We headed towards the ancient Mughal capital and its Royal complex, which includes public and private spaces of the emperor Akbar, who had it built between 1571 and 1585 blending Hindu and Islamic styles.
We made it through the entrance - Diwan-I-Aam, an elaborate pavilion at one end of a large gardened courtyard.It is said to have been originally draped with rich tapestries used for public hearings and celebrations.
Once we flanked the entrance we could see a building to our right - Diwan - I-Khas (the Hall for private audience). Said to be a unique fusion of different architectural styles and religious motives, its central axis supported by carved brackets inspired by the Gujarati buildings was worth of notice.
The five storey open sandstone pavilion - Panch Mahal is where Akbar's queens and their attendants used to savour the cool evening breezes.
The Khwabgah facing the pool (Anoop Talao), were the emperor's private sleeping quarters. According to a legend Akbar's renowned court musician could light the oil laps placed around the pool with his outstanding magical singing.
The Turkish Sultana's pavilion with its unusual stone roof imitating clay tiles surprised us even further with its fine dado panels and the sculpted walls, whose stone resembled wood.
We wandered about trying to explore every little corner and every possible detail in an attempt to absorb the spirit of the place, which looked so different from the ones we had visited so far ...
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... though I believe our minds kept dwelling onto the prospect of getting to visit Taj Mahal soon ...
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