Oil lamps lit at Shey Gompa by families wishing to bear children. Ladakh, India.
Taa Dzong in Trongsa was the first major building in Bhutan to undergo a renovation that brings new architectural concepts to an otherwise preserved traditional space. Built in 1652, Taa Dzong sits on a steep hill overlooking Trongsa Dzong and the river valleys to the south and west. During times of war and intrigue, it was traditional to build such watchtowers to protect a dzong. In more recent times, Taa Dzong had become home to two hermit monks who tended the two lakhangs inside. Now a museum of Buddhism and the Monarchy named the Tower of Trongsa, it still shelters two active lakhangs. Bhutan.
Chowmahalla Palace or Chowmahallatuu (4 Palaces), is a palace of the Nizams of Hyderabad state. It was the seat of the Asaf Jahi dynasty and was the official residence of the Nizams of Hyderabad while they ruled their state. The palace remains the property of Barkat Ali Khan Mukarram Jah, heir of the Nizams.
