Back within the mid Nineties when I 1st started my personal
discovery of Ahmedabad, I faced some stumbling blocks. Remember those were
pre-Google days. One had to depend on traditional media for research, except
for one's own primary expertise of visiting the Lal Darwaja, Ratan Pole. And
very typically, it absolutely was a daunting task to piece all these scraps of
knowledge into a cohesive whole. For unless you were a trained historian with a
penchant for archeology, art & design, it had been a gigsaw only the
terribly best could place together and start of heritage walk Ahmedabad, Gujarat,
India.
Heritage Walk Ahmedabad
Around this point, organisations like INTACH, Indian Habitat
Centre and a few others across the country started introducing the concept of
'Heritage Walks'. Within the forefront were architects, town planners,
historians and naturalists its started as
Heritage Walk Ahmedabad.
Concerned regarding habitat preservation, their's was a tiny, albeit important
step in raising awareness. This came as short in the arm for folks like me who
were keen to understand town they lived in, but did not necessarily have the
time to piece the various subjects mentioned higher than into a stirring
patchwork that most historic cities are. Walking in Low Garden was suddenly a
additional enriching experience. Along with the sweetness of its landscape, I
felt a silent dialogue ensuing between me and the monuments.
Likewise a walk through Red Fort with a young INTACH
historian brought alive the true beauty of the Fort in all its glory. Previous
walks through its corridors and gardens was simply skimming the surface. Fact
that it was home to the Mughals - Shahajahan, Aurangazeb right down to Bahadur
Shah Zafar - was the broad level of understanding one came back with. The
scenario modified a hundred fold, walking with a cluster of people that winter
morning lead by the medieval history scholar. The story behind the hollow
floral carving motifs on the walls, the technology behind the cooling method in
the Nahr-i-Behisht (living pavilions), the garden layout...took my
understanding of the Red Fort to a replacement high.
The imagination suitably fired, subsequent years saw me
leave the cosy winter blanket early (out of character) to catch walks in and
around Nizamuddin, Hauz Khas, Mehrauli, Tuglakabad, Khidki village, India
Gate...The concept of Delhi as a living heritage has return home thanks to
those walks. One in all my 1st advise to friends visiting town is keep during a
Delhi bed and breakfast accommodation, and take a heritage walk. These 2 will
offer you the key to the city's wealthy history and way of life.
Recent years have seen this idea catch on in different
cities. Mumbai has quite a few heritage walks covering the historic sides of
city. It is a nice means to work out the nineteenth century streetscape and
neo-classical buildings of the Colaba space. The most common one starts from
the Gateway of India and ends at the World Heritage website, Chhatrapati
Shivaji Terminus, formerly known as Victoria Terminus. Walks like Khotachiwadi,
Banganga near Walkeshwar, Crawford market, the Fort space and Bandra village
have have conjointly caught the public imagination. Want one among the Koli
settlement comes along within the near future.
Many alternative cities like Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Jaipur and
Bangalore too have developed these routes to the delight of each locals and
visitors alike.
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