This Marble Monument to Everlasting Love Was Built to Last Forever. Oops!
This building, the Taj Mahal, is so iconic there’s no trouble identifying it even when it’s reflected in rippling water. So’s the story behind it. . .
It was built by the Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. She died of postpartum complications after her thirteenth(!) child was born, and the building which bears her name has been described as a testament to the love the Emperor felt for his favorite wife.
Construction of the first portion began in 1632, and finished in 1648 AD. Later pieces were added, and it was completed in its entirety in 1653.
In the US, we celebrate Valentine’s Day today, February 14. Flowers fade, romantic cards disintegrate, and chocolates get eaten, but a building like the Taj Mahal, fabricated from the best white marble, lasts forever.
Until it doesn’t.
This gorgeous building is located in Agra, India, one of the most polluted spots on the planet. For years, the lovely, delicate architecture has been eaten away by the very air around in. While it was assumed that industrial pollution was the culprit, it turns out that hydrogen sulfide is the bad guy here. It originates from the polluted Yamuna River, which is basically an open sewer for the entire city.
The good news is, that for the past 30 years when industrial and vehicular emissions were assumed to be the culprits, the city has made strides in reducing those.
Want to know more about this once-beautiful monument? Check out this article and this scientific study.
What I’m Reading
Haunted Hibiscus by Laura Childs
This is #22 in the Tea Shop mysteries featuring Theodosia Browning, owner of the Indigo Tea Shop in Charleston, SC, and her dog, Earl Grey, along with tea sommelier Drayton Connelly and baker extraordinaire Haley.
It’s a solid series, and in addition to delightful descriptions of teas and the traditional accompanying comestibles, always offers an interesting mystery to unravel. If you haven’t discovered it yet, what are you waiting for?
The first book in the series is Death by Darjeeling. (Every book in the series features the name of a specific tea.)
Death on the Scotland Express by Fliss Chester
Althouth it’s actually the fourth in this series featuring Cressida Fawcett, it’s the first I’ve read.
Cressida is traveling to London from Inverness, Scotland with her friends. Detective Andrews of Scotland Yard, who was a friend of her father’s, is also on the train when two-timing industrial tycoon Lewis Warriner is murdered. His wife, who boarded the train at the last possible second and has already caused a scene in the dining car, is the prime suspect.
But Cressida suspects it’s not that simple. . .
Buy Me a Chai
Some of the links I include in this email may be affiliate links. What does that mean? It means you pay the same — or in some cases a little less — if you click and purchase, and I get a small commission. It’s not a lot, but it helps me buy a few chai lattes here and there. . . Or, if you like what you're reading, you can Buy Me a Chai or upgrade your subscription to paid right now. Thanks!
Want Some Cozy Valentine Mysteries?
Here are three of my favorites, in no particular order.
Deadly Valentine by Carolyn G. Hart (#6 in the Death on Demand series)
Valentine Murder by Leslie Meier (#6 in the Lucy Stone Mysteries series)
Killing Cupid by Laura Levine (#12 in the Jaine Austen series). Read it if you want to laugh out loud.
Notable Quotes
I’m only going to give you one quote this week, because this one is so incredible I don’t want to dilute it. It’s from a book that’s not my usual reading — science fiction, and dystopic science fiction at that.
Here’s the opening line:
The children were playing while Holston climbed to his death. . .
I mean, is it even possible to read that and not keep reading? It asks so many questions, in multiple layers, and in so few words.
My husband and I watched the Apple TV series based on the book (not knowing it was based on a book at the time). We both enjoyed it, and later he found Wool in the bookstore.