Saturday, October 11, 2008

Delhi, India

Good to see you! Thanks for coming.

I have shown you the Taj Mahal and the Red Forts of Agra and Delhi. Today I am posting an array of photos from the many wonderful places I was fortunate enough to visit in my short stay in Delhi.

Delhi has many faces. All fascinating. And I only scratched the surface. I hope you enjoy this 'window' to a cultural treasure that is part of the magic that makes India.

Here you can see India Gate. It honours the soldiers in the British Indian Amy who died fighting in World War 1 and the Afghan Wars.

Do click on the links under some of the photos for more information.

I have saved one monument to show you for my next posting in two weeks. I think it deserves a whole posting to itself. It is the Qutab Minar. It will conclude this series on Delhi and Agra.

Don't miss it!

Take care and have a good fortnight.

Alan
















The Secretariat Building. Home to ministries
of the Government
















Main entrance to Jama Masjid,
the principal Mosque of Old Delhi.















Jama Masjid, also known as the Friday Mosque.
It was commissioned by the Emperor Shah Jahan.
















View of Old Delhi from Jama Masjid
















The famous Chandni Chowk Street of Old Delhi
leading to The Red Fort. You can see the wall of
the Fort in the distance.
I love the girl on the rickshaw.
















Chandni Chowk Street, going in the opposite
direction. This time I was on a rickshaw.
Hard to keep the camera steady!






















Old Delhi market with marigolds
making a splash of colour. In Hinduism
the marigold symbolises auspiciousness.
It is offered by devoteees to Hindu Gods,
often in garlands, because the colour
orange signifies renunciation and is an offering
of surrender.
















Marigolds and jeans! Jeans make a good hat....
















You can see a video on You Tube of the
Old Delhi market
















Lots of shops!



















Gorgeous child. I think there might be some
action in the waterworks area soon!
















The new Bah'ai Lotus Temple There are about
5 million Bah'ais worldwide.
















Gudwara Bangla Sahib, Delhi's Siokh Temple
dedicated to the eighth Sikh Guru,
Sri Har Krishen Sahib.
















The 'Langar' or Community Kitchen Hall. Sikhs
are very community conscious and most temples
offer free food to devotees.
















"Sarovar", hindu for pond. Here the "holy pond",
where devotees bathe before entering the Temple.
















Raj Ghat, the memorial site of Mahatma Ghandi
He was cremated on this spot on 31 January 1948.
I particularly appreciated paying my respects to
the Father of the Indian Nation.
















Indians honouring Ghandi
















The entrance to Safdarjang's Tomb from
inside the grounds
















This is the central chamber. It was constructed
in 1753-54 AD
















The tomb is a good speciment of Mughal
Garden-Tombs
and is described as the
"last flicker in the lamp of Mughal architecture."
















Isa Khan's Tomb enclosure in the grounds of
Humayun's tomb. Isa Khan Niyazi was an
Afghan noble in the court of Sher Shah Suri
















Gateway to the enclosure of Isa Khan's Tomb
















Gateway to Humayun's Tomb
















The grieving widow of Emperor Humayun,
Hamida Banu Begum, built this mausoleum,
which is the precursor to the Taj Mahal
















It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Here we are looking at the gateway from the inside.
The sun is beginning to set.
















This is the central chamber. Emperor
Humayun's son was Akbar the Great, widely
considered to be the greatest of all the
Mughal Emperors. Wikipedia lists 20 Mughal Emperors