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very great cities , either of them much greater than London , and very populous ,” wrote British traveller , Ralph Fitch in 1585 . He continued that unlike his native London that Agra was constructed mostly of stone with impressive buildings , palaces , and temples . Agra ’ s greatest construction was yet to be conceived and Fatehpur Sikri , 35 kilometres away from Agra was a project that became abandoned soon after establishment .
Drawing back the curtains to our room , I struggled to see what we had been promised . The haze and smog hid the view , a site that is considered one of the greatest created by our species . The foreground just as intriguing and a glimpse into the modern India , construction techniques frowned upon by the West .
We ventured in the direction of the horizon , the shroud of mystique pulling back to reveal a large red , sandstone construction . Parapets , minarets , and domes , all covered with barbed wire , ugly in appearance yet there for a reason . The monkeys were a problem that needed a solution .
I looked to my partner who ’ d gasped a profanity . A little unbecoming of what lay before us , yet I concurred with the sentiment .
Passing through the arched gateway , the reds gave way to a courtyard of 17 hectares , huge by anyone ’ s standards yet what lay ahead dominated the vista . A large white dome atop some sort of building , surrounded by four equally impressive minarets .
Commissioned by Shan Jahan in 1631 this monument took 16 years to construct , a monument to love , and life in death .
Shan Jahan had already set a precedent in the construction of many elaborate buildings during his reign . The use of white marble as opposed to red sandstone became
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