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My India Adventure (Part 7) – Agra Fort

By Adventures, Friends & Family, Happiness & Joy, History, Inspiration, TravelNo Comments
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Agra Fort Information Stone.

On the same day that Robert, Neha, Michael, Neha’s family and I visited The Taj Mahal we also visited Agra Fort. I don’t know enough about Agra Fort’s rich history, but I do know about a legend…

Legend has it that the Emperor who built the Taj Mahal inherited Agra Fort. He desired buildings made out of white marble inlaid with gold and semi-precious gemstones, like the Taj Mahal. So he knocked down some of the existing buildings and rebuilt his own.

The Emperor was later deposed by his son and imprisoned in his white marble buildings (see photos Inside 5 and Inside 6 below) until he died. From his prison, the Emperor could see the Taj Mahal, where the ashes of his love rested.

It looks like it was quite a luxurious prison to me. No doubt he had staff to feed, water, bathe and cloth him. Along with maybe a few guards to make sure he didn’t try to escape.

Here are some photos of Agra Fort:

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Agra Fort Entrance.

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Agra Fort Outside (1).

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Agra Fort Outside (2).

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Agra Fort Inside (1).

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Agra Fort Inside (2).

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Agra Fort Inside (3).

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Agra Fort Inside (4).

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Agra Fort – you can see The Taj Mahal from a window.

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Another Agra Fort Information Stone.

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Agra Fort Inside (5).

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Agra Fort Inside (6).

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The Third & Final Agra Fort Information Stone.

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Agra Fort Inside (7).

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Agra Fort Inside (8).

In the next blog post in the series, I’ll tell you all about a permanent reminder I got to remember my India adventure. It will be published soon, so check back regularly for the next update.

Write soon,

Antony



I aim for posts on this blog to be informative, educational and entertaining. If you have found this post useful or enjoyable, please consider making a contribution by Paypal:


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My India Adventure (Part 5) – Gandhi’s Grave & India Gate

By Adventures, Friends & Family, Happiness & Joy, History, Inspiration, Political, TravelNo Comments

Gandhi’s Grave

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Gandhi Quote.

Robert, Neha, Michael and I didn’t intend to visit Gandhi’s grave, but on the day we went to visit the Red Fort it was closed, so we went to Gandhi’s grave which is close by.

Gandhi’s grave was probably my favourite and most significant place of all the sites I visited in India, because of the man it commemorates. Gandhi is seen as the Father of the Indian nation. He is on bank notes and deservedly put on a pedestal. I didn’t know much about Gandhi before I went to India. But when I came home and did some research, it resulted in the visit to his grave meaning even more to me.

Gandhi was an inspirational man. As an adult he was civil rights activist that believed in non-violent protest, non-violent civil disobedience, peace, community and was a leader in the Indian Independence Movement. He was known for being spiritual and religiously Hindu.

Gandhi to me was a enlightened soul, with his common sense ideas being ahead of his time.

One of the things I admire about Gandhi was that as a teenager he experimented with drinking alcohol, eating meat and sex (From: BBC – iWonder, last accessed: Saturday 8th August 2015). This showed to me that Gandhi was on a journey to enlightenment when he was younger. That Gandhi had fundamentally started out as a ordinary human being that went on to become enlightened, using his wisdom and good soul to influence and create some incredible changes in the world. These changes making the world a better place for everyone.

Gandhi apparently predicted his own death, mentioning that he thought he would be assassinated and hoped to be able to forgive the man that did it. Gandhi was on his way to a prayer meeting when he was shot three times in the chest by an extremist. Gandhi who had believed in peace, hope and the best of humanity had been violently murdered. India and the rest of the world mourned his loss.

Apparently some of Gandhi’s ashes are buried in this memorial. Here are some photos of Gandhi’s grave:

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Walk up to Gandhi’s Grave.

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Gandhi’s Grave: Where his ashes are.

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Gandhi’s Grave gardens (1).

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Gandhi’s Grave gardens (2).

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Gandhi’s grave – beautiful tiled flooring.

One of the most interesting information stones there was Gandhi’s Seven Social Sins (photographed below). Here they are as photo and text:

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Gandhi’s Seven Social Sins, from ‘Young India’ (1925)

Seven Social Sins
1. Politics Without Principles
2. Wealth Without Work
3. Pleasure Without Conscience
4. Knowledge Without Character
5. Commerce Without Morality
6. Science Without Humanity
7. Worship Without Sacrifice

(From: ‘Young India’ (1925))

Reading this was like seeing a reflection of what’s going on in the world right now. I remember thinking that if Gandhi was around now he’d constantly be leading peaceful protests and marching in them.

India Gate
India Gate is a war memorial to all fallen Indian soldiers. The Gate is ginormous. In the middle of the gate is the monument. It’s a raised platform that has a statue of a black gun with matching soldiers helmet resting on top of it. There’s a flame that is always kept burning and soldiers in ceremonial dress. See photos below:

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The Empty Canopy

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India Gate: A War Memorial (1).

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India Gate: A War Memorial (2).

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Me pointing out a feature on India Gate.

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India Gate close up (1).

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India Gate close up (2).

The next blog post in this series titled My India Adventure (Part 6) – The Taj Mahal, I will be sharing photos of Taj Mahal’s architectural brilliance. The post will be coming soon, so keep an checking back for updates.

Write soon,

Antony



I aim for posts on this blog to be informative, educational and entertaining. If you have found this post useful or enjoyable, please consider making a contribution by Paypal:


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Goals & New Experiences for 2015

By Adventures, Books & Authors, Creativity, Gigs & Shows, Happiness & Joy, History, Life, Nature, Paganism, ThinkingNo Comments
goals-and-adventures-large Goals For Throughout The Year
Unticked Box Read & Review 30 books.
Unticked Box Watch & Review 12 films.
Unticked Box See a show/gig.
Unticked Box Give up smoking for good.
Unticked Box Write, Edit and publish a Novella.
Unticked Box Arrange & Have a Holiday.
Unticked Box Study Something Pagan/Druid with Chrys & Simon.

New Experiences for 2015 by month:

January
Unticked Box To start Writing again.
Unticked Box To write a series of blog posts with a ‘Mental Health Focus,’ publishing one a week throughout the month.

February
Unticked Box Try Yoga. Take a Yoga class.

March
Unticked Box Visit a Museum.

April
Unticked Box See a Sunrise.
Unticked Box Visit a new place. A city or town that I’ve never been to.

May
Unticked Box Celebrate my birthday. A night out to celebrate in style. Possibly in another city or town.
Unticked Box Visit a Castle or a Pagan site.

June
Unticked Box Spend time Walking in Nature.
Unticked Box Take time out to celebrate Litha.
Unticked Box Watch Jurassic World at the cinema.

July
Unticked Box Attend Mum’s events. Birthday, etc.
Unticked Box Watch Minions at the cinema.

August
Unticked Box Visit Chester Zoo’s new Islands exhibit.

September
Unticked Box Learn to Knit.
Unticked Box Donate to charities.

October
Unticked Box Celebrate Samhain.

November
Unticked Box Take some time out to relax.

December
Unticked Box Watch Star Wars: The Force Awakens at the cinema.

Blog soon,

Antony

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Manchester Museum – Lots of History to See

By Adventures, Happiness & Joy, History, Love & Relationships, Nature2 Comments

The other weekend Boyfriend-A, his housemates and I visited Manchester Museum. Manchester Museum is on Oxford Road, in the heart of Manchester City Centre and has free entry. It has lots of history to see including (click on any picture for full size image):

Manchester Museum Gorgosaurus Skeleton

Gorgosaurus Skeleton

Manchester Museum Gorgosaurus Information Board

Gorgosaurus Information Board

Manchester Museum Mammoth Skeleton (front)

Mammoth Skeleton (front)

Manchester Museum Mammoth Skeleton (side)

Mammoth Skeleton (side)

Many vases, bowls, etc. to view

Many vases, bowls, etc. to View

Manchester Museum A great Classic Weapons Collection

A great Classic Weapons Collection – If there’s ever a zombie apocalypse, I’m looting my weapons from here.

Manchester Museum Slavery Chains

Slavery Chains

My two favourite sections were the Egyptian section and Geology section. In the Egyptian section I was fascinated by the Soul Homes (photo below) and creepy looking mummy (also photographed below):

Egyptian Artefacts Manchester Museum

Egyptian Artefacts

Egyptian Soul Homes Manchester Museum

Egyptian Soul Homes

Egyptian Sarcophagus with Mummy Manchester Museum

Egyptian Sarcophagus with creepy looking Mummy

In ancient Egypt soul homes were for people who couldn’t afford a tomb to be built. Somewhere for their soul to live during the afterlife. Boyfriend-A couldn’t believe how bad my geography was, after I thought Egypt was in Europe. Apparently it’s in Africa.

We moved on to Geology section, with this rather nice quartz crystal cluster that I wanted to take home:

Geology Section Manchester Museum

Geology Section

Geology Section: A Large Quartz Cluster Manchester Museum

Geology Section: A Large Quartz Cluster

We finished with the main attraction a complete T-Rex Skeleton:

T-Rex Skeleton Manchester Museum

T-Rex Skeleton

A Random Room-sized Fish Skeleton Manchester Museum

A Random Room-sized Fish Skeleton

There’s lots of history to see at Manchester Museum, but more interactivity e.g. videos/staffed tours would have added to the experience.

Even so we had a great time. If you’ve never been, go and check it out. Oh and it has a good gift shop that is reasonably priced to.

Blog soon,

Antony



I aim for posts on this blog to be informative, educational and entertaining. If you have found this post useful or enjoyable, please consider making a contribution by Paypal:


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