BANGALORE

The view from my hotel window here in Bangalore. When one thinks of India, one does not typically think about palm trees, at least I didn't anyway. But they are everywhere, and you can see them in the picutre from my hotel in Hyderabad and at the bottom right of this picture. We are in the south of the country and it is hot - at least 90 degrees today. And this is their WINTER. I can't imagine the heat here in the summer time.

HYDERABAD

Street scenes from Hyderabad. The squarish structure with four towers is the Charminar. Built by Mohammed Quli Qutub Shah in 1591, it is to Hyderabad what the Eiffel Tower is to Paris, or the Kremlin is to Moscow. Every side opens into a plaza through giant arches, which overlook four major thoroughfares and dwarf other features of the building except the minarets. The minarets are said to symbolize the first four khalifs of Islam. At the western end of the roof of Charminar is a beautiful mosque, which is the oldest in Hyderabad. The rest of the roof was used as a court in Qutub Shah times. Atop the great monument are 45 prayer spaces for the devout where they can offer worship in an relatively serene atmosphere away from the bustle of the city. The roof is now open to the public (5 rupees for Indians, 100 for westerners, at 45 rupees to the dollar) and I took a few shots from it.

The view from my hotel window in Hyderabad. India is a beautiful country! I threw in a shot of the fruit stands outside of the Charminar as well.

I visited Golkonda fort today, 10 kilometres west of Hyderabad. Golkonda, meaning shepherd hill, was built consecutively by three dynasties, the Kakatiyas, the Bahmanis and the Qutub Shahis, over 800 years ago. Hindu and Muslim architectural can be seen here. Legend has it that Golkonda was the center of a flourishing trade in diamonds and that the world-famous Kohinoor diamond (set in the Queen Mother of England's crown) came from this market. I was fortunate enough to be there for sunset, as you can see by the picture.

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NEW DELHI

Didn't have much free time in Delhi, but I did get a few good shots here and there that I thouht I'd post...

HARE KRISHNA

I visited a ISKCON temple today on the way home from my interview site here in Delhi. They are the Hare Krishnas, and ISKCON stands for the International Society for Krishna Con-sciousness. It dates back to the fifteenth century A.D., when Chaitanya Mahaprabhu developed The Doctrines of Krishnaism from the Hindu sect of Vishnuism. Simply stated, Vishnuism believed Vishnu, the Supreme God, manifested himself at one time as Krishna.

I have to admit to being one of those people who made fun of the Hare Krishnas at the airport, etc... I only spent 20 minutes there, but can completely understand what made the Beatles so drawn to this religion. It was one of the most peaceful places on earth as everyone was meditating through the verse you are familar with. The religion is at odds with Christianity, so I'm not about to convert, but it was wonderful to spend some time at their temple.