Travels2India --› Monuments in India
Monuments in India
Ajanta Ellora Caves
Way back in1819, a party of British army officers on a tiger hunt in the forest of western Deccan, suddenly spotted their prey, on the far side of a loop in the Waghora river. High up on the horseshoe- shaped cliff, the hunting party saw the tiger, silhouetted against the carved façade of a cave.
On investigating, the officers discovered a series of carved caves, each more dramatic than the other. Hewn painstakingly as monsoon retreats or varshavasas for Buddhist monks, the cave complex was continuously lived in from 200 BC to about AD650. There are thirty caves, including some unfinished ones. Of the Ajanta caves, five are chaityas or prayer halls and the rest are viharas or monasteries.
Charminar, Hyderabad
The Charminar in Hyderabad, at the capital city of Andhra Pradesh, is a massive arch built by Mohammed Quli Qutab Shah, in 1591 to commemorate the end of the plague in the city. The symbol of the city, the Charminar, is an impressive square monument with four minarets. The arch is illuminated daily in the evening, an unforgettable sight indeed.
Fatehpur Sikri, Agra
A royal city perfectly preserved, Fatehpur Sikri provides a marvellous escape into the past. Akbar embarked on the construction of a new capital here when a prophecy of the birth of a male royal heir, by the Sufi Saint Salim Chisti of Sikri, came true.
Imposing gateways and light- hearted palaces were built in red sandstone within this fortified city only to be abandoned a few years later.
Among its many architectural game are the places for his queens - Jodha Bai, Mariyam and his Turkish sultana, built in varying styles, each perfect in itself.
Gateway of India, Mumbai
Mumbai's most famous monument, this is the starting point for most tourists who want to explore the city. It was built as a triumphal arch to commemorate the visit of King George V and Queen Mary, complete with four turrets and intricate latticework carved into the yellow basalt stone.
Ironically, when the Raj ended in 1947, this colonial symbol also became a sort of epitaph: the last of the British ships that set sail for England left from the Gateway. Today this symbol of colonialism has got Indianised, drawing droves of local tourists and citizens. Behind the arch, there are steps leading down to the water. Here, you can get onto one of the bobbing little motor launches, for a short cruise through Mumbai's splendid natural harbour.
Built in the Indo-saracenic style, the Gateway of India is meant to commemorate the visit of King George V and Queen Mary to Bombay, prior to the Darbar in Delhi in December 1911. The foundation stone was laid on March 31, 1911 and George Wittet's final design sanctioned in August 1914.
Lake Palace, Udaipur
The Lake Palace is located on the Jag Niwas Island and covers the whole of 1.5 hectare of the island in the middle of the Pichola Lake. Built by Maharana Jagat Singh in 1743 it was meant as a royal summer palace and now converted in to a five star palace hotel.
It is a magical palace and its image in the middle of the lake is like a leaf straight out of a fairy tale book with an excellent taste of intricate craftsmanship and the ethnic themes using the textiles and handicrafts all over highlight the beauty that is simply beyond compare the lake around makes a pleasant murmur with its rippling waves and lapping that adds to the mesmerising moments.
The Lake Palace is one of the most beautiful palaces in the world, arising out of the Turquoise Waters of the Pichola like an elegant fantasy in white marble. The Lake palace was built in the 17th century on a natural foundation of 4 acers of rock. It was initially called Jaginwas after its founder Maharana Jagjit Singh.
Taj Mahal, Agra
The construction of this marble masterpiece is credited to the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan who erected this mausoleum in memory of his beloved wife, Arjumarid Bano Begum; popularly known as Mumtaz Mahal, who died in A.H. 1040 (A.D. 1630).
Her last wish to her husband was "to build a tomb in her memory such as the world had never seen before". Thus emperor Shah Jahan set about building this fairy tale like marvel.
The construction of Taj Mahal was started in A.D. 1632 and completed at the ended in 1648 A.D. For seventeen years, twenty thousand workmen are said to have been employed on it daily, for their accommodation a small town, named after the deceased empress- 'Mumtazabad', now known as Taj Ganj, was built adjacent to it.
Amanat Khan Shirazi was the calligrapher of Taj Mahal, his name occurs at the end of an inscription on one of the gates of the Taj. Poet Ghiyasuddin had designed the verses on the tombstone, while Ismail Khan Afridi of Turkey was the dome maker. Muhammad Hanif was the superintendent of Masons.
Qutub Minar, Delhi
The origins of Qutab Minar are shrouded in controversy. Some believe it was erected as a tower of victory to signify the beginning of the Muslim rule in India. Others say it served as a minaret to the muezzins to call the faithful to prayer. No one can, however, dispute that the tower is not only one of the finest monuments in India, but also in the world.
Qutab-ud-din Aibak, the first Muslim ruler of Delhi, commenced the construction of the Qutab Minar in 1200 AD, but could only finish the basement. His successor, Iltutmush, added three more storeys, and in 1368, Firoz Shah Tughlak constructed the fifth and the last storey. The development of architectural styles from Aibak to Tughlak are quite evident in the minar. The relief work and even the materials used for construction differ. The 238 feet Qutab Minar is 47 feet at the base and tapers to nine feet at the apex. The tower is ornamented by bands of inscriptions and by four projecting balconies supported by elaborately decorated brackets.
| Suggested Tour Packages |
| Classical Golden Triangle (Day7) Destinations : Delhi - Agra - Jaipur - Delhi |
| Golden Triangle Splendor Tour (Day14) Destinations : Delhi - Agra - Jaipur - Udaipur - Ranakpur - Jodhpur - Jaisalmer - Bikaner - Mandawa - Delhi |
| Best of Rajasthan Tour (Day13) Destinations :Delhi - Mandawa - Bikaner - Jaisalmer - Jodhpur - Jaipur - Fatehpur Sikri - Agra - Delhi |
| Exclusive Rajasthan Tour (Day14) Destinations : Delhi - Mandawa - Bikaner - Jaisalmer - Jodhpur - Udaipur - Ajmer - Pushkar - Jaipur - Agra - Delhi |
| Exotic Kerala Tour (Day13) Destinations :Mumbai - Delhi - Thiruvananthapuram - Kovalam - Quilon - Alleppey - Periyar - Munnar - Cochin - Mumbai - Home |
| Sri Amarnath Yatra (Day9) Destinations :Srinagar - Pahalgam - Chandanwari - Sheshnag - Panchtarni - Amarnath - Sheshnag - Pahalgam - Srinagar - Jammu |
| Chardham Yatra (Day11) Destinations :Haridwar - Jhanki Chatti - Yamunotri - Syana Chatti - Gangotri - Uttarkashi - Gurikund - Kedarnath - Badrinath - Srinagar - Rishikesh |
| Kerala Beaches Kerala is known throughout the world as one of the world's best beach destinations The beaches of Kerala are beautiful stretches of clean sand, fringed by swaying palm trees on one side and rippling waves on the other |
