bhopal - tourism

Bhopal the capital Madhya Pradesh also known as the City of Lakes because of the two beautiful lakes in the center of the city is famous for its mosques. The Taj-ul-Masjid in Bhopal is the largest mosque of India. Bhopal lies along the slopes of a sandstone ridge - a part of the Malwa plateau and is 744 kms south of Delhi and 779 Kms northwest of Mumbai Bhopal is well connected by flights, rail and road.

Bhopal was founded by the Parmara King Bhoj and the city was originally known as Bhojpal - named after Bhoj and the dam ('pal') that he is said to have constructed to form the lakes surrounding Bhopal. Bhopal has an average elevation of 499 metres and is north of the upper limit of the Vindhya mountain ranges. Bhopal has a sub-tropical climate with hot summers from April to June, the wet monsoon season from July to September and a cool winter from November to February.

Taj-ul-Masjid - the largest mosque of India was commenced by Shah Jahan and is still incomplete. The Jama Masjid and the Moti Masjid of Bhopal were built by the local Begums in the 19th century.

Bharat Bhavan - is a museum of tribal and contemporary art forms and breeding ground for traditional dance, music and drama.

The Tribal Habitat or Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya - is an open-air museum and is located on Shamala hills of Bhopal, depicting tribal dwellings, from all parts of India. It is to showcase the lifestyle, culture, art and religion of India's more than 450 Adivasi tribes.

Upper Lake and Lower Lake - are important tourist spots providing boating and sailing facilities. Other worth visiting places in Bhopal are The Government Archeological Museum near the Lower Lake, the chowk at the heart of the old city, Van Vihar local safari park near the Upper Lake, and the Aquarium. The Lakshmi Narayan Temple (or the Birla Mandir) and the adjacent local museum on the Arera hills are other sites to be visited.

Islamnagar - Fleeing from the Imperial Delhi during the chaos following Aurangzeb's death, this Afgan adventure acquired a kingdom and established his capital in Islamnagar.

Gauhar Mahal - a blending Hindu and Mugals s tyles, this was built in 1820 by Begum Kudesia, who was also known as Gauhar.

Moti Masjid - Forty years later, her daughter, Jehan, had the beautiful Moti Masjid constructed in a style which reminds of Delhi's Jama Masjid.

State Museum - has reproductions of some of the now destroyed Budhhist Bagh caves paintings, 84 rare Jain sculptures of the 8th and 13th Centuries, Avalokatswara of Lamaism, Saivite sculptures and miniature paintings showing the graceful lifestyles of those days.