During February this year we organized a special North India trip for a small private party from Germany (my former math teacher from school days and his family!), which was a phantastic experience. On this journey we visited many fabulous world heritage sites.
We started our trip in South Delhi, enjoying an outing to the Naivedyam South Indian restaurant at Hauz Khas village and we also visited the Qutb Minar, the 73 m high minaret that was constructed at the end of the 12th century by the first Sultan of Delhi as well as Humayun’s tomb (the second ruler of the Mughal dynasty).
We then took a flight to Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh, famous for its splendid medieval Hindu and Jain temples of the Chandela dynasty, some of them exhibiting explicit erotic carvings. In spite of the fame of Khajuraho (it is even a world heritage site), it is still fairly laid back and we enjoyed several days of leisurely sightseeing. The temples are particularly beautiful in the golden sunset light.
We also took an adventurous jeep safari to Panna Tiger Reserve (although we only saw a hint of a tiger in the far distance) and another trip to Ken Gharlial Reserve and Raneh waterfall, a natural beauty spot that has served as a setting for some Bollywood movies. We saw a good many langurs, macaques, deer, antelopes, gharials (a kind of long snouted crocodile), a couple of lepards sleeping on a tree and many birds, such as plum headed parrakeets, king vultures, drongos, babblers, Indian rollers and mynahs to name a few. One evening we visited an open-air performance at the annual Khajuraho dance festival.
We then continued our journey going north to Orchha in Bundelkhand. Orchha is one of my favorite haunts in India. I consider it to be one of the best kept secrets, a small tranquil place on the shores of the Betwa river, with magnificent 16th and 17th century palaces and cenotaphs of the Bundela Rajput that once ruled over this area. Our party was lucky to find lodgings in the legendary Sheesh Mahal Palace, a wing of one of the former Rajput palaces that was turned into a small hotel. What a romantic setting this was! And you would feel transported way back in time! This place also had a restaurant serving a good variety of delicious veggie food. Although this cozy hotel did by no means boast any luxuries, it was nevertheless frequented by celebrities because of its exclusiveness and its charming ambience. Thus, we coincided with high-ranking officials of the Indian government that had come to the area, possibly for some of the G20 meetings that were then being organized all over India.
We also had fun at the colorful local market buying bangles, having some henna tattoos done and enjoying great views of the 9th century Chaturbhuj temple with its tall spire towering over Orchha.
Our next stop was the nearby city of Jhansi, a place hardly ever visited by foreign tourists, although it boasts a 17th century Rajput fortress that played a significant role in the 1857 Indian rebellion (or rather the first fight for independence from the Indian point of view). Jhansi became famous as a stronghold of Indian resistance against the British, led by the courageous queen Lakshmi Mirabai who resisted the British forces in battle during the rebellion. Hence Lakshmi Mirabai has become a national heroine and a great inspiration to many Indian women. We visited her small palace where she had lived humbly, considering her high status. The rooms that she had occupied had been elaborately painted with beautiful frescoes though.
A two-and-a-half-hour journey brought us to the big buzzing city of Gwalior with the impressive fortress towering high over the city. Gwalior Fort is also known as the ‘crown jewel’ of all Indian fortresses. The sheer size of it with its thick walls decorated with beautiful turquoise-colored tiles definitely do this description justice. On the way down to the city from the fortress we also admired the magnificent giant statues of the Jain Tirthankaras (saints) hewn into the rock.
A short train trip took us to Agra in Uttar Pradesh, where we visited the famous Taj Mahal, the tomb constructed by Shah Jahan for his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal who had died giving birth to her 14th child. In spite of the inevitable crowds at this famous site it was nevertheless one of the highlights of our trip. The magnificent white marble construction with its Pietra Dura gemstone inlays and symmetrically flanked with slightly outward leaning minarets looks particularly lovely at dawn or dusk. We also visited the red fort of Agra with its lovely Mughal gardens, pavilions and mosques. Shah Jahan would look over the Taj Mahal from Agra Fort, where he had been imprisoned during his last years by his puritanical son Aurangzeb, who had usurped the throne.
The last part of our journey took us to the impressive Mughal ghost town of Fatehpur Sikri that had been constructed by Akbar the Great in 1571 and that was meant to be the grandiose new capital of the Mughal Empire. Nevertheless, the place was abandoned after only 15 years. Why this happened remains a mystery. Perhaps the city suffered from a water shortage, others claim that Akbar the Great may have lost interest in his new capital and thus moved it to Delhi.
We spent our last day in the nearby bird Sanctuary of Keoladeo, once the hunting grounds of the former Maharajas of Bharatpur. In this swampy enclave hundreds of birds can be observed as many also nest here, especially migrants like different species of herons, cormorants, ibises, storks, spoonbills and also the rare Siberian Sarus cranes. We had many good sightings of hornbills, vultures, bee-eaters, all kinds of waterfowl, as well as some mammals such as deer, fox, wild boar and monkeys. It was a great way to finish a wonderful trip with a lovely supportive group, full of new, often exotic and sometimes challenging experiences, sharing conversations, fun and laughter.
Please contact us if you feel inspired to join one of our India group trips or if you would like us to organize a private tour for your party. We will be delighted to have you onboard!
Photos: Oda Seedhouse and Frieder Tuczek
Es war eine wunderbare Reise!