3. The Taj Mahal in Agra is an immense mausoleum of
white marble, built between 1632 and 1653 by order
of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his
favorite wife. Called âa teardrop on the cheek of
eternityâ it is one of the masterpieces of Mughal
architecture, and one of the great tourist attractions
in India. Besides the white domed marble mausoleum
the Taj Mahal includes several other beautiful
buildings, reflecting pools, and extensive ornamental
gardens with flowering trees and bushes.
5. Situated on the banks of the River Ganges, Varanasi is
sacred to Hindus, Buddhists and Jains and also one of
the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world.
In many ways Varanasi epitomizes the very best and
worst aspects of India, and it can be a little
overwhelming. The scene of pilgrims doing their
devotions in the River Ganges at sunrise set against
the backdrop of the centuries old temples is probably
one of the most impressive sights in the world.
7. The Ajanta Caves are rock-cut cave monuments dating
from the 2th century BC. The magnificent Ajanta
caves were abandoned around 650 AD and forgotten
until 1819, when a British hunting party stumbled
upon them. Their isolation contributed to the fine
state of preservation in which some of their paintings
remain to this day. The well preserved murals depict
everything from battlefields to sailing ships, city
streets and teeming animal-filled forests to snow-
capped mountains. The city of Aurangabad is the
gateway to the Ajanta Caves as well as the equally
spectacular Ellora Caves.
9. Located in Rajasthanâs remote westernmost corner
close to the border with Pakistan, Jaisalmer is the
quintessential desert town. The yellow sandstone
walls of the âGolden Cityâ rise from the Thar desert
like a scene from the Arabian Nights while the
Jaisalmer Fort crowns the city. Uncontrolled
commercialism has dampened the romantic vision of
Jaisalmer, but even with all the touts and tour buses,
it remains one of the most popular tourist attractions
in India.
11. The Harmandir Sahib, better known as the Golden
Temple is the main tourist attraction in Amritsar, and
the most important religious place to the Sikhs.
Construction of the temple was begun by Guru Ram
Dast in the 16th century. In the 19th century,
Maharaja Ranjit Singh the upper floors of the temple
were covered with gold. Itâs a stunning temple, and
always full of thousands of pilgrims from all over
India, excited to be at a place that they usually only
see on television.
13. Kanha National Park is among the most
beautiful wildlife reserves in Asia and
one of best places to catch a glimpse of
a tiger in India. The lush sal and bamboo
forests, grassy meadows and ravines of
Kanha provided inspiration to Rudyard
Kipling for his famous novel âJungle
Bookâ and make this one of the top
attractions in India.
15. Palolem is the most southerly of Goaâs
developed beaches and also one of
the most beautiful. It is a natural bay
surrounded by lofty headlands on
either sides, resulting in a calm, idyllic
sea with a gently sloping bed. For
those who believe a beach cannot be
paradise without a decent selection of
cheap restaurants and good hotels, a
dose of nightlife and plenty of like-
minded people Palolem is the place to
be
17. The Virupaksha Temple in the city of
Hampi started out as a small shrine and
grew into a large complex under the
Vijayanagara rulers. It is believed that
this temple has been functioning
uninterruptedly ever since the small
shrine was built in the 7th century AD
which makes it one of the oldest
functioning Hindu temples in India.
19. The Lake Palace in Lake Pichola in the city of Udaipur
was built as a royal summer palace in the 18th
century. Today it is a luxury 5 Star hotel, operating
under the âTaj Hotels Resorts and Palacesâ. The Lake
Palace hotel operates a boat which transports guests
to the hotel from a jetty at the City Palace on the east
bank of Lake Pichola. The palace became famous in
1983 when it was featured in the James Bond film
Octopussy, as the home of titular character.
21. The Lake Palace in Lake Pichola in the city of Udaipur
was built as a royal summer palace in the 18th
century. Today it is a luxury 5 Star hotel, operating
under the âTaj Hotels Resorts and Palacesâ. The Lake
Palace hotel operates a boat which transports guests
to the hotel from a jetty at the City Palace on the east
bank of Lake Pichola. The palace became famous in
1983 when it was featured in the James Bond film
Octopussy, as the home of titular character.
23. Manhattan /mĂŠnËhĂŠtÉn/ is one of the
five boroughs of New York City,
geographically the smallest but also the
most densely populated in the city.
Located primarily on the island of
Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson
River, the borough is conterminous
with New York County, an original
county of the U.S. state of New York.
25. The Eiffel Tower (French: La Tour Eiffel, [tuÊ ÉfÉl]) is
an iron lattice tower located on the Champ de
Mars in Paris, named after the engineerGustave Eiffel,
whose company designed and built the tower. Erected
in 1889 as the entrance arch to the 1889 World's Fair,
it has become both a global cultural
icon of France and one of the most recognizable
structures in the world.
27. Victoria Falls (or Mosi-oa-Tunya (Tokaleya Tonga: the
Smoke that Thunders) is a waterfall in
southern Africa on the Zambezi River at the border of
Zambia and Zimbabwe.
While it is neither the highest nor the widest waterfall
in the world, it is classified as the largest, based on its
width of 1,708 metres (5,604 ft) and height of 108
metres (354 ft),[ resulting in the world's largest sheet
of falling water.
31. Casino du Liban is a casino located in
Maameltein, Jounieh in Lebanon and is 22 km north
of Beirut.
With an area of about 35,000 square meters, the
casino has around 400 slot machines and 60 gaming
tables. It has a showroom, night club, theater,
banquet facility and five restaurants.