Bijapur

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Bijapur is OTBT. Lots of the schoolchildren and adults wanted to take photos of us. They were far more more interested in us than in anything else, see the photo for an example of the school kids. Outside the Gol Gombaz our driver, Mr Kannan, joined us for a group photo. Some of these shots turned out well. Bijapur now is half Muslim half Hindu? Like all of southern India there is no tension. Some of the areas around the mosques are predominantly Muslim. The Gol Gombaz is not the prettiest building to look at, but it is imposing. It is the mausoleum of a Sultan built in the c17. It has the second largest dome in the world. At each corner of the building is a minaret. There is a climb up steep steps inside the minaret to the top. Here there is a view over the city. There is also the chance to enter the inside of the dome at the top. This is known as the whispering gallery. In fact no one whispers here. Schoolchildren shout and the echos reverberate around. It is a loud experience.

After a break for lunch we visite the Ibrahim Rosa. This is also a mausoleum with a mosque next to it. It is now a monument in gardens. It has been said that this building is a model for the Taj Mahal. Its glories are now a little faded, but the architecturis remains and is both symmetrical and graceful. There are traces remaining of the decoration. The mosque next door is simpler. It's arches reminded me of the bath houses in Iran.



Our final visit was to the Friday mosque. This has a mihrab with gold decoration. It was peaceful here with no school children.

There was time left for us to enjoy a walk in the area between our hotel and the mosque. This was a mixture of old small Muslim houses, a few colonial era houses and modern houses. in the area there were mosques in ruins, older mosques in use and shiny new mosques.

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