Sorry to dwell on architectural wonders (change of subject tomorrow!) – but I can’t resist mentioning the Qutub Minar. This 73m 12th-century minaret is Delhi’s Eiffel Tower or Big Ben – the single most important symbol of the city. It’s even pictured on my metro smartcard. This afternoon I rode the metro way out of the city centre to visit it – and couldn’t help laughing in amazement and pleasure at my first sight.
The Minar – a victory tower commemorating Muslim Ghorid invaders’ defeat of the Rajputs – is amazing. Its five stories (completed over centuries – with help, for instance, from Firoz Shah Tughlaq of the djinn-infested Firoz Shah Kotla I visited the other day) are covered in intricate, beautiful carvings and Quranic inscriptions.
The tower is surrounded by a complex of ruined mosques, madrassas and tomb buildings that blend Islamic architectural elements with local design – and even some recycled Hindu carvings.
On a Sunday afternoon the ruins were full of young Delhi-ites in mirrored shades posing for Facebook profile pictures – and also, like Humayun’s tomb and Firoz Shah Kotla, with birds. I don’t know who was enjoying themselves more on another beautiful day.
