GREATNESS OF INDIA
BY:Nicolas Reyes
The geography of India
Where is India
The land of India
The Climate of India
Unique Animals
The Royal Bengal Tiger
Indian Rhino
india Today
Future Trends
Now numbering over one billion, India’s population grew by more than 18 million—the equivalent of an Australia—every year over the past decade. In ten years, the most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, expanded more than 25 percent to some 166 million, equal to 60 percent of the population of the United States. India supports a population more than three and a half times the size of the American population in an area about one-third the size. Family planning is gaining in popularity, so the rate of population increase is gradually declining, but it is estimated that by the year 2050, India’s people will number some 1.5 billion, and India will have surpassed China as the world’s most populous nation.
Classes
Stuff do to in India
The Taj Mahal
The Taj was built by Shah Jahan as a memorial for his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth to their 14th child in 1631. The death of Mumtaz left the emperor so heartbroken that his hair is said to have turned grey virtually overnight. Construction of the Taj began the following year and, although the main building is thought to have been built in eight years, the whole complex was not completed until 1653. Not long after it was finished Shah Jahan was overthrown by his son Aurangzeb and imprisoned in Agra Fort where, for the rest of his days, he could only gaze out at his creation through a window. Following his death in 1666, Shah Jahan was buried here alongside Mumtaz.
In total, some 20,000 people from India and Central Asia worked on the building. Specialists were brought in from as far away as Europe to produce the exquisite marble screens and pietra dura (marble inlay work) made with thousands of semiprecious stones.
Read more: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/india/uttar-pradesh/agra/sights/architecture/taj-mahal#ixzz42ssr591J
The Golden Temple
The legendary Golden Temple is actually just a small part of this huge gurdwara complex, known to Sikhs as Harmandir Sahib (or Darbar Sahib).
Spiritually, the focus of attention is the tank that surrounds the gleaming central shrine – the Amrit Sarovar , from which Amritsar takes its name, excavated by the fourth guru Ram Das in 1577. Ringed by a marble walkway, the tank is said to have healing powers, and pilgrims come from across the world to bathe in the sacred waters.
Floating at the end of a long causeway, the Golden Temple itself is a mesmerising blend of Hindu and Islamic architectural styles, with an elegant marble lower level adorned with flower and animal motifs in pietra dura work (as seen on the Taj Mahal). Above this rises a shimmering second level, encased in intricately engraved gold panels, and topped by a dome gilded with 750kg of gold. In the gleaming inner sanctum (photography prohibited), priests and musicians keep up a continuous chant from the Guru Granth Sahib (the Sikh holy book), adding to the already intense atmosphere. After paying their respects, pilgrims retreat to the intricately painted gallery on the second level to contemplate.
Read more: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/india/punjab-and-haryana/amritsar/sights/religious/golden-temple#ixzz42stgIsA5
India's Golden Trinagle
This trip is ideal if you are short on time but want to visit the icons of India. From the capital of Delhi, with its bustling markets, magnificent monuments and colonial past we head to Agra to view the well preserved Agra Fort and the stunning Taj Mahal. Truly one of the wonders of the world, see why it was described by Rabindranath Tagore as a 'teardrop on the face of eternity'. Then continue on to to Jaipur, the capital ofRajasthan, discover why this is known as the Pink City and explore the incredible Amber Fort.