As planned, on our way, we saw the Silver Cascade. A beautiful waterfall which looked more beautiful thanks to the sun! There were a lot of tourists around the place. It was quite difficult to shoot a picture but as usual the Arien managed to take one. After shooting a couple more pics, we left. The Silver Cascade shone like silver and looked lovely.

We had quite a distance to travel (11 hours) and it was already lunch time. We had planned to have lunch on the way and I knew he would choose a place that served typical south Indian meals Well, at least, I was feeling cheered and so did not kick up a fuss. The meal was actually ok. We bravely tried to finish the juice we had ordered as we moved to warmer conditions but the meal was actually, very filling. So, we asked them to “parcel” it and they obliged

The drive was lengthy and tiring. We were glad to get back to home sweet home!

Our next spot was the lake – not the berijam lake (another odd sounding name) but the kodaikanal lake. The lake was a great photo-op and even the Arien was cheered. The Arien shot a pic that reminded me a lot of the snap he took in Wayanad of the Pookot Lake. You can read about the Pookot Lake, here. Of course, the purple lotus was not to be seen and so while it looked a lot like the other snap – it failed to create an impact. But, the lake was huge and we were definitely feeling a lot better after visiting the lake.

The Arien shot a few decent pics and we were soon back to our normal selves The rain had all but disappeared and we could admire the beauty of Kodai. I insisted on having a butta and that made us spend more time than usual at the lake. The Arien was busy shooting pics amidst munches.

People walked all around the lake – children all togged up for riding bicycles safely, with helmets, knee pads, elbow pads etc. were happily riding around with a watchful parent. 

 Boating did not appeal to both of us and so we drove around the lake – one section was in need of repair. As a result, we could not go all around the lake and had to turn around. Of course, the cyclists could manage and so we stopped the car and watched people walk, cycle, and drive past. It was quite relaxing. The Arien confided that the car trouble had kinda given him a scare. I reminded him that since it was taken care of – we need not worry ’bout it now. He can get suddenly emotional but he is quick shake it off

We still had to visit Guna caves and Pillar Rocks. We set off before it became too dark. This part is quite confusing – I think we finally visited Guna caves. The caves are named so because the KamalHassan movie was shot here or probably in the vicinity.  The cave was supposedly bat-infested and I had no desire to visit it. The path to the next toursit spot was so unlike others that I was worried. I also did not see too many women around.  It does seem like we are entering a new world.

We finally reached the end of the trek (it was not a walk) and found ourselves stopped by a wire-like structure. I think it was dangerous to go beyond that point. We walked to the edge and realized that it was true and only fools would try it. We started to head back.

At the same time, we saw a number of young boys on the other side of the wire – yes on the trecherous side. I was quite curious mainly because it was a good photo-op. That was of course, until we noticed how they go there. Most of the young guys moved towards a cleverly hidden small rip in the wire structure and crawled to the other side. I could only assume that the boys were drunk. No one in their right senses would try it. Of course, they could be local. Meaning they have done this a zillion times and use it to show-off to the tourists.

I was looking forward to the comfort and safety of our car. However, we had a surprise awaiting us. A monkey had settled atop the car and was giving us “The Look”. The Arien could not resist the opportunity and shot two pics before the monkey fled.

I was real glad to get back into the car. My feet were aching from the trek. The path was wet, muddy, and quite slippery and so we had to walk up slowly and return in the same speed. We saw quite a few boys, run, slip and fall and while it was a source of amusement for the rest of his gang – I did not want to fall down and hurt myself in any way, here or any other place for that matter. The Arien, of course, being quite impatient, walked a few steps ahead. Thankfully, both of us did not fall. No more sight-seeing for today. 

We were totally tired and looked forward to relaxing in our cozy cottage.

Well, since we were all dressed with nowhere to go, I suggested that we walk up to Coaker’s Walk which was adjacent. The Arien was quite distracted but agreed. It was less than a 5-minute walk. The rain had let off a bit by the time we reached Coaker’s Walk. The Arien meanwhile had called the Maruti Service Center at Bangalore for some help and advise. While I was looking for some nice photo-ops, the Arien was able to reach the guy who serviced our car before we left for our trip. I could hear his various suggestions – jump-start the car, try pushing the car and starting it, etc etc. I could not make much sense of all tht talk but then I was busy with the camera.

The Arien looked a lot relieved after the conversation and was quite grateful for the various suggestions. He had also received a list of Maruti Service Centers in Kodai. Meanwhile, I had managed to take exactly two snaps. I wanted to showcase how cold it actually was. We were in Brrr… mode and Waaanh mode throughout this holiday!

Coaker’s Walk is sure to be a great walking spot during summer but with the rain, the mist, and our car disaster – we were quite distracted and could not really enjoy the walk. We finished the walk as the Arien was impatient ’bout implementing the various suggestions.

With help from the hotel staff, he was able to start the car with the last bit of battery charge. We had to leave the car running for a while so that the battery could get re-charged. We spent a tense mid-morning but were finally relieved when all was well. Well, we learnt something new!

We still had to visit Pillar Rocks and see the Silver Waterfall. But, for now, we were heading for lunch so we could forget the unfortunate episode of the battery dying out!

We had a gigantic umbrella at our disposal in case we wanted to explore the resort during the incessant rain. Hardly a good idea during the awful rain but so useful when you want to get to your car from your lovely cottage without getting wet. The Arien wanted to take it with us as we went sight-seeing He can be funny at times.

The interior of the wooden cottage was almost L-shaped. As soon as you enter, the washroom is on your right. The wash area is a good example of how to use the available space well. The bed has been placed in the L-shaped space adjacent to the wash area with two arbid paintings on the wall. There are two side-tables on both sides with lamps fixed to the wall. Looks very cozy when the lights are switched on. The three stools in the corner look wobbly but are actually quite sturdy and comfortable.

There was a nice sofa-cum-bed type thing which was quite comfy. In fact, it became the place where we dumped the camera, wallets, purse, all the chargers (camera, cell, etc.), some eatbles, etc. etc. This snap was taken before it became the dumpyard of our stuff and as you can see – it looks neat and nice. The Arien liked the sofa-cum-bed a lot. He wanted to get a similar one for our home and took a zillion pics so he could explain it to our carpenter. Basically, it had a wooden base, or a gigantic palaga that was attached to the wall. Atop that sat two separate huge cushions (no other term comes to mind). Because the cushion was so comfortable, we did not realize the simplicity of the design. 

The resort was nice and service was good. We had a nice time. On the second day of our stay, the house-keeping folks arranged the towels in a swans-in-love like posture. Naturally, I was too engrossed in what I was saying that I did not notice it until I sat on the bed. I jumped and almost fell off the bed. I thought it was a snake! Instead of being a romantic surprise – it was a rude shock for me and the Arien burst out laughing.

He has taken two nice snaps of the towel decoration or hotel art.  Usually, big hotels have this and so it was kinda unexpected and very nice at the same time. Of course, that was after I got over my initial shock. The first snap is without any fancy lights – it looks kinda plain but captures all the details.

The second snap looks real romantic with all the lights and I personally like this snap better tho’ I gave a lot of grief to the Arien when he was trying to shoot this snap.

When we reached Bryant Park, it had stopped raining. However, there was a mist and most of our snaps came out blurry. Of course, the Arien managed to take quite a few good snaps – as always! I tried to take some but they looked so bad – I deleted it I am sure the park would be a great photo op in better weather conditions but we were stuck with the mist. I guess I should be thankful that we did not have the rain!

This holiday reminded me of our Coorg holiday in July two years ago – thanks to the incessant rain and the mist. The Arien is intent on taking snaps in all weather conditions. 

 However, I did break into a giggle when I saw him taking a snap of a cob-web. Yes.. a cob-web. It was amazing that the cob-web existed inspite of the mist and the rain. We were quite surprised that we could get such a clear shot of the cob-web with almost no sunlight. The Arien walked around smiling and taking more snaps.

I wanted to take a snap of the mist and the path. You have no idea how difficult it is to pry the camera from the Arien. (I really need to get myself a camera). I usually do not try especially not in this weather when everything comes out blurry. So, I was real glad that one of them was good enough to post. Yeah!!! It was quite cold as we walked around. We saw a temporary structure inside the park where some of the employees were working, chatting, etc. All that stopped the moment we went closer. It felt so rude to take a snap that I decided against taking a snap though I really wanted to.

Meanwhile the Arien had seen the Emblem. It stood all by itself and the swirling mist all around gave it quite a romantic as well as scary touch. Scary because the trees in the background looked like giants because of the mist. We took snaps of each other on the bench placed near the Emblem. I have never seen the Emblem this close and so we went a lil crazy with the camera.

The bench also had this very quirky wooden log look which we both liked. I guess the Emblem was part of the Independence Day, Republic Day celebrations. They probably had added these benches for folks to sit and watch the celebrations. Today it was wet – thanks to the rain and the mist and we were the only folks at the place.

It was time to go. I had the call to attend and so we started moving towards the exist. We suddenly came in contact with a host of honeymooning couples under shared umbrellas either taking snaps or giggling. I was glad we were leaving because we would have been asked to take their pictures :D I am so mean! While I was walking away full speed, I realized tht the Arien was missing. I hoped that he was not caught by the honeymooning couples. I saw him taking pics of the flowers. After some trouble he was able to get a shot that he was satisfied with and we were ready to go. 

Because it was almost time for me to take the call, we rushed back to the cottage. I got ready to attend my first ever ofc call on a vacation while the Arien spent time shooting pics of the cottage we were staying in.  At that time, both of us were clueless ’bout the beeg mess ahead of us. We had left the headlights of our car switched on as we ran helter-skelter to the cottage so I could attend the call. We had not received any alert from our car that the headlights were on. Because of the mist and the rain, we had been driving with our headlights on for most part of the day. Thats for the next post – Tada!

We got lost just after Dindukal and lost precious time. Had lunch at Vathalagundu (Yes, there is a place by tht name) after we found our way to Kodaikanal. The ghat section was totally unlike the hair pin bends at Ooty. There were landslides, here. At one spot, a tree had fallen and we were all driving around it. Quite spooky thanks to the rain.

As we were reaching Kodaikanal, we saw the Silver Waterfall but it was pouring and we could not get a nice picture or appreciate it. We kept going. It rained incessantly and killed all the enthu that we had. This is a snap taken of the same waterfall from a gazillion kilometers away.

To add to the confusion, we were unable to find the resort we had booked ourselves into. The Arien is apt to lose his temper wen we are unable to find the resort. We kept going forward and back instead of taking a left at a small nook. The resort folks were quite helpful but it was an irritating 1 hour in the rain.  But, we found it – Yeah!!!

After all the driving effort, we were quite happy to see our cozy lil wooden cottage. We ordered for some snacks in the room and relaxed.  The Arien’s crankiness disappeared. We usually spend some time planning the places that we will visit during the holiday. But, that was not done during this trip. I had a list of a few spots – one was right next to the resort and the others I was not too sure about.  However, we were stuck in the room because it was raining steadily.

All of a sudden, the Arien received a zillion calls because some server went down. He started checking his email, replying to emails while answering those calls.  We both commented on the probability of such events occuring only when the Arien was on vacation. We opted to have dinner at the room as well. No sight-seeing for today!

When I had looked out of the window on the day we arrived, I was quite surprised that the windows of our room gave us a view of the swimming pool. That obviously was the second photograph of the day. Some of the hotel folks can be seen in the corner, fixing something. We did not try too hard to get them out of the picture. There was nobody at the pool in the morning which was great.  We did not embarrass anyone nor did we get embarrassed Most foreigners are used to Indians taking snaps of them, with them etc. but naturally we did not want to be clubbed with that group!

The paintings on the left of the pool were quite colourful and bright – very typical of Rajasthan, I feel. Naturally, I could not resist taking a snap of that as well. The whole place had a lowe for the brilliant copper sulphate blue. Not only was the pool of that colour, most of the painitings used that color to indicate the sky as well as the water bodies. Kinda overkill but looked lovely nevertheless.

The common areas had a lot of  knick knacks, wall hangings, and comfortable chairs. Though I felt it was quite crowded, we also had an impression of space which was quite odd. On the day of travel, the Arien is usually quite tense. Apart from giving me updates every 5 minutes regarding our packing status, which was non-existant, he also refused to take any more snaps.

I promised that after two more snaps, we could get started on the packing. The common area where ppl staying at the hotel could lounge away for hours together was actually a very difficult room to photograph because of the number of mirrors on the wall which made the snaps come out weird. Finally, the Arien managed a decent shot. Notice the show-piece gramaphone in the corner.

As we walked further, we came across an open space that had a beautiful door, which was locked. While we were wondering if this was some special place, we were politely informed that yoga classes take place here. It made a lot of sense. It was quite cool and you could focus on the amazing designs on the door as you tried to perform some of the tougher yogasanas.  

The door reminded me a lot of the Bulund Darwaza that we had visited at Fatehpur Sikri. But, this place was very clean, with a cool breeze. While I was wondering how it was soo cool, I recieved the next update from the Arien and knew that he was right. We were running late and I had not packed yet. This was such a nice vacation. I enjoyed Jaipur more than I enjoyed Delhi. Delhi, with its myriad options failed to impress, but Jaipur impressed big-time. We were unable to make it to Pushkar which was my only grouse. We were returning to Delhi and then going back home. The Arien is writing accounts – I think we overspent as usual – but who cares if you had a great time – right?!! I think so anyway.

The rickshaw-wallah wanted to leave for the day but we still had places to see and miles to go before we sleep !!  The first shock of the day was the visit to Maharani Ki Chatri – the gate was closed and a security guard shooed us away. I was quite surprised. I insisted that the Arien take a picture of the closed gate — he refused! So, I took the camera and shot this picture. At that time, I had no clue about the place. I jes felt that the guard was mean. Today, as I blog about it, I had to search far and wide (Ok – googled it ) to figure out what the tourist spot was. 

And far from being an umbrella that the Maharani had owned, the place was actually a monument (usually a tomb) built in honour of the royal maharanis. I always thought that was an islamic tradition – christians also bury and have tomb stones. Did not know that the Hindu maharanis also followed the same tradition.  From the gate, it looks like the place has not been open in a while - maybe I am mistaken.

The next place we planned to visit was Albert Hall. We had another shock. The place was closed for the day. We realized a lil late that most of the tourist attractions are only open until 4:30 pm and it was way past 5 pm now. I could now understand why the rickshaw wallah was all set to leave for the day! Grrr..  We still went and took snaps of the entrance of Albert Hall - yes, of the entrance. This part of the sight-seeing sucked big-time I felt absolutely cheated – he knew when we went to Amber Fort that we would not even be able to visit half of the tourist spots but he still managed to negotiate a hard-bargain — Felt like total goofs!

Anyway, the rickshaw fellow felt some pity for us and took us to see Hawa Mahal as well. Yet again, we took another shot from across the road and did not venture inside. I really wished we had had more time. The Arien took this opportunity to remind me of my tardiness – Grrr… what a way to end a fantastic day We returned to our hotel room and decided to take rest and have dinner at the restuarant upstairs. The dinner was great and nobody else was having dinner at that time so we had the entire resturant to ourselves – Nice! The Arien did not mention my late-start and concentrated on the food. I recieved a number of calls frm my family members!

This was our first view of Amer Fort or Amber Fort – it was a warm, sunny day, a little after regular lunch time but the effect was fantastic. We asked the rickshaw wallah to stop so we could enjoy the moment. The sight of the fort overlooking the lake seemed so calm, so soothing. The rickshaw wallah  quickly offered to take a snap of us against the background of the fort. Though it was not a great snap – I will forever remember that moment as we stood staring awe-struck at the beautiful fort. We were now ready to visit it.

Instead of taking the regular entrance, our rickshaw wallah took us around the fort to a side-entrance where he parked the rickshaw. He found us a guide and told us that he would wait for us here. The guide was a regular. He was not Dev Anand but he was a pleasant old man and quite serious ’bout his job. A greater contrast to our guide from Fatehpur Sikri cannot be imagined. We never got to introduce ourselves. He was off full-speed towards the zillion steps that was part of the side entrance. Fitness is a habit was all I could think of  after huffing and puffing all the way. I was out of breath and so was the Arien but he pretended he was waiting for me (Isn’t that mean?) at all strategic break areas. A snap of our guide with his favorite serious expression.

As a result of entering the fort via a side-entrance, we faced the Baradari pavilion first. We had no clue at that time, though. It looked a lot like the Lotus Mahal at Hampi, here. Jes goes to show that there was abundant mughal influence, not just in North India. There was some kind of renovation work going on and so we moved on ahead. We were also asked not to step inside the bharadari. The angle frm which the Arien has taken this snap does not show you the facade on the side.

We moved towards Ganesh Pol or the main entrance. This is a rather fantastic, well-decorated entrance which provides an amazing photo-op and naturally the Arien would not let that pass. So, after taking a few shots of Ganesh pol, of ourselves in front of Ganesh Pol, various wide-angle, and close-up shots, we went inside. The guide did not show even a hint of impatience while I think I was quite impatient

Anyway, we moved on. We saw the Sila Devi temple, where most folks were praying, and did not stop to take pictures. We moved to a grand garden, which had buildings on both sides. It was slightly cooler there and a nice breeze was in the air – I really wanted to spend some time here but the Arien was impatient this time. We were facing the Sheesh mahal. The Arien has taken so many pictures of the Sheesh mahal from various locations and it is quite difficult to identify that the image is of the same building. It was beautiful and we walked all around so we could actually spend some time in the Sheesh mahal. The guide pointed to a lot of coloured impressions on the wall and said that it originally contained precious stones and now what is left is only the colour – somehow that did not seem believable. After you see the picture on the left, you will probably feel the same.  There was some amount of renovation taking place and we were not allowed to enter certain sections of the Sheesh Mahal. However, tourists being who they are, tried to sneak in, take pictures of themselves against the backdrop of the forbidden section of the Mahal and then were rudely pulled out by the few security guards. It was funny – watching the entire scene play out.  

The Amber fort itself consisted of various entrances, exits, different routes to the same place. If we did not have the guide, I am sure we would get lost. Also, we would not know which building was important and why. I was really thankful to the rickshaw wallah because of whom we had a guide. After taking about a zillion pictures, the Arien was ready to leave. I was sure that he was hungry by now. It was almost 4 and we were nowhere near a resturant.  The guide showed us the Nahargarh Fort which he had visited yesterday. I took a great picture of the Arien against the Nahargarh Fort which he was unable to replicate. That bugged him a lot He is known as the photographer in the family and so my fluke shot put him in a grumpy mood. We walked back via a different route, which was near the main entrance. The main entrance is known as the Sing Pol or Lion Gate. Most tourists come up on elephants and made a grand entrance. I wished we had done the same The Arien told me that we could have done that if we had left earlier. (Has not forgotten our delay in leaving the hotel.. Grrr!) Anyway, I decided to take a snap of the entrance and the tourist entry just to satisfy myself.

We saw the Maota lake and garden island from the Zenana in the Amer fort. It was dirty. There was green coloured discoloration on the lake and the Arien refused to take a snap of the lake. Finally, after a lot of cajoling, he took the picture and included the green mess I am including the picture here so you can judge for yourself if I am exaggerating.

It felt like we spent an entire day here – but in actuality, we spent only a few hours at the Amber fort. But, the time was well-spent and we enjoyed every minute of it. Now, the Arien was hungry and we had to leave immediately. Anyway, we thanked the guide for his service and gave him a handsome tip. For once, he had a different expression – a smile :) We walked back to the place where the rickshaw wallah had dropped us off. The Arien walked into the first restuarant we saw without signalling to our rickshaw wallah, to have a late lunch. It was ~5 pm. After a nice lunch – we felt re-energized and ready to continue with our sight-seeing.

The first place, we planned to visit was the City Palace. The city palace was supposedly built by Sawai Mansingh and was a true treat for photographers. Plus, it was a hot and sunny day. The first place we saw was the Mubarak Mahal. All the various outfits worn by the king, his wife were placed there and somehow they still managed to look royal and grand – though slightly long and huge for the king was a short man! Anyway, the Arien wandered away to shoot interesting snaps. This snap of the guards in turbans, who were on a break, was a nice one. 

We moved towards the Entrance gates which had a typical arch. We were yet to see the Chandra Mahal or inside the palace. I had heard that they had maintained all the chairs etc. as is from those days. However, they did not let us take photographs inside and so we had to walk away without any snaps. We had not hired a guide or purchased the audio guide and so sometimes, we had no clue ’bout the monuments we were visiting, which was a shame.

Anyway, we came across the rickshaw musem. We had seen the car and bike musem at Dharamshala but this was totally new. Some of them looked so spruced up and well-maintained, I felt that we could get on it and start touring the city. Of course, they were more the tonga type, so we may need a horse. It reminded me of the tonga ride that we had taken in Mysore, at dusk. I felt like we were under a spotlight.

We walked around aimlessly and took a number of pictures. Some with ourselves against the amazing backdrop and others, just by themselves. The Arien was having a field day. He did not remember that we had started late or that I was primarily responsible for not getting ready on time.

We took pictures of the Chandra Mahal. The flag on top is supposedly the flag of the royal family though it looks quite similar to the Indian Flag. We have no snaps of the Chandra Mahal from the front as we did not venture that way.

Most of these palaces have gigantic gates and I have  wondered if they always keep it closed. I noticed a lot of guards walking from a particular door though I hardly saw the gigantic door opened. It was while watching that that I noticed the smaller opening or door, carved into the gigantic gate for these occassions and I pointed it out to the Arien. We managed to take a shot of the guard as we walked out of the smaller door.

We also saw the very brightly coloured, Pritam Chowk doorway which was part of the city palace. It was a brilliant green colour and there were so many folks sitting there for the shade that we did the same. As usual, the Arien cannot sit still for more than a few minutes, and so he was shooting pics.  At that time, I did not know that we were shooting at Pritam Chowk. All I knew was that we were shooting a green doorway and I wondered at the significance

Anyway, we came back to the exit gate, where our Rickshaw wallah had asked to wait. When we reached there he told us to visit the Jantar Mantar, which was nearby and mentioned that we need not purchase tickets again as our ticket was a 3-in-1.

So, on this hot day, we moved to a place that was to me, quite boring. It was quite warm and there was not much shade and the Arien insisted on shooting pics. I moved away to pick up Maaza or Slice (a mango drink with no fizz) and the Arien asked me to pick up bottled water as well. So, while I was on these errands, he walked all round taking pics. I was dragging my feet and did not get back very quickly.

He was soon bored. We had quite a few interesting places to visit and it was now lunch time but if we stopped for lunch, we would miss some of the sights and so we decided to get going. I think the rickshaw wallah was not too happy. Well.. cannot please everybody We still had to visit so many places. More on that in my next post.