Umaid Bhawan, Jodhpur

Umaid Bhawan Palace, a very popular tourist destination in Jodhpur is presently home to Maharaj Gaj Singh. With 347 rooms, this is one of the world's largest private residences. A part of the palace is maintained by Taj hotels and a large part houses a museum with historical artifacts and vintage cars on display. The open hours are from 9 am to 5 pm.

Vintage cars on display

Private taxis and public transport facilities are easily available to reach Umaid Bhawan on Circuit House Road. However, make sure that you negotiate well with the auto rickshaw drivers before they drop you off at mid point (which is barely 800 meters walking from the palace).

Closely guarded and well maintained, Umaid Bhawan offers a serene view of the city. Be the lake facing the palace or the surrounding forests, you are bound to be mesmerized by the royal history. Besides, a section of the palace also has exotic automobiles which were in use a century ago. A must visit place is Umaid Bhawan.

How to reach- Volvo/train/flight connectivity from major cities.  10 hours by train/Volvo in overnight journey.

Weather- Extremely warm from April to September. Pleasant in October & November. Starts getting cold in December & January, yet bright and sunny throughout. Starts getting better March on wards.

Popular things to eat-  More on https://expressunleashed.blogspot.com/2016/05/jodhpur-palate.html

This trip of mine was in January 2015

Jodhpur Palate

Jodhpur, the second largest city located in central Rajasthan has loads of historical stories in its façade. Founded by Rao Jodha in 1459, the city boasts of rich Rajasthani culture and grandeur, much evident from the monuments and savory food.  Rajasthanis are known for their affection of sweets, which we enjoyed on our trip to Jodhpur.

Right in the center of the city is clock tower. In the same vicinity is Sardaar Market that houses several eateries, always bustling with people. Not only tourists, even the locals relish sweets in the eating joints. One such eating joint is Janta Sweet Home on the main road of Sardaar Market, which offers a variety of snacks and sweets. Spacious, well maintained and neat, Janta Sweet Home is run by a courteous family who receive the customers with smile.

Makhaniya Lassi@Mishri Lal

Makhaniya Lassi@Janta Sweets

Jodhpur is well known for Makhaaniya Lassi. Sweet curd is topped with malaai and a dollop of home-made cream (butter), and that’s where it gets the name from. Heavy and creamy (plus the extra sweet), a single glass can make you feel really full and drowsy.

Maawa kachori

The most outstanding sweet dish which we discovered was Mawa Kachori. Ya agreed, it is high on calories and too sweet, yet we could not resist and gave in to our temptation. The filling of the kachori is with mawa and dry fruits with a tinge of spices. The kachori is soaked in chaashni and served hot on the plate.  With every bite you take, you feel the spices burst on your taste buds. That’s the uniqueness of Jodhpuri dish. However, beware of the calorie intake as this is high on sweet and is deep fried of-course.

The only disappointment is lack of seating arrangement in Janta sweet home. So, you can manage to stay awake as you slurp on the heavy snacks.

Another speciality food in Jodhpuri cuisine is pyaz kachori, which is available almost everywhere. They serve pyaaz kachori with aloo subzi. Reminded me of Uttar Pradesh, where kachori is served in breakfast as well as snacks. (I have experienced the kachori ritual in Mathura, Lucknow & Agra)

Take a turn at the end of the road, and spot a small eating joint named “Mishri Lal & Sons” which serves you excellent makhaniya lassi, dosa, kachori and tea. We had a meal!

Warm milk preparation

Kesar Doodh Jalebi

Doodh Jalebi adds on to the list of the sweets that we savored in Jodhpur. Jalebi is dipped in a bowl full of warm milk with a tinge of kesar. The milk is warmed in a large iron vessel swarmed with dry fruits, kesar and malai. The guy with a huge sweet shop on the clock tower road near our hotel was a hotspot for doodh-jalebi during evening. One can have it as dessert post dinner or treat it as dinner itself. The wholesome dish fills you to your core. Who said Rajasthanis have sweet tooth? They have sweet jaws!

                                   

Towards the road leading to the clock tower is a tea shop named Bombay Tea Stall. Ah! The thought of Mumbai's "Cutting Chai" came gushing to me. A thin tall glass full of tea just made my day, while my husband stared at me enjoying my tea (He is not a tea person). Beware of the tea loaded with sweet and milk
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As we entered the market next to Clock Tower, we were taken aback by the sight of sweet shops and namkeen stalls. The place bustled with shoppers, rickshaw pullers, horse carts, cloth merchants..the place bustled with an enthusiasm, and positive spirit of Jodhpur..it bustled with life.

Our 3 days of stay in Jodhpur was a joyful one where two food lovers had their plate full.

Jaigarh Jaivana

There is something about Jaipur that keeps attracting me towards itself. The fact that I have visited the Pink City several times does not deter me to make frequent trips whenever I get the opportunity. The palaces, forts, the artillery on display, the art &craft and the enormous expanse of the majestic buildings dawdle to my sanities. Oh, maybe I have a royal connection from the past!

While Jaipur has a deep rooted Rajput history, the city also boasts of structures inspired by Mughal & European architecture. Nahargarh Fort is a fine example of the same. The kings in that era also built monuments and forts to combat enemy attacks. The fort of Jaigarh hence comes into picture which is a major tourist attraction till date.

Jaivana- World's largest canon on wheels

Canon's view from side

Why The Magnetism- The most extraordinary thing in the fort is “Jaivana” which is the world’s largest canon on wheels. The canon was fired only once in its lifetime. The canon has a 20 feet long barrel weighing 50 tons with a diameter of 11 inches. It has a range of 22 miles and about 100kg gun powder was used for a single fire. As per the popular belief, the single round that was fired formed a deep fissure that became a lake. The destructive and unusually large weapon kept the enemies away from the fort. The majestic canon stands tall in a protected area in the fort open for public display.

The History- The founder Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II cast the canon in 1720 at Jaigarh. The huge barrel was constructed to discourage enemies and ofcourse display the power of the reigning leader. The work to place the barrel on the carriage was later done during the reign of Maharja Ram Singh II who also got the covered area prepared to keep the canon safe. The Jaigarh fort was constructed to keep a watch and protect the Amber Fort. Also, the fort was a center of artillery production for the Rajputs because of presence of iron ore in abundance. Apart from the giant Jaivana, many other canons were manufactured during that era.

Jaigarh ovverlooking Amber Fort

Other small canons in backyard

Location- Jaigarh Fort is located on the outskirts about 10 km from the city. The fort overlooks the Amer Fort from 400 m above the former and offers a beautiful sight of the Aravali Hills.

How to get there- Private vehicles or commercial taxis/autos are allowed to ply on those roads. Take a left on the road marked “Jaigarh Road” and drive uphill till you reach a diversion. The road straight leads to Nahargarh Fort and the other turn is the way towards Jaigarh Fort. 

View of Amer fort from Jaigarh

What to see in Jaigarh Fort- Apart from the Jaivana, you can visit the large vicinity of the fort spread over 3km length north south and width of 1 km. The sturdy walls are made of red sandstones. The fort houses many other small canons, a tall watch tower, courtyards, a large storage tank, ancient temples that symbolized strength and protection from evil and garden areas. You can get a nice view of Jal Mahal and the entire Jaipur from Jaigarh fort which makes it an exceptional platform for photography.

Watch Tower

Did you know? During the tenure of Prime Minister Smt Indira Gandhi, a search was conducted by the income Tax authorities for a hidden treasure supposedly inside the large underground water tanks. The three water tanks under the central courtyard got its water supply from a canal on the west side of the fort. One tank water was used by prisoners for bathing, the 2^nd tank to store gold and jewellery and the 3^rd tank was empty. The 3 months search proved to be futile with no treasure excavated from the site.

Caution-

•  Do NOT litter. One it’s a disrespect if you do, two it’s a responsibility not to, three it attracts wild animals around. No silly, not tigers, but monkeys and colobinae (languor).

• Do NOT feed languor/monkeys. They can attack humans, snatch your items and make it a horrifying experience for all.

• Hire a taxi or auto which would wait for you at parking. You would not find any commercial vehicle to hire while returning. Fix the deal in advance hence. No buses ply on that route. Always hire a vehicle for Jaigarh and Nahargarh together as a clubbed package.

• Try NOT to alight your vehicle on the way from or to the fort for two reasons. The narrow roads get jam packed. You do not want to get stuck in traffic, do you? So don't create traffic. Secondly, because its risky. The risk of getting hit by an over speeding vehicle, monkey menace or other wild animals. I encountered a huge monitor lizard on the way back from the fort..The big reptile was beautiful but scary!

The historic fort is majestic and holds an important place. It’s a must visit in Jaipur to make you feel the magnificence and the royal aura of the Rajput era.