the entrance to the Taj Majhal before the
gates open at sunrise. Within no more
than two hours the grounds are awash
with a sea of visitors. Words cannot
describe the serenity and beauty of the
place and I would undoubtedly do it an
injustice if I attempted to do so.
One site that is often forgotten but which
is no less spectacular and is in close
proximity to Agra is the deserted city of
Fatehpur Sikri, a royal city abandoned
following climatic change in the region
and the disappearance of the city’s main
water source. It contains a mosque
designed to hold 10,000 worshippers,
palaces, residences and halls of
audience which are built of decorative
red sandstone. The city only lasted for
some 14 years before being abandoned
in 1584.
My journey around northern India
continued by coach to the city of Jaipur,
which was built in the early eighteenth
century and planned as a city of broad
avenues built of sandstone, which was
later painted pink in 1876 to celebrate the
arrival of the Prince of Wales. The city
palace in Jaipur, the former residence
of Maharajahs, is now a fine museum
containing rare manuscripts, paintings,
royal garments and weapons, and was
most definitely worth a visit.
Close by to the palace is the Royal
Observatory of Jai Singh which contains
a vast assembly of astronomical
instruments made of marble and brass
and just a few miles fr om the city, is the
magnificent Amber Palace. This is an
imposing hilltop fort containing large
courtyards and interiors which include
inlaid alabaster panels and the famous
“Chamber of Mirrors”. The only ways
up to the fort are on foot (a long, slow
and tiring journey); by jeep (which risks
serious spinal injury); or elephant!
My journey continued (8 days into my
adventure) with a 180km drive to the
Ranthambore National Park for a 2
day stay in the hope of spotting a tiger.
Ranthambore is one of India’s largest
tiger reserves under “Project Tiger”
a scheme designed to discourage
poaching and help grow the ever
dwindling Bengal tiger population. After
2 days in the park and 3 bumpy safari
rides in open top army trucks, despite
seeing many monkeys, deer and even
the odd crocodile, the tiger hunt was
abandoned!
I then set off on what was to be my last
experience of Indian railways’ “overnight
sleepers” as I headed south to Mumbai.
Mumbai is a vast and sprawling city set
on the west coast of India and known
not only for its “Gateway of India” (one
of the first sights you see when entering
its port) but also as being the unfortunate
scene of recent terrorist attacks at the
famous Taj Hotel. It is also the home of
India’s thriving Bollywood industry.
Although Mumbai will appear on the
itinerary of most first time visitors to
India, it was probably my least favourite
destination. Lacking the cultural heart
of Delhi but matching it for noise and
pollution (made worse by the heat and
humidity) I could only spend a few hours
at a time out of the comfort of an air
conditioned hotel. I was therefore ready,
by Day 13 of my tour, to move onto
Aurangabad, this time a day time train
journey and thankfully my last.
Aurangabad is a city used as a staging
post for the (relatively) nearby cave
temple complexes of Ellora, a World
Heritage site, and Ajanta.
The Ellora caves date from the sixth
to eighth centuries AD and comprise
more than 30 Buddhist, Jain and Hindu
temples painstakingly hewn out of the
hillside. It is believed that the caves were
originally carved by priests and pilgrims
who were travelling an ancient trade
route. The highlight of the complex is the
amazing Kailasa Temple, a replica of the
mountain abode of the Hindu god, Shiva,
and which is believed to be the world’s
largest monolithic structure. Carved
out of solid rock, it measures 33 metres
and with the most intricate and detailed
carving inside.
The nearby Ajanta caves are no less
impressive. Comprising 29 caves
located in the Vindhya hills these were
only discovered in 1819 by a company
of British soldiers on a tiger hunt. The
caves themselves were created between
the second century BC and seventh
century AD and were cut from volcanic
lava in a forested ravine. As with Ellora,
many of the caves contain beautiful
wall paintings depicting scenes from
Buddhist legend.
Day 15 and my journey continued by
coach (approximately 10 hours) to
Bijapur, a small Muslim town dating back
to the fourteenth century. As with so
many towns and cities in India, although
they contain many excellent sites in
their own right they are often stopovers
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