1989/90 - India Overland (Part 5 - Mandu to Jaipur)

The palaces of Rajasthan.

Tuesday 26 December 1989 - Sunday 31 December 1989
View 1989 India on nzhamsta's travel map.

Tuesday 26 December - Very cold overnight. We drove all day, arriving in Udaipur late afternoon. We camped in hotel grounds near the lake and ate out, meaning that I did not have to cook!!

Adam, Paul, Nicole, Fred and Saskia relax on a bridge.

Wednesday 27 December - A day of culture. Lots of stops including a memorial to Pratap Singh, Nehru Park, the gardens at Saheliyon ki Bari and strange museum next door, a handicrafts place, lunch, a museum of ethnic crafts and musical instruments and the City Palace. The palace was very impressive and was swarming with tourists. Eddie had arranged a proper Christmas dinner at the Lake Palace Hotel, one of India best hotels. The buffet was superb, with great music and dancers, fun night.

Lake Fateh Sagar.

Nehru Park and the Monsoon Palace.

Fruit and vegetable sellers at Lake Fateh Sagar.

The fountains at Saheliyon ki Bari.

Part of the City Palace.

The city of Udaipur.

"The White City" of Udaipur.

The Lake Palace Hotel in Lake Picola.

Saskia, Jacques and Rachel enjoying Christmas dinner.

The band.

Thursday 28 December - A free day in the city. We hired a couple of autos who took us around the shops and the old town, purchasing silk paintings. We met another EO truck going in opposite direction, i.e. to Chennai (Madras) and had a few drinks with them.

Rajesh and Satpal Singh, our drivers for the day.

Friday 29 December - A very early start (6:30 am on the road) and a long drive drive to Jaipur. Great chai (hot milky tea) stop at brekkie time as mornings are very cold. We stayed at the Laxmi Villas Hotel, which used to be the motor garage of the Maharaja of Jaipur.

Saturday 30 December - We visited Amber Fort (or Amer Fort) with a very good guide. An elephant took us up the ramp from the car park to the palace. In my opinion, elephants are not very coordinated and given that were were sitting sideways with our legs hanging down its flank, we felt that we were about to be thrown off at any stage. After lunch, we went to a carpet factory and a silk factory. Dinner at the hotel restaurant was very poor.

Amber Fort.

More of the Amber Fort.

The elephants on at Amber Fort.

The entrance to the Maharajah's apartments.

The Maharaja's apartments.

The lunch wallah.

The Summer Palace in Amber.

The spinning of the wool for the carpets.

Cleaning the new carpets.

Sunday 31 December - We had a guided tour of the city, including the Palace of the Winds (Hawa Mahal), Jantar Mantar Observatory, the City Palace, some shops, and more shops. An Exodus truck turned up so a riotous New Year party was had. Excellent dinner, lots of beer, loud music etc.

The Palace of the Winds.