India – Scenery
The utterly amazing Taj Mahal in Agra (Uttar Pradesh). The Taj is a white marble mausoleum and built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal.
India Gate, New Delhi.
Bu Halima, New Delhi.
Jantar Mantar in Jaipur, Rajasthan. The site is a collection of astronomical instruments, built by Maharaja Jai Singh II between 1727-1734.
Easy traveling by India's railway infrastructure.
Sunset on Lake Chilika, Orissa.
Tea hills in Munnar, Kerala.
Most tea-pickers are women.
Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary. Haven't seen any exciting wildlife except for monkeys!
Push! We all fit in this rickshaw!
Ganesh, taken at Hemakuta Hill (Hampi, Karnataka).
Young boy celebrating holi as Hanuman.
Step tank in Hampi, Karnataka. The recently excavated stepped tank is one of the most beautiful monuments. It measures about 22 meters in square, and 7 meters deep.
Mysore Palace, Karnataka.
Wherever you are, there are cows!
Dhauli Temple, Orissa.
Pipli is a village just outside Bhubaneswar and is no more than one street. It is famous all over India for its distinctive lamps and decorations.
Military parade at the Wagah border (India/Pakistan).
Stunning architecture in Pushkar, Rajasthan.
On the way from Udaipur to Kumbhalgarh (Rajasthan), it suddenly feels like we are trabsported to the Middle Ages with this water wheel.
Kumbhalgarh Fort; built in the 15th century and enlarged in the 19th century, this is also the birthplace of Maharana Pratap, the great king and warrior of Mewar.
'Blue City' Jodhur, Rajasthan. It is said the blue keeps the mosquitoes away.
Rose and I undertake a camel trek for 3 days in the Thar desert (2007).
Dancing woman for our tourist group.
Women carrying water.
Nainital, Uttaranchal. We are at the foot of the Himalayas!
Ganesh Tok at Gangtok, Sikkim.
Bells as Tashi Viewpoint.
Lingdum Monastery, Sikkim.
Tsomgo Lake in Sikkim.
Sadhu performing a ritual at the Varanasi Ghats (Uttar Pradesh).
The laundry is done at the Varanasi Ghats.
Gate of Bara Imambara in Lucknow. Built in 1784; bara means big and imambara is a shrine built by Shia Muslims for the purpose of Azadari.
The well in Bara Imambara, Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh).
Gwalior Fort is built on an isolated rock, overlooking the town in Madhya Pradesh since the 8th century.
Detail of the Chitragupta Temple at the historical site of Khajuraho (Madhya Pradesh).
Kandariya-Mahadeva Temple at Khajuraho. This World Heritage Site has amazed us so many times in the days we were there. This particular temple is considered one of the best examples of temples preserved from the medieval period in India. It is the largest temple of the Western group and built around 1050 by Vidyadhara, arguably one of the greatest Chandela kings.
Interior of one of the Ajanta Caves in Aurangabad, Maharashtra. There are 30 rock-cut cave monuments which date from the 2nd century BCE to the 600 CE. The caves include paintings and sculptures considered to be masterpieces of Buddhist religious art.
Ajanta surroundings. As if we weren't awed yet! ;)
View from the Dhaulatabad Fort, a 14th century fort in Maharashtra.
Ellora Caves (Maharashtra); representing the epitome of Indian rock-cut architecture. The structures were excavated out of the vertical face of the Charanandri hills between 5th-10th century. The 12 Buddhist, 17 Hindu and 5 Jain caves demonstrate the religious harmony prevalent during this period.