Q2 of 24 Page 135

Here is your diary entry when you visited Agra. Read the points and try to write a travelogue describing your visit to Agra and the Taj Mahal. You may add more details.

January 2003 - rise before dawn - take the Shatabdi Express at 6.15 am from Delhi- meet a newly married couple on train - talk about Himachal Pradesh - get off the train - enter the once-grand city, Agra - twisted alleys - traffic dense-rickshaws, cars, people - vendors selling religious artifacts, plastic toys, spices and sweets - go to the Taj Mahal - constructed entirely of white marble - magical quality - colour changes with varying of light and shadow - marble with gemstones inside - reflection of the Taj Mahal in the pond - school-children, tourists - tourist guides following people.

5 January 2017


I rose before dawn and proceeded to the New Delhi Railway Station to catch the Shatabdi Express at 6:15 a.m. It was a quite comfortable journey during which I also came across a newly married couple. We had a constructive conversation about the beauty of Himachal Pradesh and shared our both positive and negative experiences. After reaching Agra, I came across the busy roads which were traffic dense and all I could see around me included rickshaws, cars, various vendors selling religious artifacts, plastic toys, spices and sweets. Then finally that moment arrived when I reached the Taj Mahal. This monument constructed entirely of the magical white marble is truly a wonder in itself. I also observed something wonderful about this monument i.e. the colour of its marble changed according to the light and shadow. I also observed the marble which was beautifully decorated with gemstones along with the serene reflection of the Taj Mahal in the pond which grabbed much attraction of the spectators including tourists, tourist guides and school children.


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4

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1. The heart is a pump that ------ (send) the blood circulating through our body. The pumping action ------- (take place) when the left ventricle of the heart ------- (contract). This ------ (force) the blood out into the arteries, which ------------ (expand) to receive the oncoming blood.


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3. Mahesh: We have to organize a class party for our teacher. --------- (Do) anyone play an instrument?


Vipul: Rohit ------- (play) the flute.


Mahesh: ------------ (Do) he also act?


Vipul: No. He ---------- (compose) music.


Mahesh: That’s wonderful!

1

The text you read is a travelogue where the author, Vikram Seth, talks about his visit to two sacred places in Kathmandu.

Imagine that you were with Vikram Seth on his visit to Pashupatinath temple, and you were noting down all that you saw and did there, so that you could write a travelogue later.


Record in point form:


- What you see when you reach the Pashupatinath temple


- What you see happening inside the temple


-What you do when inside the temple.


- What you see outside the temple


-What your impressions are about the place.

1

“A slumber did my spirit seal,” says the poet. That is, a deep sleep ‘closed off’ his soul (or Mind). How does the poet react to his loved one’s death? Does he feel bitter grief? Or does he feel a great peace?

2

The passing of time will no longer affect her, says the poet. Which lines of the poem say this?