Tag Archives: India India! Hot air and warm smiles. Chaos everywhere: trash and cow pats underfoot, birds overhead, and roadways crowded with pedestrians, cows, cars, and bikes all around. But it’s the colour that I love… And the natural grace of the people: everywhere you look there are people, young and old, draped on doorsteps or leaning against […]  They say you are a long time dead and buried – Well, unless you are buried in Switzerland, where your plot is reclaimed after 25 years to recycle available land. Or, unless you are in a traditional Chinese cemetery, where your bones should be taken out and washed annually… In India, honouring the dead can take many varied […] It is pretty impressive: the world’s tallest brick minaret, set in a complex of archaeological ruins dating back to 1193 AD, on a site that is much older than that. The stories behind it are quite something as well. Qutb Minar, sometimes spelled Qutub or Qutab, was started in 1192 by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, the first Sultan of Delhi and ruler of North India from 1206 to […]  Agra, in Uttar Pradesh, northern India, is more than just the home of the Tāj Mahal. Once the capital of the Mughal (Moghul) Empire, ruling over all of India from 1556 to 1658, Agra houses many splendid Mughal-era buildings, three of which – the legendary Tāj Mahal, the wonderful deserted city of Fatehpūr Sikrī, and the magnificent Agra Fort – are UNESCO World Heritage listed. […]  “Not a piece of architecture, as other buildings are, but the proud passion of an emperor’s love wrought in living stones.” – Sir Edwin Arnold We all know the story: the Taj Mahal, considered the epitome of Mughal art and architecture, was built by emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved third wife, Mumtaz Mahal. Prince […] |
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