Copyright 2005 -- Rachel Saunders
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The Perfume River--> Previous --> Next --> Home --> More Adventures --> vietnam Index |
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The city of Agra reached its peak between the mid-16th century and mid-17th century under the reign of Akbar Jehangir and Shah Jahan. It was during this period that the fort, Taj Mahal and the major tombs of Agra were built. Above: Akbar's Mausoleum is a sandstone and marble tomb in the center of a peaceful garden of deer and monkeys. The |
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22nd, 2005: Today, Cristel and I took a boat along the perfume river to see the tombs of the Nguyen Kings. These guys were really into creating some fantastic places for their burials. My favorite was the Kinh Dinh tomb which was atop a hill and done in an odd combination of styles from all around the world. The inside was filled with mosaics on the walls and the outside was carved stone with greco roman columns and chinese dragons mixed with the hindu swastika. Another fabulous one was Ming Manh... which had a series of ponds and beautiful bridges which connected a series of elaborate temples and tombs for the king. In front of all of these tombs were stone soldiers, horses and elephants similar to the ones that they have in Xian China, waiting for the emergence of their leader I guess. |
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Above: A figure of one of the Nguyen Kings outside of the tombs. Left: A tour boat similar to the one we took along the river. The Vietnamese flag raised high. |
Journal
Continued: |
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Journal
Continued: Tonight, is set aside for recuperating from a full day in the sun I guess. Neither Cristel nor I have yet to acclimate to the weather here. We are hoping that Hanoi will be a little cooler since it is straight north about 16 hours by bus. After the last bus trip, I am glad that we are flying. : |
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Right: The tomb for Tu Duc. Another peaceful retreat. If it weren't 350
degrees in the sun. |
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Left: Contemplating life no doubt, two gentlemen sit outside of the tomb amongst the pleasant grounds. : |
| Right: A closeup
of a baby monkey who resides full time on the verdant grounds of Akbar's
tomb. Not a bad place to grow up... |
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Left: Most of the tombs had statues of stone soldiers, horses and elephants. The King will need his staff even after death I guess. : |
| Right: A closeup
of a baby monkey who resides full time on the verdant grounds of Akbar's
tomb. Not a bad place to grow up... |
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Left: Contemplating life no doubt, two gentlemen sit outside of the tomb amongst the pleasant grounds. : |
| Right: A closeup
of a baby monkey who resides full time on the verdant grounds of Akbar's
tomb. Not a bad place to grow up... |
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Left: Contemplating
life no doubt, two gentlemen sit outside of the tomb amongst the pleasant
grounds. : |
| Right &
Below: Inside the tomb of Khai Dinh (I think that this was the one) was
incredibly busy. Interior was covered in decorative paint and mosaics.
The outside was a crazy combination of architecture from the east and
the west. |
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Left: Contemplating
life no doubt, two gentlemen sit outside of the tomb amongst the pleasant
grounds. : |
| Right: This
young lady has been around since French colonial times. She spoke French
and was so pleased to chat with me in French and tell me about how she
first served sodas to French soldiers, and then later to American soldiers.
And then, she said, they were all gone. |
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Left: The main
red gates to Ming Manh temple. : |
| Right: A closeup
of a baby monkey who resides full time on the verdant grounds of Akbar's
tomb. Not a bad place to grow up... --> Previous --> Next --> Home --> More Adventures --> vietnam Index |
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