It
was a long-time pending destination, especially for my wife.
Rajasthan,
a state of forts, palaces, temples, sand dunes, music, local food and what not…
In
2017, we drove to Udaipur during Christmas holidays. In the same lines, my plan
was to drive to one City at a time & cover all places in leisure, but my
home-minister had different plans: finish-off the entire state in one-go. No
guessing on whose plan won.
After
some research, I finalised the major places to cover in 8 days & booked a
package that includes accommodation & travel. We booked the flight tickets
& my daughter was excited to fly, this time by Air.
A
week before the departure, our 6 am direct flight got cancelled & they
rescheduled us in a 7:35 am am one-stop flight, in which we were losing almost
half-a day. Never mind.
The
day arrived and we reached Bangalore airport by 6 am, checked-in & our
flight was on time. We landed in Hyderabad around 8:40 am on a Sunday morning.
I messaged my close friend there saying “Landed in Hyderabad” to surprise him.
I shared my travel plan with him when he called me & he was surprised to
see me travel by flight.
The
flight took-off after a 30 mins halt.
Day 1: Bangalore to Jaipur
We
landed in Jaipur around 11am. After baggage collection, we checked-in to the
hotel around 12 pm. The
first thing we wanted to do was to have lunch, as the breakfast in the flight
was very light. Our cab driver took us through the Pink City to a restaurant near
Hawa Mahal.
After having an authentic Rajasthani Thali, we headed to the City
Palace. Located in the heart of Jaipur, the City palace still houses the Royal
Family. The palace complex includes many buildings, galleries, courtyards,
temple & a museum too. I am not going to explain the history of any of the
places here.
From
the Palace, we headed to the adjacent Jantar Mantar, which has a collection of
19 astronomical instruments for measuring time, predicting eclipses, tracking
location of major stars as the earth orbits around the sun, etc. (Note: You
also get a combo ticket that covers entry to multiple places in Jaipur that is
valid for 2 days, which saves waiting time in queue)
After
spending some time there, we headed to the Govind Dev Ji Temple, then to the
Moti Dungri Ganeshji Temple. There were many brand new bikes & cars near
the temple. Later our driver told that most of the people bring their new
vehicles to perform pooja.
Our
final place to visit for the day was the Birla Temple. As usual, it was built of white
marble. At the backdrop, there was the Moti Doongri Fort that houses the
Ekalingeshwar Mahadev Temple, which opens only once a year on Mahashivratri.
After
a light dinner, we headed to view the Pink City in night. Also the bonus was the
lighting of Hawa Mahal & Albert Hall.
Day 2: Jaipur
The
day started early as usual for a sunrise photo-shoot from our hotel terrace,
which was not so great.
Later
after breakfast we headed to Amber Fort. On the way was the Jal Mahal,
part-submerged in Man Sagar Lake. There was a view point enroute Amber Fort too.
Finally we reached the
marvelous Amber Fort overlooking the Moatha Lake. As usual this fort also has a
temple, courtyards and multiple gates.
view from the fort...
The
next destination is the Nahargarh Fort that overlooks the Jaipur City. It also
had a step-well, wax museum & Sheesh Mahal.
city view from the fort...
After
lunch, we visited the Albert Hall that we saw last night. It is the oldest
museum of Rajasthan opened in late 1800s.
The museum has a wide collection of paintings, jewelry, carpets, ivory,
stone, metal sculptures, and works in crystal. Also the main attraction was an
Egyptian Mummy. It started to rain as we finished the museum visit which was a
relief after a hot day.
Shields engraved with Ramayana & Mahabaratha scenes...
The Mummy...
Later
in the evening we visited the famous Masala Chowk, where you get all varieties
of food, a lovely place for food lovers – great collection under one roof. We
had some nice chaats, sweets, lassi, etc. before retiring for the day.
Day 3: Jaipur to Bikaner (320 Kms)
We
left early by 6:00 AM in the morning to Bikaner. After having breakfast on the
way we checked-in to the hotel around 12:00 PM. Post lunch at the hotel, we
headed to Junagarh Fort. The fort had palaces, temples, etc. made of red
sandstone & marble. The fort has some beautiful spots for photography
Another
attraction in Bikaner was the National Research Centre on Camel or the Camel
Breeding Farm. The Centre also has a museum and kiosk selling camel dairy
products. One can also enjoy a camel ride there. The Centre had 4 breeds of
camels. We walked around the Centre and tried some Flavored Camel Milk too.
The
next was my daughter’s request-point as she learnt about Bikaner in her GK
book. It is the Karni Mata Temple (also known as the Temple of Rats) in Deshnok
which was some 30 Kms from Bikaner. We reached there in 45 mins. and it seemed
like some Fair was going on there, may be because of Navratras. The temple was
crowded with people as well as rats. Many were offering grains & other food
items, may be for the rats. The rats were coolly busy eating & did not
disturb anybody. Somehow we managed to come out after darshan without harming
any of the rats. We drove back to the hotel after some refreshments. On the way
we could see crackers in the sky being bursted in Bikaner as it was Dussehra
night.
Day 4: Bikaner to Jaisalmer (340 Kms)
This
morning also we left at 6 am from the hotel. After a breakfast & a tea
break on the way, we checked-in to the hotel around 12:30 pm. Now we realised that
we are in Rajasthan because of the heat. This place was hotter than any other
place visited in the state. You could see nothing but dry land on either sides
of the road.
Sunrise, on the go...
Majestic View of the Fort before entering Jaisalmer...
I
was glad to revisit Jaisalmer after some 12 years; of course that was an
official trip. The hotel had a nice view of the Fort & the surrounding from
the roof-top restaurant. After a quick lunch at the hotel itself, we started
our visit to 2 of the Havelis (Mansions) there. We visited the Patwon Ki Haveli and the Salim
Shah Ki Haveli. The architectures were great but lacks proper maintenance. The
former was mostly occupied by bats.
Bats, all over the ceiling...
Slowly we strolled to the
nearby Jaisalmer Fort popularly known as the Sonar Quila or Golden Fort mainly
because of its colour. We walked through the main attractions like King’s Palace
that leads through to the Queen’s Palace, Jain temple & the Cannon view
point. The architecture was amazing with
a lot of Jharokas everywhere. The Fort was largely populated with locals as
well as with many shops.
Bats, again...
King's Palace with windows & Queen's palace without windows...
Panaromic view from Cannon point...
Jain Temple...
Rajasthani Dolls...
It’s time to see some water
body in Rajasthan; the nearby Gadisar Lake was the only place there. As my
daughter wanted to go boating, we took a pedal boat for 30 mins where she did
the pedaling most of the time. I was busy in taking photos and my wife enjoying
the cool breeze.
Some large fishes in the lake...
After half an hour, there was just 10 minutes left for the
sunset. So we rushed to the sunset point which was behind our hotel. We reached
there on time to see the sun setting down behind a hill. That was a calm place
to relax with many Chattris built around.
Colorful curtains in one of the buildings...
After spending some time there we
retired back to the hotel. After having dinner at the hotel, we walked through
the town & also tasted some yummy hot milk with kesar & almond.
Day 5: Jaisalmer
There
was no long drive this morning. Got to see the sunrise from the terrace.
So after breakfast, we visited the Jaisalmer War
Museum that is around 15 Kms away. The museum includes vehicles and equipment
captured during the war, a Hunter Aircraft that destroyed enemy tanks, an
Honour Wall engraved with the names of the Param Vir Chakra and Maha Vir Chakra
gallantry award winners. It also has an audio visual room where a movie about
Indian Army is shown. This war museum made me remember the visit to Kargil War
Memorial 2 years back. Ah, that was an amazing drive.
The
next place to visit was the picturesque Bada Bagh or Bara Bagh that consists of
a set of Chhatris or royal cenotaphs of Maharajas of Jaisalmer. Altogether,
there are hundreds of graves of the royal family with inscription on them. Also
it had a lake adjacent to it that made the location more interesting.
After lunch in Jaisalmer,
we headed to the so-called Haunted Village in Kuldhara. Actually the village
was abandoned in the early 19th century for unknown reasons. There were
different stories by different people regarding the village. It was really a
big area to be abandoned.
We walked through the
village to find only the walls of the houses. While walking around, on seeing
a man in one of the house, my daughter really got frightened. After some
walking around in hot sun, we left for the much awaited place, the desert.
One of the house there...
Panaromic view of the village...
We reached the desert camp
in Sam a bit earlier that was 30 Kms away. We took the Desert Safari in a Jeep
that took us to the Sand dunes. We also enjoyed the Camel Safari and returned
back to the Camp after sunset. Later in the evening we enjoyed a bit of Cultural
events in the resort followed by a Rajasthani Dinner.
Sand Dunes... on my wife's dress too...
Playing with the Sun...
Day 6: Jaisalmer to Jodhpur (320 Kms)
Another long drive started
with an early breakfast at the hotel around 7:30 AM. As usual the route was dry
with little vegetation. On the way, we could see the Army camps/tents in that
hot sun. Hats-off to them that they work in such a place where we complain about
the place as tourists.
With a short break in
between, we checked-in to the hotel around 1:00 PM. After a light lunch in the
hotel, we visited the Umaid Bhawan Palace; which is part museum and part hotel
managed by Taj. There is quite a history behind building this lavish palace.
Also the vintage cars used by the Maharajas are displayed near the palace. It
was worth to go through the museum to know the lavish life of the royal family.
Seemed like Tequila glasses...
One of the many clocks there...
“Another Fort !!! “ was the expression on my wife’s face when we left
for the next place of visit. Mehrangarh fort was the last fort of our trip. It
is one of the largest forts in India. As in every fort, this also had many
palaces, a temple & museum. The museum had a wide collection of armoury,
palanquins, howdahs, royal cradles, miniatures, musical instruments, costumes,
and furniture. We need to walk, walk & walk through the fort to see
everything. The Rajasthan International Folk Festival 2019 (Jodhpur RIFF) was
happening during our visit. We could see many folk artists at various places
performing.
Some Artists performing at RIFF...
A staff over there...
BLUE city as seen from the fort...
View of Fort from outside...
The last place to visit in
Jodhpur was Jaswant Thada; another cenotaph built in memory of Maharaja Jaswant
Singh II. It seems the building was built with carve sheets of marble. Whatever
it may be, it was a nice place to relax in the evening with a pond in the
backdrop.
Day 7: Jodhpur to Jaipur via Ajmer
& Pushkar (380 Kms)
As the trip is entering the
last phase, we started our drive back to Jaipur. The next place to visit was
different than all that we have seen in the past 6 days. As we left our hotel
by 8 AM, we reached Ajmer (220 Kms) around 1 PM. The roads were narrow that 2
vehicles cannot pass. The car was stopped to park, way before & we had to
walk to the Ajmer Sharif Dargah. The parking guy told that people entering the
Dargah should cover their head in order to sell his stuff. My wife pulled up a
dupatta from the luggage, my daughter already had a scarf around her neck &
I always have my hand-kerchief. We walked to the Dargah & as we were about
to enter the shrine area, a lady stopped my daughter saying that her legs needs
to be covered too as she was wearing a knee-length frock. Quickly I sent my
wife to go inside. When she came out, my daughter wrapped her dupatta around her
waist & we both went inside.
Road to the Dargah...
Finally we came out and
visited the ‘Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra’, behind the Dargah. It is one of the oldest
mosques in India with a mix of Hindu, Muslim & Jain architectures. There
were many stories related to this structure too. Never mind the stories.
After lunch we started to
Pushkar that was 15 Kms away. At half-way, we stopped to see the Maharan Pratap
Statue. One can have a great view of Ajmer City.
In another half an hour, we
reached the Pushkar Lake, which has 52 ghats altogether. We visited the Brahma
ghat and then proceeded to visit the famous Brahma Temple. Our driver’s friend
explained the story behind the ONLY Brahma temple in the world. In short,
Savitri/Saraswati cursed Brahma that he would be never worshipped, but then discounted
the curse permitting his worship only in Pushkar. Alongside she has cursed Indra,
Vishnu & Agni too. Please Google for more information. Then Savitri went to the
hill top, which is our next spot to visit.
Brahma Temple...
Panaromic view of Pushkar Lake...
The Savitri Mata Temple on
the hill is a KM away from down. We decided to take the cable car instead of
steps. As there was no crowd at that time, we got the cable car immediately and
in 10 mins we reached the top. The cars needed some maintenance as we could
hardly see the outside world from inside.
We need 3D glasses to read the ticket...
view from inside the car...
View of Pushkar from top...
Savitri Mata Temple...
You can see the steps downwards to the base...
The view from top was
awesome as you can see the whole Pushkar from there. After darshan &
spending some time, we boarded the car & reached down in no time. We saw a
lot of crowd waiting for the cable car. We felt lucky that we finished it.
After watching the sun set, we started our 150 Km journey back to Jaipur.
Sun setting on our trip...
Day 8: Jaipur to Bangalore
Into
our final lap of the trip, this day was scheduled to visit local market &
shopping until departure as per the package guys. I had a different plan. As we
had our flight in the evening, I wanted to visit the famous Step-Well, called
Chand Bawri in Abhaneri. We started the 100 Km drive after breakfast in the
hotel and reached around 11:30.
A tunnel on the way...
Chand
Bawri consists of 3,500 narrow steps over 13 stories. It is one of the deepest
and largest stepwells in India. One has to see it to believe the architecture that
was done in 8th-9th century.
Later
we visited the adjacent Harshad Mata Temple, dedicated to goddess of happiness
& joy. The temple is an old structure with beautiful architecture. Also one
can see the faces of the statues being damaged.
Post-lunch,
we drove back & reached Jaipur in the evening to have some snacks &
Rajasthani sweets. The driver dropped us at the airport 2 hours before & we
completed the formalities and waited for our flight.
As
we boarded our flight, a large group of 25-30 also boarded with us. As soon as
the plane took–off, & the seat belt sign went off, we could see the group
members exchanging food items, fruits and what not. It felt like we have
boarded a town bus from Jaipuru to Bengaluru.
On
the whole the trip was intended to cover major attractions of Rajasthan in one shot
which was successful. Taking a travel package was helpful. The weather was hot
in all the places we visited except Jaisalmer which was very hot. We kept
ourselves hydrated by having fresh juices, lassi & butter milk (or Chaas as
they call it there), wherever we got it.
The
only sad part was that I was not behind the wheel for 8 long days. Never mind,
there is always next time.
On the highway...
In the Car...
