Emperor Akbar's abandoned City

Fatehpur Sikri was the capital of the Mughal empire under emperor Akbar in the 1500's until the city's water source dried up (only 4 years after it was completed) and it was abandoned.

The "perfect city" was designed as a physical expression of Akbar's tolerance of all religions. He even had a Hindu, Christian and a Muslim wife who had their own separate palaces designed to reflect each of their religions.

Akbar played a gigantic game of Parcheesi in his courtyard using slave girls as the game pieces (see photo). He had an on-site astrologer at the Palace who he consulted daily.
Beside the palaces is the Dargah Mosque, a replica of Mecca still used by Muslims today. The beautiful Victory Gate (largest of its kind in India) leads you into the courtyard where the mosque and white marble mausoleum are located. Inside the tomb of the sufi mystic (who was believed to have brought Akbar a son), pilgrims place sheets of cloth, give donations, and tie threads to the latticed marble windows while making 3 wishes. I quietly entered the tomb where muslims were chanting and praying to make my wishes as I tied thread to the window.