Northern India: Fatehpur Sikri

part 7 of ...

Fatehpur Sikri
(City of Victory)

photograph courtesy of Amitsalla, GNUFDL v1.2

Legend has it that Akbar made a pilgrimage to a renowned Sufi saint, Sheik Salim Chisti, to seek his blessings. The saint predicted that Akbar would have a son. Later, when Akbar had a son (Jahangir), he built Fatehpur Sikri as a tribute to the saint. The city was built from 1571 to 1573, and

Northern India: Taj Mahal

part 6 of ...
Taj Mahal: A symbol of Love

We couldn't just walk into the Taj Mahal. We bought our tickets at a separate location, where they gave us complementary water and shoe covers.


Then, we took an electric vehicle to the entrance; the government's attempt to reduce pollution.

We went through security, as usual.


Outer gate.


We covered our shoes with cloth wraps.
It is common to

Northern India: Uttar Pradesh

part 5 of ...
UTTAR PRADESH

Sikandra

Akbar himself picked this location for the construction of his tomb. He died before it was completed, but his son, Jahangir, completed the building. The mausoleum of the Emperor Akbar was built from 1605-1613, before the Taj Mahal.


Each side of the wall has it's own gate - this is the south entrance. Notice the four white marble minarets. There are also

Northern India: New Delhi

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part 4 of ...
NEW DELHI


India Gate



This is the national monument of India. It commemorates all of the Indian soliders that fought during WWI and the Afghan Wars.
Here, our guide kept saying "Take pictures, take pictures!" after every bit of

Happy 60th!

part 3 of ...

The main reason for visiting India this time was to celebrate Amjith's parents' wedding celebration. Typically, when a husband turns 60 years old, there is a renewal of wedding vows - a huge celebration!



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Getting there: Amjith's father rented a bus to take us to Thirukkadaiyur, a holy place of Saivism. The bus ride was 6 hours - a ride full of friends and family! We were

Fish pedicures, monolithic architecture, and rabbits just doing their job.

Part 2 of ...




We had lunch at a beautiful hotel by the beach. The buffet was delicious! Pictured below: an okra and onion dish, pasta dish, chickpea dish, and a little cup of fruit.




Here we saw a pool filled with "Doctor Fish" (Garra rufa). They are found in salons in certain places across the globe. We dipped our fingers in the pool to see if we were up for an actual pedicure!


Here the

An Indian Tale

Part 1 of ....

India, the exotic country of rich spices, brilliantly multi-colored saris, and said to be the 'heartbeat of the world'. This is my second trip, so I felt somewhat prepared and knew what to expect. Little did I know we were going to experience so much of India!



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Let me begin by saying that we almost didn't make it to India. Our flight had a layover in Chicago and the UK.