Chapter 2, Part 3 “In this city you will find men belonging to every nation and people, because of the great trade which it has, and the many precious stones there … the streets and markets are full of laden oxen without count, … and […]
Vijayanagara: the Golden Period
Chapter 2, Part 2 In the 14th century Harihara I established Vijayanagara, a Hindu kingdom which would later become the most powerful empire in the history of South India, and Harihara II – the third king – conquered the Madurai Sultanate and vast swathes of […]
Vijayanagara: the Beginning
Chapter 2, Part 1 Powers rise and fall, a constant change on earth like the ebb and flow of the sea. Men’s insatiable need for power has caused the world’s political borders to change from time to time, as well as the death of millions […]
Kirtipur the Brave
Chapter 1, Part 21 For centuries the Malla kings had reigned over the Kathmandu Valley marked by periods of repetitious amity and enmity among the rulers of Kathmandu (Kantipur), Patan (Lalitpur) and Bhaktapur. Since the 13th century, they had shaped the distinct Newar culture reflected […]
Kathmandu the Eclectic
Chapter 1, Part 20 Our driver who picked us up from Bhaktapur tried to reach our hotel using the number I gave him earlier. He tried several times, to no avail, until he decided to just ask the locals for direction. We were heading to […]
Patan the Beautiful
Chapter 1, Part 19 One early morning at the reception in our hotel, situated amid the labyrinthine alleys of Kathmandu, we asked a lady, presumably the manager, about the cost of taking a taxi to Patan during the fuel crisis. We then walked to a […]
Bhaktapur the Resilient
Chapter 1, Part 18 One dynasty falls, another rises. One kingdom declines, another flourishes. It is one of many patterns that repeat in perpetuity over the course of the history of mankind. As the influence of the once mighty Buddhist kingdom of Bagan gradually waned, […]
Indein: Abandoned and Forgotten
Chapter 1, Part 17 Far from the crowds and bustle of tourists and locals at the center of Inle Lake, our small boat headed to the southwestern side of the lake. Our boatman skillfully navigated the calm waters to Indein (Inn Thein) creek, past Phaung […]
Bagan: An Empire in Decline
Chapter 1, Part 16 Almost two centuries of endless temple construction which began during the reign of Anawrahta, the founder of the kingdom of Bagan, resulted in nearly two-thirds of arable land in the kingdom reserved for religious purposes. The construction of colossal temples and […]
The Great Heritage of Polonnaruwa
Chapter 1, Part 15 Across the Bay of Bengal, to the southwest of Narapatisithu’s Bagan, a great king ruled the people on the island of Lanka. Parakramabahu was credited not only for uniting the three Sinhalese kingdoms of Rajarata, Ruhuna and Dakkhinadesa into a unified […]
Bagan: Into Turbulent Time
Chapter 1, Part 14 In the early 12th century AD, the prosperous and powerful kingdom of Bagan was on the verge of years of political instability. Narathu, who by now ruled the kingdom, ascended the throne by assassinating his own father, Alaungsithu, and his older […]
Bagan Rising
Chapter 1, Part 13 At the turn of the second millennium, Hinduism became the dominant power in Southeast Asia where powerful Hindu kingdoms controlled vast swathes of land between the Pacific and the Indian Oceans. Following the return of Shaivism into the royal court of […]
What an Amazing World! 