NEW DELHI
Connaught Place
It is a tourist and commercial center located in the northern part of New Delhi, designed as a huge roundabout with a row of uniform buildings surrounded by a front colonnade. There are shops and banks here, restaurants, airline offices etc.. Connaught Place is spacious, but also very lively. It's hard to get rid of people, who propose exactly everything: from fortune telling to an airline ticket to Timbuktu.
Dantar Mantar
Connaught Place is a short walk down Sansad Marg (Parliament Street; Parliamentst). This strange complex of salmon-colored buildings is in fact the astronomical observatory of Maharaja Jai Singh II. The ruler of Jaipur built this observatory in 1725 R. The main structure is the sundial, known as the Prince of Solar Clocks. Among the items collected here are also instruments for determining the position of celestial bodies and determining the periods of eclipse.
Temple of Lakshmi Narayana
Exactly west of Connaught Place rises the modern one, brightly colored temple, built in 1938 R. in honor of Lakshmi, goddess of prosperity and blessings of fate. From the name of its creator, industrialist B.D. Birlie, it is commonly known as Biria Mandir.
Radźpath
Another important element in the work of Lutyens – New Delhi – is Rajpath (King's Road). The decorative element of this wide road are small ponds on both sides. Every year, 26 January, on the Day of the Republic of India, there is a parade here, in which millions of people participate.
Rajpath closes the India Gate on the eastern side (India Gate), from the west – Rasztrapati B above (the presidential palace) still built as the seat of the viceroy. On both sides of the palace there are two huge ministerial buildings. All three were built on a small hill known as Raisina Hill.
Battle for levels
The elevation known as Raisina Hill and the road leading to it (or more precisely the angle, he forms with the hill) they were the cause of the paradoxically trivial, and at the same time an important dispute between the architect Lutyens operating in Delhi and his associate Herbert Baker. The dispute is known as the "battle for levels."”. Baker was entrusted with designing the ministerial and parliament buildings. Lutyens took up the development of the viceroy's residence and the Gate of India. He was careful, that the viceroy's residence should be a little higher than the ministries. It would then be visible from a great distance. But Baker wanted to, that all three buildings are on the same level. Royal residence – Baker planned – it would emerge majestically as you climb up the hill. Discussions continued, communicated with successive viceroys. Ultimately, Baker won. The conflicting architects did not speak to each other for many years.
India Gate
It is a 42-meter high triumphal arch – rises at the eastern end of Rajpath. The building was dedicated to memory 85 000 Indian soldiers killed in World War I during operations on the Northeast Front and in the Third Anglo-Afghan War in 1919 R.
Ministerial buildings
They were built on both sides of Rajpath on Raisina Hill. They are topped with small domes (chatter). The northern edifice is the seat of the Ministry of Finance, south – Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Rashtrapati Bhawan
This building, completed in 1929 R., is the official residence of the President of India. It is located at the west end of Rajpath; its shape resembles a palace. It bears the characteristics of both Mughal, and western style. The Indian element is certainly a huge copper dome. Adjacent to the western part of the building is a 130-hectare Mughal-style garden. In February it is open to everyone.
Before India regained independence, the palace was the viceroy's residence. A huge staff of servants to watch over 340 rooms, great gardens looked after, trifle, 418 gardeners. Among them was 50 boys, who were only concerned with chasing birds away!
Parliament House
The parliament building stands north of Rajpath, na Sansad Marg. It is a rotunda with a diameter 171 m, surrounded by a colonnade. Building, though just as great and impressive, it is almost completely hidden and seemingly imperceptible. Such a solution in the great New Delhi project expressed imperial pride, making a symbol of power the viceroy's residence during the Raju period, although the very center of power has shifted.
This, who want to go inside and stay in the public cloisters, the admission office on Raisina Rd issues the relevant permit. However, a letter of recommendation from the embassy is needed.
MUSEUMS AND GALLERIES National Museum
National Museum (National Museum) is located at Janpath, exactly south of Rajpath. It has a valuable collection of Indian bronze sculptures, terracotta and wood from the Mauryan period (III-II w. p.n.e.), exhibits from the Widźajanagar period in southern India, miniature and wall paintings, as well as the costumes of Indian tribal peoples. The museum is undoubtedly a big attraction. Open: wt.-sb., 10.00-17.00, admission: 0,50 INR. There are film screenings on most days of the week.
Right next to it is the office of the Indian Archaeological Research Facility (Archaeological Survey of India), which sells publications on most of India's historic landmarks. Many of these releases are unavailable elsewhere.
National Gallery of Contemporary Art
gallery (National Gallery of Modern Art) stands at the eastern end of Radnpath next to the India Gate. The building once served as the residence of the Maharaja of Jaipur. The gallery exhibits great works by Indian and colonial artists. Open daily, 10.00-17.00, Free entrance.
Nehru Museum
Museum (Nehru Museum) located on Teen Murti Rd, near Chanakyapuri (Akanakjapuri). It is Tin Murti Bhawan, the residence of the first prime minister of India, which over time was converted into a museum. The collected photographs and newspaper clippings provide an insight into the history of the independence movement.
During the tourist season, a light and sound show about the life of Nehru and the independence movement takes place here. The museum is open: wt.-nd., 10.00-17.00, Free entrance.