DAY 6 : INDIA : Kumbhalgarh

Weather : hot, hazy, 30+

Our destination today was Fort Kumbhalgarh - 5 hour drive from Jodhpur – 235 kms.

On our way out of the city we drove up to see the Maharaja's Palace, where the present Maharaja of Jodhpur lives in one wing and the rest has been developed into a very exclusive hotel. Radhney, our guide, puts it in terms of a cup of tea worth 2000 rupees ($40).

Cows, being holy, are fed fresh feed every morning throughout the country, they are milked for general use because Hindus believe the milk is nourishing and pure. Then the cows and bulls wander as they will all day through the city and country side.

 

 



Radhey took us to a family's home, where the husband and wife make traditional carpets called 'duri', essentially handwoven carpets made in Rajasthani designs in a range of materials - jute, cotton, silk, coconut husk. The beauty of these carpets is that they are reversable.

 

Cows and animals have priority on the roads

 

 

 

Traditional Rajasthani herders

 

 

Using bullocks for power to draw water

 

 

Surprise, surprise - a grove of gum trees

 

 

Hot and dry day driving on very questionable roads with goat, sheep herds wandering the roads, turbanned herdsmen moving their cattle and traffic as unpredictable as ever.

Lunch at a small wayside restaurant/ resort, clean and excellent buffet for travellers and caters for large bus groups as well.

 

15th century marble Jain temple

 

 

Every column uniquely carved

 

 

Jain prophets

 

 

Local worshippers dazzle with colour

 

We visited a fifteenth century Jain temple, Chaumukha Mandir in Ranakpur, which took 50 years to complete. It was exquisitely carved in white marble. It has 29 halls, 80 domes and 1444 engraved pillars.

We saw our first monkeys, quite accustomed to tourists. As we left the temple and climbed into the Aravalli Hills, driving up a winding road that cuts through the Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary. We saw many monkeys and signs to be aware of leopards and other wild animals.

 

The impregnable fort

 

 

Standing on the roof above the Maharaja's quarters

Suddenly we saw Fort Kumbhalgarh, high above us. In fact, it is 3600 feet high. We met our guide and walked up the path, through 9 gates to the top. Built in the fifteenth century, when the Moghuls invaded India, by the Maharaja of Udaipur. There is a more modern wing built in the nineteenth century after the treaty with the British, who ensured security for all the states and thus, the focus of war and defending the fort diminished. It is an impressive fortress. The Maharaja has since returned to Udaipur earlier last century.

 

 

2,000 year-old Jain temples

 

Around the fort is a wall running for 36 kms. Within the wall are several villages and 360 in tact temples, including some Jain temples which date back to the Mauryan period in the second century B.C.

Hotel chalets sit on side of hill with breathtaking views

 

Hotel entrance with welcoming musician playing amongst other repertoire,'Frere Jacques'.

 

 

The view from our room

 

Our hotel tonight is Club Mahindra Fort Kumbhalgarh. Set high in the side of a hill, the hotel comprises several chalets in large grounds, with pool etc. Most of the patrons are Indian families here to enjoy the facilities and explore desert (camel safaris) and tours through the wildlife sanctuary. Our room overlooks the hills – a spectacular sight in the fading light. www.clubmahindra.com

M&M

mm_smith@bigpond.net.au