Sanchi, Madhya Pradesh (30 miles from Bhopal)
The great sight of Sanchi is the brick-built Buddhist stupa, or rather collection of stupas that tower above the countryside. The giant stupa is especially impressive. Although some ruins may go back much further, the main buildings come from the time of Ashoka in the 3rd century BCE. The familiar pillars talking about tolerance of religion are in evidence, as are several 'gateways' that are carved in stone. Interestingly, despite the fact that the Stupa was built to house some of the Buddha's relics, the Buddha himself is never depicted in human form here.Due to the lack of tourists (or anybody really), I found the place to be quite 'uplifting'. Worth the stopover only if you have time on your hands, or happen to be on the Delhi-Bhopal train line.
