Orchha was majestic and after experiencing all its magic we were now ready to explore the city of the Brave Queen of Jhansi- Rani Laxmi Bai.
From Orchha we directly drove towards the Jhansi fort which is situated on a hill called Bangir in Uttar Pradesh. There was no one available to escort us and provide us the details of the fort; there are only some written instructions in certain areas which will give you some idea of the fort.
The Fort was at a great height with grand opening; inside most of the infrastructure or buildings seen looks to be constructed by the Britisher’s due to its English architecture, and other parts have been converted into lawns and gardens. Inside the broad surrounding wall of the fort there were small rooms which were possibly the rooms of the soldiers; there was an underground jail for prisoners, and the peck point of the fort from where Rani jumped with her horse and young son to escape the British Army who had attacked the Fort.
When we were inside the fort that famous poem we used to chatter as a children “Bundele harbolo k muh humne sune kahani thi, khub ladi mardani wo toh Jhansi waali Raani thi” was echoing in my mind. Laxmi Bai, also known as ‘Jhansi ki Rani’, was one of the greatest freedom fighters of the country. A walk within the fort made us connect to the stories we used to read about the queen, truly a proud feel.
After a very long tiring walk we were super hungry and eager to try some mouth watering taste of the town but before doing some “pet puja” we thought of visiting the Museum of Rani as it was near to the fort, but bad luck it was closed (Museum remains closed on MONDAYS) so we missed visiting the museum.
Anyways now Time for some delicious FOOD! FOOD! FOOD!
Whenever we are in a new city or town me and my hubby make sure not to miss the local famous street foods as its always the best way to know the local city or culture well, on every trip we make sure to hunt the best eatery in town, after enquiring from some of the locals and searching through Google baba we got to know about “Narayan Chaat Bhandaar” a small shop which serves delicious chaats, we really wanted to taste each and every item of the menu and had ordered paani puri, karela chaat, aalu tikki and chila, believe me all of it was delectable and we really wanted to taste some more stuff from the menu but our appetite did not support, Damn!
Karela Chaat was something which I never had before and is a must must have if you visit Jhansi.
Loved them!
Now as we gained our energy back, we drove down to visit the house of Rani Laxmi Bai.
We were expecting that the house would be massive like any other royal mahals of India but it was nothing as we expected, in fact it was a very simple house. It was not even equivalent to any Bungalow of today’s time.
The house showed us how the True Ruler is, the living conditions were as per need without spending the money of public enormously on luxury and comfort. The place was more like house of any freedom fighters who desperately wanted India to be ‘free India’ not ready to sell themselves for enjoying the luxury and power. It left us with heavy heart and a constant question knocking my mind was that there were many people who joined hands with The Britishers, sold their Mother India and lived happily enjoying all the luxuries and comfort, with their generations happy and prosperous whereas these freedom fighters were left with nothing. Rani Laxmi Bai served the nation, engraved her name in the History but still why her property was so poorly maintained, especially the house.
However, the best part of Jhansi or the entire journey was its famous Chaats, you will never regret having those tasty treats.
Note- Above information is based on my personal experience not to hurt anyone or any religion.
