[genesis]

Originally Posted by sudev

Why hypocrite sense of prudery?

No hypocrite sense of prudery...but a feeble attempt at humor . This was the literal translation of "shiva shiva shiva"!

This was better than Khajuraho, where every 10 mins later, the guide would look at the "ladies" in the group and say..."If I may be frank...."

Will complete travelog in next 2 days...

[jayakumarkp]

eagerly waiting. Excellent pics. we team-bhp'ians do owe u one for having shared this beautiful travelogue.
Thank you so much.

[genesis]

Originally Posted by genesis

and sat down on the steps listening to some more stories
of how over centuries it has survived the ravages of man and nature...

Talking about stories, on the pillars of the Sabha Mandap were carved panels, which depicted incidents from our ancient epics such as

Hanuman carrying the Sanjeevani Mountain


Sita's abduction by Ravana


The churning of the ocean or Samudra Manthan


We then moved on to the second temple called the Guda Mandap which at one time had housed the sanctum sanctorum


The outside of the temple was intricately carved


With detailed statues


Our guide explained to us the nuances


Including the weather beaten elephants which formed the supporting layer of the temple


And also came to know that Surya is one of the few gods to wear protective riding gear (look at the feet)



A spectator looked on with rapt attention(sudev, this one is for you ) as we entered the temple



The inside of this one was less intricate than the previous, but the ceiling was a sight to behold


Though the actual sanctum sanctorum is now empty, a quick circulation took us to the back of temple chamber where a now familiar smell caused us to look up


And say hello to some other spectators which looked far less attractive and friendly


Tour over, we left the Guda Mandap and stepped into the now blazing sun


Poured a few bottles of water into our throats and on our heads as we admired a newer creation of architecture and science


and headed to our next stop...Patan...

[genesis]

Originally Posted by genesis

and headed to our next stop...Patan...

Patan is home to Rani Ki Vav, a beautiful stepwell also from the Solanki Dynasty. After meandering through heavy traffic in town, including the local market (there are big signs when u enter the city and then nothing!), we came up to the compound in blazing mid day heat, bought our tickets (I think it was the grand sum of Rs 5 each) and followed the pathway to the well


Where we first read a brief history


Before getting our first glimpse of the multistoried structure


Into which you step down staircases


The sides of which are graced by sculptured panels





Which on closer examination have great detail


Midway one gets a closer view of the pillared storeys in the middle of the well


And at the point where it is barricaded there is a view of the far walls and pillars



Had a photo session with the daughter of a local family who was visiting the well (she insisted on running away from the camera )


Before heading back upstairs taking our time to admire even more sculptured panels


Even though we were in a hurry to start off for our next destination


Which by then had been decided as...Udaipur!

[genesis]

Originally Posted by genesis

Which by then had been decided as...Udaipur!

We took a slightly downwards route, through Unjha, Visnagar, Vijapur to Himmatnagar from where the speed track of a highway made short work of the distance to Udaipur and we landed in the lake city on the eve of Diwali.

Hotel found, we settled down at our dinner table on the terrace taking in the view



and quietly reflecting on how different all this was from the rugged beauty of the Rann.

It was at that moment we knew deep inside that this was just one chapter and we would soon be making a sequel to...Kutch Kutch Hota Hai!


-fin

Epilogue:

The final part of this trip called 36 hours in Udaipur (where my innova remained firmly parked) can be found on my blog at Genesis - soumya.org: 36 Hours In Udaipur

[sudev]

Thanks for the special picture. Man you have such eye for detail and narrative - brief but covers a lot.

[sen2009]

Awesome travelogue.
The photos, the story... everything lived up to my expectations built up from your first post - "Kabhi Kabhi mere dil mein"!

Excellent work. There is nothing to complaint about other than excessive usage of clutch, especially since you left the Rann.

I will keep checking the section for more stories from you. Take a holiday soon again.