Ashokan Rock Edict at Kalsi
Mandu - City of Love destroyed by Powerquest
Situated approx. 100 km. from Indore, Mandu is a small ancient city in the state of Madhya Pradesh. Mandu rose to its peak of glory under patronage of then king Baz Bahadur. This was the time when love story of Baz Bahadur and his queen Rani Roopmati had painted the Mandu in colours of love during 16th century. Till date their love story is the flavour of all folk tales and song-dance theme in this Malwa region. Baz Bahadur (commonly known as Brave Hawk) was a warrior par excellence who fall in love with Roopmati, a shepherd with a symphonic voice.
Testimony to their fairy tale saga: To respect the desire of
Roopmati to worship river Narmada every morning, Baz Bahadur constructed a
Pavilion (Roopmati Mandap) cum military observatory fort to enable Roopmati get
a sight of and worship river Narmada daily from terrace of pavilion.
LALITGIRI - The Pilgrimage from Ancient History!
Flourished under the patronage of legendary king Ashoka, the kingdoms of
Magadh and Kalinga became important centers from where Buddhism spread to the
outside world. Present day areas of Bihar-Jharkhand used to be the kingdom of
Magadh and parts of Odisha-Andhra Pradesh composed Kalinga kingdom. At their
peak these places were often referred as most prosperous regions on the earth
and were full of amazing temples and universities imparting ancient Indian
knowledge. However, with passage of time dust accumulated on these sites and
these places gradually faded out from the eye of common people. In fact, many
got buried with layers of earth and since then have been waiting to get
resurfaced in future.
With the development coming to these areas, many of these extinct places are coming to life. One of the such places I came to know during one of my visits to this part with lots and lots of things to discover was Lalitgiri. Lalitgiri is situated at a distance of 10 km. beyond the River Virupa in Cuttack district, about 90 km. from Bhubaneswar which is the capital of Odisha state. Excavations in this region have indicated towards existence of very ancient Buddhist complex. With the discovery of Lalitgiri, and stitching together the chronology of event with iconographical similarities, the timeline of Lalitgiri goes back to the 2nd century BC. Based on this, Lalitgiri can be safely considered as one of the most ancient Buddhist establishments. So, I was about to walk into one of the lost chapters in our history, with due excitement.
A quick trip to Chennai
Offbeat locations in Madhya Pradesh that will fascinate you
Akal Wood Fossil Park, Jaisalmer
If history is only sought, there is something here which is much older than the history itself. YES, this place has been a testimony to Jurassic age, to be honest pre Jurassic Era. History buff inside me was getting curious as we were approaching "Akal Wood Fossil Park".
Get ready to take a plunge beyond History. Akal Wood Fossil Park takes you back to the pre Jurassic era, 180 million years back! In this area, once stood a forest 180 millions years ago. Then the area submerged in to the sea and the tree trunks got preserved in the form of fossils. The fossils of trees' trunks are preserved in this park, just like mummies in many parts of the world.
Witness to pre-Jurassic Era |
From Udaipur, On the trail of Maharana Pratap...
After the grand Chittorgarh, our excursion took us to "Udaipur", the city of Lakes. As I always say - The best plans should be kept early in your schedule. In line with my philosophy the first on schedule was the "Walk down the history lane which had witnessed the legendary battle of Haldighati, from Udaipur to Nathdwara via Haldighati".
All the good things start with praying to God, just on the outskirts of Udaipur there is a small temple of Lord Krishna. However you have to climb a 100 steps to reach to the temple. After praying we were all set to our first destination, Haldighati Museum.
This is the route which had once witnessed the battle of Haldighati. The excursion around Udaipur has been designed in such a way that one gets to walk the way which was be taken by Maharana Pratap for the battle of Haldighati. The hospitality of the local population is amazing and is worth mentioning. They are always willing to go an extra yard to assist the tourists in order to metamorphose their good experience into an excellent one.
Udaipur: Isn't Venice - Udaipur of the West..
It was all excitement and counting of days as soon as we planned a trip to Udaipur, one of the most romantic places in India and also popular as “city of lakes”. Every lane of the city is worth falling in love and network of Seven (7) lakes provide an ideal setting for romantic evenings. Established by Maharana Udai Singh in 1553, when he shifted the capital of Mewar from Chittorgarh. Udaipur City is one of best examples of Royality defined from India is one of most visited tourist destinations across the world.
Along with Chittorgarh, Udaipur is a proud constituent of
Mewar region. Mewar is the region which has weathered most of the attacks
coming from the West to protect India. The folk tales of brave Rajputs and
Maharana Pratap can be heard at every street and corner of this city.
After history hunting at Chittorgarh, it was the
time to discover the Grand Udaipur City.
As all good things shall start by prayers; one auto rickshaw driver advised
us to first visit the Manshapurna Karni Mata Temple on the Machla Hills
and enjoy the ropeway ride to reach the temple on top of hill. While
enjoying the ropeway, one can click some breath-taking views of Pandit Deendayal
Upadhyay Park adjacent to Doodh Talai Lake.
From the ropeway, the distant emerald Lake Pichola was visible and calling us to cherish the legendary boat rides on its blue waters. As soon as we returned from the temple, within no time we were at the boat ride station entry.
In the front of us were visible the noted monuments of Udaipur. The Boat ride will take you closer to Udaivilas and Lake Palace hotels which are situated in the middle of waters. Lake Palace used to serve as royal residence during summers.
All the lakes are interconnected. While enjoying our ride, a beautiful channel of connection of Lake Pichola with Fatehsagar lake.
No doubts all the boats gather at this point to click, this beautiful spot. Now I fully understood, why foreigners prefer to call Udaipur as “Venice of the East”. Venice must be feeling proud on this comparison with Udaipur. Check out Udaipur City from the water side...
Ride turned a full circle and the majestic City Palace, the royal residence of royal family of Udaipur was standing in front of us.
City Palace is complex of 11 palaces, courtyards and gardens and acclaimed globally for its intricate peacock mosaics, something heard only in mythological stories. A good part of City Palace is now turned into a museum. Camera is allowed inside after paying the prescribed entry fees. Take your camera to capture the grandeur from inside...
Around 200m. from City Palce is the major attraction and much visited Jagannath temple or Jagdish Temple.
It is believed that Lord Jagannath ordered the Maharana to build a temple in Udaipur where the God himself will come to bless this place. This 100 ft. high temple is also an architectural marvel and various mythological stories have been carved on the walls of this temple.
One has to take 32 marble steps to reach the temple. And to welcome the visitors, there stands two huge elephants with its trunk uplifted on either side of the stairs.
These elephants were built 11 stones’ blocks with such a craft that the joints are never visible. Lord Vishnu is called as Lord Jagdish here and is the worshipped deity here.
Located at the north of Lake Pichola is the Fatehsagar lake, which is an artificial lake and one of the most popular tourist hangout destinations in Udaipur.
Surrounded by Aravalli Ranges, the panoramic lake looks like an artists sketch. It is an ideal place to enjoy some quite moments with yourself or some romantic moments with your beloved.
A model of Chittorgarh Fort is also on display, as we were coming from Chittorgarh, we started identifying all the land mark features of the fort once more...

Water dripping down in the form of thin sprays from the terrace of the cenotaphs shaped like birds, create a
wonderful sight like singing rains. The Saheliyon-ki-Bari opens
from 8 AM to 5 PM.
We may have clicked numerous
pictures and enjoyed some great food here, but what which can not be
expressed fully in the words is the experience and remarkable hospitality
of the people. Something is there in the Udaipur weather. For food lovers,
Sukhadia Circle is the epitome of satiating the taste buds. Come early and
secure a place, else enjoy the fountains while waiting for your turn at the
food stalls.
Every moment in Udaipur is exploration of amazing history of our motherland and some memorable romantic moments with the soil of this region. Not only Udaipur city history is spread outside of Udaipur too, take some time to follow the trail of Maharana Pratap and the battle of Haldighati.
Keep Travelling Guys…
Royal Traditions of "Chittorgarh"
Fortified citadel, tales of brave Rajputs to whom Pride was more important then their lives and womenfolk who chose to immolate themselves rather than the dishonor at hands of attackers.