Mixed feelings - Chittorgarh Udaipur Mangalore
It is pretty hot all over Rajasthan with all major cities and towns like Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bikaner, Kota, Bhilwara and Chittorgarh recording temperatures above 45 deg C for more than a week now.
But holidays are holidays for children and we took off for a whistle stop tour of Jaipur-Chittorgarh-Udaipur-Jaipur trip in 38 hours covering a distance of 1000 km literally scorching the highways. Chittorgarh fort is the largest in Asia. We spent three hours in the midday braving sweltering weather.
The fort which was built around 600 AD and renovated around 1400 AD is a sight to behold in terms of size and grandeur. The history of Mewar region lies buried in this fort. The fort was built by King Bapa Rawal fourteen centuries ago. This was the fort where Bhaktha Meera sang her bhajans praising Lord Krishna. This was the fort where the famed Rani Padmini lived and set herself in flames rather than give herself up to the enemy who laid siege to the fort expecting her to surrender.
There are several Hindu temples and a prominent Jain temple in the fort complex. A prominent Hindu temple has the designs of Puri jagannath temple and Konark sun temple woven into it. The scales of most of the monuments in the fort is large and the carvings intricate.
The 120 feet high Vijay Sthamb built around 1400 AD is breathtaking for the intricate carvings. It has nine floors with no access to the ninth floor as there are no flight of stairs there. This sthamb figures prominently in all the promotional literature of Rajasthan Tourism. We braved the heat and exhaustion and made it to the eight floor of this marvel of architecture.
There is a smaller sthamb about 40 feet high about a century older than the Vijay Sthamb adjoining a Jain temple at the far side of the fort. The original grand gate of the fort faces a vast open valley which used to be battle field. But for a national highway threading through the landscape like an earthworm, this land mass is still bereft of human habitation.
One of the maharajas in the chain of descendants Udai Singh located an area surrounded by hills for building palaces and artificial lakes. Thus the city of Udaipur was born in 18th century and the Royalty shifted their residence to Udaipur from Chittorgarh fort. The royal palace thus vacated is now being converted into a school.
But for the small town of Chittor at the foot of the fort,the areas surrounding the fort is still uninhabited for miles on end. It made me wonder what made maharaja Bapa Rawal to build a fort in such a remote location ? Nobody can answer this question now but at a time when we all want to be in urban areas with Malls, metro stations and stadia, this question will linger on in me.
After this awe inspiring visit to Chittorgarh , we sped to Udaipur only to catch a glimpse of the tragedy which struck at Mangalore airport. The aircraft overshot the table top runway there and plunged into the wooded slopes and valley surrounding the airstrip.
It was a gruesome sight with relatives and friends who were at the airport to receive their near and dear who have gone abroad tow in their daily bread running around helplessly stunned by the sudden tragic turn of events. Ecstasy turned into miserable agony in a matter of seconds for many families.
The papers carried photos of a four year old girl watching the burial of her parents and aged lady banging her head helplessly against the coffin of her daughter.
One wonders what made the authorities build the airstrip in such a location ?
Udaipur is a city of lakes. The scorching heat has dried up most of the lakes leaving behind a lot of mud and a pool of dirty water. Pichola lake with the Lake Palace in the middle presented a pathetic sight. It would be apt to describe it as Pichola mud ground with a Palace in the middle !
When Udai Singh chose the site to build shift the royal dwellings, the location would have been flush with water. But in the recent past, summers have seen the lakes going partially dry.
Sajangarh palace which is the monsoon palace of Udaipur royalty built at a strategic location 1200 higher than the surroundings gives a bird's eye view of the city.
May be a visit to Udaipur after the monsoon rains will prove that Udai Singh decision of relocating the royal dwelling to what is now known as Udaipur was a right one.
But holidays are holidays for children and we took off for a whistle stop tour of Jaipur-Chittorgarh-Udaipur-Jaipur trip in 38 hours covering a distance of 1000 km literally scorching the highways. Chittorgarh fort is the largest in Asia. We spent three hours in the midday braving sweltering weather.
The fort which was built around 600 AD and renovated around 1400 AD is a sight to behold in terms of size and grandeur. The history of Mewar region lies buried in this fort. The fort was built by King Bapa Rawal fourteen centuries ago. This was the fort where Bhaktha Meera sang her bhajans praising Lord Krishna. This was the fort where the famed Rani Padmini lived and set herself in flames rather than give herself up to the enemy who laid siege to the fort expecting her to surrender.
There are several Hindu temples and a prominent Jain temple in the fort complex. A prominent Hindu temple has the designs of Puri jagannath temple and Konark sun temple woven into it. The scales of most of the monuments in the fort is large and the carvings intricate.
The 120 feet high Vijay Sthamb built around 1400 AD is breathtaking for the intricate carvings. It has nine floors with no access to the ninth floor as there are no flight of stairs there. This sthamb figures prominently in all the promotional literature of Rajasthan Tourism. We braved the heat and exhaustion and made it to the eight floor of this marvel of architecture.
There is a smaller sthamb about 40 feet high about a century older than the Vijay Sthamb adjoining a Jain temple at the far side of the fort. The original grand gate of the fort faces a vast open valley which used to be battle field. But for a national highway threading through the landscape like an earthworm, this land mass is still bereft of human habitation.
One of the maharajas in the chain of descendants Udai Singh located an area surrounded by hills for building palaces and artificial lakes. Thus the city of Udaipur was born in 18th century and the Royalty shifted their residence to Udaipur from Chittorgarh fort. The royal palace thus vacated is now being converted into a school.
But for the small town of Chittor at the foot of the fort,the areas surrounding the fort is still uninhabited for miles on end. It made me wonder what made maharaja Bapa Rawal to build a fort in such a remote location ? Nobody can answer this question now but at a time when we all want to be in urban areas with Malls, metro stations and stadia, this question will linger on in me.
After this awe inspiring visit to Chittorgarh , we sped to Udaipur only to catch a glimpse of the tragedy which struck at Mangalore airport. The aircraft overshot the table top runway there and plunged into the wooded slopes and valley surrounding the airstrip.
It was a gruesome sight with relatives and friends who were at the airport to receive their near and dear who have gone abroad tow in their daily bread running around helplessly stunned by the sudden tragic turn of events. Ecstasy turned into miserable agony in a matter of seconds for many families.
The papers carried photos of a four year old girl watching the burial of her parents and aged lady banging her head helplessly against the coffin of her daughter.
One wonders what made the authorities build the airstrip in such a location ?
Udaipur is a city of lakes. The scorching heat has dried up most of the lakes leaving behind a lot of mud and a pool of dirty water. Pichola lake with the Lake Palace in the middle presented a pathetic sight. It would be apt to describe it as Pichola mud ground with a Palace in the middle !
When Udai Singh chose the site to build shift the royal dwellings, the location would have been flush with water. But in the recent past, summers have seen the lakes going partially dry.
Sajangarh palace which is the monsoon palace of Udaipur royalty built at a strategic location 1200 higher than the surroundings gives a bird's eye view of the city.
May be a visit to Udaipur after the monsoon rains will prove that Udai Singh decision of relocating the royal dwelling to what is now known as Udaipur was a right one.
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