Umaid Bhavan Palace

Umaid Bhavan Palace
Have you heard of a famine relief policy which gave rise to one of the largest royal residences of India? 

Well what??

This was my reaction in Umaid Bhavan palace while reading a piece of article in museum.

For anyone who aren't aware of the history behind the Umaid bhavan palace, the anecdote goes like this.

Interesting Anecdote behind the palace

When a period of draught followed by a curse of saint happened in Jodhpur, the farmers approached the then king Umaid Singh to sought for some sort of employment.

The king in order to help the farmers, decided to build a lavish palace and that's how the seed for the largest royal residence in the world was sown.

He commissioned Henry Vaguan lanchester, a renowned British architect to prepare plans for the palace. Around 3000 people were employed to build this palace.

The palace was designed with a blend of Western and Indian architectural patterns.

Interestingly like Khajuraho and Thanjavur temple, Umaid Bhavan palace was also constructed using interlocking system rather than mortar.

It took 14 years to complete the palace, as the main intention was to give employment to the farmers.

When the doors of the Umaid Bhavan palace was opened in 1943, it was considered as one of the largest royal residences in the world. With 347 rooms and several courtyards, Umaid Bhavan palace was certainly a magnificent palace.

However due to tragic events in the royal family, the palace couldn't function fully for many years.

It was when Gaj Singh, grandson of Umaid Singh decided to convert a portion of palace to luxury hotel, it started functioning fully.

The palace was divided into three functional parts.
1. The residence of the royal family
2. A luxury Taj hotel
3. A musuem focusing on the history of Jodhpur Royal family

Umaid Singh
There were many things about Umaid Singh which made me moved that day in museum.

Whether it was about taking his polo team to England or his famine relief policy which gave rise to this majestic palace or the dam which remained as Jodhpur main water source even after half a century, the man himself was a true visionary.

Not to mention his love for flying which brought Jodhpur, it's aerodrome. 

Even before Delhi airport was announced as International airport, Jodhpur airport had become International only by the efforts of the then king.

This man had an extravaganza of vision. He knew not only to dream but also to realise it.

A Desert Odyssey in Jaisalmer

As we proceeded for an exotic stay in Jaisalmer desert camp, we observed the change of scenery slowly.

Before heading to Desert in Jaisalmer, my imagination of desert was a stretch of barren, empty land with endless sand dunes eyes could see.

But what awaited us in Thar desert was something different.

There were barren stretches and then there were stretches filled with sands and desert plants too.

I was stunned to see a different version of desert from what I had dreamt of over the years.

As the car drove past many desert glamps, I had been thinking as to what this desert had got in store for us.

From a peaceful night stay in desert camp to going on paragliding over the sand dunes, the desert indeed had offered us variety of things.

Read further to know what all you can do in your desert Safari.

Stay inside a Swiss tent
If you want to truly get the feel of desert, you should camp here atleast for a night.

We stayed in Desert gateway resort. The stay was overall good except for the food and folk dance.(More about the stay in the end)

Adrenaline junkies! Here's Dune Bashing for you
Why should we have to go to Gulf and Arabian countries for dune bashing, when we have our very own in Jaisalmer?

This wasn't included in the package but we were happy that we opted for it.

Go on a Camel safari

What other best way than to ride on a camel along the breathtaking crests and troughs of sand dunes to experience the Great Indian desert.

Be careful while sitting on a camel's back, hold on to the hump and enjoy the moment.

Witness a magical sunset in the vast expanse of Thar desert
After a fun filled dune bashing, we were dropped near sand dunes. The desert which looked like an endless sea, was ruffled by occasional gentle breezes.

Wind whizzed past my ears and the sun set in the horizon to create a splash of colours in the enchanting sky.

The whole desert landscape turned magical at the moment. We spent a lovely evening amidst the Golden sands of Thar desert.

Paraglide over the magnificent sand dunes
As the sun starts to set in the horizon, go on a memorable ride of paragliding over the sand dunes of Thar desert.

Paragliding over the sand dunes

Treat yourself to the delightful folk music and dance of Rajasthan
Sun went down. Tired camels retired for the day. Jeep geared up to take us back to the camp. It seemed like we could call it a day.

But Guess what!
Something awaited us in the camp.
Folk music and dance! 

Bonfire had been put on for the DJ night! We took a comfy seat to enjoy the night.

See the desert wear the jewel of stars
If you are a night person, then don't forget to see the desert wear jewel of stars in the night. Desert gives a perfect backdrop for long exposures of Star trails.

One of the best places to look for milky way or shooting star.

I had forgotten my tripod in Jaipur itself that I couldn't experiment much on this.

Wake up to a beautiful sunrise like this
As soon as I woke up, I came out of my camp to witness such a breathtaking sunrise.

I took deep breath of the cool morning air and got ready to go on a camel safari.

Such sunrises are worth getting up right?

My experience with "Desert gateway Resorts"

Location : We loved the resort location-wise as it was perfectly placed just after the Sand dunes.(No crowd meandering opposite to your camp, yet walkable distance from Sand dunes)

Cleanliness : Resort was maintained pretty neat and clean. This one I would rate above normal standards.

Aesthetics : Again here, resort stole my heart. Room had the perfect Rajasthani vibe we seeked.

Food : Food was a major let down for us in the camp. There were no special Rajasthani food items to savour.

Folk music and dance : Folk music was good but the dance wasn't up to the mark. Out of two ladies, one lady performed nice and other one was just dancing for the sake.

Inclusions in the price : One Sunrise or Sunset Camel safari was included in the price.

Price : INR 5960 for three adults.

Tips - I would suggest you to go on a camel safari with your camp. As the private safari charged us more as well as took us around only little distance. And don't yield to their marketing strategy of showing untouched sand dunes.

Chandigarh - The city etched in memory forever

As our flight landed in Chandigarh, we had half a day in hand to roam around.

So we decided to get a teeny weeny experience of smoke free city of India.

History behind the city
Little glimpse of history behind the city is necessary to start with. At the time of Indo-Pak partition in 1947, when Pakistan was stamped out of western Punjab, the then capital of Punjab, Lahore, went to the other side.

As Punjab in India was left without a capital of its own, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru took personal interest in carving out a brand new capital city for Punjab. And that is how Chandigarh came into existence.

Chandigarh
The manifestation of a dream that Chachaji Nehru envisaged and Le Corbusier accomplished.

Source : Google

Chandigarh is basically divided into sectors which are well connected to each other, with each sector having a park, shopping complex of its own. With trees on both sides of road, the city is maintained like a newly built Township. Certainly, I have never seen a well planned city like Chandigarh.

Admiring the beauty of the city, we headed directly to rock garden.

Rock Garden
When you missed your hometown so much and there seemed no way of going back, you would probably come with a creative idea like this. Hats off to the one man who was behind the construction of Rock Garden. A construction as a result of Indo- Pak partition - 1947.

Rock garden by Nek Chand was basically a reflection of his village in Pakistan. He created it by recycling the scrap materials like broken chinaware, glass bangles, building waste collected from various demolition sites. Having an eye for art, it was indeed a treat. From Rock garden, we went to Sukhna Lake.

Sukhna Lake
This man made lake lies with the backdrop of majestic Shivalik range and is a desired picnic location right in the middle of the city(Walkable distance from Rock garden). While walking along the curvilinear profile of the lake, you would come across various artists sketching portraits of people. We spent our evening simply lazing around in the lake.

Seeking solace in the lake

Punjabis
Punjab is a place where you can easily interact with locals, where conversation flows so easily even when I am struggling with language. And most importantly, my respect for Punjabis increased multi-fold after this visit to Chandigarh.

From the two Punjabi old men whom we happened to have a few minute conversation in Sukhna Lake to the aunty who reached out to help us in finding the address of YHAI, Chandigarh, everyone was so kind.

Punjabis love for food
As I had only half a day in hand, I couldn't explore much on this part. But sure some day, I will be going on a food trip to Punjab. 

Two days in the Golden city, Jaisalmer

From the never ending sand dunes to ancient forts and fortress, Jaisalmer has everything in it's pot. You will see a peep of culture perfectly in contrast with the monochromatic or toneless desert lifestyle giving it's all colors.

We not only experienced one of the beautiful sunsets in the vast expanse of Thar desert, but also met interesting personalities during our trip to Jaisalmer.

As I said, it's not just about the breathtaking views, Jaisalmer had got many more things for you to experience.

Here are the top pick of interesting things to do in Jaisalmer!

Look in awe at the majestic sight of Jaisalmer fort
Standing proudly on Trikuta hill in the endless sands of Thar desert, the mere sight of majestic Jaisalmer fort is definitely going to make your heart pound.

Made of rich yellow sandstone, indigenous to this area, this fort is one of the largest living forts in the world. The locals often refer it as Sone Ka Quila(Golden fort).

This fort indeed depicts the sheer strength of man kind of bygone eras.

Walk the lanes and by lanes of the Jaisalmer fort

This is one of my favorite things to do in Jaisalmer. Walking the lanes of fort to give yourself a glimpse of the lives of culturally rich people.

If not for the walk, we would have never got to interact with shop keepers who carried the rich heritages of Jaisalmer.

Treat yourself to the interesting vistas at every corner

Be it the Intricate carvings in the fort complexes or just the view of Jain temples from one of the windows of house, Jaisalmer treated us at every corner.

Jain temple from a different angle

Go on a shopping spree!

Colourful dresses, shawls, umbrellas, handmade items, interesting souvenirs, showcase items, artificial jewellery, camel leather bags, mirror work pieces, and the list goes on. Name anything, you will find it in the lanes of Jaisalmer fort.

Indeed a shopaholic favorite place!

Explore a house inside Jaisalmer fort

This one was not a planned one.When we saw people entering the house and the entry fee was just Rs.50, we just put ourselves inside to see how the old Rajasthanis lived. But what came in as a pure surprise was that there was a place put up very neatly in a marwari style, where you can take photos.

The house had also showcased the lives of Rajasthani by displaying the items used during those times. 

Explore the havelis of rich merchants

When a renowned trader of Jaisalmer in 19th century, Patwa, came up with an idea of building mansions for his five sons, he ordered them to be started. It took around 50 years for it's construction that the father Patwa had passed away before the havelis got completed.  

So thus formed the Patwon ki haveli, a combination of five havelis each with a distinct quality of it's own. Now these havelis mirrors the rich beauty of yesteryear.

Patwon ki haveli is such a beautiful master piece that shouldn't be missed in your Jaisalmer tour. I was mind blown at the mere imagination of rich merchants who had lived over there years ago. 

Hanging handicrafts everywhere

Though the fort was packed with palaces,houses, havelis and temples, what took my heart was those beautiful handicrafts hanging all around the fort lanes.

Inquistive to know why these handicrafts stole my heart? Read about my tryst with a shop keeper selling Patch-works.

Watch a puppet in the making
Puppet show is a popular sighting in Rajasthan. The colourful handcrafted wooden puppets hanging together are a pure delight and can make it to be a perfect souvenir.

But the best part was that we got lucky enough to have watched the same puppet in the making.

Watch the people unwind for the evening in Gadisar lake

Always a lake or a water system in a city or a town amazes me like no other. Proper water management system is a lifeline of any city.

Not only that, it also serves as a favorite part of the city where people unwind for the evening. Gadisar lake was one such lake with some brilliant vibes.

Watch the sun go down in Bada bagh

As most people head to Bada bagh for the spectacular sunset, we also intend to see the sun go down painting the sky in interesting colours. But we could only make it to the place just after sun went down.

Disappointed, paid the hefty amount of INR 100 per head and walked fast to catch a glimpse of colour painted sky atleast. But guess what? Things got better, when we saw crowd melting away from the place after sunsets, giving us an offbeat Bada bagh.

And we were happy to have the whole place all to ourselves.

Is that how we find an offbeat place in a touristy corner? Just play with the time.

Desert experience like no other
The thing about desert is that it looks like a place lost in time, surrounded by nothing but sand.

We sat on a camel's back and enjoyed the vast expanse of Thar desert coming to life in the evening.

Hell yeah! We went for  dune bashing (Adrenaline junkies!). We winded up the day seeing the desert wearing the jewel of stars in the night.

During our stay in Thar desert, we were treated with incredible sunset and sunrise.
(A detailed post on my Desert Odyssey in Jaisalmer is updated!)

Treat yourself to exotic veggies with a brilliant view
Ker - Berry, Sangri - Beans. These two unique variety of beans and berries which grow abundantly in Rajasthan, are stir fried with local spices. That's the story of scrumptious Keer Sangri ki sabzi.

Pair it with rotis for a perfect delight.

Forgot to mention! When in Jaisalmer, though cliched, it is always "Food with a brilliant view". Want to know what I am talking about? Have a look yourselves guys!