Udaipur is a very pretty city, perhaps the prettiest in Rajasthan. Compared to many of the places we visited, this city is neat as a pin and strikingly clean. Perhaps its tiny population has something to do with it—I believe that the guide told us that there were merely three hundred thousand people in Udaipur. In a country that is bursting at the seams, this figure is indeed miniscule.

In  A Courtesan’s Garden:

Driving around the city, you realize quickly enough that it is constructed around a series of man-made lakes. In a region that is characterized by achingly dry days and proximity to the desert, it is small wonder that wealthy maharanas (warrior kings) through the decades created lakes to reflect the cloudless blue skies and to allow for the pleasures of bathing and boating.

And if there are lakes, can gardens be far behind? All those courtly ladies needed some place where they could frolic in privacy and gardens like the Saheliyon Ki Bari (above) were designed and executed for exactly that purpose. Here, the ladies of the court could meet frequently, concealed behind the high walls and verdant hedges of the landscape and escape into a world of wild fantasy composed of marble elephants that spout water through their trunks and lyrical fountains that sport musical trickles. A combination of trees and flowers add to the enchanted atmosphere and I could hardly tear myself away from what I found to be a completely Indian landscape design, different from any of the Moghul gardens we had seen and not in the slightest bit influenced by English garden design.

City Palace on the Banks of Lake Pichola:

(Outside the resplendent City Palace)

 

Later that afternoon, we arrived at the gorgeous City Palace on the banks of beautiful Lake Pichola. Here, we spent a lovely morning taking in the glories of the Rajput monarchy. Once again, we found ourselves traipsing through room after room that offered a combination of stunning decorative delights that left us enchanted. Rising into the skies like the white tiers on a wedding cake, the City Palace is really a combination of many smaller palaces built or added to by 22 different maharanas between the 16th and the 20th centuries.

The tiled mosaic work, especially those of the dancing peacocks in the Mor Chowk or Peacock Court (left), were especially striking here as were the dazzling red and silver glass decoration of the Kanch Burj.  Many of these palaces, such as the Fateh Prakash Palace, have now been converted into deluxe hotels.

 

(Llew in the main painted courtyard of the Palace–above–and the City of Udaipur seen through a window in the City Palace–right)

We felt privileged to have lunch in it, later that day. Seated in the grand banquet hall of the Fateh Prakash Palace Hotel (below) where liveried wait staff provided drinks as we made selections from the sumptuous buffet, we could not wait for the romantic boat-ride across Lake Pichola that would follow very shortly.

Before we made our way to the pier from which we boarded our boats, we stopped to admire the magnificent Crystal Museum on the top storey that contained some of the most incredible items I have ever seen in my life. As someone who has had a long fondness for crystal and glass, I found the collection imported by Maharana Sajjan Singh from England in 1877 jaw-droppingly fantastic for it featured crystal furniture such I have never seen before—tables and chairs, desks and dressers and even a crystal bed! We’ve all heard about Indian maharajas who commissioned French companies like Baccarat to make them chandeliers for their palaces that were so heavy that entire ceilings fell with their weight. Well, this collection must be seen to be believed—it comprises ruby red glass, emerald-green glass, sapphire-blue glass—indeed jewels could not have appeared more spectacular.

Boat Ride Across the Lake:

With my mind quite reeling from the impact of the crystal museum, I made my way down to the Pier to board the boat that took us across the lake to the ‘ghats’ alongside the temples where we watched devout Hindus perform their ritual ablutions before the boat made a curve towards the island on which stands the tiny but very lovely Jag Mandir Palace (below) on its own little island.

It made the perfect perch from which to look upon the quiet serenity of the mountains located right before our eyes—reminiscent of those in the many miniature paintings featuring tiger hunts that we had seen earlier that afternoon in the palace. Eight stone elephants stood solemn guard as we alighted on the island which made the perfect landing on which to indulge in a soothing cuppa. In front of us, the City Palace spread itself out in the anemic sunshine and watercraft left foaming trails in their wake as they skimmed over the glassy lake. There are few moments that will remain as indelible in my memory as this one: of sipping a soft drink right in the middle of Lake Pichola while taking in the sight of a commanding mountain scape upon whose peaks, no doubt, those elusive tigers once freely stomped.

 

Our guide Kishan Das, a character if ever we met one, regaled us with every possible story from those comprising Bollywood trivia to the Hollywood locales used by Roger Moore and his ilke in the James Bond film Octopussy to the stirring tales of ancient courtly lords and ladies whose customs appeared charmingly archaic. Though we were disappointed that we could not visit the famed Lake Palace Hotel (now belonging to the Taj chain), we did sail right past its piers, taking a good look at its ornamental marble landing and the balconied rooms that look out over the city’s most famous lake.

(To continue your travels with us on The Palace on Wheels, please click on the Bharatpur link).

Bon Voyage!