March 8, 2006 - Bijaipur
I had a very hard time sleeping last night – probably the pot of tea I had at dinner and the four fresh lime sodas I had for lunch.
Fresh lime sodas are one of the simplest, most refreshing things you can find on the streets of India. With the tang of lime juice mixed into soda water along with sugar and maybe a bit of salt and chili powder, it's a taste that's easy to like. The two most common choices are simple: sweet or sour. A sweet one is probably best for a first taste, and it is definitely my favorite. But be warned—they make some sugarphobes' teeth ache. You can also find fresh lime sodas flavored with ginger, as well as a lime soda masala. This last one, with a mixture of cumin and other spices, is more of an acquired taste, but it's refreshing and definitely not the abomination that a masala Coke is. Yuk! If you're concerned about getting one of these drinks off the street because of cleanliness, try not to worry too much. Because the drink uses carbonated water and most sellers won't have any possibly iffy ice cubes to tempt you, it's a slight risk that's well worth taking.
I had no appetite, so I skipped breakfast. My traveling companions and I left our hotel at 6:50 a.m. to catch the train to Bijaipur. The Bundi railway station was very small compared to the others I had been to. Several dogs and even a cow wandered around the train platform! There were three cows walking along the train tracks eating bits of discarded food and plastic bags. The train was to arrive at 7:20, and finally pulled into the station at 7:45. We were in the lowest class car for this trip, so we didn’t have assigned seats. In fact, there were no seats, just wooden benches. Chandra informed us that we would have only 2 minutes to board before the train started pulling out of the station, so we scrambled onto the train—with our backpacks and the rest of our gear--like a bunch of lunatics! The train was already full of people, but we each managed to find a spot to sit. The train did not end up leaving the station for another 10 minutes, but at least we now knew that we could board a train in record time!
Fresh lime sodas are one of the simplest, most refreshing things you can find on the streets of India. With the tang of lime juice mixed into soda water along with sugar and maybe a bit of salt and chili powder, it's a taste that's easy to like. The two most common choices are simple: sweet or sour. A sweet one is probably best for a first taste, and it is definitely my favorite. But be warned—they make some sugarphobes' teeth ache. You can also find fresh lime sodas flavored with ginger, as well as a lime soda masala. This last one, with a mixture of cumin and other spices, is more of an acquired taste, but it's refreshing and definitely not the abomination that a masala Coke is. Yuk! If you're concerned about getting one of these drinks off the street because of cleanliness, try not to worry too much. Because the drink uses carbonated water and most sellers won't have any possibly iffy ice cubes to tempt you, it's a slight risk that's well worth taking.
I had no appetite, so I skipped breakfast. My traveling companions and I left our hotel at 6:50 a.m. to catch the train to Bijaipur. The Bundi railway station was very small compared to the others I had been to. Several dogs and even a cow wandered around the train platform! There were three cows walking along the train tracks eating bits of discarded food and plastic bags. The train was to arrive at 7:20, and finally pulled into the station at 7:45. We were in the lowest class car for this trip, so we didn’t have assigned seats. In fact, there were no seats, just wooden benches. Chandra informed us that we would have only 2 minutes to board before the train started pulling out of the station, so we scrambled onto the train—with our backpacks and the rest of our gear--like a bunch of lunatics! The train was already full of people, but we each managed to find a spot to sit. The train did not end up leaving the station for another 10 minutes, but at least we now knew that we could board a train in record time!
Arrival in Bijaipur
The king of Bijaipur in the purple shirt met us at the train station.
Of course, all of the Indians on the train stared at us unabashedly. I ignored them because I didn’t feel like conversation, or attempted conversation since there was a huge language barrier. However, that never seemed to stop an Indian from talking to me. He (or she) would jabber on like I understood every word they were saying. I just smiled and nodded my head while saying in English, “I’m sorry. I don’t understand.”
The train traveled through some beautiful countryside. Mountains in the distance, rocky landscape dotted with scrub and acacia. We came to an area where there were many green trees topped with bright orange, which I thought were berries. Every once in awhile we saw a herd of goats or cows. No trash! After three hours we arrived at the Bijaipur train station, which was extremely small.
We were going to be staying overnight in another castle, Castle Bijaipur, and maharaja Rao Saheb Narendra Singh Ji, otherwise known as the "king" in these parts, was at the station to meet us. While Rao Saheb no longer rules a kingdom, his father did and his father’s father and so on. At one time, his family ruled 90 towns, but today the Rao Sahebis only a figurehead. However, he is still royalty, and when we were driving with him through town, all the people bowed down in front of him.
The train traveled through some beautiful countryside. Mountains in the distance, rocky landscape dotted with scrub and acacia. We came to an area where there were many green trees topped with bright orange, which I thought were berries. Every once in awhile we saw a herd of goats or cows. No trash! After three hours we arrived at the Bijaipur train station, which was extremely small.
We were going to be staying overnight in another castle, Castle Bijaipur, and maharaja Rao Saheb Narendra Singh Ji, otherwise known as the "king" in these parts, was at the station to meet us. While Rao Saheb no longer rules a kingdom, his father did and his father’s father and so on. At one time, his family ruled 90 towns, but today the Rao Sahebis only a figurehead. However, he is still royalty, and when we were driving with him through town, all the people bowed down in front of him.
Castle Bijaipur
Castle Bijaipur
Castle Bijaipur was built in the early 16th century by Rao Vijay Singh, descendent of great Rajput warrior Shakti Singh, the younger brother of Maharana Pratap. Bijaipur had a strategic location in the form of the Kingdom of Mewar, as it was defending the frontiers against the invading Mughal and Maratha armies. The current family is the 13th generation calling the castle “home.” The present Rao Saheb Narendra Singh Ji has renovated and converted the castle into one of the first heritage hotels in the region.
The castle was not on top of a hill, but was a sprawling complex on the outskirts of the town. As we arrived at the castle, the maharaja Rao Saheb had his staff out in front to meet us with musicians playing, dancers and flower garlands, and a “tika” was placed on each of our foreheads. This castle was not as elaborate as the fort in Modhogarh, but it was still very beautiful.
My room was on the ground floor of a building opening onto a large courtyard closed in on three sides. The fourth side opened to a gorgeous swimming pool. Beyond that was the ancient castle wall, which was starting to crumble.
After settling in and then lunch, we all headed for the pool, except for Betty and Emma who were having henna designs painted on their hands. The water in the pool was very cold, but it felt good sticking my feet in. Paul, James and Pete all went for a swim while the rest of us just lazed around the pool. Aterwards, all of the others went on a “village safari” at 3:30, but I stayed behind. I needed some down time to myself, which I enjoyed immensely.
(Click on the images below to view.)
The castle was not on top of a hill, but was a sprawling complex on the outskirts of the town. As we arrived at the castle, the maharaja Rao Saheb had his staff out in front to meet us with musicians playing, dancers and flower garlands, and a “tika” was placed on each of our foreheads. This castle was not as elaborate as the fort in Modhogarh, but it was still very beautiful.
My room was on the ground floor of a building opening onto a large courtyard closed in on three sides. The fourth side opened to a gorgeous swimming pool. Beyond that was the ancient castle wall, which was starting to crumble.
After settling in and then lunch, we all headed for the pool, except for Betty and Emma who were having henna designs painted on their hands. The water in the pool was very cold, but it felt good sticking my feet in. Paul, James and Pete all went for a swim while the rest of us just lazed around the pool. Aterwards, all of the others went on a “village safari” at 3:30, but I stayed behind. I needed some down time to myself, which I enjoyed immensely.
(Click on the images below to view.)
Holi
After everyone returned from their "village safari," we celebrated Holi. One of the most important Hindu festivals, Holi marks the end of winter. People swarm the streets, throwing water and colored powder (gulal) on each other and anything else that moves: buses, rickshaws, even the almighty holy cow is not spared. Since our India trip was to be over on the official day Holi was celebrated (March 15, 2006), we celebrated it a week early. The castle staff brought out big tubs of water and buckets of brightly colored powder. We all grabbed handfuls of the powder, threw it at each other and then doused each other with the water. It was a rollicking good time, though we did get a little carried away at times. Needless to say, we all ended up sopping wet in a rainbow of colors—predominately shades of red and green—after we were done. (LouAnn, once again, did not participate.) Thank goodness for a hot shower. I had powder caked in my hair and ears, and I had to wash several times to get all of the color off of me. I was afraid, however, that my clothes would forever have a faint pink hue to them.
(Click on the images below to view.)
(Click on the images below to view.)
Dinner with the Maharaja of Castle Bijaipur
We had dinner around the pool. Cocktails and snacks were served first by the maharaja Rao Saheb’s servants, and we enjoyed about an hour of relaxation and live Indian music. Then to our long table, which was set right at the edge of the pool. The pool had floating candles lit in it, and the musicians continued to play through dinner. Dinner was a very elegant and elaborate buffet. I had my picture taken with maharaja Rao Saheb. It was a thoroughly enjoyable evening.
(Click on the images below to view.)