TIBET-China

Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north of the Himalayas. It is home to the indigenous Tibetan people, and to some other ethnic groups such as Monpas and Lhobas, and is inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people. Tibet is the highest
region on earth, with an average elevation of 4,900 metres (16,000 ft). It is sometimes referred to as the roof of the world.

During Tibet's history, it has existed as a region of separate sovereign areas, a single independent entity and as a vassal under Chinese suzerainty or sovereignty. Tibet was first unified under King Songtsän Gampo in the 7th century. At various times from
the 1640s until the 1950s, a government nominally headed by the Dalai Lamas, a line of spiritual political leaders, ruled a large portion of the Tibetan region. During some of this period, the Tibetan administration was subordinate to the Qing Dynasty.

In the chaos in China following the Xinhai Revolution in 1913, the 13th Dalai Lama expelled Qing's representatives and troops from what is now the Tibet Autonomous Region and governed it autonomously. Neither the new Republic of China, nor any other foreign state or the United Nations recognized this as legal Tibetan independence. In 1950, the People's Republic of China, emerging victoriously from the Chinese Civil War, quelled the 14th Dalai Lama's army and successfully negotiated for an acknowledgment of Chinese sovereignty. Since what
constitutes Tibet is a matter of much debate (see map, right), neither its size nor population are simple matters of fact, due to various entities claiming differing areas as part of "Tibet"

City Palace, Udaipur-INDIA

Udaipur City Palace is one of the architectural marvels of Rajasthan, located peacefully on the banks of Lake Pichola. This majestic City Palace is the most-visited tourist attraction of Udaipur and often distinguished as the largest palace complex in Rajasthan. Initially, Maharana Udai Singh built this superb wonder, but the present form of the Palace is the result of subsequent additions by his successors.

City Palace boasts of the wonderful blend of Medieval, European and Chinese Architecture. The Palace has various towers, domes and arches, which add to the flavor of heritage site. Towering on the banks of Pichola Lake, City Palace is truly a feast to the eyes. City Palace is a marvelous assortment of courtyards, pavilions, terraces, corridors, rooms and hanging gardens. Encircled by fortifications, this imposing Palace is wholly built
in granite and marble.

City Palace has several gates that are known as "Pols". 'Bara Pol' (Great Gate) is the main gate to the City Palace complex that will take you to the first courtyard. On passing 'Bara Pol', you will come across a triple arched gate, which is known as 'Tripolia'. Between these two gates, you would see eight marble arches or Toranas, where Kings used to weigh themselves with gold and silver. Besides Tripolia, there is an arena where elephant fights were staged. Across 'Tripolia', you would enter the 'Elephant Gate' or the 'Hathi Pol'.

City Palace comprises 11 wonderful palaces, which were built by different rulers still they resemble each other. With the sheer glimpse of unique paintings, antique furniture and exquisite glass mirror & ornamental tiles work of these palaces, you will get amazed. Manak Mahal (Ruby Palace) has figures of crystal and porcelain. However, Bhim Vilas flaunts a fabulous collection of
miniature paintings depicting the real life stories of Radha-Krishna.

The 'Krishna Vilas' is known for the noteworthy album of miniature paintings portraying royal processions, festivals and games of the Maharanas. Moti Mahal (Pearl Palace) is celebrated for its lavish decor while Sheesh Mahal (Palace of mirrors) is known for its breathtaking mirror work. 'Chini Chitrashala' is renowned for its Chinese and Dutch ornamental tiles. 'Dilkusha Mahal' (Palace of Joy) is known for the murals and wall paintings.

Bada Mahal is the exotic garden palace that stands erect on a 90 feet high natural rock formation. Rang Bhawan is the palace that used to contain royal treasure. There are temples of Lord Krishna, Meera Bai and Shiva, located right to the 'Rang Bhawan'. 'Mor Chowk' has exceptional glass mosaics of peacocks, set in the walls presenting the three seasons of summer, winter and monsoon. 'Laxmi Vilas Chowk' is an art gallery with a
distinctive collection of Mewar paintings.

Situated in the premises of City Place complex, Jagdish Temple is the biggest and most beautiful temple of Udaipur. This temple Appeals to the aesthetic sense of the people and we will further discuss it in our other section. You can also trace a Shrine of Dhuni Mata in the complex of City Palace. This part is considered as the oldest part of the Palace where a sage passed his life meditating here.

In 1974, a part of the City Palace and the 'Zenana Mahal' (Ladies Chamber) have been transformed into a museum. The museum is open for public and we have discussed it in our other section about museums. One can locate some striking paintings in the 'Zenana Mahal' which further leads to Lakshmi Chowk. 'Lakshmi Chowk' is a beautiful white pavilion. In City palace, the most captivating sight can be viewed from the towers and terraces of 'Amar Vilas' from where you can get a breathtaking view of Lake
Pichola.

'Amar Vilas' is the highest point of this Palace and has wonderful hanging gardens with fountains, towers and terraces. City Palace is structured in a way that it offers a splendid view of the lake from all its Balconies, cupolas and towers. Unlike the craggy exterior, City Palace has amazing interiors with delicate mirror-work, marble work, murals, wall paintings, silver work, inlay work and surplus of colored glass. The exquisite work of City Palace cannot be bounded in words, so one must visit this palace to capture the real picture of it.

Unique Houses All over the world

Earth House
This unique house is located in Switzerland.
It is an earth house, an architectural style characterized by the use of natural terrain to help form the walls of a house.
An earth house is usually set partially into the ground and covered
with thin growth, and is often intended to have a small ecological footprint. 

 

Rondavel
This pretty amazing house is called a rondavel, a traditional African-style house. They are usually round in shape and traditionally made with materials
that can be locally obtained in raw form.
The rondavel's walls are often constructed from stones.
The mortar may consist of sand, soil,
or some combinations of these mixed with dung.The floor is finished with a processed dung mixture to make it smooth.
The
roof braces of a rondavel are made out of tree limbs,
which have been harvested and cut to length.
The roof itself is made out of thatch that is sewn
to the wooden braces with rope made out of grass.

Shell
House
One distinct house is the Shell house.
It is the most original house
in Mexico or maybe in the world.
It
is one of the most beautiful houses
you will surely enjoy.
It is located in Isla Mujeres northeast
of Yucatan peninsula
in the Caribbean Sea.

Rumah gadang
Rumah gadang which means "big house",
are the traditional homes of the Minangkabau in Indonesia.
The architecture, construction, internal and external decoration,
and the functions of the house reflect the culture and values of the Minangkabau.
 A rumah gadang serves as a residence, a hall for family meetings,
and for ceremonial activities.
With the Minangkabau society being
matrilineal,
the rumah gadang is owned by the women of the family
who live there - ownership
is passed
 from mother to daughter.

Toda Hut
The peculiar hut of a Toda Tribe of Nilgiris,
India is noted for the decoration of the front wall,
and the very small door.
The Toda people are a small pastoral community
who live on the isolated Nilgiri plateau of Southern India.
 Prior to the late eighteenth century,
the Toda coexisted locally with other communities,
including the Badaga, Kota, and Kurumba,
in a loose caste-like community organization in
 which the Toda were the top ranking.

Korowai Tree House
This bizarre house is home to the bizarre tribe called
the Korowai or also called the Kolufo.
They are a people of southeastern Papua
 (i.e., the southeastern part of the western part of New Guinea).
Until the 1970s, they were unaware of the existence of any people besides themselves
and some immediately neighboring villages.
 Only a few of them have become literate thus far.
They are one of the few surviving peoples in the world
that are thought to possibly still engage in cannibalism.
Others dispute this, saying that these practices ended
decades ago and
that there have been no reported instances of cannibalism in over twenty
years.
Trulli House
Trulli houses, distinguished by conical store roof,
are traditional in the southeastern region Apulia, Italy.

Palloza
A palloza is a traditional thatched house as found in
the in Galicia, Spain.
They are circular or oval, and about ten ortwenty meters in diameter.
These houses are built to withstand severe winter weather
 at a typical altitude of
1,200 meters.
The main structure is stone, and is divided internally into separate areas
for the family and their animals, with separate entrances.
The roof is conical, made from rye straw on a wooden frame.
There is no chimney, the smoke from the kitchen fire seeps out through the thatch.

Farmhouse
Earth sheltering is the architectural practice of using earth against building walls
 for external thermal mass, to reduce heat loss,
and to easily maintain a steady indoor air temperature.
Earth sheltering is popular in modern times among advocates
of passive solar
and sustainable architecture, but has been around for nearly
as long as
humans have been constructing their own shelter.
The picture above is Earth covered farm houses located in Keldur, Iceland.
CrannogA crannog
is an artificial island, usually originally built in lakes, rivers and estuarine waters,
and most often used as an island settlement
 or dwelling place in prehistoric or medieval times.
The name itself may refer to a wooden platform erected on shallow floors,
but few remains of this sort have been found.
Mardin Stone Houses Turkey
This Arab-style architecture is located in Mardin, a city in southeastern Turkey.
It is commonly recognized for its Arab-style architecture,
and it also has a strategic position on a rocky mountain overlooking
the plains of northern Syria.
Beehive Mud Houses: Harran, Turkey
These traditional mud houses are located in Harran. The interesting thing about them is
 that they were constructed entirely without the use of wood.
The design of these mud houses is believed to have stayed the same
for at least 3,000
years, until about the 1980s,
when they officially stopped being used as living space.

Tongkonan
Toraja People House: Sulawesi, Indonesia These distinctive wooden houses
have curved roofs with tall gable ends that make them look likes boats.
The houses are built on stilts and are entered by curved steps
and beautifully decorated doorways.
They are the homes of the Toraja peoples, who live in central Sulawesi


House of Marsh Arabs: Iraq
The Houses of the Marsh Arabs are built from reeds.
They are often constructed on floating platforms woven
 from tips of reeds still growing up out of the swamp.
The people travel around by canoe.
The Marsh Arabs' lifestyle is threatened
by drainage projects that are taking water
from swamps, causing them to dry
up.

Log Cabin House: USA
The log cabin house is
among the first house designs of early America.
 It is sturdy and easy to construct,
and can be built by hand to provide shelter in a very short period of time.

Sarkari Bagh Haripur