Street food Archives - Same Day Tour Blog

Taj Mahotsav- An Exposition of Agra Culture

Dr Atul Kumar Singh Parmar — Sat, 14 Dec 2019 05:40:25 +0000

Taking part in Fairs and Festivals celebration has been an integral part of Indian culture since ages. There are notable festivals in the annual calendar of India Tourism for Example Pushkar camel fair, Batenshar cattle fair, Sonpur cattle fair, Surajkund Crafts Mela, Taj Mahotsav, etc. The Taj Mahotsav is a sort of grand carnival which is annually celebrated at the Shilpgram near the East Gate of the Taj.

The History of Taj Mahotsav Agra

This is a 10 days long mega event of Art, crafts and culture with a lot of music and melodrama. This is the ceremonial display of regality, pomp, and show and cultural ethos of the Mughals and the famed Nawabs of Audh, Uttar Pradesh Tourism is responsible to organize this fair to boost up Agra Tourism.

The history of Taj Mahotsav dates back to 1992 and this coming year in 2020 this will mark the 29th anniversary of it and certainly it is going to be overwhelming.

This is a noble platform to view and appraise the artwork and talents of the artisans from different parts of India. The deft-handed performers of music and dance would certainly captivate your heart.

The theme of Agra Taj Mahotsav

Taj Mahotsav is reminding us of the bygone glory of Mughals. You are tempted to recall the days of the Mughal era while the emperor and the prominent nobles were riding elephants with mahouts controlling them with noose. The decorated elephants in the war position or the procession form were the glory of Mughals. In this festival, you witness the effigies of elephants, houses and much more accompanied by the thumps of drums and the tones of trumpets.

This festival celebrated with great gusto, is also a great chance for the connoisseurs as they get the best flavors of Indian cuisines. If you are a stage lover what can be the other best opportunity then to enjoy the folk dances of the prominent local artists and thus get soaked in the myriads of colors of Indian out. You can enjoy the Kalbelia dance of Rajasthan, Kathak from Uttar Pradesh and Nautanki and other forms from Maharashtra.

Suggested Tour Packages :-

These places showcase very handicrafts, for example, Saharanpur wood carvings, Varanasi Silk and Zardozi Work, Marble Inlay work of Agra, Pottery from Khurja, Chicken work from Lucknow, Kashmiri Handmade Carpets, Locks of Aligarh, Knives from Rampur and so on. Thus the seller finds a better place to display their objects under one roof and the buyers have an ease to buy the artifacts at the genuine rates under one roof. Thus the localities and the foreigners enjoy the shopping spree after the Taj Mahal Tour.

Thus this festival is a paradise for the shopaholics who can visit the different galleries brimming with the stalls of curios fabrics, paintings, imitation jewelry, old books, etc.

You also have a unique chance to savor the dishes from the various Indian States and participate in the concerts of the top performers. Even the kids have a plethora of options to have great fun of enjoying the thrilling rides on the various savings.

How to Get Entry Tickets

The entry tickets can be purchased on the entry gates at the time of visit at the rate of INR 50 per person. The foreign tourists and the children up to the age of 5 are exempted from the entry fee. For the school group, there are cheaper tickets and you have to pay 500 INR for a group comprising of 100 students provided they are in school uniforms and two teachers along with the group can get complimentary entry. For the cultural shows, you need not purchase separate entry tickets. But sometimes during the cultural shows with celebrities, there is extreme pressure of V.I.P arrivals.

If you are looking for some great discount deals on these displayed artifacts you can avail a golden opportunity to do the same, Just wait for the last day of the Tajmahotsav this is the time when the artisans are packing for their departure and sure will offer you the best discount on their artifacts, Thus you will stand to save and the artisans don’t have to carry their stuff back.

The post Taj Mahotsav- An Exposition of Agra Culture appeared first on Same Day Tour Blog.

Agra Food Walk For The Connoisseurs

Dr Atul Kumar Singh Parmar — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 12:13:03 +0000

Agra Food Heritage of the Mughal Era

Agra developed as a fully-fledged metropolis town during the reign of Mughal King Akbar. Those were the times when Indian society was completely divided into caste lines. The areas or the mohallas as they were called in local parlance also came up following the same societal rules and laws. Agra still bears those old names of the areas, there are mohallas named “Loha mandi “ “Seth Gali” and so many others. Agra Food walk is a paradise for food connoisseurs.

What do you expect in the Agra food walk?

Agra food walk is a specifically developed local tour of Agra where we focus on providing our clients and tourists the real taste of Agra cuisine. You will get to see the humdrum of day-to-day Agra life. These local Mohalla’s have not changed much in the last 400 odd years. We start with a visit to one of the oldest “Petha” sweetmeat shops in old Agra known as “Gopal Das Petha” here you will get to see and taste various varieties of this world-famous sweet from the city of Taj.

Experience the Agra Culture and Bazars in Food Tour

Behind this Petha shop is a very narrow lane of a crowded bazaar know as “Lohar Gali” this name probably comes from the blacksmith Population once habiting this mohalla. You will also get a chance to explore Temple and Taj Tour an old Shiva temple known as the “Mankameshwar” temple. This temple leads to an old spice market where you can buy all sorts of Indian spices and condiments.

Walking a little you will arrive at the famous lane known for the Agra street food. Seth Gali is the hub of Agra Heritage walk and local street food which is predominantly rich in taste and calories. Be ready to enjoy the taste of a variety of sweetmeats merchandised in a variety of Flavour. You can also taste other snacks which are mostly fried.

Suggested Tours:-

Visit Paan (Beetle Leaf) shop

After eating your heart out get ready to enjoy the Paan. This is a sort of condiment enjoyed as a follow-up after a hearty meal. This is a small wrap of betel leaf with a mix of areca nut combined with spices. This will leave a lingering taste to your senses.

If you can endure and enjoy the tobacco leaves you can order to add the tobacco leaves to your respective Pan handmade and delivered fresh to you by your friendly Pan wallah. Pan has stimulant properties the slaked lime is used to bind the ingredients together.

Tuk Tuk Experience

After this walk and engaging experience, you will ride your tuk-tuk and enjoy the ride across the crowded Agra bazaars reaching a market where the hallways are all busy in making “batasha” this is an ancient delicacy made with nothing but sugar.

The relevance of batasha is more in festivals and rituals where none of the rituals and offerings are complete without “Batasha”. You will get to know and see the complete process and procedure of “Batasha Making” this is a wholesale market where traders trade in this commodity in big lots.

Sadar Bazar Tour-The Climax of Food Walk

From here we will drive to the famous market known as “Sadar bazaar” the resident of Agra come here to shop and enjoy their past time. There is a separate food lane selling all sorts of street food, do try the “Paani poori” Snack, you can even try an Indian version of Pasta.

If you are desirous you can enjoy a cup of coffee sitting in a small shanty across a busy lane. A Plate of “Falooda kulfi” is a perfect ending to the Agra food Walk. If interested you can also savor a platter of barbecued chicken and mutton dishes over here.

Suggested Tours

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