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Solo Trip to India and Nepal
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Solo Trip to India and Nepal

This is my first solo overseas trip since Mark died earlier this year. I'm excited to return to India and to explore Nepal for the first time, but it will be strange not to have Mark with me to share the experience with. Czytaj więcej
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  • Happy Days TravelSolo Trip to India and NepalPodróżnik

    Another walking tour of Udaipur

    3 lutego, Indie ☀️ 18 °C

    This morning, had breakfast at Eidelweiss again! It will be my last visit as I'm moving on ttomorrow. Afterwards, I went to the ghat to take a few photos - mainly of couples having their pre-wedding photos taken. It's a big thing here. Enterprising local shops charge couples to get changed in their premises! I'm not sure I would want hundreds of pigeons in my photos, but it appears to be popular here.

    I went to pick up my laundry and took it back to my hotel. At 11, I met up with Mitali, the daughter of my host, who was leading a walking tour. We were joined by a British/Belgian couple. We covered much of the same route as I did with Manish the other day. Mitali wasn't nearly as good a guide as him. She lacked his knowledge and his contacts - there were no snack stops, and the tour was over in about an hour and a quarter. I still managed to get some different photos, though. The Belgian lady bought a mousetrap to take back to Brussels with her. It caused quite a lot of hilarity amongst the locals as we walked through town!     Czytaj więcej

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  • Happy Days TravelSolo Trip to India and NepalPodróżnik

    Leaving Udaipur

    4 lutego, Indie ☀️ 14 °C

    I got up, packed, and left Black Pepper by 8.15am. I had booked a private transfer to Jodphur, calling at Kumbhalgarh Fort and Ranakpur Jain Temple on the way. I was meeting my driver at Chand Pol Parking, only a 10-minute walk away, but I wanted to stop for breakfast on the way. I had poha and a black coffee for just 50 rupees.

    Mahendra, my driver was waiting for me, so we were on the road early. He wasn't very talkative, but seemed pleasant enough. It was nice to get out of the city and drive through rural villages, where the Hindu ladies cover their entire heads without gaps for their eyes or mouths. It's a strange thing to see, but I guess the fabric is sheer enough to see and breathe through. I later learned that the practice is a sign of respect to the village elders, rather than any religious requirement. I sat in the front passenger seat, so I had a good view, but taking photos wasn't easy as Mahendra kept overtaking on blind bends at twice the legal speed limit!     Czytaj więcej

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  • Happy Days TravelSolo Trip to India and NepalPodróżnik

    Kumbhalgarh Fort

    4 lutego, Indie ☀️ 18 °C

    After a couple of hours, we reached our first stop, Kumbhalgarh Fort, a fortress located on the western range of the Aravalli Hills. It was constructed in the 15th century by Rana Kumbha. The wall that surrounds the fort is 36 kilometres long, and is the second longest continuous wall in the world behind the Great Wall of China. The fort is also famous for being the birthplace of great king and military leader Maharana Pratap of Mewar. The site was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2013. It is certainly an impressive structure which I enjoyed exploring. Czytaj więcej

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    More photos of Kumbhalgarh Fort

    4 lutego, Indie ☀️ 20 °C

    An hour's drive further on from Kumbhalgarh is Ranakpur. Between the two landmarks, the road is spectacular with hairpin bend after hairpin bend. Luxury resorts have been built in the hills to cater for wealthy tourists, mainly Indian. These just appear out of nowhere and never fail to suprise. There were also thousands of macacque monkeys along the roadside. Again, photos were not easy to get with Mahendra driving! Czytaj więcej

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    Ranakpur Jain Temple

    4 lutego, Indie ☀️ 24 °C

    Ranakpur Jain Temple or Chaturmukha Dharana Vihara is a Śvētāmbara Jain temple dedicated to Tirthankara Rishabhanatha. It is a major pilgrimage place for the Śvetāmbara community. Seth Dhanna/Dharna Shah, a local Jain businessperson, started construction of the temple in the 15th century after a divine vision. It is one of the largest and most important temples of Jain culture.

    I have to say, I found the entire place overwhelming. Firstly, getting inside was a mission. I bought my ticket, plus a pass for my phone so that I could take pictures. I then had to have a compulsory audio guide for which I had to leave a bank card as a deposit! They did give me a receipt for it. I left the ticket booth with five separate bits of paper, a headset, and something that closely resembled an old Nokia phone! I then had to remove my shoes and take another ticket as a receipt for them. Next came the bag search. The Jain religion doesn't allow leather or animal products of any kind. Followers are strictly vegetarian and must not consume fruits or roots considered to contain life forms. The bag search was thorough to ensure no illicit goods entered the temple. At the same time as this was going on, another officious female was instructing me to cover my head. I was trying to tell her that my scarf was in my bag. She kept saying 'Cover your head', 'Cover your head', at the same time as she was prodding my head to make sure I'd understood! By ther the time I'd retrieved my scarf, covered my head, had my phone ticket scrutinised, and finally been allowed to enter, I'd lost the will! 😂     Czytaj więcej

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    More photos of the temple & lunch

    4 lutego, Indie ☀️ 24 °C

    The temple is huge! It is a grand white marble structure spread over 48,000 square feet (4,500 m2) with 1444 marble pillars, twenty-nine halls, eighty domes and 426 columns. The pillars are individually carved and no two pillars are the same. The temple is famous for its beautiful carved idol of Parshvanatha made out of a single marble slab. The idol has 1008 snake heads and numerous tails. I'm sure my audio guide would have told me a lot more information, but to be honest, I didn't listen to find out. The place was crawling with tourists, and I just wanted to escape! I took some photos and returned to the car!

    Not much further on, we stopped for lunch. It was clearly the place everyone who has booked a transfer between Udaipur and Jodphur stops at. I had a very ordinary chicken curry with jeera rice and a roti. There wasn't much chicken, and what there was, was tough. It was expensive, too!     Czytaj więcej

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    Arriving in Jodphur

    4 lutego, Indie ☀️ 25 °C

    Back on the road, we had a three-hour drive left to reach Jodphur. This passed without incident, and we arrived at my hotel in the old city by 5.15pm. Apart from the very steep steps that I had to lug my case up, I was pleasantly surprised by my accommodation. My room is huge, and I actually have somewhere to sit and work. By the time I had explored the rest of the hotel and the rooftop restaurant and terrace, I had decided to extend my stay from three nights to six. I've cancelled my planned trip to Jaisalmer. I'll leave that for another time. Unbelievably, while I was up on the roof, I spotted the couple from Liverpool who I keep bumping in to! They were about to have dinner in another rooftop restaurant. We had a bizarre shouted conversation for a few minutes 😂.

    I didn't need anything else to eat, but I did fancy a coffee so, after dropping my bags, I ventured out. I walked through the busy market area and soon found myself at Toorji Ka Jhalra, an ancient stepwell. It is a stunning example of old architectural and engineering skills. It was built by Maharani Tanwar Ji, also known as Toorji Ji, the wife of Maharaja Abhay Singh Ji, the ruler of Jodhpur, in 1740. It was part of the water harvesting system of the city and a source of water for the local people. Toorji Ka Jhalra also served as a social and cultural hub where women gathered to fetch water and chat with each other. Nowadays, it is a favourite spot for pre-wedding photo shoots.

    I went to the nearby Stepwell Cafe for coffee and a couple of homemade cookies. It was very nice, but pricey compared to Udaipur.     Czytaj więcej

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    Walking tour of Jodphur

    5 lutego, Indie ☀️ 14 °C

    I slept better than I have for weeks. There was no traffic noise and no barking dogs to keep me awake. I got up with my alarm and had the hottest shower I have had in India! I'm liking this place more and more. They don't start serving breakfast here until 8.30, and I had a walking tour starting at 9am, so I went back to Stepwell. They had told me last night that they served from 7.30am. I had the poshest, and certainly the most expensive, breakfast of the trip so far. It was delicious, but I won't be repeating the exercise!

    At 9, I went to meet Rahul, my guide for the walking tour. I was the only guest. Rahul proved to be a knowledgeable guide. He took me to parts of the city I would never have found by myself, and explained a lot about the history of the place and what life is like for the people who live here now.

    We began at the Stepwell, where I had just come from, but now I got to learn all about it. From there, we walked through the streets of the old city. Rahul pointed out the architectural features of the buildings as we walked. Over the centuries, the buildings have become plainer, with fewer architectural carvings. On one street, there is a row of four buildings dating from the 17th, 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries respectively. It was clear to see the difference!     Czytaj więcej

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    2

    Jodphur, the Blue City

    5 lutego, Indie ☀️ 17 °C

    Most of Jodphur's buildings today are constructed in the local red sandstone. Only 40% of the old city's buildings are still blue, the colour that gave Jodphur its nickname of 'The Blue City'. The original use of blue paint was two-fold. It kept the buildings cool in the hot weather, and the indigo pigment acted as a mosquito repellent. Now, modern buildings all have effective air-conditioning, making the blue paint unnecessary. The local government is working on a project to bring back more blue buildings, fearing that their disappearance will cause a drop in the number of tourists coming to Jodphur. They are funding the renewal of blue-painted buildings, and paying local artists to decorate them with bright murals.

    The result of their efforts is a stunning neighbourhood which reminded me so much of Chefchouen in Morocco. There is a photo opportunity around every corner and the Indian grammers were out in force 😂. I loved seeing it, and got totally carried away with the number of photos I took!     Czytaj więcej

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    Local shops and markets in Jodhpur

    5 lutego, Indie ☀️ 21 °C

    From the Blue City, we went into the area of local shops and markets, away from the tourist traps. We saw lots of wedding parties choosing sari fabrics. We tried malai cake (not too sweet), stuffed deep-fried chillies (not too spicy), and masala chai (still not to my taste!). There are lots of fabric shops in this area that I will return to on my own. Rahul recommended a couple of restaurants for me to try, and sorted out a desert tour for me to do on Saturday. I'm sure he added on a percentage for himself, but that's business 😊. Czytaj więcej

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    Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur

    6 lutego, Indie ☀️ 13 °C

    I had a tuk-tuk tour of Jodhpur booked for today, so I was up early to go round the corner to Sam's Art Cafe for breakfast. I had poha and a black coffee. It was delicious, but four times the price I was paying at the street stalls in Udaipur!

    My guide, Ramesh, was on time to pick me up. We set off to our first stop - Mehrangarh Fort. This is the fortress that dominates the city skyline, and that I can see clearly from the roof of my accommodation.

    On the way there, Ramesh stopped to show me five-metre lengths of turban fabric drying in the sun. It is the height of wedding season, so red turbans in various patterns and styles are everywhere. Men tend to hire them. The fabric can then be recycled when they return them to the shop.

    Mehrangarh Fort stands on a hilltop, rising about 122 m (400 ft) above the surrounding plains. The complex spans 1,200 acres (486 hectares). It was initially built around 1459 by the Rajput ruler of the Rathore clan, Rao Jodha, though most of the existing structure is from the 17th century, built by his successors. The fort has seven gates, which include the main entrance Jai Pol (meaning 'victory gate'), built by Maharaja Man Singh to commemorate his victories over the Jaipur and Bikaner armies in 1806. The Fattehpol ( 'victory gate') commemorates the victory of Maharaja Ajit Singh over the Mughals. The English writer and Nobel Prize winner, Rudyard Kipling, described the fort as "a palace that might have been built by Titans and coloured by the morning sun."     Czytaj więcej

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    Mehrangarh Fort visit continues

    6 lutego, Indie ☀️ 17 °C

    Within its boundaries are several palaces known for their intricate carvings and expansive courtyards, a Chamunda Mataji Temple, as well as a museum that houses various relics. A winding road leads to and from the city below. The imprints of the impact of cannonballs fired by the attacking armies of Jaipur can still be seen on the second gate.

    The entire complex is majestic. I had a 'Petra moment' as I entered through the dark main gate and tunnel and emerged into the sunlight to see the palaces for the first time. In the museum, there was an impressive collection of elephant howdahs. All of the exhibits were guarded by men, most with impressive moustaches, wearing traditional costumes. They invariably got annoyed when Indian tourists were shoving cameras in their faces, so I refrained from doing that. I did, however, ask one guard in a quiet corner if I could take his picture. He agreed. I'm very pleased with the way the light from the stained glass window next to him shone on his uniform!     Czytaj więcej

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    Inside Mehrangarh Fort

    6 lutego, Indie ☀️ 18 °C

    Some of the rooms inside the palaces were incredibly sumptuous. The Christmas baubles hanging from the ceiling in one room were apparently a nod to British VIP guests who were visiting during the festive season one year.

    Mehrangarh Fort has been used as a filming location for many films, including Disney's 1994 live-action film The Jungle Book and the 2012 film The Dark Knight Rises. Until 2007, the fort was the main residence of the ruling family.

    I really enjoyed the two hours I spent exploring the fort.     Czytaj więcej

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    Jaswant Thada

    6 lutego, Indie ☀️ 23 °C

    From the fort, we drove the short distance to Jaswant Thada, a cenotaph built by Maharaja Sardar Singh of Jodhpur State in 1899 in memory of his father, Maharaja Jaswant Singh II. Today, it still serves as the cremation ground for the royal Rajput family of Marwar. The cenotaph is built out of intricately carved sheets of Makrana marble. These sheets are extremely thin and polished so that they emit a warm glow when illuminated by the Sun. Czytaj więcej

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    More photos of Jaswant Thada

    6 lutego, Indie ☀️ 24 °C

    The cenotaph's grounds feature carved gazebos, a tiered garden, and a small lake. It was a beautiful, peaceful space to walk around, despite several coachloads of foreign tourists, most of whom were French.

    As we drove to our next stop, Ramesh pointed out a huge quarry where red sandstone is extracted to supply the seemingly endless need for new building materials in the city. All of this hard physical work is done by hand with primitive tools. The labourers and their families live in makeshift tented communities just next to the quarry. It looked like a very tough existence for everyone involved.     Czytaj więcej

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    Panchkunda Cenotaphs

    6 lutego, Indie ☀️ 26 °C

    We then visited Panchkunda Cenotaphs, the place where the royal Rajput family were cremated before the construction of Jaswant Thada. There are numerous cenotaphs on the site, all built out of red sandstone. The more elaborate the carvings, the more important the person being remembered. This site is quite a way out of modern Jodphur and doesn't feature on the usual tourist trail, but Ramesh wanted me to see it. Czytaj więcej

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    Mandore Garden

    6 lutego, Indie ☀️ 27 °C

    The next stop was at Mandore Garden. Before Jodhpur was founded, Mandore was the capital of the Marwar Kingdom, and the history of the garden dates back to the 6th century, when Mandore served as the seat of the Pratihara dynasty. The garden today houses several architectural marvels and monuments that narrate tales of valour, devotion, and artistry. One of the most striking features of Mandore Garden is the collection of cenotaphs (chhatris) dedicated to the very early Marwar kings and queens. The intricate carvings, domes, and pillars reflect the grandeur of Rajput architecture. The surrounding gardens could be beautiful, but sadly, they have not been well-maintained. There was rubbish and broken benches everywhere. Ramesh said that this was typical of a government-owned and run historic site, as opposed to every other attraction we were visiting today, which were all privately owned. I did enjoy watching the monkeys, though 😊. Czytaj więcej

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