yet again ... getting lost ... then enjoying self-discovery ...

A Governor General's Tomb in Ghazipur One of my first memories of the monument is a conversation between two colleagues. Wahan kya hai asked one. Ek angrez tha - woh sala wahan ghoom raha tha tab mar gaya - uska makbara hai : came the response. A fan of direct talk I ended up finding more about the moment and ultimately visiting.  Amidst the haze and chill of the winter morning the grandeur of the tomb reminded me of the parliament building. Much smaller in scale but a structure that visually stuns, appeals. Nico Slate writes thus in Lord Cornwallis is Dead: The Struggle for democracy in United States and India ; Outside the city of Ghazipur, an hour east of Varanasi, the tomb of Lord Charles Cornwallis overlooks the Ganges. A marble dome, seventy-five feet high and sixty feet in diameter, the Cornwallis mausoleum embodies the ambitions of the British Raj. While the Ganges swells and shrinks, the stone crypt holds firm. Cornwallis would be proud. As governor-general of British In...

Sher Shah Suri's Tomb How did they visualise this then? A structure in the middle of a pond! Locally known as Paani Rouza Sher Shah Suri's tomb is beyond stunning. The tomb is Located in Rohtas ( Bihar ) - about 125 kms from Banaras. On our way back from the tomb it struck us that we were driving on the Grand Trunk Road - one that Sher Shah Suri had built.  Would the makers have known then that centuries later it would be Sasaram's claim to fame, provide refuge to local young folks ( there are walk-paths around the structure and pond! ) and have people come to pay respects, to pray.  A structure large yet not intimidating (is it the water! ) and grand yet accessible. ASI's curbs on boating and carrying plastic inside seem to have helped keep the water clean.  When we have maintained the monument so well can we also pay more attention to signage? To what introduces us to the monument, to the first object we sight as we enter the monument.  Moving beyond the Tomb...