[pravdr]

as we moved from one wonder to another wonder one could not suppress the excitement we felt when we viewed the majestic bhojpur temple as we came close to it.

the temple rose like an apparition on the horizon which led to loud shouts and exclamations.

as we came closer the brickbrown red box revealed its true dimensions which are massive.

built by raja bhoja who during his short but productive reign went on an architectural campaign building dams forts and cities all over central india.he marched right upto lahore witha hindu confederacy. but he is most remembered for his love for fine arts and architectural delights.

a much restored bhojeshwar temple





view of sylvan countryside which once formed the bed of a vast lake 400km2 in area which was formed by damming the betwa.remains of the cyclopean dam are still seen.although postulated to be built by raja bhoja it appears to be almost 2000 years before raja bhoja as cyclopean technique was from bronze age and used more in greek settlements.hoshang shah broke through the smaller dam and the lake took 30 years to completely empty out and become habitable.



massive entrance door with first glimpse of the huge monolithic shivlingam



lord bhojeshwar



look at the massive platform



huge cavernous interiors with the lingam in foreground



interiors of the bhojeshwar temple massive but proportionate





remains of the earthern ramp used to carry stones for construction some stones weigh as much as 70 tonnes.



i do not know whether this place is illuminated at night? it should be done and if ILLUMINATED it will be a major draw in tourists visiting this magnificent part and heritage of INCREDIBLE INDIA

[pravdr]

Bhojeshwar temple obaidullaganj to BHIMBETKA

after the majestic bhojeshwar temple we started our journey towards bhimbetka our halt for the day.

it turned out to be a nightmare.

we blindly followed google maps and ended up on a desolate broken road which tested my driving skills to the maximum.to be frank it was worse even for tractors.

we cam down the bhojeshwar temple and asked way for obaidullaganj and a stall owner nonchalantly pointed left as the road looked good we took it hardly bothering to ask him the road condition.it deteriorated to such an extent that at one point we were left in huge cropfields without a soul in sight to tell us weher we were going. all the time i was protecting my nhc underbelly which is vulnerable as everyone knows.

after a two hours nightmare we came to the main road at obaidullaganj.

TIP When returning from bhojeshwar temple always come back to the main road and proceed towards obaidullaganj it will save you 1 hour with little difference in kms.

we then proceeded south of obaidullaganj just next to a railway station we saw the board of mpsctdc HIGHWAY TREAT BHIMBETKA and what a treat it was to stay at this quaint amazing unique hotel.

[pravdr]

the highway treat at bhimbetka has just a few ac rooms with generator and inverter backup.

but let me tell you this hotel will mesmerize the kids and it will bring out the kid inside you.

the small restaurant dishes out an amazing fare.

it was a cabin outpost of railways with quarters where senior gangmen and signalmen linesmen used to stay. it was taken up by mpstdc on experimental basis and what a transformation they have done.

the railway track next is the arterial line connecting north to south india. express trains thunder down at regular intervals with lights flashing and whistles blowing.the show gets amazing as evening approaches. early mornings is another good time for railfanning.







some views at level crossing





some relaxing moments at bhimbetka







sunset at level crossing

[pravdr]

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[pravdr]

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[pravdr]

some movie shots' high voltage train action

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKjPO...layer_embedded

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Dt7EImclc8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8tK_K3l1Vo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhWyzSWf-fk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Um0bMt5Cf8g

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLRy3PddhrY

[pravdr]

to be very frank i have really not seen anything thrilling as i saw bhimbetka!!!!

if this find was located maybe in europe it would have been hyped up to an extent i cannot imagine.yet being in india one hardly knows this diamond which is still uncut.

history of bhimbetka dates back 40000years of which the last 10000 from mesolithic period has been documented beautifully by the cavemen/nomads.

Bhimbetka rock shelters - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

this is the most ancient imprint of human race in india older than any other site in india.

it was discovered by well known indian archaelogist mr vs wakankar when on a rail trip to bhopal.he was awarded padma award for his contribution a resident of ujjain he passed awauy just a few years ago.



some interesting birds we saw





world heritage site inscription



rugged topography of bhimbetka rock shelters. bhimbetka is actually
'bhim' 'baithika''



excavation pit where layers upon layers of prehistoric tolls and artefacts were dug up





amazing rock formations with treasures of humanity hidden in them

[pravdr]

some images which have stood the ravages of time dating from stone age to modern day humans.some images are of animals humans hunting can be seen.

[pravdr]

TIP

visit bhimbetka rock cave shelters during early morning hours after 9am as the light is good till noon and the morning light gives the best views of the paintings.

evening and dusk are best avoided.

Rememeber to do your homework on bhimbetka before you visit the experience will be most enriching.

bhimbetka is not a picnic spot so 'chalta hai' and 'usme kya hai' 'udhar kuch nahi hai' please do not take these type of people to bhimbetka as their brains are wired not to appreciate such monumental treasures.

only pic of animal attacking a human a bison attacking a man



hunters with spears





community dancing





different era drawings superimposed on each other



community dancing with instruments



fine example of animals



elephants with hunters

[pravdr]

bhimbetka rock shelters are rugged.prehistoric times would have been a centre of activity here. shelters were inhabited from time to time. so its a gallery of humankind evolving in its art form.
certain aspects like dancing hunting feasts worship farming have remained the same. amazing part is that the colors have remained intact dating takes us back to almost 40000 years.
the main shelter is aptly called the auditorium as it is here that things were planned and executed

[pravdr]

having reached the farthest point in our travels bhimbetka we started our journey to ujjain

we started from bhimbetka at 11.30 ama and covering a distance of 253kms reached ujjain at 3.45pm with a halt for food at dodi by popular demand.

leaving bhimbetka





we reached bhopal and wasted some time but arrived properly on bhopal bypass thereafter we reached the bhopal indore expressway and it was fun all the way to dodi with speeds touching 160kmph.at dewas we turned right to go directly to ujjain via a bypass.then we touched the nh3 again and crossed over to dewas ujjain road some beautiful pics of a serene road with a serene countryside









empty roads made our destination so close to us. but it was the journey and the road that made the day for us. ujjain road is a real beautiful road with sparse traffic if you are not here on any particular religious day.









as you come close to the centre of the town mpstdc has taken special care to guide you to its two hotels. we were staying at the higher priced option the shipra residency. some approach views.

[MX6]

The caves of Bhimbetka my friend is an astounding find! That's my next trip. Amazing. Here's 5 stars from my side for this wonderful log.

BTW, no matter how old one gets, one always love trainspotting right?

[KRRaj]

This is a excellent travelogue. Definitely Hidden gems, hopefully will be able to do these trips someday Nice Train Videos, they are definitely ripping it.

[pravdr]

we reached ujjain on evening of 18sep 2010.

ujjain is a city of contrasts old ujjain is still the ujjaini of old with old homes wadas bungalows of priests and the ashrams etc. as you enter ujjain time to time you are reminded that this is a religious city by different motifs boards flags and symbols and signages.

ujjaini also known as avanti of old has a rich history from time to time it resurrected itself only to fall to a decrepit conditions due to ravages of time.religion and hindu temples of antiquity are the rich flavour of ujjain.

various unknown facets of ujjain like it was the seat from where vikramaditya ruled and chaubis battisi by the riverbank is where his famous seat of justice was.

the quaint vedhshala or observatory stands mute testimony when man yet to land on moon was making some babay steps towards the stars. we did see the vedhshala on the way out of ujjain.

kalidasa is perhaps the most celebrated resident of ujjain.the iconic poet and literateur of sanskrit known famously for his treatise meghdoot

ujjain finds mention as avanti. it was where ashoka resided when he was the governor of besnagar.it was headquarters of scindias who later shifted to gwalior.

in olden times scores of mathematicians wrote famous treatises on zero decimal and negative numbers. it was a centre of advanced learning.

the first meridien of hindu astrology calendar passes through ujjain

Ujjain - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

we stayed at shipra residency ujjain mpstdcs best offering and it was good.

some pics of shipra residency and ujjain street shots







our car boot nhc takes all this plus 5 people half way across india was amazed by nhc it should read new honda city and country



some gen pics

[pravdr]

sorry folks for the long delay. i just returned from bikaner jodhpur ranakpur jaipur adventure. to think i have yet to complete this travelogue i w ill have to be fast.

ujjain is a mix of old and new the old city remains the same a maze of lanes and houses just as it would have been in olden times.new reas are swank and a new face of ujjain altogether.the roads in outskirts are pleasant to walk.

we left and crossed the rail overbridge that takes us to old parts of ujjain.the approach to mahakaleshwar is along narrow lanes and gulleys with a few boards to guide us. we finally arrived at parking since photography is not allowed inside the temple. there wasnot much to do on that front.

we had a wonderful darshan of mahakaleshwar and we undertook a pooja.the lingam was decorated with almonds and leaves. we took dardhan of other deities in temple complex notable being navagraha temple or temple of nine planets.

we returned to shipra residency for dinner then we sat around for some chat but one by one everyone started getting drowsy.so we decided to call it a day.our next destination was mandu we would be going by the badnagar road.