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This 3500-kilometre
week-long journey from Delhi through Rajasthan, Gujarat and back is
like riding a magic carpet through history
As I stepped onto
platform number one of the Delhi Cantonment railway sta-tion to board
the Royal Orient, sev-eral other tourists who were to be my
co-passengers immediately began photographing this outstanding beauty
as it stood gleaming in the afternoon sun. The Manager of the train
came running to remind us of the approaching time of departure of the
Royal Orient from Delhi. Hastily, I made my way towards the
compartment ‘Modhera’ where I was amiably greeted by a
liveried attendant who had already and rather efficiently arranged my
cases in the cabin which was to be my home for the next seven days.
I had barely entered
my cabin, when moments later, the Royal Orient slowly lunged forward.
My enchanting sojourn had finally begun! Bright typically Gujarati
applique bedspreads caught my eye in the twin-bedded cabin complete
with brass light fittings, a dressing table and other essentials. By
the time, I had finished unpacking and freshening up the train began
to roll onto Rewari station where we bid adieu to the nostalgic steam
engines which were replaced by a single brand new diesel engine that
would take us on its 3500-kilometre week-long journey through
Rajasthan, Gujarat and back.
By sundown, I headed
for the bar where already most of my co-passengers had gathered. I
acquainted myself with my companions for the week ahead. There were
friendly groups of Germans, Japanese, Americans, Australians and
Kenyans. I discovered, I was sharing my coach with an Australian
photo-journalist and a Kenyan girl. We immediately bonded, and for
the remaining journey, our threesome could be invariably spotted
together. We had a hearty meal where we were served a mixed menu of
Indian and Continental fare and then we retired for the night.
The
first night sleep eluded me as I was too excited by the experience
and strange thoughts surfaced in my mind. My thoughts turned to
Agatha Christie’s fictitious Belgian detective Hercule Poirot
and her book, Murder on the Orient Express.
I must have drifted
to sleep only to be awakened at 6 a.m. and politely informed that the
train had arrived at Chittorgarh railway station, and very shortly we
would be departing by coach to visit the incredible fort of Chittor.
A hectic day lay ahead of us for after visiting the fort we returned
on board and set off for Udaipur, Rajasthan’s enchanting city of
lakes.
The beautiful
lakeside city of Udaipur shimmered like an oasis cradled amidst the
rugged Aravali hills. The 17th century City Palace complex and the
white marble summer palace in the centre of Lake Pichola are
Udaipur’s two main attractions. We lunched at Fateh Prakash
Palace hotel which had a breathless view of the magnificent Lake
Palace. Our evening cup of tea was enjoyed amongst the ethnic
environs of Shilpgram (crafts village) on the outskirts of Udaipur
city. We then headed back to the station to continue our journey.
Day
three dawned within the boundaries of the western Indian state of
Gujarat and Junagadh. Junagadh takes its name from the fort which
encloses the old city. It was a former princely state ruled by a
nawab. We visited the Durbar hall museum which houses the
personal collection of the nawabs of Junagadh. We moved on to
the 19th century twin mausoleums of former nawabs which were
splendid examples of Muslim architecture. We then departed for the
port town of Veraval which is a major fishing port and famous for its
trawler building industry. We drove through Veraval in coaches to the
temple town of Somnath. The famous temple of Somnath on the shores of
the Arabian Sea is dedicated to Lord Shiva. We returned from Somnath
to our royal coaches.
Next day we arrived
at Sasangir in time to view the sunrise. Sasangir Sanctuary is home
to the last of the surviving Asiatic lions. We also paid a visit to
the crocodile breeding farm before retracing our steps to the Royal
Orient.
Famished by the
morning safari, I indulged myself to a hearty breakfast as the train
resumed its journey to Delwada — gateway to our next
destination, the tiny island of Diu. Located on the Gulf of Khambhat
(formerly Cambay) in southern Gujarat, the island of Diu is a union
territory which was a former Portuguese colony till 1961 when it
gained independence. The island itself is only 13 kilometres long and
three kilometres wide and is separated from the coast by a long
narrow channel. Delwada is the nearest railhead so from there we
proceeded by road to Ahmedpur-Mandvi — the last point in Gujarat
and one of the main entry points into Diu. We spent a memorable
afternoon at Diu. We went through the maze of winding streets and
viewed the churches and seaside fort. It was wonderful relaxing on
the virgin beaches and watching the sun set over the sea.
“If it is
Sunday it must be Palitana,” explained my attendant, Thapa, when
I enquired where we were the next morning as the train trundled
along. After my morning tea, I grabbed some energizers which I was
advised to carry as there was an arduous agenda for the morning.
Regal, silver gilted horse-drawn carriages complete with brocade
canopy awaited us at Palitana and transported us through the town to
the bottom of Shetrunjaya hill. This place is considered one of the
holiest Jain pilgrimage centres. We had to climb a 600-metre-high
hilltop which has 3572 steps! At the summit, is a magnificent complex
of 863 richly-carved, over 1000 years old marble temples. It is said
that every devout Jain must visit Shetrunjaya once in their lifetime
so we encountered many devotees making their way up the hill. Some
went by foot and some were carried in chairs.
We returned to the
Royal Orient exhausted. We immediately took some refreshments and
settled for lunch. Then we retired to recuperate.
In the evening, we
reached Ahmedabad. We ventured out once more, this time to visit a
rather unusual utensil museum followed by dinner at the Holiday Inn.
The Royal Orient rested for the night at Ahmedabad. Of course, the
sights of the city remained to be seen. We piled in air-conditioned
coaches and hit the road for Adalaj. It is one of Gujarat’s
finest stepwells built by a queen in 1499. The next stop was the
Calico Textile Museum. Mahatma Gandhi’s Ashram was next on the
agenda. It lies on the west bank of Sabarmati river. Founded in 1918,
and was Gandhi’s headquarters during his struggle for India’s
freedom. In fact, his spartan living area is still preserved as a
small museum. After visiting the Ashram, we wandered through the
bazaars of Ahmedabad and had lunch at a hotel.
On the morning of
day seven, we arrived at the historic city of Jaipur, our last
destination. This city is also known as the ‘Pink City’ due
to the all-pervasive pink-coloured edifices in the old city.
Apparently, this was the idea of Maharaja Ram Singh in the 19th
century who decided to paint the town pink in honour of the visiting
Prince of Wales. Jaipur boasts of some splendid palaces, rugged forts
and fortresses. We visited Amber Fort with the customary elephant
ride, toured the City Palace Museum and the Jantar Mantar
observatory. Then we shopped and browsed through the colourful
bazaars of the walled city. Lunch was at Hotel Rajputana Palace. And
finally, we visited the unique 18th century Hawa Mahal — the
five-storeyed Palace of Winds with 953 windows.
The Royal Orient
luxury train is a joint venture of the Tourism Corporation of Gujarat
and the Indian Railways, and operates from September till April.
On the morning of day seven, we
arrived at the historic city of Jaipur, our last destination. This
city is also known as the ‘Pink City’ due to the
all-pervasive pink-coloured edifices in the old city.
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