Day 24 – Taj Mahal, Agra
Day 24 – Tuesday, 19th Nov 2013
It’s 7 am Tuesday morning and Khyati and I are woken up by children singing morning prayers in their school. Iora Guest house is right opposite a primary school and we listen to some devotional songs and news for the next half hour.
It’s 8:45 am and we leave for Bharatpur station. The roads in Bharatpur are awful to say the least. The ride was very bumpy and we reach the station by 9 pm. Our train is the same one we had traveled in yesterday – Shatabdi but today we travel from Bharatpur to Agra, a 1 hour journey.
Train route to Agra
At the station, we see the Palace on Wheels – we felt so lucky to be able to see this train, albeit from outside.
Palace on Wheels
Our train is on time and we reach Agra by 10:30 am. Agra Fort station is crowded and we see a lot of foreign tourists around. We take an Auto Rickshaw to our hotel. The plus point about our hotel was it’s location – just 5 minutes walking distance from Taj Mahal and the rooftop of our hotel had views of Taj Mahal, priceless.
It’s noon and we leave to see the most beautiful monument ever made – The magnificent Taj Mahal. Taj Mahal has three entrances – West, East and South and we enter the venue from The South Gate.
South Gate entrance
To our surprise, it was World Heritage Week from 19 Nov – 25 Nov and Taj Mahal has free entry today. The security is tight and we make our way into the complex. We can’t keep our eyes off Taj Mahal, it’s that beautiful looking from a distance or from near. Inside, the Taj Mahal, we visit the sarcophagi of Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahan.
Taj Mahal
Us @ Taj Mahal
Apart from the Taj Mahal, it also has a nice museum and two mosques flanking it on the left and right hand side. We visit them all and it’s 5:30 pm by the time we leave the complex. We find some South Indian fare at a local restaurant. On our way back, we stop near Agra golf course. It’s a full 18 hole golf course and I enquire about a game of golf. The Agra golf course is managed by staff of the Indian Army. We make plans to visit the golf course next morning and head back to the hotel.
We spend some time at the rooftop restaurant and chat with some foreign tourists. We call it a night around 11 pm.
Best,
Paras
Day 23 – Bharatpur, The Bird City
Day 23 – Monday, 18th Nov 2013
One of the quirks of traveling is that you have to depart or arrive in a new land at odd hours. We have had our fair share so far and today was no different.
It’s 4:30 am and my alarm buzzes off. I set the geyser on and hope that hot water will flow in 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, Khyati and I wrap up our luggage and get ready to leave for Bharatpur. We complete the check out formalities early morning and await an Auto to take us to the station. I am on the road waving my hand at any passing auto rickshaw hoping to get a ride. After 10-15 minutes wait, we find a ride that takes us to the station. It’s 6:30 am and Jaipur station is crowded as ever, we slowly make our way onto the platform. The indicators tell us that Jaipur – Agra Shatabdi will arrive on Platform 2. We carry our luggage and cross the bridge.
On Platform 2, there was already a Jaipur – Delhi Shatabdi waiting to depart and for some reason, it was delayed. It’s 6:45 am and the previous train hasn’t taken off so how can we expect our train to arrive on this platform? It’s 5 minutes to 7 am and there is a faint announcement mentioning that the Jaipur – Agra Shatabdi will now arrive on Platform 1. There is a mad scramble as we just have 5 minutes and in the distance, we can see the train pulling onto the new platform. Khyati and I exert all our energy and run as fast as we can. The train comes to a stop as we get down the bridge. Our eyes try to find Coach – C3 and we heave a sigh of relief as it’s right near us.
The train takes off on time. For those who have not traveled in Indian Shatabdi trains, these are luxury trains by Indian standards as they are an AC coach chair car, provide food, water, news papers and other necessary amenities. We sit back and enjoy the ride.
Train route
As Khyati and I are chatting, I hear someone mutter USC, Stanford. I look across to that person and he is an American 50 something discussing football with his wife. He is thrilled reading the news that USC beat Stanford last night and how the new football coach for USC is a revelation and will take the team to new heights. I immediately make a connection as he seems a USC alum. Our wavelengths strike immediately and we catch up on how good USC is… Fight on!
Jim and I
We arrive to Bharatpur at 9:30 am and it’s a quaint station compared to some of the other big railway stations we have observed in our journey so far. Bharatpur though part of Rajasthan state has been heavily influenced by Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. It’s called the Braj area as it forms a small triangle with Agra and Mathura.
We reach Iora Guest House and we are given a warm welcome by the owner – Devendra Singh. Devendra himself is a wildlife photographer and has spent his years working at various wild life sanctuaries and now spends most of his time in Bharatpur managing his estate.
Our room
It’s 11:30 am and we leave to see Bharatpur bird sanctuary. The park entrance is just 1 km from the guest house and we decide to walk instead of taking the many cycle rickshaws available.
park entrance
K cycling
P cycling
The park is huge, 21 kms end to end. No vehicles are allowed inside the park and the only three modes of transport are – walking, cycling and cycle rickshaws. We rent bicycles for 5 hours and set out in the park. The best part about the bird park is that it’s a natural habitat for birds and insects to thrive and there is minimal damage to the eco system by us naturalists and non naturalists. The park is very well maintained with marked signs and viewing points. We sight many birds along the route and off route as well. Some of the birds we saw were painted stork, kingfisher, parrots, peacocks, Ibis among others. I wished that we had a DSLR to capture some good shots but unfortunately, all these amazing memories and sights were just captured in the eyes of the beholder.
Painted stork in the distance
It’s 5:30 pm and on our way back, the sun is absolutely gorgeous as it sets down in the forest.
Sunset
We walk back to our guest house by 6:30 pm and feast on some Jain food freshly prepared for us.
We take a walk in the evening around the market area and purchase some Gajak. The sweet is extremely delectable and it melted in our mouth like an ice cream. Try it if you haven’t already.
We catch up on some writing in the evening and call it a night around 11 pm.
Tomorrow morning, we head to Agra. More in the next post. Keep yourself tuned.
Best wishes,
Paras
Day 21 and Day 22 – Jaipur, The Pink City
Day 20 – Friday 15/11/2013 to Day 22 – Monday 17/11/2013
It’s Friday evening 4:30 pm. Khyati and I are waiting to board our Jaisalmer – Jaipur train. We are standing outside B2 – our 3 Tier AC coach and we see a group of 40 odd kids waiting to board that same train. They are shouting, running around, making fun and their teachers are struggling to have them under control. We want to change our seats to a more silent coach, I mumble.
Train route to Jaipur
The train takes off on time. No sooner have the kids settled, they make the passage way of the compartment their school corridor and are running continuously. We warn few kids that they might trip over but none seem to care. Well, we join in the fun and along with our co passengers, play a few games.
It’s Saturday morning 5 am and the train pulls into Jaipur station. We head to our Jain Dharamshala in an auto rickshaw. Near the railway station, there is a mega project to build a Metro subway and you can see workers at work that early in the morning. We were surprised.
We check into our room by 6 am and decide to rest for a while. Post breakfast at the Bhojanshala, we head to tour the city. Some of the city attractions are within walking distance from our stay and we walk towards Albert Hall Museum. Jaipur is very tourist friendly and one of the impressive things is that they have a combined ticket for entry to 5 of their main attractions for a meagre price of Rs 70. Plus, they do not charge any extra camera usage fees unlike some of the other forts we visited in Rajasthan.
Albert Hall Museum has a cocktail collection of various artifacts, paintings from all over the world. It was an impressive collection.
Albert Hall museum inside view
Albert Hall – outside view
From there, we head to Jantar Mantar. It’s set in a sprawling campus and consists of architectural astronomical instruments. We follow a guide who explains us the nitty gritty details of these instruments.
Miniature astronomical instrument
We decide to visit Hawa Mahal next. It’s 4:30 pm and we have another half hour before the museum closes. Well, we had more than half an hour because the entry closes at 5 pm but for visitors already inside, we could stay till 6 pm. Hawa Mahal consists of 5 floors and each floor had it’s own speciality. We marvel at the carvings and views of the city from the top.
in Hawa Mahal
Hawa Mahal – top view
It’s 6:15 pm and we walk back to our Dharamshala. Enroute, we see Jaipur’s local market. We have some traditional Rajasthani Thali dinner at a local restaurant.
It’s 8 pm and we are back at our room and decide to stay indoors for the rest of the evening. Khyati and I catch up on our writing and call it a night around 10 pm.
It’s Sunday today and a day of relaxation, shouldn’t it be? Well, all our days during this India tour are a Sunday and we were relaxing in the beautiful pink city. It’s 10 am and we take a walk towards the Jaipur cricket stadium – Sawai ManSingh stadium hoping to see it from inside. Unfortunately, Indian stadiums are not available for public viewing on non match days and all we got to see is a stern security guard denying us entry. We plead a few times but he says his hands are tied and if he is caught allowing us entry, his job might be at risk. We leave that place and head next to Amer Fort and Amber Palace. It’s around 15 kms north of Jaipur. Amer used to be the capital until the king decided he needed a bigger city and made Jaipur it’s capital. Amer fort is situated near Mathao Lake and is a nice climb up the hill. There are elephants which ply the distance from the foot of the hill to the gate entrance.
Amer Fort
Ganesh painting
We wanted to get an audio guide but there was a queue for English audio guides and we decide to skip it. In the palace, we request a security guard to take a picture of us. He asks us where we are from and we tell him – Mumbai. His eyes glitter and he is eager to share something. He mentions that he is a big big fan of Akshay Kumar – a popular Bollywood Actor and would love a chance to meet him. He hopes that I might have a connection and can help him meet with Akshay Kumar. Khyati and I share a laugh and explain to him that his chances of meeting him are highly unlikely because such big celebrities don’t roam the streets of Mumbai freely. Gyarsi lal – the security guard is undeterred. His only aim is that. He tells us that he has mastered Martial Arts and is a big dance expert. We are standing in awe hearing his story. I offer him my best help which is to post his picture on the web and my blog. If Akshay Kumar stumbles upon my blog, please note that Gyarsi Lal is your biggest fan from Jaipur and he is eager to meet you and shake your hand. hehe!
Gyarsi Lal – Akshay Kumar’s biggest fan
In return, Gyarsi Lal offers us a free guided tour of Amber Palace. Being a security guard, we were getting an escorted tour and we felt like a celebrity. Tourists and guides wondered how come a security guard was showing us around and were bewildered. Khyati and I were enjoying our moments of glory.
At Amer Fort
It’s 5:30 pm and after witnessing a wonderful sunset, we head back to Jaipur city. We eat some Subway on the way back to the Dharamshala and call it a night early. We have an early morning train to catch for Bharatpur.
Thanks all for your reading and comments.
Best wishes,
Paras
Day 16 to Day 20 – Jaisalmer, the Desert City
Day 16 – Monday, 11/11/2013 to Day 20 – Friday, 15/11/2013
I am clubbing this post to write about our entire Jaisalmer experience for 5D, 4N. Jaisalmer is truly a desert city. The amount of police and army deployed there makes it a strong defense city as well.
It’s Monday morning 4 am in Jodhpur and Khyati and I wake up, we have a 5:30 am train to Jaisalmer. The hotel manager had advised us to reach the station half an hour prior to departure time. The air was slightly chilly and we tread towards Platform 1 where the train is supposed to arrive. It’s 5:10 am and the new announcement goes that the train is now approaching on Platform 3 so we hurriedly carry our luggage and run towards that platform. Khyati and I had RAC confirmed tickets (means that our seat numbers are not allocated yet and will be printed on the chart that’s prepared for that day). We don’t know yet which compartment should we get into. I try to find a TTE (Ticket Checker) to find our seat details. He asks us to go into S1 – 9 and 10. We carry our luggage to that compartment but we find a group of army folks sleeping merrily on our seats. We dare to wake them up but they are in no mood to budge. Some of the other fellow passengers mention that this train runs like an unreserved coach between Jodhpur to Jaisalmer so we can sit anywhere we find seats empty. I found it odd but due to the morning hour, we agreed and found seats in S3 coach.
Train route
Khyati and I catch on some sleep and time passes fast. It’s 10 am and we see the vast desert land pass by. The train makes few stops and we approach Jaisalmer at 12:30 pm. The distinct thing about traveling to Jaisalmer is the amount of dust that gushes in through the open windows as you close in on Jaisalmer. We close the windows to avoid the dust.
Jaisalmer is the last railway town before the Indo – Pak border and we saw a lot of military folks stationed there. We take a rickshaw to Police Border Guard Ground where our Youth Hostel camp was being held. We were going to experience tent life for the next few days. We were quite excited.
Base camp
We completed the check in formalities and were assigned Tent 21. There were around 60 tents all put up by the staff there and designated gents and ladies toilets and showers. The setup was impressive. We were told that lunch will be served in half an hour and we go to the tent to keep our luggage.
Tent site
An insider view
Common toilets
Youth Hostel camps are amazing, it’s a great place to make new connections and the best way to explore a city. This was no different. Our camp leader announced the itinerary for the next few days.
Post lunch, it’s 3:30 pm in the afternoon and we are out to explore the city. The entire Jaisalmer city is spread in a 3 x 3 km area. It’s quite compact. We visit the famous Patwa Haveli. Patwa was a rich ruler and he built Havelis (residential houses) for his family. These Havelis are now presented as museums and we explore the area. All the buildings have used a distinctive yellow golden stone and it appears bright and nice in the evening sun.
Patwa Haveli
We walk towards Gadisar lake in the evening and enjoy the sunset there. We had to reach base camp at 7 pm for dinner. Food at the base camp was traditional Rajasthani fare and we liked it.
The highlights of the camp is the daily Camp Fire and the camp leader hosted the first night’s camp fire. He introduced himself and his group of volunteers. The staff there was really helpful and made extra efforts in making our stay memorable.
It’s 9:30 pm and you can feel the cold in the air. Jaisalmer is hot in the afternoons and cold in the nights. We request few extra blankets to help us survive the biting cold.
It’s 6 am Tuesday morning and we wake up to the chatter of fellow tenters. As tents are so close by, you can almost hear people mumble in their tents. We get ready by 8 am and breakfast is served soon. Breakfast consists of a hot snack and tea / coffee. The morning itinerary was for us to explore the Jaisalmer fort and Jain temples. We go with our camp group. There was heavy traffic in the city that day as it was Election day and you could see political parties promoting themselves and encouraging people to vote for them. At first, we might mistaken him for a singer but he was shouting slogans in favor of a local politician.
Election campaigns
The fort is huge and we climb to the very top to see pleasant views of the city. We head back to the base camp around noon for lunch. The staff there had put up Pandals (big open tents) as food area and we all sat down for lunch like a big family.
For the afternoon, there were plans to explore Sam Sand dunes which were 45 kms away and the camp folks had arranged buses for the same. All of us hopped on three buses and reached the sand dunes by 4 pm. The sand dunes are famous for the sunset views and we were here for that. At the sand dunes, you can either choose to walk yourselves or take a camel ride. Camels were aplenty and as soon as we got off the bus, a group of camel riders circled us in order to get our business. Khyati and I had decided against riding a camel and chose to walk in the desert. The desert was vast and we continued our journey into the Thar desert. It was good fun walking, running and sliding in the sand dunes.
Thar desert
It’s 5:30 pm and we witness one of the most amazing sunsets we have seen in a while. We head back to the buses by 6 pm and they take us to the base camp. It’s an hour journey to cover the 45 km distance.
Back at the base camp, we are served some hot food. The camp was an eco friendly one and we were asked to bring our own plates and reuse them. We liked this practice. One interesting anecdote – To wash plates, there was one soap powder available and there was a rush for people trying to use it. Some of the people started to use sand to clean their plates instead of soap and it turned out to be a good alternative. We used this same method over the next few days.
The camp rules were strict and lights used to be turned off by 10 pm post camp fire. Another interesting tidbit was that the tents did not have a plug point but instead in the open food area, they had a multi switch board containing around 20 – 25 plugs and everybody used to huddle there to charge their phones, camera, etc… It was a fun sight to see.
It’s Wednesday morning 6:30 am and we are woken up by patriotic songs played on the loud speakers. Apparently, some uncle in the group decided it was a good time to play Indian patriotic songs. hehe! Today was a long day for us and we were heading towards the border and to witness the site of Indo-Pak 1971 war – Longewala.
There are two buses arranged for today and we visit the border at Longewala. Enroute we see, Asia’s largest TV tower, Tanot Mata Mandir and the tankers which Pakistan deployed on India during the 1971 war. It felt amazing to see all these things up close and hear stories from soldiers who had fought for the country in Kashmir and various other postings.
Asia’s largest TV tower at one time
Well said at the border site
Longewala war site
During the bus journey, we play games and Antakshari, time passes fast and we reach base camp by 6:30 pm.
Tonight, the camp folks have arranged a traditional music and dance evening for us. The show is enthralling and we wish the show goes on and on. We call it a night around 10 pm.
It’s Thursday and today, we set out to explore the local towns near Jaisalmer. First stop for us is the town of Kuldhra – it’s an empty town. The story has it that there was an evil ruler in Jaisalmer who had his eyes set on a beautiful young lady in Kuldhra town. The town folks denied the marriage proposal and the ruler started imposing evils on the people. Then one day, villagers of 84 people vacated the town in a single night and nobody knows where they went but the towns are empty since then.
Kuldhra town in background
Next visit is two Jain temples which were around 400-500 years old. Beautiful carvings and we enjoy our visit there. Last stop for the day was the royal cemetery. The royals were burnt in mango tree wood and there was a huge mango farm in that complex.
We reach back base camp by 5 pm and relax at the camp for the night.
Tomorrow is Friday and our last day in Jaisalmer. It’s 8 am on Friday morning and most people check out of the camp. We have time until 5 pm in the evening and we spend time visiting the city again.
I will write about our train journey from Jaisalmer to Jaipur and Jaipur city visit in our next post.
Thanks again for reading and please drop in your comments.
Best wishes,
Paras
Day 15 – Jodhpur City Part 2
Day 15 – Sunday, 10th Nov 2013
It’s 6 am and I excitedly nudge Khyati to share something. With dreary eyes, she questions my sudden burst? I tell her my dream last night where I was zip lining across mountains and was going endlessly. I felt exhilarated and was on cloud nine. What a wonderful dream! I wake up soon and catch up on my writing while Khyati dozes off for another 10 minutes only, listen for the 10!
It’s 8:30 am and we are finishing breakfast and we plan to head out soon. Similar to car rental concepts in Western countries, most cities in India offer bike rentals. We were interested in exploring this. The prices were Rs 300 for the day and they give you an empty tank of petrol and you bring it back empty. We checked out the bike and everything looked good but when we asked if they provide us with 2 helmets, they didn’t have any. I didn’t feel that comfortable without helmets in a new city. For me, wearing a seat belt or an helmet is an absolute must. We chose to take the traditional Rickshaw route again.
First stop was Umaid Bhawan Palace. It was the royal residence until 1950s or so. Later that decade, the royals sold part of the palace to hospitality groups and today, the palace as it stands is 80% sold to Taj group of companies and it’s a popular 5 Star hotel. The remaining 20% has been converted into a museum and it contains portraits of the kings. For us, Umaid Bhawan Palace felt brand new. Taj group had given it a modern look and feel. The ruggedness, old and historic feel of forts and palaces was missing here. Oh well, we take a tour of this place and take few pictures.
There was a vintage car collection in the palace arena, cars as old as 1930s were kept in mint condition. These cars were stored behind glassed walls and my efforts to take a good picture failed as the glass reflection posed a hurdle.
Umaid Bhawan Palace
Khyati and the vintage car collection at the back
in the palace
It’s 1 pm and we are relishing some mango kulfi and chocolate ice cream. Next stop is Mandore gardens and fort. The rickshaw wallahs were charging exorbitantly and giving false information. One of the rickshaw wallahs I haggled with told me that the distance is 21 km while Google Maps showed it to be 10 km. There is no point arguing with them because they just choose to ignore you at this point and are just interested in your counter offer if any.
We take the rickshaw to the local bus stand and take the bus to Mandore. The buses are small 15 seater ones and privately owned and operated.
We reach Mandore around 3 pm and walk across the entire fort and garden area. The complex has a Shiv Mandir and we see people praying, enjoying and loitering in the park.
AIr Jump
AIr Jump
Views from Mandore Fort – oasis in desert
We head back to Govind Hotel by 6 pm. Tomorrow, we have a 5:30 am train and we go back to the railway station to familiarize ourselves with its surroundings. Jodhpur railway station is a huge junction and has a well marked sign along the clock tower.
Clock Tower
Post dinner, It’s 9 pm and we call it an early night.
Thank you everyone for your comments so far and enjoy the reading.
Best,
Paras
Day 14 – Jodhpur, The Majestic Blue city
Day 14 – Saturday, 9th Nov 2013
While planning day itineraries – we come across the most common suggestion from locals is to book a rickshaw for a day. They charge Rs 500/- or so and stay with you for 5-6 hours while you visit all the attractions. They try to cram many things in a day and sometimes rush you at the touristy stuff. Khyati and I like to take our own time and we prefer to do individual Rickshaws to the next destination. This saves us some money but on the flip side, we have to haggle with the Rickshaw wallah each time for a fair price.
It’s 10 am and Khyati and I are heading for brunch at the restaurant. Sohel (hotel owner) personally attends to us and makes sure we have got everything we need for our Jain food. We brunch on few Veg Parathas and yogurt, very filling.
It’s 11 am and we are out on the streets of Jodhpur trying to find a rickshaw for Mehrangarh Fort. The fort is on a hill and the rickshaw trudges along at a snail’s pace. There are lots of tourist buses parked on the side of the street. I wonder why don’t the museum authorities create a dedicated parking zone and charge for parking? They would make some money and stabilize the crowding of vehicles at the entrance. There is a huge line to get through security and we slowly make progress. Once inside, we purchase tickets to the fort. There are separate pricing for Indian tourists, Indian students, Foreign tourists and foreign students. We purchase the camera and audio tickets along with our entry fare. There is an elevator within Mehrangarh Fort to help old and needy people ascend the fort without troubling their legs. There is a small price you pay for convenience.
Mehrangarh Fort is truly majestic and we marvel at the carvings, paintings and passage ways that have been created within the palace.
Royal seat during the king’s reign
palace view
A brief line about Sati tradition – If the king lost his life in a battle or died of any other circumstances, his queens would jump in the pyre with him hoping to be together eternally. This next photo is of the queens who dipped their hand in clay and left their finger prints behind. True sacrifice!
Sati tradition
How would we look if we chose to adorn the royal attire? Well, this next picture is for you to judge.
Rajasthan Royals
It’s 3 pm and we are walking the pathway down to the gate entrance. We see a life sized poster of zip lining adventures, it is an aerial rope slide and provides fantastic views of Mehrangarh fort and the city around. This had me lured and we immediately walk down to the registration office. Zip Lining is run by a professional company – Flying Fox. The costs were Rs 1599/- pp and there was a small training session before the actual zip lining. There were 6 different zip lines that we had to tread on in a few minutes. The experience was thrilling and I would love to do it again. As I did the adventure in the evening, I got to see gorgeous views of the gorge and the sunset. Truly mind blowing!
MVI 7312 from Paras Mamania on Vimeo.
zip lining
How could we leave this place without the famous picture that is presented in Incredible India photos? It’s the blue Jodhpur town with a sunset view captured from our camera.
Blue City
It’s 6:30 pm and we take the rickshaw back to a Jain temple and offer our prayers there.
It’s 8 pm and we are relishing some Indo-Chinese fare at the roof top restaurant.
Tomorrow is going to be a new day and new adventures. more soon…
Best,
Paras
Day 13 – On road to Jodhpur
To all my readers – Greetings from Jaipur, The Pink City.
Day 13 – Friday, 8th Nov 2013.
It’s 6:15 am, the air is slightly chilly and I am standing in a queue of people waiting to fill hot water in my bucket. Yes, most Dharamshalas don’t have running hot water in your room. There is just one hot faucet in the verandah which provides hot water from 6 am to 8 am. When my turn comes, I touch the water to get a feel of the hotness quotient but to my surprise, the water is not warm, the only plus is that it was not chilled water.
Taking god’s name, I take a quick shower.
It’s 8:30 am and we are sipping some hot chai and munching on some dry fruits. We decide to walk around the old and hilly parts of the town and grab any chance to interact with the locals. The locals were quite friendly and shared their stories with us.
It’s 11 am and we are back at our Dharamshala. We decide to grab an early and filling lunch so that it holds us till we reach Jodhpur in the evening.
We walk down to the jeep stand and await a jeep to take us to Mt. Abu. Our two part journey was from Delwara to Mt. Abu bus stand and from Mt. Abu bus stand to Abu Road railway station. The road down was curvy and hilly and both of us regretted our decision to have a filling lunch. Empty stomachs would have been a much better idea.
It’s 1:30 pm and we arrive at Abu Road railway station.
Abu Road rail station
Our train to Jodhpur arrives at 3:15 pm so we have some time at hand. We sit on the railway bench and play a game of UNO. People gather around us like we are showing them a magic trick.
UNO
It’s 3:15 pm, the train is on time and we board our SL class compartments. The train is relatively full and and Khyati and I take turns to catch up on some sleep. As we are close to approaching Jodhpur, I call up the hotel to check if they offer a pickup. To my surprise, they said yes! The hotel was close to Jodhpur railway station and they said that the hotel person will be there to receive me with my name placard. I felt like a celebrity for a moment.
Train route
We arrive in Jodhpur at 8 pm and the station is extremely crowded. There is no space to breathe and Khyati and I scramble our way out of the train. A middle aged man by the name of Mangu Singh is waiting for us right outside our bogie – S4. It’s a short walk to the hotel and we check in to our room.
For those traveling to Jodhpur, we recommend staying at Govind Hotel. It’s a nice, clean hotel run by a father – son duo and they manage it really well. The hotel has a rooftop restaurant with views of Mehrangarh fort.
painting on the wall
Roof top restaurant
Post dinner, we plan our next day’s itinerary and call it a night around 10:30 pm.
Hope you are enjoying the travel journey so far.
Best wishes,
Paras
Day 12 – Mt. Abu
Day 12 – Thursday, 7th Nov 2013.
First of all, sorry about the delay in posting this article. Khyati and I are in Jaisalmer and we had limited internet access.
It’s Thursday morning 7 am and the bright sun rays fall on our eyes. We are too lazy to pull the curtains down but wake up soon after a snooze. Khyati and I get ready to check out of the hotel. No, we are not leaving Mt. Abu but are checking out of this hotel and checking into the Jain Dharamshala. Two reasons – It is more economical and we get Jain food 3 times a day at the Bhojnalay. The hotel manager tries to cut us a deal and agrees to drop the room rent to Rs 1500/- (last night we paid 2700). I was taken aback and I immediately asked for a refund of the previous night. The hotel manager politely declined but insisted on us staying for one more night. The Dharamshala was more economical (Rs 600) for the night and so we decided to check out.
It’s 10 am and we are at the reception counter of the Jain Dharamshala. We see a flurry of tourists trying to get a room and the manager scrambling around trying to appease all tourists. We get a small 1 room with attached toilet and we settle our stuff in the room and leave to do the touristy stuff.
The very famous Delwara temples were bang opposite our Dharamshala and we decided to pay it a visit. At the gate entrance, it was clearly written in bold letters that entry to the temple is only between 12 pm to 6 pm. I was a bit surprised as Jain temples open early morning for people to do Puja and prayers.
Delwara Jain temples
It was 11:30 am and the guard said that we will have to wait another half hour. I couldn’t understand the logic and asked why is it so? His quick reply was that Jains are praying inside, all other foreigners and other caste will be allowed only in this time. I immediately retorted that we are a Jain and we should be allowed inside. The guard chuckled and said that I should have told him that first. This is done to preserve the sanctity of the temple as tourists in non Puja clothes are not allowed to touch the idol.
Once inside the temple, we noticed that it’s made of 4 different Jain temples built during different periods by different people. The art work and carvings were amazing and we spent time learning about the history from the Pujaris (helpers at the temple).
It’s 1 pm and we head back to our Dharamshala for lunch. Post lunch, we left to tour the remaining city. Jeeps are plenty in Mt. Abu and you can do a shared jeep for Rs 10 each and it dropped us to the market area. The market area was crowded, cars honking blatantly, cattle walking in the middle of the road and normal people like you and me trying to navigate through this madness. We find CCD (Cafe Coffee Day) – an upscale coffee shop, it’s a chain restaurant with shops all across India. We order some cold coffee and ice cream and soothe ourselves in this hot weather.
It’s 4 pm and we walk towards Nakki Lake. There were vendors selling lot of stuff, boating options available but queues were huge. We just decide to take a stroll around the lake. It was a nice 2-3 km walk around the circumference of the lake.
@ Nakki Lake
@ Nakki Lake
It’s 5 pm and we head back to our Dharamshala and have got a few errands to manage and a few bookings to make. We make ourselves comfortable in the verandah with our laptop and phones. Our next stop was Jodhpur and I make a few phone calls to check availability for the next few days and I get no positive response. This makes us a bit nervous and Khyati and I both agree to book a hotel for the next 3 nights so we have some peace of mind when we arrive in Jodhpur. Cleartrip is an amazing resource and tool for bookings in India and so far, we have been very happy with the service.
I have a lot of writing to catch up on and that filled our evening.
Tomorrow, we have a 3:30 pm train to catch from Mt. Abu for Jodhpur and we plan our itinerary, etc.
It’s 9 pm but never too late for a game of cards between the two of us. We play . It was good fun beating Khyati (err! the truth is that she won by a margin of 50 points. The game ends when one of the players reaches 500 and we were cutting each other quite close but eventually, someone had to win…
It’s 10:30 pm and we call it a night.
Thank you everyone for reading and your comments.
Best,
Paras
Day 11 – Bus Journey and Mt. Abu
Day 11 – Wednesday, 6th Nov 2013
Udaipur and Mt. Abu are quite close – around 150 km journey but there are no train routes on that sector. The only option we have is road transport.
It’s 8:30 am and we complete the check out formalities in Udaipur and head to the bus stand to catch a direct bus to Abu Road leaving at 9:30 am. I head to the ticket counter and purchase two tickets. State run buses have ladies quota and offer discounts for them to travel. My ticket cost 143 Rs and Khyati was 108 Rs. (25% discount)
Bus route
bus to Abu Road
The thing I hate about Indian buses is that they don’t provide a place to pee while on the journey. Buses don’t have toilets and any pit stops they make, if you leave the bus, they are not obliged to wait for you. you might find yourself stranded! haha…
Rajasthan highways are well maintained. The entire route is a 4 lane highway and we reach Abu Road station at 12:30 pm.
From Abu Road, the road to Mt. Abu is a curvy and hilly road. We are yet to cover a distance of 25 kms. Few buses operate on this route and there are shared jeeps. Private taxis are available but expensive. We choose the shared jeep option and await a jeep. Jeeps fill fast and they fill it to the brim. I say brim because for a seating capacity of 9 people, they seat minimum 13 and maximum 15 people. Crazy! Well, we wanted to experience this as well. We stuff our luggage on carrier of the jeep and sit down. There is insane traffic along the way as most tourists from Gujarat go to Mt. Abu for Diwali vacation. We are starting to think that this is probably not a good time to visit Mt. Abu and to add to our woes, we are without reservations. We need to go to Mt. Abu and find a Dharamshala or a hotel.
Road to Mt. Abu
The jeep comes to a halt with a screeching sound at the side of a road and the driver instructs everyone to alight. We have reached Mt. Abu. We inquire about Delwara temples and we find out that Delwara are still another 4 km further up and the jeep was only booked to Mt. Abu. I will need to find another jeep or so mode of transport to take me to Delwara.
Road to Delwara
It’s 2:30 pm and I set alone on our quest to find a room in this manic place. Every hotel / Dharamshala I ask are completely booked or charging exorbitant prices. I take the jeep to Delwara and inquire in Jain Dharamshalas but none of them have any availability for that night. Our last alternative seems to be a hotel and I negotiate with a hotelier for a 1 night stay. We pay 2700/- for the night (very high compared to Mt. Abu standards – rooms go for 500 to 700 per night in a 2-3* hotel)
The hotel guy offers me a pickup and we pick up Khyati and arrive back at the hotel.
It’s 5 pm and we are slightly tired after the bus and jeep journey earlier. Our stomachs are hungry and we crave for some good food. We walk to the Jain Bhojanshala and grab something to eat. Tomorrow is Labh Pancham (5th holy day of the Hindu calendar) and this is the reason of the extreme rush in this town. We hoped tomorrow this palce will quieten down but that’s for tomorrow to see.
We call it a night early and look forward to doing some local sight seeing the next day.
Best,
Paras
Day 9 – Train Journey and Udaipur, The Lake City
Day 8 – It’s 10:15 pm on Diwali night and we are standing on Platform 12 in Ahmedabad. We see a few passengers on the platform but not many. Our train – Adi Udz (Ahmedabad – Udaipur) express is stationed and scheduled to depart on time. Our bookings are in AC 2 tier (we hope that this will be a luxurious ride as AC 2 tier tickets are expensive and have comfortable seating).
To our surprise, the railway coach is quite old and has marked signs of wear and tear. It doesn’t look good so far. We ask if we can board the compartment but they deny our entry saying boarding will be allowed only 20 minutes prior to departure. We sit patiently outside while observing other passengers.
We soon board the train and find out that the AC 2 tier coach is the only one on this train and Indian railways is persisting with it as long as it can. There are no power ports inside (a connectivity must). We are sad and are no longer excited about the journey. Few minutes into the journey, we begin to find out more. This is a meter gauge railway to Udaipur and the AC operates only on battery so the AC will blast maximum while the train is on full speed otherwise it will blast just air. We want a refund (I shout) but who is there to listen.
Our co passengers are a South Indian couple with 2 kids traveling to Udaipur for vacation. We have a small chat but mostly keep to ourselves. Khyati and I continue to mumble in Kutchi at the utter poor condition of this train and how we should have taken a bus instead.
Train route from Ahmedabad to Udaipur
It’s 11 pm and we call it a night. It’s 7 am and I am woken up by one of the kids crying. The mother was trying to pacify the child but to no avail. I rub my eyes and stretch around. Udaipur is about to arrive in another 1 1/2 hours and we sit around chatting in the train.
It’s 9:30 am and our train halts at Udaipur, the last stop.
Udaipur station
During Diwali, most Dharamshalas don’t do pre bookings and similar was the case in Udaipur. We had called up a few Dharamshalas the day before hoping to get a room but the standard response was that once you arrive here, if a room is available – we will give it. We take the rickshaw to Jindat Suri Jain Dharamshala and try unsuccessfully as it is completely packed for Diwali. I pick up a few other telephone numbers and ring them hoping to find a room. Hathipol Jain Shwetambar Dharamshala has availability and we direct our Rickshaw there. Jain Dharamshalas are meant to offer affordable and clean space for tourists. This was no different and we were quite pleased that we found a room.
Dharamshala
It’s 1 pm and our stomachs are rumbling. Due to it being New Year (Sal Mubarak to my readers), the Bhojanshala was closed and we had to find food somewhere else. Luckily, there was a Jain lodge nearby and we had a sumptuous meal.
Back to our Dharamshalas, we rest in the afternoon deciding to tour the city later in the evening.
For those who have not been to Udaipur, it’s known as the lake city of India and has 3 large lakes and they were completely filled with water. We walk to Fateh Sagar lake and do some speed boating there.
Boating at FatehSagar lake
Opposite to the lake is Maharana Pratap museum and park. Maharana Pratap was a dutiful king and a strong ruler of Mewar region during the 1500s. He fought many battles and history has it that he never lost to Akbar and his vast empire.
Maharana Pratap on his Chetak
There is a light and sound show on his life and we catch glimpses of his life in this amazing show.
It’s 8:30 pm and we walk back to our Dharamshala grabbing some food on our way home. It’s starting to get a bit cold and you can feel the need for a sweat shirt. We talk to a few staff at the Dharamshala making plans for the next day.
Tomorrow, I will write about our visit to City Palace, Ropeway, Sunset Point and Bharatiya Lok Kala Mandal folk and puppet show.
More soon, thanks again to readers for the companionship. I don’t feel alone writing when I know that many people read my blog.
Best,
Paras