Tales from the Venice of East: Udaipur

5:37 pm

Venice of East, Lake city or whatever you name it, the first view of city surrounded by the high hills of Aravali ridges from all sides with plenty of lakes, royal palaces in the centre looks so amazing that it will allure any one. The first rays of sun playing with Aravali, when strike the Pichola lake, city looks bathed in seven colors.

Udaipur was established in 1559 by Maharana Udai Singh as the new capital of Mewar as Chittorgarh , the previous capital, was deemed too vulnerable due to repeated attacks by the Mughals. Being a mountanious region and unsuitable for heavily armoured Mughal horses, Udaipur remained safe from Mughal influence.

In last 450 years Udaipur became one of the India’s most romantic city with artificial lakes, royal palaces, mansions, gardens and became perfect destination for royal weddings.

Udaipur City Palace, a beautiful example of architectural grandeur on the banks of Lake Pichola is common in every travelers bucket list and will surely able to spellbound every arctitecture lovers. Wonderful blend of Medieval, European and Chinese Architecture, this City Palace has various towers, domes and arches, which adds the flavor of heritage site. City Palace is a marvelous assortment of courtyards, pavilions, terraces, corridors, rooms and hanging gardens and all these structured in such a way that it offers a splendid view of the lake from all its Balconies, cupolas and towers. Amazing interiors with delicate mirror-work, marble work, murals, wall paintings, silver work, inlay work and surplus of colored glass differentiate, Udaipur City palace from others royal palaces. The exquisite work of City Palace cannot be bounded in words, so one must visit this palace to capture the real picture of it.

After exploring City palace, we reached Fateh Prakash Palace to witness the extravagant royalty of than Mewar King Maharana Sajjan Singh.

Housed in the Fateh Prakash Palace, Crystal Gallery has been hailed as probably the single largest private collection of crystal anywhere in the world. It's spread across the upper-gallery of the glittering, Durbar Hall Sabhagaar.

The visitors here are privy to one of the most exclusive and exquisite crystal collections. It was in 1877 that Maharana Sajjan Singh ordered the crystal collection from the Birmingham-based F&C Osler company. The collection includes a bewildering number of objects d'art, dinner sets, perfume bottles, decanters, glasses, washing bowls and even furniture. The Crystal Gallery also houses the only crystal bed in the world.

The Durbar Hall Sabhagaar, which adorns the Fateh Prakash Palace, is of historical significance. In 1909, Lord Minto the Viceroy of India, laid its foundation stone and, in his honour, the hall was originally called Minto Hall. Today its opulent interiors - with huge chandeliers and special lights, portraits of the Maharanas of Mewar, royal artifacts and the legendary armory of the Mewar dynasty - transport you to times past when the Maharanas held forth in The Durbar Hall Sabhagaar.

Witnessing these priceless utensils made up of fine cut crystals was so nauseating that we both started thinking and discussing- Who paid the real cost of these crystal utensils, Maharanas or the people of Mewar? How a king can waste such an enormous wealth, just to showcases their luxurious lifestyle, when people of state was dying just because of “do waqt ki roti”?

The glittered crystal gallery jolted us and we were searching for a calm & serene place to relax and for this none other than Saheliyon ki Bari was perfect destination.

Saheliyon ki Bari also known as Garden of Maidens, well known for its scenic beauty, lush green lawns, marble art and fountains, is one of the most beautiful and popular destinations of Udaipur, located on the banks of Fateh Sagar Lake. It has a white marble chhatris fountain in the centre and black marble chhatris at the corners. Outside this courtyard are fountains, pools, lawns, flowers and trees. The large circular fountain pool is ornamented with marble elephants and fountains. This garden presents a perfect fusion of Indian and English style of architecture.

After relaxing in the lap of nature, we headed towards Fateh Sagar Lake to capture the beautiful vistas of sunsets.

Slowly- slowly Sun started playing hide & seek in the high hills of Aravali ridge; lake started changing colors to give last salute and seems saying “Sunsets are the proof that no matter what happens, every day can end beautifully”.

It is said that ‘Sunsets opening the music of night’ and we moved to Bhartiya Lok Kala Mandal to experience the folk, cultural and traditional dance and music of Rajasthan, outstanding puupets show, and end the day in a royal way.