Swapnil Acharya

When I first visited the Taj Mahal eight years ago, I was a restless 12-year-old struggling to find out why in the world were we spending so much of our time with something that was so “not-happening.” I wondered what was so special about the monument that people were smiling and adoring — that cold tomb that stood still motionless and frozen. A few months back here in Kathmandu, I heard my parents musing over a trip plan to India. A few weeks later, we packed out bags to take a break and return to stroll the grounds of the Taj Mahal to see what was going on. To them, it was just a regular vacation but to me it was a learning experience.

My conscience slapped me for the mistake I had committed eight years ago. I realised how I had been mean to the great Taj Mahal that is indeed so beautiful and majestic. The 17th century monument had gotten prettier than ever in the spring of 2005. I was there to witness the charm and pay a tribute to the immortal monument of an eternal love story. It was standing “alive” at the banks of the Yamuna where the river gets crescent and history comes back time and again. I felt a lot had changed then. When in New Delhi, I sprinkled petals at Raj Ghat, brainstormed and quizzed my fellows on the Sangram. As a kid, I had found all these things boring to dea-th. Back then, nothing but the space rocket at the Trim-urti was attractive and I had been unable to know what importance the deserted Indira Gandhi’s memorial at the Safdarjung Road had.

But in the spring of 2005, all these things looked completely new to me. My perspectives had changed and I had changed in all. I had evolved into a person who enjoys the beauty of the earth. I had learnt a new meaning of things in this planet. I had learnt to respect. I had learnt to appreciate the beauty of every little thing in this world where all the political boundaries open and everything is so welcoming. Everything for me from the Ghats in Varanasi to the streets in Kanpur, from the shrines in Mathura to the examples of modern architecture in New Delhi had become meaningful. I then understood why do people spend enormous amount of money travelling. I must tell you, travelling is learning.