How many times have you seen an image of one of the world’s great monuments and memorised it for years hoping to see it in all its glory one day? Stonehenge in England, the Parthenon looking down from the Acropolis in Athens, the Great Pyramid of Giza in Cairo to name just three. And once you have actually gazed upon them, there’s a little flutter in your heart – is it the familiarity, the symmetry or just the connection to beauty that moves us so?

Perhaps it’s a combination of thoughts coming together – the awe of seeing what man has achieved – whether it was created for love, politics, power, utilitarian needs or religion – once seen, never forgotten.

India_TajMahal_Hero03

To come face to face with the shining glory of India’s Taj Mahal is a profound moment. A few years back I was on an escorted journey (previously known as…