At the Foot of the Fort

Thursday, January 16, 2014
Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India
    With six of us traveling, especially with children, it made sense to hire a car and driver for the trip to Jodhpur. It saved us money, got us there earlier, and allowed us to stop and look at things along the way - like our first camel, carrying a huge load of straw, and the irrigation well pumped by oxen that didn't mind walking around in circles all day. It might have been for tourists, and we weren't the only ones stopped to observe, but the operator was happy to let the kids have a ride and didn't mind receiving a small tip.

    Our driver recommended a mid-trip visit to the Jain temple at Ranakpur, a majestic and sparkling clean structure supported by a forest of carved marble columns . Once again there was a central shrine just for worshipers, but tourists could wander the cavernous structure to their hearts content. The marble walls were decorated with intricate carvings, as the pictures show.

    By late afternoon we finally entered Jodhpur. The streets to our guesthouse were too narrow for the car, so we transferred to a tuk-tuk. The driver insisted he could fit all six of us, and also our backpacks! This began the most hilarious experience of our trip :)! Hanging on for dear life, we lurched our way uphill, until with a loud bang, the transmission broke!   The driver kept us captive, removed a wheel and then a driveshaft. Soon we were on our way again, but when the road got really steep he declared us there and sent us walking the rest of the way. Our guesthouse was the last building on the road, tucked against the base of a cliff, with only a path leading the final 400 feet upward from there to the attraction we had come to see - Mehrangarh Fort. Dumping our gear we walked back down, a shorter distance it seemed than in the tuk-tuk, for dinner at a rooftop restaurant, with a view of the floodlit fort above.

    Near the end of the meal, purely by accident, Kate's cousin appeared! We had no idea he was in Jodhpur, and he didn't know that we were there. Much merriment all around!

    Next morning we walked up to the fort, a touristy museum exhibiting howdahs, palanquins, and armaments from the days when soldiers fought with swords and royals rode around on elephants. Street musicians added ambiance, and there was even a demonstration of how to tie a turban.

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