Taj Mahal
Nearby Places from Taj Mahal
Agra
Fort
The construction of the Agra fort was started around 1565 when the initial structures
were built by Akbar. Shah Jahan replaced most of these with his marble creations.
Some however survived, among them are- Delhi Gate, Amar Singh Gate, Akbari Mahal
and the Jahangiri Mahal.
The fort is crescent-shaped, flattened on the east with a long, nearly straight
wall facing the river. It has a total perimeter of 2.4 km, and is ringed by
double castellated ramparts of red sandstone punctuated at regular intervals
by bastions. A 9mt. wide and 10mt.deep moat surrounds the outer wall. An imposing
22mt. high inner wall imparts a feeling of invincible defensive construction.
The route through the Amar Singh gate is dog-legged. The layout of the fort
was determined by the course of the river, which in those days flowed alongside.
The main axis is parallel to the river and the walls bridge out towards the
city.
Fatehpur Sikri
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.
The Diwan-e-Khas entirely unique in its concept is a tall vaulted room with
an intricately carved central pillar and capital supporting a platform that
once held the emperor's throne.
Narrow galleries link this to the corners of the room where it is believed his
ministers sat The airy Panch Mahal a 5 storied structure rising in pyramidal
fashion was probably used by the ladies of the court.
Set like a jewel in a courtyard of pink sandstone is the finest building here,
the marble tomb of Salim Chisti enclosed by finely carved, lacy marble screens.
The Buland Darwaza, an imposing gateway 54 m high was built to commemorate Akbar's
Aligarh the famous university town is a center of Islamic studies. The city
is also noted for its handicrafts and metal wares.
Sikandra
A supurb of Agra, only 13 km. from the Agra Fort, the last resting place of
the Mughal emperor Akbar. Akbar was the greatest of the Mughal emperors and
one of the most secular minded royalties of his time. He was the heir to a long
tradition of oriental refinement, a great patron of the arts, literature, philosophy
and science.
A visit to Akbar's monument opens before one, the completeness of Akbar's personality
as completely as the Taj Mahal does of Mumtaz Mahal's. Akbar's vast, beautifully
carved, red-ochre sandstone tomb is set amidst a lush garden. Akbar himself
planned his own tomb and selected a suitable site for it. To construct a tomb
in one's lifetime was a Tartary custom which the Mughals followed religiously.
Akbar's son Jahangir completed the construction of this pyramidal tomb in 1613.
Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary
Just
176 km. from Delhi is a very special wilderness - the Keoladeo Ghana National
Park, one of the finest water-bird sanctuaries in the world. The 28.73 sq. km.
lake and wetland was artificially created by the Maharaja of Bharatpur in the
19th century. By building small dykes and dams and diverting water from an irrigation
canal, he converted this low lying area into a fine wild fowl shooting preserve.
In a few years, the new wetland surrounded by marginal forests was able to support
thousands of water birds.
mmonly referred to as Bharatpur, the Park is a delight for bird watchers. Over
300 species of birds are found here and raised paths, camouflaged by babul trees
and undergrowth make viewing easy. A quiet ride by boat in the early hours of
the morning is also an unforgettable experience. There are mixed heronries on
the half submerged babul trees and the cacophony is unbelievable as painted
storks, open bills, spoon bills, egrets, cormorants, white ibis and multitudes
of others, tend their young. Jacanas with their iridescent colors and elegant
tail feathers and purple moorhen can be seen delicately treading over the floating
vegetation. While harriers and fishing eagles circle overhead in search of prey,
the pied kingfisher hovers dramatically over the water in a flurry of wings.
There are varieties of storks and cranes and the local sarus crane is elegant
in a livery of grey and red. Every year Bharatpur waits with coated breath for
the arrival of the Siberian cranes.
There are only two wintering places for this rare species -one in Iran and the
other Bharatpur and these beautiful birds with their distinctive red beaks and
facial patches, fly over 6400 km from their summer retreats in Siberia, to get
to them. In 1996, there was great jubilation as a couple of Siberian cranes
with a young one made an appearance in Bharatpur after a lapse of three years.
The forests around the lake at Bharatpur harbor the sambar, chital, nilgai,
jackal, hyena, fox, mongoose and porcupine. Occasionally, a fishing cat can
be seen scooping its prey also commonly seen sunning themselves along edge of
the paths or at Python Point.
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