23/6 – We left our grand hotel early for the long drive to Udaipur City. We hadn’t even left the city when Pia diverted us to a carpet & textile wholesaler that promised top bargains. He certainly delivered. Turns out he supplies many of Europe’s top fashion houses with goods and what retails at say DKNY for upwards of $2000 he was selling direct at $400. (Note to self; get his details off Robert or Gary.) Meanwhile directly across the road is an indication of the true India.
Somewhere, we know not where, we stopped at Kings Abode Resort. We all thought we were in a wasteland jungle. Turned out to be one of our nicest stops for lunch so far. A beautiful resort for our lunch.
A bit further on and a Jain temple that looked like it was made of ivory was the next stop. The Chaturmukha Jain Temple at Ranakpur is like a scene from a sci-fi movie however I found it ironic that monks of the Jain sect hold no material values (they do not even where clothes) yet we had to pay an admission fee and that old favourite of India the camera fee. Nonetheless it was a worthwhile stop as the photos will show you. It is a 15th century Ardinath Temple covering over 4000 sq yards which has a number of domes held up by 1444 white marble columns.
After more of the bumpy road (see Shane’s head protection) we arrived at Udaipur, the City of Lakes, and the Udaipur Ramada and wow what a hotel. This multi-level high class resort was mind-boggling. Our room was in fact 4 rooms and a patio. The stone, marble and timber finishes were brilliant and I could have settled there for a long long vacation. Pity we only had two nights here.
So as you can see the Ramada was spectacular as were the temples we saw. More tomorrow.
Cheers
Garry & Shane