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Published: April 30th 2013
Jodhpur Street scene
The street outside the Haveli Hotel where we stayed.Our transport to Jodhpur was via local bus. We had booked seats but there was no air conditioning, except open windows, and the bus could have done with a good clean. It had the loudest horn ever, which played different sounds, and the driver used it constantly. We had quick stops at all the villages along the way, everyone heard us coming and everyone heard us leaving. We picked up and dropped off passengers constantly as well, so the aisle was always full of people sitting on the floor.
It was a six hour trip, passing through dry hot country dotted with tough little bushes, goats and litter. There was the usual bustle of activity at every stop, local boys trying to sell bottled water and snack foods through the windows, and passengers getting on and off. We arrived in Jodhpur around 7.00pm and were surrounded by tuk tuk drivers, all wanting our business, as soon as our feet hit the ground. I held on to my luggage, which several pairs of eager tuk tuk driver hands tried to grab, and waited for Bishon's instructions. Finally we were underway in a convoy of seven tuk tuks, and taken to home
Mehrangarh Fort
The view from the hotel roof top. for the next few days - The Havali Hotel. We had half an hour to settle in and then met in the open air rooftop restaurant for dinner. There was a spectacular view of Meherangarh Fort, which was lit up with flood lights, from the rooftop.
The Havali Hotel was situated down a filthy road, opposite a concrete sided 'pond' choked with garbage. It was a steep and narrow building with far too many steps. Air conditioning cost an extra 250 rupees ($5) a day and wi-fi 100 rupees ($1) per day. There was no hot water, and a sign behind the door saying 'washing of clothing not allowed' which I completely ignored. I guess they wanted us to use their laundry service, which at 20 rupees (.35c) per piece, was ridiculously expensive. They also had two big spot lights lighting up the front entrance, shining up the walls and into our room. Thankfully we were only there for two nights.
A 'must see' in Jodhpur is Mehrangarh Fort, which dominates the skyline over the city. The fort stands on a perpendicular cliff, four hundred feet above the sky line of Jodhpur. Burnished red sand stone, imposing, invincible
Jodhpur Street Scene
Selling bamboo products. and yet with a strange haunting beauty that beckons. Much has been written about the 'Citadel of the Sun', for it is one of the most impressive in all Rajasthan. Today it is acknowledged as one of the best preserved forts in India.
Entrance will set you back 300 rupees ($5.35) with another 100 rupees added on if you want to take photographs. For the price, you also get an audio tour with 33 stops, well worth listening too. It was easy to spend a few hours there, as there was lots to see. I also got my palm read by a man in the fort, and paid 400 rupees ($7) for the privilege. I was amazed at what he told me, one would think he had known me for years. I think he almost knew me better than I know myself.... He scrutinised my hand with a magnifying glass, made tiny marks with biro, measured between them, tapped away on his calculator and started to talk. He even told me how many years I have left on this earth - thankfully, quite a few!
Jodhpur is also known as the Blue City, an apt name as most
The Clock Tower
The clock tower amidst Sadar Bazaar, and two minutes walk from the hotel. houses in the old city are shades of blue. It is thought that Brahmins – members of the priestly class – first took to coloring their houses blue, or indigo, to signify their domicile and to set them apart from the rest of the population. Soon, however, the rest of the population followed suit. Ask a local why all the houses are painted blue and the usual reply is that the colour keeps the interiors cool and fends of mosquitoes.
After leaving the fort, I decided to walk back down to the old city, instead of taking a tuk tuk, which was how I got to the fort in the first place. I was heading to Sadar Bazaar, just around the corner from the hotel, and one of the most vibrant markets in Jodhpur. You can easily get lost wandering amongst the tiny shops which overflow into the narrow lane ways. Seems you can almost anything here - fruit and veges, kitchenware, jewellery, clothing, antiques or good reproductions, embroidered saris and scarves. I purchased a fairly plain unadorned sari in bright pink, blue and gold. Six metres of beautiful silky fabric for 100 rupees ($2). I could spend hours
Bangle Stall
Hundreds of bangles to choose from. wandering around the bazaar but tend to avoid going into the shops as the pressure is on as soon as soon as you enter to buy something, which spoils the whole experience.
We only have one full day to enjoy Jodhpur, which isn't nearly enough. The midday heat would give the cows sunstroke, and it's too hot to be out, so that eats into your time. I bought some fruit for the bus trip tomorrow and returned to the hotel. I joined the others for dinner on the rooftop then returned to my room to get organised. Tomorrow we have to be in the lobby at 6.45am to catch the bus for the trip to Udaipur, about seven hours away.
The trip to Udaipur would have to top the list of worst bus trips ever. Eight hours in an Indian bus with crying children, people standing in the aisle and no air conditioning was not fun. Add to that another constantly sounded musical horn, dust clouds coming through the windows whenever we stopped and a road like corrugated iron, and my day is complete. We did have a half way stop where I could buy a cold coke
Sadar Bazaar
A street scene with the fort in the background. and a packet of crisps. That was the highlight of the trip, but I was bought down to earth again when I visited the public toilet, probably the filthiest I've seen anywhere. Ugh!
So, it was with much relief that I stepped out into the broiling sun in Udaipur, when we finally got there. Our luggage, which travelled under the bus, was coated with a layer of dust you could write your name in. It's been 41* here today, I've been told. Just what I wanted to hear....
Our hotel, the Narayan Niwas, was situated within the maze of alleys and side streets off Palace Road and a 15 minute walk from City Palace. It's surrounded by other small hotels, restaurants and numerous shops, selling the usual array of souvenir items, clothing, books and the miniature paintings the city is famous for. We are given several hours to recover from the bus trip before an orientation walk at 5.00pm. Later we met in the rooftop restaurant for dinner.
The next morning (Sunday) I was up and out by 7.00am. I found a small bakery/eatery where I decided to have breakfast. No meals are included in the cost
Sadar Bazaar
Horse pulled wagons at the bazaar. of this trip, so I can eat where ever I please. I don't feel any obligation to eat with the group, or in the hotel we're staying in, as everyone is doing their own thing in their own time, which suits me just fine.
I spent the morning walking around with my camera, and taking a tuk tuk ride around Pichhola Lake. I shopped for a miniature painting and purchased a small, beautifully detailed one on antique paper which I can get framed at home. I snoozed the midday hours away as it's too hot to be out. Later, at 5.00pm, we all regrouped in the hotel lobby for a one hour cruise on Pichhola Lake. I also purchased a pair of handmade, embroidered leather slip-on shoes in the smallest size I could get. Not for me to wear, but to use as a decorative item when I get home.
On Monday morning I had breakfast in a neighbouring hotel with great lake views to enjoy whilst I ate. I planned to visit the City Palace today, and wanted to be there as early as possible to beat the heat. Admission cost was 115 rupees ($2) with the
usual extra camera charge of 225 rupees ($4), on top of that.
The palace complex which has been built entirely in granite and marble, dates back to 1559 and was added to over the next 300 years. The interior of the complex with its balconies, towers and cupolas, features delicate mirror and silver work, murals, inlay-work and the use of coloured glass in some windows. The complex provides a fine view of the lake and Udaipur city from its upper terraces. I enjoyed wandering around for a couple of hours and then retreated to my room for a cold shower and a break.
I went out again later, looking for an early dinner and fruit for the train journey tomorrow, as we are travelling to Pushkar. I found my fruit, tiny mandarins and bananas, bought some extra water and headed back to the hotel to drop them off before heading out again.
I ended up at O'Zen Restaurant, which overlooks Palace Road, and enjoyed a lovely meal including dessert and a couple of rather potent Indian rums. I left there felling very mellow.That was the most expensive meal I've eaten since coming to India, costing me a
Sadar Bazaar
Women purchasing textiles. They all sit on floor cushions and products are displayed in front of them. total of $12.75.
Tonight we're attending a Cultural Show which only runs for an hour. It's held not far from the hotel, so we walk as a group and find ourselves seats on the padded benches. It's an open air venue in a lovely old stone courtyard with arches, and is most suited to the show. It featured traditional Rajasthani folk dances and a man with the dancing puppets which he actually made himself. The dancers wore beautiful saris and rows of tiny brass bells tied around their ankles.
We walked back to the hotel later, most of the group meeting on the rooftop for dinner. I declined, as I had already eaten, and returned to my room to repack. Tomorrow we have a train trip to Pushkar and will be departing the hotel at 5.00am.
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Linny
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Memories..
Your photos bring back so many memories. I can even place the hotel you stayed in in Jodphur. So pleased you're enjoying yourself. Love you heaps.... Xx