Udaipur - the city of lakes

The journey effectively would start and stop at Delhi and last for 6 days. I took train journey to and from Bangalore to Delhi, mainly because of the recession blues. The destinations were chosen such that except for a night stay in desert sand in Jaisalmer, all nights would be used for hopping places. The first one was Udaipur – the city of lakes. A comfortable train journey from Delhi got me there early morning. I expected the place to be crowded and was eagerly looking for options to see the outskirts of the city.
Just then I got to know about a horse ride organized by an Indo-Danish couple to the city outskirts. I was joined by two couples from the Europe. It was surprising to know that one couple was traveling across India for weeks now as they find India a cheaper option to survive compared to being in Europe – they had recently lost jobs to recession. So indirectly the recession helping the Indian tourism industry! The horse ride took us to the rural ensembles of the city. It was a slow affair but refreshing. We also were taken to an animal aid centre functioning there. It was called Animal Aid Unlimited and treated and took good care of the stray animals that needed attention. I was surprised to see that the center was now managed by a Cnandian national who once happened to visit the aid center on a similar safari and seeing the condition of animals there, decided to stay back to volunteer to run it. She is in the center foor 2 years now. It was a touching tale of dedication to a cause that I stand for. The horse safari ended by noon time and we headed to the city.
For my afternoon signt seeing, I decided to stick around Lake Pichola as it has most of the prominent tourist attractions around it. My first foray was into the City Palace near Lake Pichola. It had 11 palaces in the complex and represented the pride of the ancient kingdom of Mewar. It is a must visit if one has an interest in Indian history. Another place where I visited and recommend for people who would like to splurge is the Jagmandir palace – an island in the lake.

The ambience is good enough to keep you cemented onto the place for a long time. One can also catch a good glimpse of The Oberoi Udai Vilas – the best hotel in the world from here. The sunset view from Lake Pichola was also a treat for the eyes. But I was surpised to see not many people hanging around there at that time. Perhaps they were busy with something better.
Later in the day a visit to Jagdish mandir was also pleasing as it was Maha Shivarathri day and some big celebrations were ongoing. I knew that a travel to Rajasthan would be incomplete without checking out their cuisine which I felt was best for vegetarians. Dal Bati Churma from Santhosh Dal Bati Churma Bhojanalaya was a treat and I gulped in a lot of it knowing I wont be having it again in the near future. Ker Sanghi, a dish made out of a desert vegetation is also a delight for the gluttonous souls