One of the first things you'll notice when heading through the tourist district of Udaipur is all of the signs advertising "Octopussy Showing Every Night 7:30". The second might be a surplus of signs written in Korean. No, you haven't stumbled into some offshoot of Seoul's red light district. It's just that the (pretty horrible) James Bond film Octopussy was primarily filmed in Udaipur and Korean’s must love “Rajasthan’s most romantic city”. When sick one day I broke down and sat through the film. The parts filmed in the city streets were especially interesting and only a little bit of an embellishment of the sort of stuff actually happening on the streets here.
Udaipur itself is actually a gorgeous city and probably the prettiest city I've seen in India. The tourist district is centered around the lake and near the palace and its narrow alleys are brimming with shops and guesthouses. Head up to the obligatory rooftop restaurant and you're treated to a panoramic view of other guesthouses and street life. My guest house's restaurant was particularly nice since it overlooked the lake and had a striking view of the palace and several of the havelis, old mansions used by the Rajasthani nobility that have now been converted into boutique hotels.
My first day was spent resting after a long bus ride and wandering a few of the cities many alleys. The next day I decided to head out and see some of the countryside and set off on a very long but very rewarding trek. Originally I decided to walk towards the Monsoon Palace, an old royal palace perched on a nearby hilltop.
I figured I could either find the way up to the top or failing that take in the natural environment that turned out to be some interesting scrub land. The further I got from the city the more interesting it got so I just kept going. I also found out what happens to sacred cows after they die. Whereas cows and pigs pick through the garbage for anything edible, when the cows die it's the dogs' turn. In my head I can hear Elton John crooning about the circle of life right now.
The surrounding villages were filled with some gorgeous farmland. And to see little boys and old women herding goats was another memorable sight. India is a strange place to go. It's filled with contradictions of modernity and history, affluence and poverty. It's also downright stressful at times and takes some getting used to. But outside the relative comfort of a nice city like Udaipur you can find people engaged in activities their ancestors did hundreds if not thousands of years ago. I suppose one of the charms here is that you can have both, and on top of that it's set in an incredibly foreign and baffling cultural context.
I trudged back into the city tired and hungry. I met up with a Canandian guy from Montreal that I had met on the bus and had a nice dinner. I will miss paneer, it's delicious. Not as delicious as masala dosas though. It's my mission to track down a hotel Lonely Planet claims serves South Indian food tomorrow. At least my stomach has recovered which leads me to...
The next day I got up and checked out the palace. I'll put some photos of that below but it was really beautiful. If I had to pick the palace in Mysore is nicer and the fort in Jodhpur is more impressive but that would be splitting hairs. Udaipur's palace had ample charm and was the most distinguished looking of the three that I've seen.
After touring the palace I was starving and something in my was screaming out for meat. I headed to a place with wifi I had been before and ordered a chicken korma that I suspect led to a week of stomach troubles and nausea. But then again it's India and you never know. It could have been some fly had landed on my morning toast bringing along with it god knows what filth.
At Soulmeet, the cafe with wifi, I also met up with a half-American/half-Swiss kid who grew up in Kenya and had just been kicked out of his prestigious hotel management program in Switzerland. I suspect he came to India to escape reality for awhile and was certainly doing his best to do that with his own special cigarettes. Partaking with him, some of his friends and the staff at the restaurant was quite nice and a bit of relaxation. Had I not gotten sick I would have hung out there more, all said the food was tasty.
I had booked a bus ticket for the next day but by morning knew that was a nonstarter. This illness dragged on and the worst part was the nausea that eventually prevented me from eating. I had some weight to lose so it's all good, but I could have done without that method of losing it. Of all cities I've been in though, Udaipur was by far the best to get seriously ill in though. I could steal some wi-fi from a nearby cafe, eat at my guest house's restaurant with a really nice view and was staying in a spacious, comfortable room with balcony and a good supply of hot water. So all said, I've rested up and am happy to be continuing my trip. I'm currently in Jodhpur which ha a very impressive fortress perched on a hill above it and plenty of charm. India has been full of ups and downs but I keep telling myself that's part of the experience. Til next time.
Udaipur itself is actually a gorgeous city and probably the prettiest city I've seen in India. The tourist district is centered around the lake and near the palace and its narrow alleys are brimming with shops and guesthouses. Head up to the obligatory rooftop restaurant and you're treated to a panoramic view of other guesthouses and street life. My guest house's restaurant was particularly nice since it overlooked the lake and had a striking view of the palace and several of the havelis, old mansions used by the Rajasthani nobility that have now been converted into boutique hotels.
My first day was spent resting after a long bus ride and wandering a few of the cities many alleys. The next day I decided to head out and see some of the countryside and set off on a very long but very rewarding trek. Originally I decided to walk towards the Monsoon Palace, an old royal palace perched on a nearby hilltop.
I figured I could either find the way up to the top or failing that take in the natural environment that turned out to be some interesting scrub land. The further I got from the city the more interesting it got so I just kept going. I also found out what happens to sacred cows after they die. Whereas cows and pigs pick through the garbage for anything edible, when the cows die it's the dogs' turn. In my head I can hear Elton John crooning about the circle of life right now.
The surrounding villages were filled with some gorgeous farmland. And to see little boys and old women herding goats was another memorable sight. India is a strange place to go. It's filled with contradictions of modernity and history, affluence and poverty. It's also downright stressful at times and takes some getting used to. But outside the relative comfort of a nice city like Udaipur you can find people engaged in activities their ancestors did hundreds if not thousands of years ago. I suppose one of the charms here is that you can have both, and on top of that it's set in an incredibly foreign and baffling cultural context.
I trudged back into the city tired and hungry. I met up with a Canandian guy from Montreal that I had met on the bus and had a nice dinner. I will miss paneer, it's delicious. Not as delicious as masala dosas though. It's my mission to track down a hotel Lonely Planet claims serves South Indian food tomorrow. At least my stomach has recovered which leads me to...
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| Rajasthani miniature artwork which isn't so miniature |
The next day I got up and checked out the palace. I'll put some photos of that below but it was really beautiful. If I had to pick the palace in Mysore is nicer and the fort in Jodhpur is more impressive but that would be splitting hairs. Udaipur's palace had ample charm and was the most distinguished looking of the three that I've seen.
After touring the palace I was starving and something in my was screaming out for meat. I headed to a place with wifi I had been before and ordered a chicken korma that I suspect led to a week of stomach troubles and nausea. But then again it's India and you never know. It could have been some fly had landed on my morning toast bringing along with it god knows what filth.
At Soulmeet, the cafe with wifi, I also met up with a half-American/half-Swiss kid who grew up in Kenya and had just been kicked out of his prestigious hotel management program in Switzerland. I suspect he came to India to escape reality for awhile and was certainly doing his best to do that with his own special cigarettes. Partaking with him, some of his friends and the staff at the restaurant was quite nice and a bit of relaxation. Had I not gotten sick I would have hung out there more, all said the food was tasty.
I had booked a bus ticket for the next day but by morning knew that was a nonstarter. This illness dragged on and the worst part was the nausea that eventually prevented me from eating. I had some weight to lose so it's all good, but I could have done without that method of losing it. Of all cities I've been in though, Udaipur was by far the best to get seriously ill in though. I could steal some wi-fi from a nearby cafe, eat at my guest house's restaurant with a really nice view and was staying in a spacious, comfortable room with balcony and a good supply of hot water. So all said, I've rested up and am happy to be continuing my trip. I'm currently in Jodhpur which ha a very impressive fortress perched on a hill above it and plenty of charm. India has been full of ups and downs but I keep telling myself that's part of the experience. Til next time.
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| View of the city from the palace |
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