INDIA'S HERITAGE MONUMENTS

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Se Cathedral, Velha, Goa : World heritage centre, the largest church in Asia, having a 80 m long aisle and 134 altars (1652). Of it's five bells, one is the famous golden bell, one of the best in the world.

Basilica of Bom Jesus, Velha, Goa : The 17 th century church - a world heritage centre - houses the mortal remains of St. Francis Xavier.

Goa photos

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Hawa Mahal, Jaipur, Rajastan : Palace of winds of 18 th century. The five storied facade of 953 windows was built for the women of the harem to look out without being seen themselves.

Dilwara temples, Abu, Rajastan : A major jain Pilgrim centre with two intricately carved shrines viz. Adinath temple of 1031 AD and Neminath temple of 1230 AD. Hill resort, Nakki lake, Adha devi temple, Gaumuk temple, Raghunathji temple, Sunset point, Honey moon point, Achalgargh fort (8 km) - temple.

Rajastan photos

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1. Dakshinaarka Temple at Gaya, Bihar
2. Suryanaar Koyil in Tamilnadu
3. Suryanarayana Temple at Arasavilli
4. Surya Pahar Temple in Assam
5. Bhramanya Dev Temple at Unao
6. Sun Temple at Modhera - Gujarat
7. The Grand Konark Sun Temple

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Mahabodh temple, BodhGaya, Bihar : The 7 th c temple is erected to mark the spot of the Buddha's enlightenment. Mahabodhini temple (52 m tower crowned by a bell like stupa) - World heritage centre, most sacred Buddhist pilgrim centre with Bodhi tree, stupas, museum.

Nalanda, Gaya, Bihar : Ruins of ancient university (500 BC of the Gupta period, Hieun Tsang also studied here) , Buddhist research centre, Archaeological museum.

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St Thomas Cathedral : It is the oldest English building standing in Mumbai. Construction began in 1672, but remained unfinished until 1718. The church has recently been restored (winning a UNESCO world heritage award in the process) and its airy, whitewashed interior is full of colonial memorials and ornately carved gravestones.

St Thomas Cathedral photos

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Chhatrapati Shivaji terminus (CST): a World heritage centre earlier known as Victoria terminus (V.T.), Bruhat Mumbai mahanagar palika building is near by. Both buildings are of British era, which reflects the blend of Anglo Indian architecture.

Chatrapati Shivaji terminus & Mahanagar Palika building photos

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Basilica of Bom Jesus, Goa : This church is a fine example of Jesuit architecture, is one of the richest churches in Goa and is carpeted with a marble flooring and inlaid with precious stones. The church of Bom Jesus 'Good' or 'infant Jesus' is well known originally for the tomb of St. Francis Xavier and also holds his paintings. The mortal remains of St. Xavier remin here almost 150 years after his death. The interior is entered beneath the choir, supprted by columns. The main altar, extravagently decorated in gold, depicts the infant Jesus under the protection of St. Ignatius Loyola; to each side are subsidiary altars to Our Lady of Hope and St. Michael. In the southern transept, lavishly decorated with twisted
gilded columns and floriated carvings, stands the chapel and tomb of St. Xavier. It was a gift by Medici, Cosimo III who was the Grand Duke of Tuscany. The church is frequented by a large number of tourists. An ornate domed reliquary in silver contains his remains. On his feast day, Dec 3, the saint's finger is displayed to devotees.

St. Francis Xavier is known as the Apostle of the Indies. It was he who introduced Christianity in Inida and the Far East. Born in Spain, he was one of the first seven members of the Jesuit order and began his missionary work in Goa in 1542. He ws canonized in 1622.

Goa photo gallery

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Victoria Memorial : The splendid example of British architecture, this building in Kolkotta, West Bengal, was built in memory of Queen Victoria. The Prince of Wales, later known as King George V, laid the foundation stone on 4 January, 1906. It took 15 years before the Duke of Windsor officially inagurated it on 21 December 1921. Designed by Sir William Emerson, this 61 metre structure of white marble stands on 26 hectares of land. Inspired by the Taj Mahal, its splendid form combines British architecture and Moghul artistry.

The wrought iron gates , the lamp posts, the brass cannons and the statue of then Queen at the entrance - everything spells the magic of British monarchy and its grandeur. A bronze statue of an angel tops the domed memorial. The memorial today treasures many paintings, attires and other items used by he British during their rule in India. This building can also be termed as British Museum. Around 3500 items related to Queen Victoria are kept in 25 rooms of the memorial. In the evenings, the light and sound show is a major attraction for the tourists. The fountain of Joy on the
premises of the memorial presents an atmosphere of memorable charm. At the southern end of the maidan, this memorial was built with the contributions made by the public, even the poor contributed their mite. It was conceived by Lord Curzon. Dancing fountain is near by.

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Borra caves : About 90 km from Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh, are the one million year old Borra caves spread over the Eastern ghats and occupying an area of 2 sq km. These breathtakingly beautiful and the natural formation of these caves is a unique feature. The limestone caves were formed as a result of the action of the Gosthani river on the mineral deposits, thus dissolving the limestone. The dissolved limestone trickled down drop by drop by on the floor of the cave, which solidified to form the irregularly shaped stalagmites. Simultaneously, some of the water drops from the roof solidified to form stalactites.

The entire region surrounding Borra caves is inhabited by tribals for whom the place has enormous religious significance. According to a popular legend, a cowherd was the first person to trace these caves by mistake. When he saw the deposits accumulated in the form of a Shivlinga, the cowherd thought that God has saved his cow. Since then it has become a place of worship for the tribals. Several interesting structures inside the caves include a mushroom formation, a temple, a mosque, a church and many more. The Borra caves are brightly illuminated by 63 lamps of
mercury, halogen and sodium vapour, which make the interior of the caves colurful and spectacular.

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Deeg was the first capital of the Jat People with Badam singh as its ruler in 1722. He was responsible for constructing the royal palace on the southern side of the garden, now called Purana Mahal. Near Bharatpur bird sanctuary in Rajasthan lies another extraordinary tourist complex, consisting of a mini lake, a palace, a fort, and an intricate fountain system. The rustic palce does not have the romantic lure of Udaipaur or Jaipur. In 1730, crown prince Surajmal was reported to have errected the strong fortress with towering walls and a deep water moat with high ramparts about 6 metres wide in the southern portion of the town. Although the Surajmal shifted his capital to Bharatpur, he lavished attention on Deeg. He built elegant palaces in the form of a quadrangle.

At its cenre is a well laid garden with walkways, decorative flowerbeds, shrubs, trees and numerous fountains, which keep the place cool. The building to the north is called Nand Bhavan. One of the palaces Suraj Bhawan, is built entirely of marble and is ornamented with stones of different colours. Another palace built with grey stone is called Kishan Bhawan. A massive water tank on the terrace of Kishan Bhawan feeds the fountain in the middle of the garden. The gigantic water tank is capable of holding 6 to 7 lakh gallons of water.

This garden citadel at Deeg is strictly Mughal in its layout and style. An atmosphere of mystery and romance pervades the whole place. The beautful marble swing of Gopal Bhawan is a war trophy brought from the Mughal court at Delhi by Raja Surajmal. Deeg is well connected by road with Alwar, Bharatpur and Mathura.