Gwalior & Orchha - 24 November 2015

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Gwalior & Orchha - 24 November 2015



After breakfast we departed for Orchha (240kms). But first we drove for 3 hours to get to Gwalior which was on the way. Except for 15 minutes, the road was one of the worst we had driven on in India….and we have had some beauties. Pot holes and speed bumps were constant.



Dispite all, Ravi stayed calm and patient and got us to the Gwalior fort, which is perched majestically on top of a 3km-long plateau overlooking the city. This fort is known for its Rajput & Mughal style of architecture. It is an 8th century fort with eye-catching circular towers with the dominating one of the Man Singh Palace ringed with turquoise tiles.



Much of the fort is now occupied by the prestigious Scindia School which was established in 1897 for the education of Indian nobility. There are 7 palaces inside this fort so only a small portion inside the walls is occupied by the school.



We approached the fort via a 1-way road along where we saw mid-15th century rock sculptures of nude figures of tirthankers (the 24 great Jain teachers). We wandered around the palaces, being constantly bothered by people who wanted to be our guides. We declined on this occasion.



The most interesting of all the palaces was the Man Singh Palace which is an example of early Hindu architecture consisting of 2 open courts surrounded by apartments on 2 levels. Below ground lies another 2stories constructed for hot weather, connected by 'speaking tubes' built into the walls, and used by Moghals as prison cells.



After our time at the fort we drove over more terrible roads to Orchhawhich has a population of only 10,200. This historic village, on the banks of the boulder-strewn Betwa River, showcases a supreme display of Mughal architecture, some of that which is similar to nearby Khajuraho where we are going to travel to next.



We noticed that the atmosphere was a lot more laid back and hassle-free, which made for a relaxing stay. However the horns from vehicles continued.



We arrived at the Amar Mahal hotel at sunset. The whole town was surrounded by temples with a huge, big citadel on the hill next to the river. There is one main street with roads running off it, including about 5-6 leading to temples.



After we settled into our hotel Ravi took us to the main street to have dinner.



The next morning before breakfast, we went for a walk/run to see some of the temples and visit the citadel. We visited the Jehangir Mahal (the main palace) and Chaturbhuj temple.



It was just after 7.00am and there were 100s of people down at the river. Some were washing, some were giving gifts to the statues dotted along the foreshore, and some were chanting and getting ready to go to the temples putting red paint spots on their foreheads.



As we walked around we were definitely centre of attention, particularly me with my running clothes on. We said hello to many people.



After about an hour of wandering around temples and palaces inside the citadel, we went back for breakfast and to pack up because we wanted to go for another walk to see the rest of the town.



While we were walking through the busy food and hard goods bazaar a 12 y.o. boy with very good English came up to us and introduced his 4 y.o. sister. He has 2 other sisters. We learned that he could speak French, Spanish and Italian as well as his 1st language Hindi. His father died in January as he used to drink 5 bottles each day and had an accident. He told us about the town and took us to his golden temple and showed us his house.



We learned from his that there were 2 days of festival with the full moon. That answered our query on why so many people were coming across the bridge to Orchha. It was a holiday from school also. They have 4 main Festivals in this region - Diwali, Moon, Motor and Brother & Sister Festivals. There is a Many Colours Festival also.



He wanted to take us to his shop but we didn't have time. He gave us a bracelet with bells but didn't want any money. After we walked around the town with him we rushed back to the hotel. Before we said our goodbyes to our new-found friend, he asked us to buy him a music machine. We didn't think that would be a good idea However, I hope he goes onto bigger and better things in life. He was a bright young lad.



We left Orchha at 10.30am.

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