Udaipur

Udaipur is a City which has the relaxed feel of a town. It is far more tourist orientated than most places we have visited, comparable perhaps to Hampi, but this came as a welcome break for us. Quiet, clean, market-lined streets weave together in a way which makes Udapiur a great place to ramble around. A more recent claim to fame for Udaipur is being the setting for the James Bond movie, Octopussy. Thus many restaurants play the film every night at a set time for (some) enthusiastic tourists.

Our first excursion was to a local Museum called Bagore-Ki-Haveli which houses a rather ecliptic mix of artefact's, including the worlds largest turban. The building had only been part renovated and was charming for it, there was a central courtyard off of which many ram shackled rooms made for great exploring. Although the Museum is not worth a visit to Udaipur by itself, it is a lovely way to spend a few casual hours getting lost in local history.

After visiting the Museum Emma had her hand hennaed by a young lady in the Museum Ticket Office. She did both sides of the right hand for R150. The beautifully intricate design took her about 15 minutes to complete, she did so without stencils or props and the end result was lovely. Should you decide to have some Henna done whilst visiting India, you must leave it on your skin for about 2 hours (longer if possible), you can then gently brush it off. Do not use soap on your Henna for the first 24 hours after application. It should last for approximately 7 days.

The following day we visited the City Palace. A glorious and well-maintained complex, it sits at the top of a hill overlooking Udaipur and is Rajasthans largest Palace. We spent a few hours exploring the place, admiring its artwork and architecture, learning its history and fancying ourselves as part of the next Royal Family. From the Palace you can take a boat ride to Jagmandir Island which is home to another Palace (now a Hotel) that is said to have inspired some of the architectural design behind the Taj Mahal. The island is flanked by stone elephants cloaked in red robes and from it you can see impressive views of the City Palace. Where possible, visit City Palace and Jagmandir on the same day to avoid paying additional fees to reach the departure point which is housed in the Palace grounds.

It was Mewar Festival (Festival of Women) whilst we were in Udaipur and in the evening it really came to life. It was fantastic, women and children paraded the streets, families gathered at the large variety of street vendors, death-defying rides scared people silly and the evening rounded off with a glorious firework display. Indian people really know how to celebrate! For dinner we had a Rajasthan Thali at The Little Prince which is situated on the river. The Thali was divine, it consisted of Cooked Vegetables, Paneer Massala, Lentil Stew and Butter Chapattis. We drank Kingfisher from fantastically ugly mugs because the owner did not have a license (our beer being referred to as Cappuccino *with a wink*) and enjoyed a 90's soundtrack that included George Michael and The Backstreet Boys. 

Good Times.