Wonders of RajasthanVibrant Rajasthan - Travel to the Land of History, Legends, Valorous Warriors And Heritage Hotels….

Palace On Wheels

Someone has aptly said that the real adventure of life is to live the life of your dreams. Even I had a dream, a special dream, buried deep inside my heart, bouncing around in it for years. I thought to myself, “now or never” and decided to transform my dream into reality. I always wanted to experience the “lifestyle of raja-maharajas” and Palace on Wheels, rated amongst the top ten luxury trains of the world, was certainly the best bet for me.

Elated, I and my friend Shivani boarded Palace on Wheels from Delhi Safdarjung Railway Station on the Wednesday evening. This luxury train offers 8 days/7 nights tour to various fascinating destinations of North India, and that too in a royal style. The train covers the following destinations- Jaipur, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, at Sawai Madhopur, Chittaurgarh, Ranthambore National Park Udaipur, Keoladeo National Park in Bharatpur, Fatehpur Sikri and Taj Mahal in Agra. And then back to Delhi.

Once the personal railway coaches of the raja-maharajas of the bygone era, Palace on Wheel is truly the epitome of royalty and luxury. With royal, traditional and stunning interiors, state-of-the-art facilities and Khidmatgars at your service, you surely get the royal feel. During my journey in the train I enjoyed both the king-like hospitality and attractions of bewitching tourist destinations. We also enjoyed dance and music performances and puppet shows, a rejuvenating experience.

I felt as if I has travelled back in time to the glorious era of  Raja-Maharajas. An exotic array of dishes were available to tantalize the taste buds. The traditional Rajasthani dishes were lip-smacking. Seeing the menu consisting of amazing dishes, the “food-lover” inside me raised its ugly head and I without thinking about calories gorged on the food (although I was on dieting). I enjoyed every bit of my luxurious and enchanting journey on the Palace on Wheels.

Lived my dream. Contented to the hilt. What a wonderful feeling it is!

Elephant Festival Rajasthan

For a taste of royal lifestyles of raja-maharajas of Rajasthan, I set out on a heritage tour to this culturally rich land of India. And fortunately my tour coincided with the famous elephant festival (which coincides with Holi) celebrated with great fervour in the capital city Jaipur. The capital is at its best when decked up for this colourful and unique festival. After reaching Jaipur I was eagerly waiting to participate in the festival.

To experience the royalty at its best I stayed at Alsisar Haveli, which is one of the finest heritage hotels in the city. Its Rajputana look, traditional architecture, stunning interiors and warm hospitality left me speechless. Staying at this hotel was in itself a royal experience. Everything from bed to the mirror in the washroom had a royal touch to it.

To begin with I along with Manoj, my guide, visited the City Palace, a fabulous example of Rajasthani and Mughal architecture. The palace complex houses several stunning palaces with dazzling interiors. Further we headed to Jantar Mantar, a collection of astronomical instruments built in stone for measuring the planetary movements and time. Then we explored Hawa Mahal (Palace of Winds), a pink coloured five-storied structure pierced with 955 windows. It was built in 1799 to enable the royal ladies to view the city life, without being visible themselves.

Then we moved on to Amber Fort, the huge fort with several arresting structures built under the reign of Raja Man Singh. We take an Elephant ride to reach the Fort situated on the hill, a fascinating experience.

Next day I was ready to be a part of the famous elephant festival, commemorating the glorious past of the city. The view of the elephants adorned from head to toe was a sight to behold. The elephant race was simply overwhelming. They also played the royal game polo and a procession of elephants is taken out. I felt as if the elephants were also enjoying themselves. For me the most fascinating part of the festival was playing holi on an elephant’s back. I also enjoyed traditional folk dances of Rajasthan. I was completely soaked in the hue of Rajasthan.

With my eyes wide open and blood pumping at a fast pace, I was

Sariska National Park

watching a tiger all set to attack its prey, the poor deer. The scene was overwhelming, full of thrill and curiosity. Didn’t know what would happen next. Although I wanted to help the innocent deer but all I could do was wait and watch. The entire wild drama stretched for almost ten minutes and finally with sheer luck the deer had a narrow escape. I was really happy for the deer.

Well, I am talking about a wildlife show on Sariska National Park, which I was watching on Discovery channel the other day. I liked the show very much and decided to embark on a wildlife journey in Sariska National Park in Rajasthan.

After reaching the Sariska Tiger Haven hotel just outside the Sariska National Park at night, I was eagerly waiting for the sun to rise to begin the wildlife journey. Finally in the morning with hopes in my heart I along with the guide Dara went for morning wildlife safari.

Sariska National Park is a Project Tiger Reserve sprawling over 800 sq km area encompassing hills, valleys, scrub-thorn arid forests, dry deciduous forests, rocks and grasses. Located in the Alwar district of Rajasthan, the Park is a home to a variety of wildlife species.

I along with my well trained guide Saurab ventured deep inside the forest in search of wildlife. With my binoculars I sighted some magnificent bird species and was elated. Other animals I saw were striped hyena, golden jackal, chital, sambhar, nilgai, four-horned antelope. Langur, wild boar and chinkara.

My safari was about to come to a close but my sore eyes were still awaiting the arrival of the jungle king. After a lot of struggle, all we got were the pugmarks of tiger. And now was the time to retrace our steps out of the jungle. With great memories of the wildlife I saw and without any complaints against the Park or its wildlife, I came back thinking ‘there is always a next time’.