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India Attractions
India Attractions
Setting a Candle Adrift on the Sacred Ganges (Rishikesh, Uttaranchal): At night, to the accompaniment of hypnotic prayers and harmonious singing, the town undergoes a magical transformation, when thousands of golden marigolds and devotional candles mounted on banana leaves are set adrift on the river, a gloriously simple spectacle that reminds all that this really is a spiritual retreat.
Helping Lord Venkateshwara Repay His Debt to the God of Wealth (Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh): Tirupati, the richest temple in India, is the most active religious pilgrimage destination on earth, drawing more than 10 million devoted pilgrims every year who line up for hours, even days, to see the diamond-decorated black stone idol Lord Venkateshwara (aka Vishnu) for just a few seconds. Afterward, you stare in disbelief as vast piles of cash and other contributions are counted by scores of clerks behind a wall of glass.
Taj Mahal (Agra, Uttar Pradesh): Nothing can prepare you for the beauty of the Taj. The perfect symmetry, the ethereal luminescence, the wonderful proportions, the sheer scale -- virtually impossible to imagine from staring at its oft-reproduced image -- and the exquisite detailing make this bejeweled monument to love a justifiable wonder of the world.
Fatehpur Sikri (near Agra, Uttar Pradesh): From the intricacy of the glittering white marble screens that surround the dargah (tomb) of Salim Chisti, to Parcheesi Court, where the emperor played a ludo-like game using the ladies of his harem as live pieces, this magnificent ghost city -- built almost entirely from red sandstone in 1571 and deserted only 14 years later -- is a testament to the secular vision of Akbar, one of the great players in India's most dynamic dynasty.
The Temples of Khajuraho (Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh): Built between the 10th and 12th centuries by the Chandela Rajputs, these World Heritage Site monuments are most famous for the erotic sculptures that writhe across the interiors and exteriors. But even the temple designs -- their soaring shikharas (spires) serving as metaphoric "stairways to heaven" -- are striking, and are considered the apotheosis of medieval Hindu architecture
India Activities
Sharing a Cup of Chai with a Perfect Stranger: You will typically be asked to sit and share a cup of chai (tea) a dozen times a day, usually by merchants keen to keep you browsing. Although you may at first be nervous of what this may entail, don't hesitate to accept when you're feeling more comfortable, for while sipping the milky sweet brew (often flavored with ginger and cardamom), conversation will flow, and you might find yourself discussing anything from women's rights in India to the individualism that mars Western society.
Watching the Moon Rise from Pushkar Palace during the Pushkar Mela (Pushkar, Rajasthan): The sunset is a spectacular sight on any given evening, but on the evening of the full moon during the Pushkar mela, hundreds of Hindu pilgrims, accompanied by temple bells and drums, wade into a sacred lake -- believed to miraculously cleanse the soul -- before lighting clay lamps and setting them afloat on its holy waters, the twinkling lights a surreal reflection of the desert night sky.
Playing Chicken with a Tata Truck: The rules of the road (which is almost always single-laned, potholed, and unmarked) are hard to understand, but it would seem that (after the cow, which is of course sacred) Tata trucks, all with HORN ON PLEASE written on their bumpers, rule the road, an assumption your hired driver is likely to test -- and you will, more than once, find yourself involuntarily closing your eyes as destiny appears to race toward you, blaring its horn.
Being Blessed by an Elephant: While you may expect to see an elephant in a national park, it's always a wonderful surprise when you see one ambling down a crowded street in urban Mumbai or Delhi. Outside Thirupparankundram Temple, near Madurai, the resident temple elephant waits patiently to bestow blessings on those willing to donate a rupee.
