating heat). The fourth and fifth pictures up from the bottom are of the room where Shah Jahan was imprisoned, and the view that he had of the Taj Mahal. The third picture up from the bottom is of the area where the famous Peacock Throne sat before it was carried off by foreign conquerers. The sixth picture up from the bottom is a central courtyard surrounding the harem. There's also a nice picture of the fortifications and moats - one moat just held water, and the other held water and crocodiles and poisonous snakes (I need that around my office in Aiken Hall).