The Flip Side of the Coin

What a long, strange trip this is turning out to be! In just three weeks the dry desert state of Rajasthan has flown by in an implausible whirlwind of forts & palaces, mosques & minarets, masala chai, sticky sweeties, holy cows and smelly cow pats.

Dusty and somewhat disoriented, we now find ourselves in Ahmedabad, de facto capital city of Gujurat state. (Like Rajasthan, Gujurat is also desert-dry, but also doubly so – alcohol consumption is illegal here.) Tomorrow we’re off again, back into the desert of Little Rann in search of pink flamingoes, salt licks and wild ass. Now that’s something you don’t say every day.

But back to business – which in this post is a summary of all the fairytale palaces, jaw-dropping citadels and captivating temples we’ve so far been lucky enough to see.

The first point I have to raise on this subject is, well, the sheer number of historic monuments that over the centuries have been stuffed into northwest India in general and Rajasthan in particular… There are hundreds of them! And even at our cracking pace, in three weeks we’ve only skimmed the surface of what this part of India has to offer. But rather than listing every UNESCO-listed masonry masterpiece, I’ll offer instead my own highly subjective list of the Top Ten Most Amazing Sights.

10. Jama Masjid (Friday Mosque), Delhi

An enormous red and white marble edifice that can, it’s said, hold up to 25,000 of the faithful (the largest in India). For a small fee, worshippers (and tourists) can climb one of the 40-metre high minarets, from the top of which an incredible view of the old city can be enjoyed.

9. Jaya Stambha (Tower of Victory), Chittorgarh

Spectacularly ornate carved marble tower, thirty seven metres in height. Erected in 1458 by local ruler Rana Kumbha to commemorate his stunning victory over the Mughal emperor, it remains in near-perfect condition, bar the graffiti and pissy stink. You can still climb the narrow stairs inside, pushing past hundreds of finely-wrought carvings, all the way to the eighth storey. Incredible.

8. Jantar Mantar (Observatory), Jaipur

Astronomical instruments don’t come any more bizarre than these: at the same time a fascinating lesson in both history and science.

7. Lake Palace Hotel, Udaipur

There is of course a very good reason why thousands upon thousands of visitors flock to Udaipur each year. To start with, the view westward across Lake Pichola, past the famous Lake Palace Hotel, beyond the Sajaan Garh (Monsoon Palace) high up on the hill, and rising up over the mountains and into the blazing sunset beyond, is an almost impossibly romantic sight.

6. Agra fort, Agra

Wow. “Huge” doesn’t do this colossal citadel justice. Rajasthan’s most perfectly preserved Mughal stronghold, Agra fort is often overlooked by tourists keen to reach Agra’s most high-profile attraction. But this fort is definitely worth a few hours of anyone’s time.

5. Bundi Palace

Towering above Bundi town is this charismatically dilapidated palace, and towering above the palace is an even more romantically-decaying structure – the Taragarh (Star Fort). Monkeys and the jungle are steadily reclaiming both… Catch it while you can.

4. Lal Qila (Red Fort), Delhi

Although a crumbing carcass of its former self (before the Brits leveled most of the palaces it contained and built a barracks over the top), what remains is enough to establish conclusively the Mughals’ claim to be history’s most refined monarchs.

3. Meherangarh (Majestic Fort), Jodhpur

The sheer scale of Meherangarh’s walls is enough to earn this remarkable building a place on the list. In four hundred years (our audio guide informed us with more than a touch of price), these walls were never breached and the fort was never taken – despite the countless sieges of presumptuous Mughals and overambitious Maharajas.

2. Amber Fort

Ridiculusly spectacular, the Amber Fort is a perfect dream of the perfect fairytale castle.

1. Taj Mahal, Agra

Really, what else could top this list? Poetry and architecture are here combined in this, the world’s most beautiful art installation.