Ahmedabad is named after a medieval ruler of Gujarat, Ahmed Shah, who is the founder of the city, it is the textile city of India and is known as “Manchester of the East”. With tourist attractions that are a perfect blend of ancient heritage and vibrant modern city life, Ahmedabad has something for everyone who visits the city. So, if you find yourself in this beautiful city of textiles, here is the list of five must-visit places in the city.
1. Law Garden:
A visit to the Law Garden is a must as this is a hub for local vendors to display and sell beautifully embroidered short kurti, ghagra cholis, bags, tablecloths, sheets, bed covers and cushions. Aside from which, beautiful oxidized jewelry can also be found, either in a set or individual pieces. If you are a fan of shopping and know how to haggle, you can get quality products at a fairly cheap price.
If shopping isn’t your thing, don’t worry as the Law Garden is also one of the most popular picnic spots in the city with the wide range of activities taking place on the premises. So head out to the sprawling expanse of the garden, whether it’s for a quiet evening with friends or to savor some Gujarati delicacies at the Khau gali, which roughly translates to Food Street. The extensive expanse of the garden also makes it an ideal venue for garbha nights and musical concerts organized by the city.
2. Walled city and the gates
Tracing the history of the wall surrounding the city, it is believed that after Ahmed Shah founded, the city began to grow steadily and became a center of power, so the Shah’s grandson Mahmoud Begda decided protect the city by fortifying it. Therefore, the 10 km circumference wall was built around the city to protect it from invasion.
This wall originally had twelve gates, 189 bastions, more than 6,000 battlements and these were expanded over time. However, as the city steadily grew, most of the wall was torn down, but the gates still stand as witnesses to the passage of time, a bygone era. Some of the gates that still stand as a single structure amid heavy traffic are Shahpur Gate, Delhi Gate, Dariapur Gate, Prem Gate, Kalupur Gate, Panch Kuva Gate, Sarangpur Gate, Raipur Gate, Astodia Gate, Mahudha Gate , Jamalpur Gate, Khanjia Gate, Raikhad Gate, Ganesh Gate and Ram Gate. These doors with their beautiful carvings, calligraphy and some of them with the preserved balconies have become a meeting place for the residents who sit under them creating a historical atmosphere in the midst of the ever-growing city.
3. Teenage Darwaza and Rani no Haziro
Apart from being an architectural delight, the walled city is also famous for its various products and one of them is the cloth market. So if you are interested in Gujarat cloth then head to the markets in Dhalgarwad, Teen Darwaza area, Sindhi market and Rani no Haziro area which are the cloth heaven of the city. Aside from this, they also sell other trinkets that are great souvenirs for tourists.
Rani no Haziro is the Gujarati translation of the queen’s tomb where the female members of the royal family were buried. Today Rani no Haziro is a market for women’s clothing and accessories.
Teen Darwaza, one of the longest and oldest gateways in the city, is another architectural marvel, consisting of intricately carved arched doors. It is believed that the Mughal Emperor Jahangir used to come here along with his beloved wife Noorjahan to catch a glimpse of the procession that started from this great gate and continued non-stop to Jama Masjid.
Today, the area within this beautiful structure boasts a market that sells everything from fabrics to traditional artifacts and crafts. The structure is truly an epitome of fine Islamic architecture with beautifully decorated semi-circular mesh windows.
4. Museums
Since the city is steeped in the glorious past, a visit to the city’s museums is a must. Providing valuable insight into the lifestyle, culture of ancient Ahmedabad, museums such as the Calico textile museum, Sabarmati Ashram, the central point from where India’s struggle for independence began, Hussain Doshi Gufa, also known such as Amdavad ni gufa, an underground art gallery exhibiting the works of the famous Indian artist MF Hussain and designed by the famous architect Balkrishna Vithaldas Doshi, hence the name Hussain Doshi Gufa. It is called ‘gufa’ because the structure resembles a cave.
5. Akshardham
Established in 1992 at the dedication of Lord Swaminarayana, Akshardham is an example of brilliant craftsmanship and truly an architectural masterpiece. Located in the city of Gandhinagar (25 km), the Akshardham temple is famous for its various activities such as art, education, exhibitions and research, all under one roof. Apart from this, another highlight of the temple is the seven foot long idol of Lord Swaminarayana, the chief deity of the temple.
The intricately carved structure of Akshardham was built from pink stones and measuring 240 feet in length, 131 feet in width and 108 feet in height, it is the most magnificent building in modern India.
6. Walking history lesson
Whether you have limited or enough time, you must take a two hour heritage walk as it is a history lesson on foot. Starting from the picturesque Swaminarayana Temple in Kalupur and ending at the most glorious architectural legacies of Jama Masjid, the trek covers numerous pols, havelis, ornate facades, craftsmen’s workplaces and several magnificent Hindu and Jain temples. There is also a special half-hour slide show that walks through the pages of the city’s history from its birth from an ancient 10th century AD site known as Ashaval to the current walled city refounded during the Ahmed Shah period and onwards.