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Favourite mosques and mausoleums

Nick_G said:
Seriously, the Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque in Esfahan, Iran would be somewhere I would love to visit. I love the way that Islamic architecture incorporates geometry and mathematics in the design to beautiful, awe-inspiring effect:

Astounding.
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I think I popped in there in spring '76, travelling back overland from India (as one could in those days); I do remember Isfahan as being the most beautiful city I visited in Iran. In India itself, I also love the Indo-Saracenic architecture. For me, the Taj Mahal is the most beautiful man made structure on the planet.

I lived near Genoa for 7 years : the cemetery there has amazing family mausolea, reflecting both the former wealth of Genoa as an independent state & the art of Italy in general : http://laceupandwalk.blogspot.nl/2016/01/an-outdoor-walk-through-history.html
 
wyjsar said:
Naqsh-e Jahan in Isfahan is glorious, I think it is 10 or 12 years ago that I visited it and I felt extremely lucky to be a Brit in Iran at the time.
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Was there in '92, the mosque is well worth the visit. The fact that Iran is not exactly on the common tourist trail added to the magic.

Overall, the Taj can't be beaten by any other building IMO. But judging by the mosques I have seen as yet (not that many actually), I somewhat miss the craziness found in catholic churches, like in Albi, Barcelona or Strasbourg.
 
Marchbanks said:
Nothing to do with the thread - but I have to tell you that every time I see your avatar I hear a voice saying ‘How do you think your piano-playing is ever going to improve if you spend so much time looking at this stuff?’
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I hope He would approve. He was a great traveller.
wyjsar said:
Naqsh-e Jahan in Isfahan is glorious, I think it is 10 or 12 years ago that I visited it and I felt extremely lucky to be a Brit in Iran at the time. Since then I've also visited Uzbekhistan and the mosque that I remember most is the Bibi-Khanym in Samarkand. Really it is a patched up ruin and in terms of being a treasured site to see it loses out to other mosques in Samarkand and Bukhara. However, it is the one that has really left a lasting impression on me.
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I'm particularly jealous of anyone who's been to Uzbekistan.
 
gintonic said:
Umayyad Mosque in Damascus (I have visited it)


Faisal Mosque in Islamabad, Pakistan (I have also visited here)



Great mosque in Peshawar Pakistan (I have also been here)



Grand Mosque Kuwait City ( I have visited here as well) is spectacular inside
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greatly enjoyed the faisal mosque in pakistan . incredible place and also one of my favs is the badshahi mosque which we went to . i just adore pakistan and the people . real drag its not really safe there now . both my wife and i wore pakistani dress and sometimes the locals would shout `gori gori ` which means white man i think . my lovely wife attracted some attention too as she israther lovely . we stayed at st andrews church guesthouse and visied many hospitals with TB while i was there

this vid is not mine but borrowed
 
hifinutt said:
greatly enjoyed the faisal mosque in pakistan . incredible place and also one of my favs is the badshahi mosque which we went to . i just adore pakistan and the people . real drag its not really safe there now . both my wife and i wore pakistani dress and sometimes the locals would shout `gori gori ` which means white man i think . my lovely wife attracted some attention too as she israther lovely . we stayed at st andrews church guesthouse and visied many hospitals with TB while i was there
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I used to work with the British Council there. In my years I visited about 6 times, staying in cities all over the country including up in NW Frontier Province - Peshawar was a brilliant place to visit. I holidayed in Gilgit, got close to the border crossing at Torkham, but never managed to cross the Khyber Pass. Pakistan is a fantastic country, more interesting than India and Bangladesh in some respects (and I have visited India on some 30+ occasions, and Bangladesh about 12 times). I didn't take photos in those days very much, I may have some film prints from Pakistan somewhere - it was before the time of smart phones. I have fond memories of the bureaucracy of buying an alcohol licence in Pakistan and drinking in what purported to be a "bar" in a 5 star hotel, where the only alcohol to buy came in measures of the "bottle" - so you could have a bottle of beer or a bottle of gin!

I also spent a long time working with the British Council in all the Gulf States, and Syria, Lebanon and Jordan, before they moved me on to W. Africa
 
amazing , you have certainly been around . never quite made it to peshawar but stayed with a lovely afghan family . i recall my wife stayed with the ladies and i was not allowed in the main part where they were . never forget walking by the river near the tarbela dam and finding all these folks from brum where i had come from at that time .

the pakistani folks are so friendly but you have to have your wits about you as a lot of corruption in the police
 
gintonic said:
I used to work with the British Council there. In my years I visited about 6 times, staying in cities all over the country including up in NW Frontier Province - Peshawar was a brilliant place to visit. I holidayed in Gilgit, got close to the border crossing at Torkham, but never managed to cross the Khyber Pass. Pakistan is a fantastic country
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Ha, been to Gilgit, too, in the mid 80s, on the way to Baltit and the wonders of the Hunza Valley. The road to China was closed unfortunately, so we had to stop about 40 k from the border. Didn’t find much to like in Gilgit, TBH, so didn’t stay very long.

Would have loved to spend more time in Multan and Lahore.
 
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