Udaipur, Kumbalgarhhhh, & Ranakpur

Udaipur is famous for its big lake with a white "floating" palace in the middle -- romance enough to make it a setting in the James Bond Octopussy (which claim to fame the town apparently embraces: the movie is shown at 7pm every night in half of the old town's cafes and restaurants!). It has plenty more to offer on its own though, with hilly, winding streets, and a great City Palace and museum which cover a lot of the history and artwork of the region.

After visiting the palace we spent the late afternoon making friends with a lakeside musician and getting a little lost in the back lanes of the old city. The next day the four of us hired a car and set out on an adventure to two places we knew nothing about: Kumbalgarh fort and Ranakpur temple.

Kumbalgarh was so much more than just another imposing fort palace set on top of a hill. It was an enormous compound with a great wall surrounding some 36 sq. km. of hilly territory and enclosing many temple ruins, old cisterns, and fields. After following the walls awhile, we rambled through the fields and brambles, explored temples, and eventually made it up to the top of the fort itself.

It was a fantastic morning -- we had so much fun, and had found this almost deserted place which would have been the historical highlight of many another country.

That afternoon we arrived at Ranakpur, a Jain temple of magnificent proportions. Here's what the guidebook says: "carved, as always, using milk white marble, the complicated series of 29 halls, supported by a forest of 1444 pillars (no two alike), is the finest in Rajasthan...". Here's what Ben said: "The most amazing man-made building I've ever been in." Here's what it looked like:

Outside was another, smaller, stone temple with a small sampling of India's famous erotic carvings. The teenage school boys there were absorbed in finding and giggling over all the dirty details.















Sidenote: over the course of our drive that day, we frequently had to stop for animals, but whether our next obstacle would be a dancing horse, a herd of water buffalo, a lazy cow, a donkey cart, some goats, dogs, camels, or monkeys, was anybody's guess. India is fun!