Talk:Agra

Are you really going all the way to India to eat in a Pizza Hut? Come on, let's be serious! I'm not saying it can't be mentioned, but I'd suggest not in first place. I have been to Agra, I have eaten in several places where they serve local food and I haven't had food poisoning. I do regret not remembering the names of those places, otherwise I would have immediately put them right there in the article. (Just to be honest, I did get food poisoning in Jaisalmer.) But then, you know what they say: If you haven't been sick in India, you haven't been in India. (WT-en) DhDh 12:54, 9 Dec 2003 (PST)

I'm real serious. The place is an icon in Agra. I'll add some places too (I had some great food at Zorba and another kinda fancy places). But I'm serious about Pizza Hut, it's like the Baskin and Robins (US ice cream chain) in Kathmandu-- people were talking about it in Varinasse too. After 5 months of dhaal and rice, pizza has it's place. Funny, I'd really _never_ go to Pizza Hut anywhere else... but anyway, let's both try and find some more places to recommend, but I really think PH deserves a spot. (WT-en) Majnoona

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It is news to me that drinking is illegal in Agra; the last time I went there (a few months ago), every second shop appeared to be a local or "foreign" liquor store.... (WT-en) Schizoid 03:03, Feb 28, 2004 (EST)

Copyvio rollback
At least some of this was obvious copyvios, so I reverted the lot to be safe. Sigh. (WT-en) Jpatokal 06:48, 24 February 2007 (EST)

I just took out a bunch more. (WT-en) Pashley 12:51, 3 July 2007 (EDT)

Services to Agra Airport
I pity the fool who trusts Indian Airlines' route map. Try the schedule lookup instead: there are zero (0) flights from Agra to anywhere. (WT-en) Jpatokal 21:21, 29 May 2007 (EDT)

Nuke
Would anyone mind if a dropped a nuke in the vicinity of the sleep section? that yellow page style isn't really helping us, and I hate to encourage listings like these - getting rid of them, and beefing up a few listing to how we like em', might help future spammers to at least include basic information. --(WT-en) Stefan (sertmann) Talk 00:40, 25 March 2009 (EDT)


 * It is about time someone did. Probably several other sections too. (WT-en) Pashley 01:43, 25 March 2009 (EDT)


 * Kill 'em with FIRE! (WT-en) Jpatokal 02:29, 25 March 2009 (EDT)

OK, so I pretended to be a vengeful Pakistani Taliban for a while, and dropped a small tactical nuke on Agra, hope it helps, and have taken some of the pesty touts with it in the process. Can anyone find a way to rephrase/incorporate the below blurb? or should we just leave it. --(WT-en) Stefan (sertmann) Talk 11:02, 19 October 2009 (EDT)

In Addition to that there are certain other points which one should take care -
 * 1) - You can hire a camel-cart on negotiations basis (the price should not exceed 50 INR)to reach Taj Mahal compound from Taxi Stand or Parking.
 * 2) - Never buy anything from the shop the taxi drivers or cart pullers take you to, you are likely to be over charged.
 * 3) - If you are 2 persons, then let 1 person go directly to fetch tickets and other person to stand in the line. However, there is a condition, if you are a foreigner, then you will easily get entry in Taj, but if Indian, then you have to stand in endless queue, so stand your second partner in the Q.
 * 4) - As with most attractions, there are swindlers all around Taj, they will prompt you for easy entry in Taj, but unless you want to get cheated, they re best avoided.
 * 5) - Food around Taj is very costly, specially for Indians, so please carry your own food around, which you can only take when out of Taj, no eatable is permitted inside Taj, which makes sense.
 * 6) - You can't take any tobacco products, eatables, anything which can be a potential weapon.

Taj
I just deleted a lot of copyright violation text that was misplaced in the Lede.


 * Taj Mahal's original name was Tejo Mahalaya built by Rajputs (Warriors)of Agra. The world has been duped with corrupt name and false history of Taj Mahal. Taj Mahal is not Queen Mumtaz's tomb but an ancient Hindu temple palace of Lord Shiva (then known as Tejo Mahalaya). The Shiva temple palace was usurped by Shah Jahan from then Maharaja of Jaipur, Jai Singh. In his own court chronicle, Badshahnama.


 * Shah Jahan admits that an exceptionally beautiful grand mansion in Agra was taken from Jai SIngh for Mumtaz's burial. The ex-Maharaja of Jaipur still retains in his secret collection two orders from Shah Jahan for surrendering the Taj building. Using captured temples and mansions, as a burial place ! for dead courtiers and royalty was a common practice among Muslim for example, Humayun,Akbar, Etmud-ud-Daula and Safdarjung are all buried in such mansions. rulers.
 * The term "Mahal" has never been used for a building in any Muslim countries from Afghanisthan to Algeria. "The unusual explanation that the term Taj Mahal derives from Mumtaz Mahal was illogical in atleast two respects. Firstly, her name was never Mumtaz Mahal but Mumtaz-ul-Zamani," he writes. Secondly, one cannot omit the first three letters 'Mum' from a woman's name to derive the remainder as the name for the building."Taj Mahal, he claims, is a corrupt version of Tejo Mahalaya, or Lord Shiva's Palace. The love story of Mumtaz and Shah Jahan is a fairy tale created by court sycophants, blundering historians and sloppy archaeologists. Not a single royal chronicle of Shah Jahan's time corroborates the love story.


 * The Taj Mahal predates Shah Jahan's era, and was a temple dedicated to Shiva, worshipped by Rajputs of Agra city. For example, Prof. Marvin Miller of New York took a few samples from the riverside doorway of the Taj. Also visit http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3379388167850403569# Carbon dating tests revealed that the door was 300 years older than Shah Jahan. European traveler Johan Albert Mandelslo,who visited Agra in 1638 (only seven years after Mumtaz's death), describes the life of the city in his memoirs. But he makes no reference to the Taj Mahal being built. The writings of Peter Mundy, an English visitor to Agra within a year of Mumtaz's death, also suggest the Taj was a noteworthy building well before Shah Jahan's time. Many rooms in the Taj ! Mahal have remained sealed since Shah Jahan's time and are still inaccessible to the public. It is believed that it contains a headless statue of Lord Shiva and other objects commonly used for worship rituals in Hindu temples.


 * Prof. P. N. Oak was the one who challanged it first and then [Prof. Marvin Miller] of New York brought various evidences for the same. Prof. Oak wrote a book on it but fearing political backlash, Indira Gandhi's government tried to have Prof. Oak's book withdrawn from the bookstores, and threatened the Indian publisher of the first edition dire consequences.

The notion that accepted history is false and the Taj was originally a Shiva temple needs at most a one-line mention in the section on the Taj. I'd say even that is unnecessary. What do others think? (WT-en) Pashley 21:37, 17 September 2010 (EDT)

Here's Wikipedia on the main proponent of this theory. (WT-en) Pashley 01:14, 18 September 2010 (EDT)


 * I'd say let's keep this all out — the main proponent of the theory is seen as a "crackpot" in his native country according to Wikipedia article you linked above. – (WT-en) Vidimian 06:37, 18 September 2010 (EDT)

Stunning?
A recent edit took out the first sentence of this, citing touting & words to avoid.
 * Taj Mahal is also utterly stunning under a full moon. However, the night view is likely not worth spending the money as the visitors are kept far from the Taj Mahal (nearly 200 metres away) and there is not sufficient light for viewing or photography.

I understand why this was deleted, but I still object. I've seen the Taj under a full moon and "utterly stunning" strikes me as a correct, factual description. I want to just revert, but I'd compromise on something like:
 * The Taj looks quite different under a full moon than by day, extremely beautiful and one of the most romantic sights on Earth. However, ....

Other opinions? Pashley (talk) 14:32, 26 March 2024 (UTC)
 * yeah, I think "utterly stunning" very very off-WV:Tone and WV:Don't tout, and "stunning" is indeed listed among them Words to avoid. However, I understand your point, and the Taj Mahal's fame as a touristic attraction merits some hype, yes. Ibaman (talk) 15:27, 26 March 2024 (UTC)
 * Sometimes, otherwise cliched words are really true. The Taj is one of the most famous buildings on Earth. Ikan Kekek (talk) 17:48, 26 March 2024 (UTC)