KINGDOM OF "THE GREAT MEWAR"

On a Tuesday evening at around 6pm I arrived in Udaipur after a long 7 hours of bus ride from Jaipur. I pre-booked my stay at Castle Namahstay and got a warm reception from there. The next morning I went sightseeing where I got to see the exquisite canals and the water channels connecting different lakes which resembles the canals of Venice. 

The next morning went out for breakfast around hostel at a good backpacker breakfast joint. These shops serves fresh and homemade snacks famous all over India. After having breakfast I went to see the Old City market which is famous and world renowned for miniature art, metal and wooden carvings, homemade fabric products which dates back to the Medieval era.

The next day went to visit the City Palace  and It was a breathtaking experience as I got to feel and see 500 years of heritage and culture of the city. Around noon I went for a walk towards the lake Pichola where I meet an Australian girl Charloete who was a regular visitor of the city. She offered me to visit alongside her a place far in the mountains called Bari lake which apparently is situated in the middle of the old and famous mountain ranges of Aravalli. After watching the sunset together she surprised me with a spot in the middle of nowhere where we could see shooting stars every 5 mins. However its only when we realized it was midnight already. We rushed back towards the city as the jungles around Aravalli has rich wildlife.

Next day was more of a solo adventure where I visited the other lakes of Udaipur.

After spending a week in Udaipur I was more than fascinated to see what rest of Mewar has to offer.

Chittorgarh was a very brief tour as me and Charloete took a bus together in the morning from Udaipur. First thing we visited was the majestic Chittorgarh Fort. Famous for the Jauhar that Rani Padmini and Rani Karnavati underwent during siege, the Chittorgarh Fort has seen a lot of valiant battles. We saw the famous Vijay Stambh which is a great piece of medieval era art. The fort was on the top of a hill which gives a view of true Rajasthan colors.

By the time it was evening we took a bus back to Udaipur and ended this short colorful day.

After spending a well night, we went to a small place 100 kms away from Udaipur called Ranakpur where we visited the famous Jain temple which is dedicated to Tirthankara Adinatha. Local legend has it that Dharma Shah, a local Jain businessperson, started construction of the temple in the 15th century following a divine vision. The temple honors Adinath, the first Tirthankar of the present half-cycle according to Jain cosmology. The town of Ranakpur and the temple are named after the provincial ruler monarch, Rana Kumbha who supported the construction of the temple.

This temple was a master piece of art. We saw medieval creation at its best. There were so many intricate and highly complicated designs and artwork that it is impossible to not be amazed.

The deity of Shri Parshwanathjee with 108 heads of snakes and numerous tails. One cannot find the end of the tails. The ceiling at the entrance is decorated with akichaka, a bearded man with five bodies representing fire, water, heaven, earth, and air. Some of the few eye catching creations.

After this visit Charloete invited me to stay with a friend of hers in a 300 year old farmhouse in the middle of a jungle in Malari village near to Ranakpur. Here we both had an eventful evening as the owner of the farm invited a few folk artists as guests too. The next morning the owner gave us a good tour of the haveli. It had livestock and horses in and a dense jungle nearby. As expected we went for a small trek inside the jungle where we meet with a leopard. It was a life changing experience as we were only 50 metres away from it. We went