We had a nice and pleasant journey, just one hour delay! 15 hours for 670km. Kolkata – “the city of joy” - our final destination in India after 5ish month travelling throught the subcontinent. Kolkata is most of the time is associated with slums, overpopulation, poverty and Mother Theresa. The so called city of joy is a bit more than that. It is a growing metropolitan, is more structured, cleaner, has a bling bling touch and has the heritage of the British Empire. As Kolkata previously Calcutta was the capital of the British Raj from 1858 to 1912. Kolkata is famous for his cultural past, it was the birthplace of modern Indian literary and artistic thought. What a surprise West Bengali are friendlier and relaxer meaning no harassment, no picture! People go with the flow, life starts at 10am before that nothing is opened and the normaly buzzling streets are empty except Mc Donald and Au bon pain! DAY 1 We still needed lot of rest as we were still sick so we limited the visit of the city few hours a day. We spent lot of time watching movies, catching up with the blog offline. Where we stayed was a posh neighbourhood and in small area you have all the worse junk food restaurants ever but here is considered as classy restaurants. The first evening we ate at Pizza Hut and the service was alike a 5 stars restaurants! In the morning we walked to the Victoria monument and in the afternoon we went for a stroll in the district. DAY 3 -4 For our last day in Kolkata, we visited the National Museum, a real disappointment as half of it was closed or in renovation... We enjoyed our last Indian meal... Below the last hours... the clock is ticking... DAY 2
Recovering slowing, we went to explore a new area. We took the tube to Kalighat Kali Temple actually the only line in Kolkata ! We were lucky to be lost in the small streets since they were nothing like the rest of Kolkata. Once at the temple, we were asked to pay a entry fee variable between 50 and 100 RS. It was again a rip off, we just left.
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A week went off with ups and downs and we were now on the road again. The journey to Lucknow according Lonely Planets should last about 7 hours. Once at the station it turned out that it will take 12 hours. In reality we spent 16 hours in the bus and had a break down around 8pm. It was a very bad timing as no one would help us. The reasons are simple as that closed for laziness or drunk! Driving at 30 km/h we got lucky around 11pm and arrived in busy Lucknow at 2:30. The next stop was Varanasi: 8 hours away from Lucknow. We took the challenged and continued our journey. We could have a decent sleep at the back of the bus although the road are in a very bad state and finaly got off the bus at 12am instead of 10am. (We had a second break down!!!) 32 hours trip beat all the records in a red box! Varanasi 12th-16th mai Varanasi or the city of light - the holiest city in India where Hindus come to bath in the Ganga (not recommended) and also be cremated on the Ghats (Benaras). It represents the circle of life - birth to death. It is known as the city of the deity of Lord Shiva as well.
In 1656 when Aurengzeb (from the Mughal´s dynasty) became king, he destroyed most of temples and built mosques instead, causing a temporary setback. After his death, most Indian city were ruled by pro-Hindu king. Our goal was to take a picture of the Ganga river with Hindu bathing but a virus blow up our plans. I got sick, a very bad cold. We could forget about walking in the maze of the old city, observing the Ganga river bank or even visiting Sarnath where Budda hold his first sermont about 5 months after his enlightenment. Sarnath is located 8 km away from Varanasi. What we experienced at the guesthouse was a bit weird, the family who lives there uses the guesthouse for their own purposes. As guests we were not welcomed to sit in the guests common room when family was around and the helpers just invaded the room any time not giving a chance to switch off the fan or do anything. The last but not the least, another earthquake in Nepal (7.4) occured on our arrival day. Nothing happened in Varanasi but people were concerned about the aftershocks. the tribes After one week in the Himalayas, we went back to Chidderwala as promised we will stay three weeks. The family and the servants were waiting for us with a delicious meal (Curry pakora). Everyone was enthustiastic to see each other again but it was maybe too much! Indeed on Monday we wanted to start some projects but we really had nothing to do! No material, no instruction neither so we decided to deal with our own mission: getting ready for Thailand and Cambodia too! We applied to some volunteering jobs and we found one in Trat (Thailand) and in Shinoukville (Cambodia). We also went to the river to wash our clothes after one week trek if was more than needed, we read books, we chilled a lot, we edit pictures, we visited our neighboor the tribes and we got even an argument with the owner of the guesthouse. About the row everything started when the mother and her son went out of town for a week to attend the opening of her daughter dentist practice. The father did not go pretending to have duties! The very same evening he invited some people (guru and foreigners) to spend one night and eat good food. At 8 pm when going to the kitchen for diner the servant was stressed and needed urgently helped. She told us that 8 guests were coming!!!! She had to prepare diner!!!! It was not the first time that we were facing such a situation. The only issue is that the servants don’t have anything to say either they do the job or they will be fired. They start working at 8am until needed when guests are invited. So no contracts, labour law whatsoever, just 5000 RS per month equivalent 75€. We helped as solidarity, we chopped lots of veg and prepared as much as we could. Meanwhile, the other servant was preparing in the other place meat! Here is one strict rule: alcool, meat and egg are prohibited in the kitchen and the guesthouse. That evening, the guests ate meat in the eating room and had lot of alcool! They were without knowing it breaking the rules.They played music until late and had so much fun. We were not invited even we were offered food without rice and chappati! Obviously the owner of the guesthouse did not want us around and the servants had to stay until 11:30 pm. THE EMPTY FRIDGE AND KKRUST The very next day we had to live another reality: the fridge was empty and the guests were gone!!!! The father usually goes for grocery shopping but just brought a cucumber as veg for the rest of the week! We concluded: no mother no food! Indian way of doing thing: tricking! Önder was asked what we wanted for breakfast: he said as usual paratas! He replied he cannot offer a continental breakfast. No one spoke of bread and butter! The only breakfast he could offer was chick peas! As I heard the conversation, as usual I was not involved, but I took the right to speak! I just went into the kitchen and raise my case!!!! From that day on we cooked our food. Right after we went to eat great burgers at KKrust down town and we bought some groceries fruits and veg, pasta for the rest of the week! For this volunteering we had a contribution of 3, 50 € per day and per head, we just paid the meals we had! The owner did not talk to us anymore and did not say good bye?! The wedding Visiting the tribes was a new experience. We could not really understand each other, a simple smile is sometimes more than enough! They left Jemmu and Kashmir and now they live in a spartan way: one trunck, few cooking ustensiles, cows and few chickens. Their house is made of mud and hay. A spring runs just in front of the house, it helps to wash dishes and clothes and have a shower. They get power supply from the guesthouse. Every day a little boy was coming and shouted “auntie, auntie, light!” Water, light and few items are enough to make a living out of it. The kids did not have no toys, the only thing they could have it what they built with wood and plastic. Despite it they looked happy and went often swimming in the spring. We liked to go there and play with the kids. the argument with the owner Saturday afternoon, we (the helpers, the new yoga teacher and us) were sitting under the mango tree enduring the heat, 45 degrees, no wind, no rain, just heat and high pressure while 500 m away music was playing very loud. We assumed it was a wedding going on. Around 8 we decided just to go for half an hour and had a look! It was pitch dark even using our torch was scary. We still had in mind the experience with the cobra. We only spotted a rat in the sewage. Enough to make me jump! Once at the wedding place, we met the owner´s father and he invited us to come in to have some food. Ir was very nice of him but we just had diner (sweet paratas and noodles), we were not hungry at all. It was a buffet. We had some salad, rice with fish curry and some sweets. The men asked Önder to go with them and drink behind the curtain/next door. Refusing a drink was not acceptable but they gave up. The women as usual were staying with the kids on the other side. People had fun starring at us or taking pictures or videos of us. When we were about to go back to the guesthouse, guests took us to the dance floor. Kids enjoyed the Punjab music and danced like crazy, women sat in a row like onions and just next to the men drinking and sitting in circle. Since we arrived a energetic grand mother seemed to like us and helped to get some food, to be integrated us amongst the women and designed a henna tatoo as well! We were obliged to dance hindi style, Önder with a drunken guy and I with the grandmother. It was a blast! It was time to go home... The most surprising thing is that the bride and groom were not there.
The wedding will actually take place the day at midnight. The tradition is that the couple has to go around a fire 7 times. The last day we managed 23 km in 8 hours, crossing the two rivers!
77km in one week - with ups and downs like the Himalayas!
Base camp - HarKiDoon - 7 km - 3500 m Wake up 4:45am Departure 6am Arriving at HarKiDoon 10am We enjoyed the frozen nature early in the morning, the sun rise and the altitude 3500m. The air was thiner, breathing was more difficult and we could see the snow melting. The Swargarohini mountain and the valley!
Unlike the promise, we did not stay two days at HarKiDoon only few hours. At the base camp - 3000 m - 7 km away from Har-Ki-doon.
On the way to Har-Ki-Doon base camp we met Peter and Meenaksi, a Indo Germancouple. It was fantastic to speak with Westeners! We were tuned. Despite the rain, we spoke for a while and confirmed that we could walk half way through to the glacier. So far we did not whether it was still on or not. We spent the rest of day in the tent and when it was not raining we went for a photo session! Temperatures dropped to 5 degrees day time and minus at night! TALUKA - OSLA - 2560m At 3 am, we were awake and we had a look at the sky, it was a clear sky! We wanted to have a great picture and we unpacked our cameras and put the appropriate settings and left the camera outside! The camera took 10 pictures but nothing good came out! only black pics! Same as day 1 and 2, the breakfast was extra light: two spoon of noodle! We were really upset and disappointed as it was not what we expect to start a 15 km trek. The landscape became less familiar, the nature wilder and the mountains steeper and sterile. The air was pure and dry. We crossed several waterfalls but unlike on day 1 we did not need to take off our shoes and feel the cold! From Taluka no cars could come through, at that point people use mules. There is no electricity which means that people wo live there burn wood and light candles. People live completely with the nature. Temperatures during the day were hot and at night very cold. It is a tough and rough environment. In 21st century people still managed to live without lamps, phones, Internet, Facebook! Like the day before, we went to the river and just washed our feet! It was too cold! We explored the aera and had fun taking pictures!
a story to be continued... We met people on the way who said that the glacier and Harkidoon were opened. If we don’t mind snow, we can go there! On that day, the guide told us that Harkidoon was closed?! Sanskri - Taluka. 2000m. 12 km. wake up time 6 am. breakfast 7 am . departure 8 am. after a light breakfast we started for the first day a walking your in the forest. It looked like Europe! it was a nice sunny day and an easy walk. we had 2 adventures: crossing two rivers. It was impressive how cold the river was. It was melting snow from the mountain! Once the base camp we had lunch with the dogs and then we went to the river: had a quick wash, relaxed and had a photo session with the locals!
Going to a trek was a difficult decision to take. Rely on an Indian organisation after 4 month in the country made us sceptic. It took us a week of to pick one trek and eventually we chose the harkidoon trek. For two reasons: staying at 3500 m for two nights with a view on Swargarohini going to a glacier We were entuthiastic but we experessed lot of reservations. Har-ki-doon - 25thapril - 2ndmai DAY 1 7 am on our way to the Himalayas. at the back of the jeep we were good sitted but sick! we had a 7 hour trip! We we're looking forward to arriving and checking in. It was a big surprise when we arrived, the guesthouse turned into a base camp! We could forget the last hot shower and one good night sleep in a room! It was what we were thinking about the Indian organisation and promises. Everthing is nice on paper but in reality it is desaster! The trek material was provided : sleeping bags, tent, inlet etc...
The sleeping bags were not clean (hair and grass in it) The entry of the tent was not waterproof. it rained the afternoon and rain almost dripped in our shoes! The inlets were missing.. The guide already mentionned that the tour to the peak might be cancelled, the highlights of the trek! It was enough for the first day. We were prepared for the rest of the trek...At least we thought so. Osla - Harkidoon - 11km - 2560m After three days hard days coping with the group´s attitude, the food we finally had a very good day. The walking tour turned into a trek! The terrain and changing climates made it more challenging. The trail is steeper and we also saw lots of fields with some rare and unique flowers. What was also visible was the Swargarohini mountain, 6200m! It was a stunning view. Before reaching it we had a long way to go and lots of stories to tell. The first two km led to a village Osla, 2500m where we stayed quite a while. Osla is the only place where you have a satellite which means communication with the world! One lady called her family up. We were waiting for her and she came back with the terrible news: it was an earthquake in Nepal on 25th April, scale 7.5- we were on 28th! We were also worried but we could not do anything. People in Osla are quite poor, they wear wool clothes but rubber shoes without socks. They live with the nature (cutting wood, harvesting, ploughing fields etc..) and try to live with the tourism activity in a way that they beg for toffee, rupees and medicine. One trick is to accuse tourists of entering the Duryodhana temple and then give them a fine. We had a very bad argument with an old lady saying that I wanted to go in the temple with my shoes. I was just leaning railing to take a good picture. Locals slept on it or listened to music very loudly. We paid 150 rupees, bought a coconut and left the place. What stroke us were the kids, too many of them who did not go to school. People who live in the nature live with its rhythm: they wake up early in the morning with the sunrise. But here in Chidderwala it was different. At 4 am the Sikh and Hindu temple will start the chantings, they will go for two hours! First thing in the morning is to go to the temple and then take care of the cattle or/and go to the field. Hard work without machines, women harvested weat with a machete all day long! It reminded me of van Gogh ´s paintings… During two weeks, we had the opportunity to regenerate our energy, eat well (when guests were there) and explore the nature. The first days there was a crew who were shooting a movie about Ayurvedic plants. We could benefit from the knowledge of an Ayurvedic doctor. It was fantastic to be surrounded by 100 of useful herbal plants and crops. We were taught about animals and we could heard at night: elephants, birds and a kind of fox crying like a baby. One day, we could see 100 m away from the guesthouse elephant footprints. They went to eat some sugar canes during the night! Another day, while seating at 8 pm drinking our last tea, someone out there shot a gunfire. We were told a couple of days later that a leopard tried to kill a cow! The leopard was scared and ran of, the cow was saved! One Sunday evening, coming back from Rishikesh, we walked on the irrigation system (the usual path used here to go from A to B), Önder stepped on a snake that was crawling up the wall. The snake was totally disoriented and surprised. I was behind and started shouting and kept on saying: “I am scared, Ahhhhhhhhhhh”. Within a second the snake got on its defensive. Önder tried to calm me down and made me shut it! He passed by the snake and came to take me! Few days later, we met up with the snake again. We are sure this is the same one. This time it was in the wall of the kitchen outside searching for a place to stay! The family came and the mother took a stick and just killed it! It was small cobra. Small or big cobras have the same poison. We avoided the worst on the previous Sunday: being biten by a cobra… The nearest hospital is about 45 minutes away… At night the garden turned into a magical fairy tale. We had never seen that before firebugs in wawes, lights floating in the air constantly. We looked at them every evening as it is very rare for us to assist in such a show. Crickets were also very active during the night, it was like being at concert! Nature can provide you with non ending entertainment!
In the morning what we liked was to observe the nature waking up especially the birds flying around. Their intensive colours (green, blue, yellow, red and orange) were making a rainbow in the sky! During day time, the nature was still and very silent as the heat paralysed it. The only ones who were still active were the monkeys. We could see how they were looking for food in the garden coming from near by. It was very funny to have spotted them stealing chappati in the kitchen, we left the back door by mistake opened! Once, as the chief monkey was around trying to sneak in, I went after it and it remained hidden. It could see me from where it was but not me! Out of nowhere it just scarred the hell out of me and showed me its ugliest and angriest face! It was like a horror movie, I did not even have the time to film…You don´t mess up with a hungry monkey! As mentioned earlier (part I), we were looking forward to working again. The first thing we were told is that at the moment there is no work. No panic, we are used to that we are in India! First we had guests to entertain and we gave a great help to the family when serving continental breakfast, soup etc. Talking about “no work”, well within two weeks we managed the following tasks: - Management organisation and developing concept to lure European customers - Polished furnitures - Scrub and paint flower pots, the kitchen door,shutters and pillars - Do some gardening: watering the plants, plants some herbals (marigold), replant the strawberies, collect mango leaves - Built a fence - Do some maintenance in the guesthouse recently opened but still already needs some maintenances. - Serve guests - Organised a tool room - Train the staff - Sport every two days - Playing with the dog! We worked 4 to 5 hours per day at a good pace and enjoyed it until a certain extend. We were facing a huge problem: the working mentality. The family is not used to work at all and is lazy. We were missing tools to do the work maintenances and every day the family should have been brought the requested tools but nothing occurred! We were told later, tomorrow, this evening etc. It was tireing, we decided not to ask any more and worked in a different way! Lastly we succeeded to fulfill our engagement and finish what we started! At the beginning of our stay, we thought that the owner were considered us as a team but day after day it was not obvious at all. He always involved me less and less. It was this particular situation where she gave me advice to build the fence. I just told here: well it is Önder´s job, why not talking to him directly, if not I will need to explain the things again! She managed it even she had to go over some rules (talk to a man, I gave her the permission so it was ok!) At that time, we gathered with her husband, Önder, her and I. They were discussing peacefully the construction (first treat the wood and so on) until the husband turned to his wife and spoke to her in Hindi. We could not understand a word but he talked to her in such a disrespectful manner that we understood he turned her advice down. She suddently left. We did not know what to do but I knew that I was not at the right place. So I went to her and what I could see in her eyes was tears and a broken heart. She always has to hide her despair and her distress all the time but that day it reached its paramount. She prevented me to say anything anymore. It was always like this, her husband always makes whatever he likes. Such scenes like this one occured repeatitly. One evening, he called her up to come to the guesthouse to prepare dinner for one customer as the butler were already gone. They live just few meters away. The problem was that there were no fresh food especially veg! She had to make it up and was so mad at her husband. I supported her and tried to help her as much as I could. During this time, the husband was having guests and was playing the supervisor!
This time the owner´s business partner requested Önder to make professional pictures of his place to be able to promote it on Internet or leaflets. He/we agreed on that we will charge him. It went beyond the project we were involved, now we were doing business with Indians! As usual nothing is planed and one day the owner of the guesthouse just said my friends are here and we will make pictures now. He took Önder apart and said it is worth it 100USD! I could follow the entire scene and this point I could not keep my mouth shut. It is as simple as that: we are a team either you worked with both of us or with no one! Speaking about money that way was such a disgrace! 100USD was a common saying for the owner, everything costs for him 100USD. To put it in a nutshell, Önder and I argued, we did not make any pictures at all and we even skipped that day an important Sikh festival! In the end, the mother was angry at us, the owner did not talk to me 4 days!!!! We focused on our work and refugeed in the nature! We were looking for a volunteering place and finally we ´ve got lucky. Nothing had worked in Himachal Pradesh but now the chance smiled at us! We called Vivek up who has a profile on Helpx and he accepted us! Highly motivated we were impatient to arrive on the following Monday at his guesthouse, yoga and spa called Nature care village. We were Saturday so we had some free time to discover Rishikesh.
The guest house is only 15km away from Rishikesh but it took us three hours to get there. We got stuck at Nepali farm, the second stop where Autorishaw drivers wanted to charge us 100 or 200 Roupees. People looked at us amazed when they asked us about our situation but instead of helping they just laughed or turned their head away. We had another hard time as we knew that it costs max 10 RS. Out of the blue someone (our lucky star) helped us and even shouted at the drivers and managed a drive to our destination for 10 RS. Nature care village is located in a quiet aera near a clear spring and a national forest where elephants and leopards live. On the day of arrival, it was the opening. Guests from Israel had freshly arrived like us! We first had a very nice lunch and then had some rest! In the afternoon, we went for a walk with the owner and the group. It was entertaining and being in the nature was really relaxing. We felt good and had a good feeling!. We had our own accomodation with bathroom and enough privacy. What a relief after the Shimla experience! We planed to stay three weeks. Chidderwala was a new experience for us as we ended up in a Sikh family. We had the chance to visit some temples in Delhi and to have read more about the traditions. It helped us a lot when asking questions and understanding the culture. At some point, we failed to comprehend it. Customs are so different especially when it comes to eating habits . In the Sikh culture, everything is made for food or eating. We were explained that when eating people should remain seated therefore they are served. Moreover, in the Sikh family you have a protocole. The guests have a higher priority and will be served first. Then, the father will eat followed by the mother with her son and finaly the servants. In this particular family, the daughter, recently married visited with her husband her parents. We had a formal diner with the head of the family, them and us. The mother and son were excluded. As far as we are concerned, we were shocked. Every meal raised the same question: what will be the eating rule today ???? 2 am in Rishikesh. After 16 hours journey, we could not find our hotel…the few peope still awaked did not want to help us and googlemaps was useless as well. On the top of that, we had a power cut. How to search a hotel in pitch dark streets. We almost slept in the street. By chance we met a taxi driver who was picking up people at a hotel. After 10 minutes discussion with the receptionist, we finally checked in. Welcome to impossible India! The very next day, we found the place where we wanted to stay. Meanwhile we had a positive answer from a CS (couchsurfer). We managed to meet Wrishi – the CS - but we finaly did not stay at his place. We really had a hard time travelling trough Northern India and we needed some rest! Wrishi took us away from the touristic aera to an ashram (”come to work”) where we had a simple dinner for free. The very next day, he looked for some Russian CS who set up a camp on the Ganga bank! It was funny until they offered us to have a holy tea made with Ganga water. We just declined the invitation and left after a while. For us Rishikesh was a place where we went with specific obligations i.e. to buy fruits and veg in the market, recharge our Internet credits and meet Wrishi for lunch on Sunday. What people do when visiting this holy city is either to go to temples, attend a meditation class, walk on the river bank or register to a yoga course or what we call: a course to break your neck. You can get a yoga certificate for 100$, spend a week learning or not yoga. At the end of the week, you can pretend that you are a yogi or a yoga teacher! Wishri the CS recommended us one good Ashram where we could stay so we applied but unfortunately it was fully booked. We tried a couple of time and then we just left it there ... We went up to the foothills of the Himalayas We breathed the Himalayan air We stepped the Himalayas foothills We had a Himalayan dinner We were two days at the Himalyas foothills We dreamt of the Himalayas We were as angry as a Himalayan storm The greed for money was stronger than the Himalayas I shed tears at the foothills of the Himalayas ... The story behind!
We applied for a project on Helpx, we were supposed to collect plastic bottels in the Himalayas but we ended up in an NGO and then doing couchsurfing there! The project could not even start as the winter season this year was longer than expected. We could not even reached the Himalayas at all, the roads and bypasses were still closed! As an alternative, we should have promoted women empowerment in a family but behind it it was just a homestay. We were asked to contribute (pay) 7US dollars. The NGO was also running a business called charitable tours. The manager of the NGO did not know that we were coming as volunteers and he pretended that he did not know HELPX. We checked on that and we found out that the NGO is also on HELPX. His saying was not straightforward and blamed the other person who did not inform him about us and did not explain about the projects. After two days and trying to recover from a long journey (14 hours), we decided to leave Himachal Pradesh people were not honest and the conditions of living were bad. Shimla is located at 2000m. 8°C, no hot water and in the evening no water at all, no heater and a very poor equipped kitchen! We left disappointed but we give a second chance to the Himalayas! We hope that Rishikesh, the mother Ganga, will welcome us! The Taj Mahal is coupled with Agra fort, where Shah Jahan was imprisoned, well have a look a the prison! We could not miss it… Finally we made it to the Taj and Agra fort… We really wanted to explore the region a lot more Fathepur Sikri (about 30 km away from Agra) and Jaipur-Rasjasthan (5 hours from Agra). The two days spent in Agra were so exhausting, we decided not to go. It is not fun to travel in India (roads, traffic, red bus etc)!!! We think that a good documentary will do instead! ;)
Agra was the imperial Mughal capital and had a strategic location on the Jamuna bank, a holy river. From the 16th and 17th century, the vast empire was ruled by 6 kings: Babur, Akbar, Yumayun, Jahangir, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb. People from all over the world (Persia, Central Asia and Europe) came to Agra, as the kings expanded and built forts, mausoleums and had an interest in diverse culture. Shah Jahan´s parents were originally from Timurid and Genghis Khan´s clan. Shah Jahan the 5th King of The Mughals dynasty left one of the famous tomb in the world: the Taj Mahal. We could say a love story between Muntaz Mahal and Shah Jahan made of marble and precious stones. The story behind it Taj Mahal means “Crown Palace” is a tribute to his beloved wife Muntaz Mahal, a Muslim Persian princess, third wife of Shah Jahan made him promised the following: - Built the Taj - Be kind to her children - Visit the Taj on her death anniversary - Marry again, Shah Jahan had 300 wifes and 5000 concubines! Muntaz Mahal and Shah Jahan were INSEPARABLE and his wife accompanied him in a war campaign. Unfortunately his favourite princess died after giving birth to their 13th child. Shah Jahan could not bear the pain and went back to Agra where he stayed one week imprisoned. It is said that his hair turned grey/white overnight. One year later in 1631, the king started to build the Taj, the construction was finished in 1653 and Shah Jahan designed the Taj on his fith previous grandfathers’ tombs (i.e in Delhi Humayun). Aurangzeb, the last Mughal king, overthrowned his father and killed all his competitors (brothers and cousins) and imprisoned his until his death in the fort, who had a view on the Taj. The prison was actually a part of the fort, not a tiny cell! In 1666, Aurangzeb buried his father next to his wife. 20 000 workers – 500 kg gold – 20 years – 41 Millions Roupees The Taj Mahal is just a beauty! Legend about the Taj
It is said that Shah Jahan ordered that the workers were their hand chopped off so that they could not build another Taj. Guides will tell tourists stories about a black Taj, started to be built on the other side of the river bank. But it is proved that there is no trace of any such construction! Our experience Agra is the touristic place where you have every one meter on person to sell you something. Sellers still keep asking you to buy, to take a tuk tuk, to rent a bike until you loose your temper, your nerves,your mind! Yes, we lost it in Agra! It was an impossible day trip! We only had peace when visiting the Taj although at 6:30 am it was very crowded! Never mind, we managed it! It is amazing to see how Indian authorities preserved the Taj. You have about 30 items prohibited (i.e. books!) to take with you even Totoro was refused to go in!! No cars are allowed around 500 m (pollution), the river banks are closed to public because of terrorists’ acts. Unlike the rest of India, the Taj is clean, neat and structured!!!! The Taj Mahal is not only the beauty of a monument this is also a sad reality. People live on the river bank with view on the Taj! National museum: 150,000 pieces from the Harapa Hindu valley to Central Asian antiquities, including artifacts from the Silk route and the Sultans. The national museum covered about 5000 year’s history. After 4 hours exploring in the Indian history we had the chance to assist a concert giving a tribute to the Deccan period. We also went to: (no pictures to that)
Akshardham Temple From the tube you have a good view to the temple! Once there it looks like Dysneyland ;) No pics is allowed, it was built recently 2005, the entry is still free! 20,000 carved deities and reflects traditional Orissan, Gujarati, Mughal and Rajasthani architectural elements. CONNAUGHT PLACE AREA We ended up there by mistake… it is sometimes nice to take the bus and go in the wrong direction! Tipical colonial British buildings! The place was named after George V’s uncle who visited in 1921. Jama Masjid We tried to enter the biggest mosque India but it was a fight! I was not allowed to go through the main entrance and Önder convinced the bodyguard that he was Muslim and got the permission to visit the mosque! Sah Jahan built it in 1656, it took 6 years and cost about 1 million roupees and 5000 workmen. 20000 worshippers can fit in the mosque. Red fort in old Delhi - Shahjahanabad or the 7th city of Delhi built between 1638 and 1649 by Sha Jahan (Taj Mahal). Even if he shifted the capital from Agra to Delhi, spent more time in Agra. Lahore gate, impressive and show the direction of Lahore (Pakistan). That day, we skipped the visit and we went to our refugee camp but we did not miss Agra fort. The prime minister addresses the Independence Day rally here. To have a better understanding of the Mughals´ history, it is better to go to Agra first and then Delhi as only the last Mugahl king (Aurengzeb) reigned from Delhi for a short time. Sha Jahan Old Delhi: where medieval (narrow streets, bazaars and red fort) meets twentyfirst century and modernity! Sikhs temple:
The first visit in a Sikh temple. Unlike the Hindus ones, the visit is organised. As foreigners, in every Shik temple you have a foreign office to explain few unknown rules. Not only women must wear a scarf but also men, in the temple shoes are prohibited, sitting should be cross-legged and pictures are tolerated. The Sikh religion is a mix of Hinduism, Boudhism and Islam. To simplify it, what stroke us is the temple architecture has a Hindu touch as the rituals, the decoration inside the temple is taken from Islam. Sisganj Gurudwara in Old Delhi: Gurudwara Bangla Sahib: is associated to the eight guru (Guru Harkrishan), in the Sikh religion there are 10. In the middle of the temple, the pond is considered to be holy. Getting off at the wrong tube station gave us the time to explore a couple of sightseeings such as Safdarjang’s Tomb and the Lodi garden. The Lodis´were the last rulers before the Mughals took over in 1526. Humayun’s tomb: When the Mughal brought a Persian style into their architecture in the mid 16 century i.e mix of red sandstone and white marble, the gardens and the dome. All these features were reproduced when building the Taj Mahal! Nizamuddin dargah / mosque: going to this mosque was like walking in an Afghan or Pakistan maze! The mosque was small, crowdy and noisy and surprisingly people follow some Hinduism rituals. Worshippers were burning insences and given offerings to the Nizadmuddin. The atmosphere was so different from a mosque in Turkey or Northern Africa. Indian Gate: A war memorial.
on the top it is written: TO THE DEAD OF THE INDIAN ARMIES WHO FELL HONOURED IN FRANCE AND FLANDERS MESOPOTAMIA AND PERSIA EAST AFRICA GALLIPOLI AND ELSEWHERE IN THE NEAR AND THE FAR-EAST AND IN SACRED MEMORY ALSO OF THOSE WHOSE NAMES ARE RECORDED AND WHO FELL IN INDIA OR THE NORTH-WEST FRONTIER AND DURING THE THIRD AFGHAN WAR It is to the tribute 90000 soldiers who fought for the British Indian army. Walking back to the tube was like walking in Paris in the Luxemburg garden! Qutb Minar is the fourth city of Delhi (out of 7) and is located in South New Delhi. In 1193 Qutbuddin Aibak built it over a Rajput citadelle and a temple just after the defeat of the last Hindu kingdom. Hindu motifs were also carved in the pillars.
The tower looks alike an Afghan tower and was used as a minaret. 73 m high, 15 diameters, 5 storeys. The iron pillar in the middle of the mosque: it was erected outside a Vishnu temple prior the mosque. (5 first pictures) Lotus temple or Baha’i House of Worship: is a place for prayer and meditation for everybody without any distinction of race, cast or religion. It is made of 27 white-marble petals. The lotus is a common plant to Hinduism, Islam and Boudhism. Next to it, you also have a Krishna temple. |
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