What’s the one typical photo everyone thinks of when they imagine a trip to India. For most of us it’s an iconic picture of the Taj Mahal, hopefully with a beautiful sky and empty of crowds. Good luck on that.
When you’re racing a tuk-tuk across the country, what’s even better than taking a beautiful shot of the Taj.. obviously driving your three-wheeled vehicle of mayhem up the steps of the monument and posing with her right there, all smiles – happiness and joy for everyone involved!
With this concept in mind, we made an effort as we drove into Agra to try and get Sheniqua into the Taj Mahal somehow and get the shot we wanted. For anyone that’s actually been there before.. this is clearly a stupid idea. We tried driving down all the roads and laneways around the complex, nothing seemed to lead right up to it. We eventually did find one road that seemed like it would work, but eventually we were stopped at gunpoint and told to turn around slowly and go back the way we came. Apparently vehicles decorated as Where’s Wally and driven by two idiots aren’t seen as safe and harmless anymore.
Retreating back the way we had come, we re-grouped and reconsidered our plan. If we can’t get her into the complex, perhaps we can just get a photo of her with the building in the background. What’s the best way to do this.. well how about we put her on a boat and float past the Taj Mahal.. that way the background will be clear, there’ll be no people to ruin the shot. Perfect!
Problem #1 – we can’t quite get to the river. We tried a few roads, but they all stop well short of the river itself.
Problem#2 – even if we could get to the river, how do we find a boat to put her on, and convince the owner to let us do it in the first place.
It’s been a long day.. screw it. We give up and go get a beer. Maybe try again tomorrow.
