Jodhpur Finally

I step down at the platform , my heart is buoyant again, getting high just breathing the cool winter morning Jodhpur air, the air , the station everything brings refresing sights and no smells, fortunately Jodhpur does not follow the overcrowded pattern of railway stations seen in other cities of India. Generally the bigger the station, the more are the people. I bounce till the last platform, take an auto from here to my friends place where i will be putting up.

Voila, the regalties begin from my place of residence only, the house has yellow stone walls, quaint displays of woodwork, i thought people didnt keep elaboarate furnishings in their homes anymore, but this house is a delight. It also has an angan which remonds me of my nani's(mother's mom) home in Benaras. Next few hours spent in chatting with Raji, while she cooks my lunch. I just love sitting in kitchen, where curious stuff is happening all the time, little chopping, little bending, little simmering, then the transformations, the aroma and oh yes the food is ready. And today's lunch primarily consists of ghee on yummy thick rotis, with yummy sabzi, yummy besan ki kadhi. Man what do i care for palaces of Rajasthan, i am so spoiled here.

By 3 i head off to Mehrangarh. Once there, i take a good look around, i have a nice view of the whole city, yeah nice and grand, its something else to be able to take in so much at the birs eye view. Mehrangarh is very well taken care of by the current raja of Jodhpur. And the best thing out here is the pre-recorded audio guide that you get here. It makes your walk around the fort leisurely and you can do it on your own and soak it in at your pace wihtout trying to keep up with guides.

I spend hours inside the fort re-living the grandeur. The fort is majestic, perched above the current city of Jodhpur, and that is what gives me the maximum kick here. So now the camera sleeping till now is awakened and called forth to preserve these sights around me. Well i am not sure how successful i was in preserving bit, well not much and i guess you never can take that with you, and that why you cross spaces to be there in person. Anyway so i just have lot of fun clicking every thing around me. This view, you could keep coming back for more. There arent many indian tourists around me, weird, lot of noisy firangs, one or two quiet fellas soaking stuff and wrting down i guess there impressions, cause there are lot of fleeting impressions you have here, one quickly drowned by other, but somehow related. There are a lot of locals here in the fort. They seem to have come for their evening walk. Bunch of women walking around is the brightest mix of the rainbow. You click their snap, they would want to take a look. One or two kids dancing to these 3 stringed instruments, disturbing. While i am trying to capture a parrot since on the outer of the fort wall, a group of 3 4 men gather arouund to see , waht is it that makes hang on to the edge of the wall (not excactly). They keep guessing for some time, when finally one of them nails it, the mitthu. Yes, i smile then the obvious question , where are you from. I reply they nod, smile move along. Nice people, by the standards that genrally a group of men here would jeer at you, but i guess they were just accaptably curious.

I walk around more, looking into every nook possible in the time left. I realize the forst is pretty open to and directly conscted to the villages just below. I am thinkign whether i should venture into one of those tracks, but since its getting late i as give up.

But i dont give up completely. I decide to walk back the main path, it was a very interesting curve. The sun has set and its 6:30, so concerns are showered my way, one or two passers by suggest i take an auto, which i had to eventually after walking quite a bit, once it was pitch dark and there was nothing rewarding around as the city was also nearer.

Back home, good food, good bed, man i am a royalty.