Lucknow Darshan
-
Finally managed to go on a "Lucknow darshan" yesterday (yeah, after one and a half years in this place :-)) .
Well, Pooja, Shruti and I took the 10:30 hrs bus from campus and we returned only by 18:30 hrs, so it was about 8 hrs of feasting on Lucknow of the Nawabs and British...would've wandered for longer if Pooja didn't have her audition.
Given my current mood of impatience, can't write too much, just a few anecdotes :)
Places visited:
1. Bara Imambara (bhoolbhulaiya, bouli and the rest of the monuments in the complex)
For an hour, we weren't getting lost in the bhoolbhulaiya and I lost my patience and started calling localites to ask them how to get lost (network was bad) ... and then finally we got lost while descending and guess what, we were stuck for about 2 hrs till we asked a guide.
Had a gala time singing "Gumnaam hai koi..." but I guess it didn't scare the ladies, they're so brave nowadays :-(.
Issues we couldn't resolve: The technical efficacy of the sloping design of the ventilators!
Ahh, and too many suicide points :D.
And am still not sure about the need for a hamam or bouli (common bathing complexes) in an imambara.
Overall, a must see if you're in Lucknow.
2. The Clock Tower
3. Chhota Imambra and all the complexes within
Well the half-kilometre walk from the bara to the chhota imambara I guess hasn't changed much in the 300 or so years except that the hoardings of a hundred "useless" politicians. What do they do anyway...no development, probably the best way to "maintain" places of historical importance, eh?
The monument: delicate and exquisite, worth visiting.
Hmm by the way, we got guavas outside the bara imambara for 8 rs (half kilo) and well the same guavas were selling for Rs 4 a hal-kilo outside the chhota imambara...well even the prices had contracted, huh :).
Ahh, and the pursual by guides, well that's part of the experience.
4. Picture-gallery
Again ill-maintained, some good potraits though...don't believe the glib guides ;-) (we pursued a guided group at a safe-distance, so we know the guided stories :D)
4. Shahid Minar
Nice view of the Gomati (or whatever remains of its once-pristine beauty) from this point.
5. Residency
A funny feeling when visiting that 33-acre complex where the British lived in the time of the Nawabs of Avadh...the Britishers have erected memorial to celebrate acts of valour of their fellow men killed during the 1857 war of independence while "Indian" additions celebrate the mutineers who tried killing those Britishers.
Same act, completely different views depending on which side of the fence you look from!
Something we couldn't figure out: Why no structure in the Residency has a roof remaining.
Ahh, and that "spacious" banquet hall (according to the board outside) is smaller than our badminton court, how did couples dance!
Well, the trip back wasn't eventless either, "aapki jo marzi de dena" of the rickshaw driver being the bone of contention. He wasn't happy with our marzi, but what the hell, he had agreed to agree to our marzi!
And in case I forget to tell you...I was the only one with a working camera, and so all the pics are with me...so I have a sustainable competitive advantage, hu hu ha ha ha :-D
Am I getting over my impatience? ;-)
Finally managed to go on a "Lucknow darshan" yesterday (yeah, after one and a half years in this place :-)) .
Well, Pooja, Shruti and I took the 10:30 hrs bus from campus and we returned only by 18:30 hrs, so it was about 8 hrs of feasting on Lucknow of the Nawabs and British...would've wandered for longer if Pooja didn't have her audition.
Given my current mood of impatience, can't write too much, just a few anecdotes :)
Places visited:
1. Bara Imambara (bhoolbhulaiya, bouli and the rest of the monuments in the complex)
For an hour, we weren't getting lost in the bhoolbhulaiya and I lost my patience and started calling localites to ask them how to get lost (network was bad) ... and then finally we got lost while descending and guess what, we were stuck for about 2 hrs till we asked a guide.
Had a gala time singing "Gumnaam hai koi..." but I guess it didn't scare the ladies, they're so brave nowadays :-(.
Issues we couldn't resolve: The technical efficacy of the sloping design of the ventilators!
Ahh, and too many suicide points :D.
And am still not sure about the need for a hamam or bouli (common bathing complexes) in an imambara.
Overall, a must see if you're in Lucknow.
2. The Clock Tower
3. Chhota Imambra and all the complexes within
Well the half-kilometre walk from the bara to the chhota imambara I guess hasn't changed much in the 300 or so years except that the hoardings of a hundred "useless" politicians. What do they do anyway...no development, probably the best way to "maintain" places of historical importance, eh?
The monument: delicate and exquisite, worth visiting.
Hmm by the way, we got guavas outside the bara imambara for 8 rs (half kilo) and well the same guavas were selling for Rs 4 a hal-kilo outside the chhota imambara...well even the prices had contracted, huh :).
Ahh, and the pursual by guides, well that's part of the experience.
4. Picture-gallery
Again ill-maintained, some good potraits though...don't believe the glib guides ;-) (we pursued a guided group at a safe-distance, so we know the guided stories :D)
4. Shahid Minar
Nice view of the Gomati (or whatever remains of its once-pristine beauty) from this point.
5. Residency
A funny feeling when visiting that 33-acre complex where the British lived in the time of the Nawabs of Avadh...the Britishers have erected memorial to celebrate acts of valour of their fellow men killed during the 1857 war of independence while "Indian" additions celebrate the mutineers who tried killing those Britishers.
Same act, completely different views depending on which side of the fence you look from!
Something we couldn't figure out: Why no structure in the Residency has a roof remaining.
Ahh, and that "spacious" banquet hall (according to the board outside) is smaller than our badminton court, how did couples dance!
Well, the trip back wasn't eventless either, "aapki jo marzi de dena" of the rickshaw driver being the bone of contention. He wasn't happy with our marzi, but what the hell, he had agreed to agree to our marzi!
And in case I forget to tell you...I was the only one with a working camera, and so all the pics are with me...so I have a sustainable competitive advantage, hu hu ha ha ha :-D
Am I getting over my impatience? ;-)
posted by Ayan Bhattacharya @ 15:10
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