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

Come March and tourists head in droves to catch the Elephant Festival in Jaipur. We were among those tourists. Jaipur is a princely city of Rajasthan which takes immense pride in its famous Elephant Festival which is celebrated in March during the festival of colors, Holi. In keeping with the tradition of traveling frequently, I along with my friends reached Jaipur one day before the festival. We were booked in the heritage hotel Alsisar Haveli, which is a wonderful hotel. After seeing this hotel it would be no exaggeration to say that we had traveled back in time to the era of raja-maharajas. The royal treatment was overwhelming and something which I will remember for long.

During the celebration of Elephant Festival, the Pink city of Jaipur gets transformed in to a “famous venue” as tourists from far and wide come here to witness the charm of the colorful and royal Elephant Festival. It is the most popular festival which is celebrated with great pomp and show in the princely city. Dedicated to Elephants, this festival recreates the royal splendor of the raja-maharaja era. Jaipur’s Elephant Festival is organized by Rajasthan Tourism every year.

On our way to the festival venue our guide Sukhvinder Singh said with strong conviction that we will surely enjoy the festival which is marked by elephant parade, polo match, tug of war, elephant beauty contest, folk dances and many more events.

As we entered the stadium we saw it was fully packed with visitors and tourists who had come to see this festival. The morning of this eventful day was marked by the procession of the breathtakingly decorated elephants in the Chaugan Stadium. Other animals like horses, cows and camels later joined the elephants in the parade. The music band was playing drums and elephants were marching royally. I was feeling as if we had stepped back in time to the era of raja-maharajas. The scene was perfectly royal. And then we treated our senses with wonderful folk dance performances. It was very uplifting. Everybody seemed to be in high spirits.

After the long procession ended, the exciting tug of war began. I found this session the most interesting as this war was between a female elephant and 18 tourists. I think it was not fair as the female elephant had to fight alone against 18 people. But this royal creature dragged the tourists and finally won. I was so happy to see that as I was on the side of this majestic creature. People, no offense please. I asked our guide how and when do the tourists sign up for this event. He said that one needs to apply for this 2-3 months before the festival and then around 18 tourists are selected from around the world.

Next event was the elephant polo match between two teams of Jaipur. In this match each elephant was controlled by a mahout who sat on the neck and the players sat on the back with a long stick to hit the polo ball. Well it was quite interesting. It was something unusual which we rarely get to see.

Now this last event was another session of the festival which I liked a lot. Holi on elephants! Sounds too exciting na! We sat on elephant’s back and threw powdered colors on the people below who were also busy playing with colors with each other. This day was full of fun, excitement and entertainment. It was one of the best trips of my life.

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Jodhpur Kite Festival

“Soaring high is my nature”, this is the slogan of my school which I used to proudly tell my friends and relatives. I would always take pride in it and I still do. This slogan sits smug on the colorful and wonderful Desert Kite festival of Jodhpur.

Fairs and Festivals are inherently woven into the colorful fabric of the rich culture of Rajasthan. After a delicious breakfast I was all set to fly on the wings of entertainment in the wonderful Desert Kite festival of Jodhpur. It is one of the most famous festivals of the city which attracts scores of tourists and locals from far and wide. Youth takes the lead and make the festival a memorable event.

As I reached the Polo Ground, the venue of the festival, my senses were greeted with the sights of several kites flying high in the sky. Oh! It was so overwhelming to see the colorful kites fashioned into wonderful designs. The sight reminded me of a quote which I cherish a lot.“Throw your dreams into space like a kite, and you do not know what it will bring back, a new life, a new friend, a new love, a new country.” My sincere apology to the author of this quote as I don’t remember his name. This festival is truly uplifting as it unfolds many different meanings to many different people.

The kite festival is celebrated with great fervor on the occasion of Makar Sankranti in Jodhpur. Makar Sankranti marks the end of winters and beginning of Spring bringing people great joy. Stretching for 3 days, this festival culminates at the stunning Umaid Bhawan Palace. It is an international kite festival which draws spectators from across the globe. Kite makers and fliers had gathered here from countries such as UK, US, Belgium, South Africa, Germany and Malaysia.

I had never seen such a colorful sky before. No wonder children eagerly wait for this festival which I could sense from their faces brimming with bright smiles. Children released colorful balloons in the sky and the Air Force helicopters released numerous beautiful kites. There was one more message that was being conveyed by the festival. The sky has no boundary, it is limitless. Similarly we as the human beings should embrace all without building the walls of cast, creed, color, social status, religion and nationality. We should broaden our thinking like the horizon of the sky.

The International Kite festival of Jodhpur packed my day with entertainment, fun and adventure and the memory of the event will surely linger on and on.

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Mandawa Haveli

Rajasthan is undoubtedly one of the most incredible and impressive tourist destinations of India. The moment you start exploring it, you come across amazing and fascinating attractions. The royalty and beauty of this land take the tourists to the times of raja-maharaja. Mandawa is one such destination of rajasthan where there is so much to see and experience as a tourist. I recently visited this place and came back completely mesmerized by its architectural beauty and pleasant aura.

Located in the Shekhawati region( well known for its awe-inspiring architectural work) of Rajasthan, Mandawa is a beautiful fort town. Tourists from across the globe come here to see its famous havelis( mansions ), temples, chhatris( cenotaphs) and frescoes. The glorious history of this town dates back to 1755. To give a royal taste to tourists the havelis here have been converted into heritage hotels.

My first halt was Mandawa Fort which dominates the land of this town. It has been converted into a heritage hotel known for its architectural brilliance. I was completely spell bound by the architectural beauty and royal ambiance of the fort. My guide Joginder Singh told me about the history of the fort and the interesting stories of the then raja-maharajas. The walls of the apartments of the fort are adorned with mesmerizing frescoes and paintings. The carvings and mirror work deserve special mention. One of the apartments named Durbar Hall fascinated me a lot with its wonderful paintings, carvings and antiques. The fort offers breathtaking views of the town. Here one also gets a chance to see the royal costumes of the kings and their fierce weapons.

My next destinations were the havelis of Mandawa which are like art galleries. From royal architecture to lavishly painted apartments, beautiful paintings touching various themes and exquisite carvings, all can be seen in these havelis. Some of the havelis I visited were jhunjhunwala Haveli, Murmuria Haveli and Gulab Rai Ladia Haveli. Each of the haveli had its own unique charm and beauty.

In the evening I explored the bazaar of Mandawa and bought a beautiful painting and a carved chair. It was such a great experience to travel to Mandawa.

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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.

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Pushkar, the holy town famous for its only Brahma Temple in the

world and a colourful camel fair is a great destination to visit. My

Pushkar Camel Fair

curiosity to see the one-of-its-kind Brahma Temple made me decide to visit the town. After juggling a lot of dates, I decided to visit the town during the first week of November when the town was alive with celebrations of the world famous Pushkar fair. This town is the perfect place if you are seeking spirituality and enjoyment at the same time.

Pushkar lake in the town is a holy lake where I took a dip before visiting the temple. It’s believed that a dip in the sacred Pushkar Lake washes away one’s bad karma. Walking down the steps leading into the lake I experienced peace and joy. I felt as if some positive energy was embracing me. There are many ghats at the lake and the best part was that the lake was not very crowded. The lake is surrounded by several temples. The walls surrounding the lake read ‘Photography Prohibited’. All I did was enjoyed the views and captured them in my eyes.

Now was the time to enjoy the colourful and unique Pushkar fair, which is the largest cattle fair in the world. The sight of the camels adorned from head to toe was simply breathtaking. Other cattle like horses and cow were also a part of the fair. I even saw the exciting camel races and other

cultural events like dance performance by the known artists. It was pure fun. After that I pampered my taste buds with delicious rajasthani dishes available at the food stalls in the fair. I came back completely ‘contented’.

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Before leaving for my tour to Rajasthan my family members had handed me a list of the shopping items they wanted from Jaipur. In fact they were more

excited than me about my tour. After experiencing the royalty of the bygone era by visiting the palaces, forts and monuments in the city, I decided to dedicate one complete day to shopping. There is so much to see and buy at the bustling bazaars of the city. So on your tour to Jaipur, the fascinating city of Rajasthan, don’t forget to pamper yourself with a variety of colorful handicrafts. I explored quite a few markets in the city and finally bought wonderful handicrafts.

Some of the famous handicrafts of Jaipur are:

Blue Pottery
Famous around the world for its beauty, Blue pottery is one of the special handicrafts of the city. The blue pottery consists of objects like mugs, surahi, jug, plate, tiles, flower pots, ashtray, lamp shades and other decorative articles.

Metal Ware
A variety of beautiful metal objects are available in the city but the objects carved out of brass are simply unmatched. Lacquered brass and carved brass are the two types of brass work done in the city.

Wood Work
You can buy amazing wooden furniture such as table, chair, drawer chest, picture frame, mirror frame, carved doors and windows from the bazaars. Carved in traditional style and available in different shapes and designs, these objects can really give traditional touch to your house.

Carpets and Durries
Available in various fabrics, sizes and designs, carpets and durries of the city are famous for their quality and beauty.

Paintings
Shopping in a royal city like Jaipur is incomplete without buying the miniature or folk paintings. Made on various themes, the paintings look awesome.

Rajasthani Textiles
Tye and Dye fabric and Block printed textiles are a big hit in the city. Their grace, color and beauty attract not only Indian tourists but also foreigners. These textiles are available in a variety of patterns.

Marble Work
Meticulously carved marble statues of the Hindu deities, animals, human figurines, bowls, vases etc make a good buy in Jaipur.

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