Jodhpur

We travelled about 280 kms to our next destination, Jodhpur from which the riding pants apparently got their name.  The story goes that the pants were designed by a famous polo player from this city and when he brought his local team to play on an England tour, the pants design quickly caught on with other polo teams.  

The area isn't as dry as Jaisalmer but it still doesn't get enough rain to grow any crops.  Irrigation is necessary for crops.

The drive was similar to all the other drives we've had to date including having to dodge animals on the roads, the aggressive driving style of Indian drivers, overloaded commercial freight and passenger vehicles, etc.  But today we also passed by a couple of accidents, a sobering reminder of how dangerous the roads can be.  One was an overturned freight truck where it likely drove into the soft shoulder of the road and turned turtle from the lopsided weight.  The driver was fine; he was at the side of the vehicle adjusting something by the time we drove by.   The other was a serious head on collision involving a small car and a tractor.  By the time we got there the police were doing a not so great job of directing traffic around the site.  As the cars were coming up to the accident site, they fanned out across the entire road to get past the car in front of them. Of course this happens on both sides of the accident and immediate gridlock occurs. We did get past the accident faster than I thought possible, with the vehicles jockeying quickly to form single lines to squeeze past each other.  

The first thing we did was to visit the local Fort.  Mehrangarh towers over the city, built around 1460 on a hilltop.  We did an audio walking tour which gave lots of history, way more than you could never hope to remember.  The Fort was owned by the city's Royal family but in about 1950 or so is being operated as a trust (controlled by the Royal Family).  They moved out decades before when they lost power and let the Fort fall into disrepair.  They have since turned the Fort into a tourist destination and are using the proceeds to restore the buildings.  

The Fort is full of history including a few dents in the outer walls from an 1808 battle, a collection of elephant howdahs (the seat-beds that go on top of elephants and palanquins, (the seat-beds carried by strongly people), and of course all the weapons and art collected by the Royal Family.

The carving of the sandstone walls is esquisite.  There is so much detail in the walls, it's hard to imagine how long it would take to finish a panel.

Detail of the carved panels. The panels were used by Muslim women to look out into the courtyard as they are not permitted to show their faces to men.  (Don't shoot me, I'm only the messenger). 

After Mehrangarh we went to Jaswant Thada, a beautiful marble monument to one of the Maharajas.  

We went to the big Sardar Market at the city's clock tower.  What a frenetic shopping hub.  

After that we checked into our hotel at the Devi Bhawan, a beautiful heritage hotel.  We're so pleased to be back into a great looking hotel with fabulous rooms and service after our disappointment with the hotel in Jaisalmer.  I'd rate the hotel in Jaisalmer about 3 stars, which isn't bad, but runs far behind all the other hotels we've stayed at.  My pet peeve is to pay for Wifi and I had to do this in Jaisalmer.    Also, on he last night, we found ourselves in the middle of a group of under supervised high school women and men who apparently know no courtesy about other hotel guests.  

Here is a shot of our hotel room.

The view from our deck.  

Lounging on our semi private deck.

Some of my foodie friends have been asking what we've been eating.  Since Bikaner, we've been going with the local cuisine, asking to eat at restaurants outside of the hotel offering for lunch and dinners.  The hotels tend to do a buffet for their dinners and while they are good, they were really expensive and offer limited choice but as much as you want in terms of quantity.  In the local restaurants we have a greater selection, can choose just enough to fill us up and the cost is about half of what we pay for a hotel buffet.  

Except for breakfast.  We are doing the hotel buffet as its already included in our hotel stay.  

Tonight we had dinner in the "On the Rocks" Restaurant.  We had Jodhpurs Aloo, (baby potatoes in yogurt gravy), Buhhare se Dal Makhani, (a creamy lentil dish) and garlic naan.

We also had desert, Judith opted for Indian ice cream, Kesar malai kulfi and I had Shahi tukde, a deep fried bread with a creamy sweet sauce.  Both good but very different from our standard Canadian dessert offerings.  

I'm off to bed now and we're off to Udaipur tomorrow (hopefully after a great sleep and late breakfast).