Places to Visit Near Mehrangadh

Now it was around 2 pm and we left to Jaisalmer by bus. Now we went by bus because on the way view was genuinely worth going by bus. Reached our destination by 7 pm. We searched for a good place to stay. Now while searching for a hotel, you should always ask the local people over there, they can suggest better places to stay. We can stay in Jaisalmer fort, as the place has been converted into hotels. But we didn't got to stay over there because it was consummately booked. Determinately we got one good place to stay.

The next morning we planned to go to Tannot, 40 km from Jaisalmer, the place has a good history (The story of Tannot Temple is one such miraculous tale when the local deity Tannot Mata didn't let any Pakistani tank bomb explode in both 1965 as well as 1971 wars The legend say that in both wars more than 3,000 bombs were dropped either in the vicinity or while of the temple, but none exploded. And we can see some of those bombs in the Museum built by BSF inside the temple premises. Now the BSF has taken in charge of the temple).We hired a bike and left. The on the way view was something very different which can be seen only there. While on the way to Tannot, we get the "Gabbar ka illaka" Ramgarh, virtually 20 km from Jaisalmer. We took a break over there and again left, these places make us feel as if we our in still our past.

We traveled from Jodhpur to Jaiselmerh via Delhi-Jaiselmerh Exp. We reached Jaiselmerh around 12 PM where we have planned to head towards Sam Sand-Dunes. Our cabbie Jamserh suggested that we should visit Gadisar Lake and Patwao ki Haveli on our way.

In the middle of an arid desert around 900 years ago lived a village and all one can see now is ruins of houses that once made them home.The legend says that the king fell in love with the mukhya's daughter. Due to caste differences the marrraige was not a possibility. The king threatened the villagers , gave them 24 hours to let him marry her or they would have to leave the place. The next day when the king came to look for his love, all that was left was deserted houses and no sign of human. Its been more than 800 years and no one knows where did all this people go. It's impossible to track them now that its been all these years. Some say they died, some say they fled to Pakistan, but no one knows.To me its more than just a story of unaccomplished love, its a story of unity , its a story of a tribe leaving home for their love for each other. This unity will live in our minds only as a story for it died years ago in reality.

DAY 1 : When most of the people around me chose to celebrate their New Year’s Eve with even more people around them, I chose to be surrounded by deer and boars; at the heart of a freezing desert and under a sky full of stars. When the majority of the world was opening a bottle of champagne at 12 am, I was chasing wild animals in the back of a cruising jeep. Yes, you’re right. That’s Jaisalmer. During the day time, Jaisalmer is as one would expect it to be. Sand dunes, camels, tents and a lot of heat. But as the sun set, except for the dunes, the world out there for me changed.

Jaisalmer, a planned trip in the final semester of MA, with best friends will always be a memorable trip. The crazy time spent with five friends will be cherished in the Campus. Hats off to me who decided to drive day and night to these beautiful places and not to forget the complete guidance of another friend through Google Maps.Jaisalmer is named after Maharawal Jaisal Singh, a Rajput king who founded the city in 1156 AD. "Jaisalmer" means "the Hill Fort of Jaisal". Its also nicknamed "The Golden City"( because the yellow sand and the yellow sandstone used in every architecture of the city gives a yellowish-golden tinge to the city and its surrounding area) and is a world heritage site as well and lies in the heart of The Great Indian Desert "Thar Desert."

We readily agreed and with much difficulty managed to get on the camel. Even as the animal cautiously got up after it was instructed to do so by the handler, we felt as if someone has thrown us in the air for sometime. Uncomfortable for the first few minutes, the ride was breathtaking enough. Javed and his brother Akram took us to the spot where several bollywood films including the recent Salman Khan-starrer Bajrangi Bhaijaan was shot. We got down, felt the cool sand beneath our feet and soaked into its beauty. From there we witnessed the sun do down the horizon as keen visitors scampered to capture the moment through their lenses. Soon, the sky turned orange before twilight beckoned with stars.... It was time to leave and head back to the camp. As we slowly made our way, a cool gush of wind touched us... The hot and arid desert had gone cold and the stars were looking like small diamonds as they flickered in the night sky...

One such profound experience that I was fortunate enough to be a part of was my trip to Jaisalmer. I'd previously been to all the other major cities of Rajasthan and luckily my best friend, Abhishaik, and I had a long weekend at our disposal and decided to make the most of it. Taking a much needed break from the 9 to 5 rigmarole we had recently become a part of. We left from Delhi on a train to Bikaner, got there early morning. We werent exactly sure how long we wanted to spend in Bikaner since we weren't sure what it had to offer yet so we checked our bags into a cloak room and went about exploring the city. After covering the forts and going on a wild goose chase for the infamous kachori's we finally decided that Bikaner was checked off our list and made a move towards Jaisalmer.

On this chilly morning in Delhi, a thought came to travel the Golden City Of India - JAISALMER to celebrate this new year.Jaisalmer is 750 kms from Delhi. We started our journey from dhaula kuan, Delhi in a sleeper bus to Jaipur. On reaching Jaipur, we took another bus to Jaisalmer which took 8 hours to reach there.Jaisalmer is located close to Pakistan border and in close proximity to Thar Desert. This place main landmark is the Jaisalmer Fort also known as Sonar Qila. The other attractions one can find are Patwon ki Haveli, Nathmal ji ki Haveli, Gadisar Lake and the Sam sand dunes.Day 1 started with exploring the Jaisalmer city. It was 3 PM and was a bright sunny day in December, although the evenings are cold. We first went to Patwon ki Haveli. It is the largest and most elaborately carved havelis in jaisalmer, this dive storey structure sits in a narrow street. You can find the paintings, old antiques, archaeological items and mirror work in some of the walls. The entrance fees for this is Rs 100.Next close to this was Nathumal ki Haveli. Minituare style paintings, tuskers carved out of yellow sandstone are the main attractions of this haveli. Later we proceeded to Salim Singh ki Haveli. This haveli is still occupied by the descendants of the original resident. The high arched roof is supported by carved brackets designed in the shape of peacocks. It had two additional wooden storeys to match the Maharaja's palace in height.Later in the evening, we went to Gadisar Lake. Our driver cum guide explained the history and story revolving around this lake. It was originally conceived as a water conservation tank to fulfil the water requirements of this city. Considering its importance, many small temples and strikes were constructed around it transforming it into pilgrimage centre. This place is famous for celebrating the Gangour festival on a larger scale. Though it no longer serves the historic purpose of serving water to the city, but is a picnic spot and can enjoy boating in the lake. Also the locals sell the breads to feed the catfish in the lake.Near the lake is the Desert Cultural Center and a museum made from the collections of a teacher Mr N.K. Sharma. The centre runs the puppet show in the morning and evening. The tickets costs for Rs 200. The show is worth watching and it's the pure talent to the people performing. It's a must watch if you what to know the cutlure of Rajasthan.After having local rajasthani good, we checked into our hotel to explore the second day in the Desert.

Jaisalmer is effortlessly beautiful. Though I rest my case here :) but am going to write more ;)Jaisalmer, also called the “Golden City” of India, is an enchanting and exotic little fort-town of Rajasthan. It is a city of culture, food, ancient sand castle forts, stunning Jain temples, pigeons, sand dunes, sun and camel!What I especially loved was that it was so tiny that I could just walk around the whole city. Half of the city was actually inside the massive sandcastle fort of Jaisalmer!We arrived in Jaisalmer late evening on 27th Dec, after a 5 hour long bus journey from Jodhpur. We reached quite tired after a rather rock ‘n’ roll bus ride & wished to retire in our hotel.As soon as we de-boarded the bus the autowallahs literally jumped on us! We were suddenly surrounded by hundreds of them (I don’t know where they all came from … From inside the bus the bus junction looked quite deserted!). We were treated like celebrities, & I felt grateful for that, only that I did not enjoy the attention so much! One of the autowallahs actually picked up our bag & rushed with it towards his auto! We ran after him, with the rest of the autowallahs running behind us! It was bizarre! I haven’t described the scene too well I know, but it was a moment when I wanted to cry & also laugh!So, anyways … we were practically ‘forced’ to sit in his auto. The driver told us that our hotel was only about 5 minutes away from the bus junction which made me very happy, only to realize later that everything in Jaisalmer was about 5 minutes away from wherever we were!Our hotel – ‘Nirmal Haveli’ – was lovely. It actually looked like a haveli! & our room was beautifully lit up in colorful lights & the sunrays coming through the curtains gave varied colors to the room & its sandstone walls. We loved it – highly recommended to all travelers.