Udaipur - Romantic city of Rajasthan

Asia
August 3rd 2009

Published: August 25th 2009

Religious charms - it was these pieces of cord that sisters gave their brothers on 5th August.

Still on a high from the splendors of Ranakpur we arrived in Udaipur and settled into our hotel. It was one of Rajasthan's many minor ex palaces and had a lovely garden and small swimming pool. We had the cheapest room but it was adequate, though didn't have a swing on the verandah like the expensive suites. I've fallen for the swing seats which are in all the palaces - big day beds covered in cushions and with brass hangers. The hotel was very close to the large palace complex which included the palace museum, parkland, shops and 2 hotels. It had been a long day so spent the evening enjoying the garden (and a scotch from the 'English Wine Shop.')
Next day we paid our entrance fee for the palace complex - you had to pay even to look at the shops - and explored the grounds. It was lovely to look at the Lake Palace, formerly the summer palace, but now a very exclusive 5* hotel. It was built in 1754 and is in the middle of Lake Pichola which actually has water in it at the moment - for the last 2 years it has been dry

Well worn shoes

The traditional handmade camel leather shoes the old men wear.

due to lack of monsoon rains. I'm sure that the Lake Palace hotel doesn't look anywhere near as romantic surrounded by marshy swamp! The City Palace, now a museum, is opposite on the lake shore. On the hill behind the city is the Monsoon Palace, now deserted and taken over recently by the Forestry Department, - it is up higher to catch the breeze during the humid days. The Maharajahs' certainly lived in style! All these palaces featured in the James Bond 'Octopussy' movie. We wandered through the hotel grounds in the Palace Complex - the Lake Palace is closed to non guests - and decided that it was 'faded glory' - some parts were looking quite rundown. We explored the massive Durbar Hall in one of the hotels - a grand ballroom style chamber once used for meetings and state banquets and now a restaurant. It had enormous chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and a great view of the lake and surrounds. Exploring the streets outside the complex we were staggered by the number of shops selling souvenir items - there were literally hundreds - and we were bombarded with shop owners literally begging us to enter their shop.

Jagdish Mandir (temple)

Agreat place to people watch - some interesting Sadhus!

Constantly we heard the chant 'Look is free'. I think times must be tough in the souvenir industry as they all seemed desperate for custom. There were a lot of shops selling miniature paintings, some really stunning work amongst them, the most expensive painted with a paintbrush of a single squirrel hair and covered in gold leaf. The houses in the back streets were prettily decorated with artwork - lots of elephants! It's always enjoyable to get lost in the alleyways of the cities and watch people go about their daily lives.
That evening we watched a wonderfully colourful performance of Rajasthani dances and puppetry at a wonderfully restored 18th century havelli. The senior dancer was incredible - she danced with 5 pots on her head whilst balanced on the edge of a metal dish which she moved across the floor. The swirl of colour from the dancers saris and sequins was lovely to watch. We thoroughly enjoyed the performances. The next day we hired an auto rickshaw for a tour of the city. First stop was 'Sunset Point' - considered the best view to watch the sunset. Great if you like standing in a rubbish tip! Next stop a

The exterior walls of the City palace

government run museum in the usual sad dusty state with smeared display cabinets - this time after paying our 10 rupee entrance (30 cents) we were told there was no lights as there was no power so at least this time we were spared seeing the dust (or anything at all!). Another donation to local government...The marble Royal Cenotaphs next - over 250 large marble tombs covering a period of 350 years but overrun with weeds - though interesting to wander amongst all the same. The puppet museum followed which was very enjoyable though still dusty. They had a great display of tribal costumes and jewelery as well. Next our cheery driver took us to Shilpgram, an arts and craft village on the edge of Udaipur which we thoroughly enjoyed. It was a museum of all the cultural and tribal groups in Rajasthan, with village houses and performances of dance and music at each one. It was fascinating to watch and a private show each time as we were the only audience members. We had a great guide who explained all the customs etc to us.
Finally we visited a garden that the Maharajah built especially for the 48

The Lake Palace - now a 5* guests only hotel

women who were his wife's attendants - they were given to him as part of her wedding dowry. The fountains weren't working because of drought because of the drought but there was a pretty lotus garden and lots of marble elephants. The next couple of days we spent quietly - we had found a few nice restaurants, we resisted (mostly) the shop owners, avoided the cows (there were many) and generally didn't do much at all. I liked watched the comings and goings around the temple near the Palace entrance - lots of mellow pilgrims and monkeys. Our last day in Udaipur we spent the morning revisiting the haveli museum where we had watched the evening performance. It was a wonderful museum showcasing the lifestyle of the Maharajahs with rooms decorated as they would have lived. There were many windows with the vibrant coloured glass panels that we're seeing in all these havellis and palaces.
Colour certainly is what Rasjasthan is all about - the women in their vibrant odnis (veils they wear around their heads) and the sausage turbans of the men. The colours worn all mean something - married women wear pinks and reds, lots of bangles and

Linny at hotel in Palace complex

I love these swings!

toe rings plus a red line of vermilion in their hairline. It marks them as unavailable. A red and yellow combination is only meant to be worn by women who have borne sons. Lastly we visited the City Palace. As with all the previous palaces it towered over the surrounding areas. It is Rajasthans largest palace at 244 metres long and over 30 metres high. Every evening it glowed after it was floodlit and looked spectacular. We always hire an audio guide if available as they really bring these places alive. It's great to wander and listen to the music and story behind the things that you are looking at. To me it was the most beautiful palace I've seen and still remains that a few weeks later. The mosaics, glass windows, fairytale balconies and courtyards were all out of a storybook. Particularly spectacular was the Mor Chowk, a recently restored courtyard full of glittering mosaics including 5 peacock panels. Stunning! I forgot my camera though and was not able to go back for it. It was definitely the highlight of our 5 days in Udaipur - we certainly saved the best till last....

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