udaipur

rajasthan - beyond the registan

2025-02-24

I arrive from Ajmer on time, though the train has to be emptied out because we are still asleep at the last stop.

morning

We drift over to the retirement room hoping to check in early. No one is around, one room is empty, and we end up completing the rest of our sleep there until 0800 when the room attendant wakes us up properly.

0930

We head out for Jagdish Temple through mostly residential streets from the station.

Soon after, we go to the City Palace and have breakfast there, matar kulcha and karam idli. The palace is easy to navigate and better organised than the one in Jaipur.

afternoon

At Lake Pichola we take the boat over to Jagmandir. I do not think it is worth the price, mostly because it feels like paying for transport to an overpriced restaurant in the middle of the lake, though the breezy front-row ride back is nice.

We then walk to the cable car for Neemach Mata temple. The ride is short and fun, and the viewpoint from the top gives us a great panorama over the city, though we are too early for sunset.

Later we take an auto to Saheliyon ki Bari. It feels a bit underwhelming, and missing Sajjangarh seems like the bigger mistake.

evening

While walking towards Ambrai Ghat, we discover a moto cafe and get an impromptu tour from Sameer, who spends nearly an hour showing us around the bikes. It turns into one of the hidden gems of the trip.

We go back for our luggage and then try for Ambrai, but with that plan not quite working out, we eventually settle into Blue Moon rooftop and relax over cold coffee while looking out across the city.

late night

At the bus station we learn our bus has been cancelled. The man at the booth helps us get onto an AC seater instead, and we head overnight to Jodhpur.

#draft