Lucknow

Lucknow is the capital of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, on the Gomti River in the north of the country. Known as the city of the Nawabs, it is noted for its courtly manners, its Urdu poetry and the slow-cooked kebabs of its kitchens.

Asaf-ud-Daula, the Nawab of Awadh, moved his capital from Faizabad to Lucknow in 1775 and filled it with palaces, mosques and gardens. In 1784 he began the Bara Imambara, a great hall with a vaulted roof built without beams, with a maze of narrow passages called the Bhul Bhulaiya in its upper floors. His successors added the Rumi Darwaza, a tall gateway in the Mughal style, and the Chhota Imambara, lit with chandeliers. Lucknow became a center of Urdu literature, Kathak dance and Hindustani music at the Nawabs' court.

Chikankari, a fine white embroidery on cotton and muslin, is stitched by hand in the workshops of the old city and sold across India. Dasheri mangoes from the orchards of Malihabad, outside the city, are sent across India in early summer. Tata Motors builds buses and trucks at its plant on the edge of Lucknow. Galouti kebabs, made of minced meat so soft that they melt, are served in the eating houses of the old city.

Hazratganj, the main shopping street, keeps colonial arcades and cafes where people stroll in the evening. The Lucknow Zoo, opened in the 1920s in a park of the old Nawabi gardens, is one of the oldest zoos in northern India. The Lucknow Mahotsav, a festival held each winter, shows the crafts, music and food of the region.