Journey to Jodhpur
Trip Start
Jan 18, 2008
1
4
11
Trip End
Feb 02, 2008
Jodhpur,
India
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
The Little Golden City in Ajmer
We left Umaid Bhawan around 9:00 am and headed on our way along the highway to Jodhpur, approx 340 kms away - via a couple of unplanned detours that we took. The first being a brief stop (at Sanjeev's insistent suggestion) at a most fascinating temple in Ajmer - the Soni Ki Nasiyan, or also known as 'Lal Mandir', which was built in 1865 in red stone, and displayed inside the nearby double story hall are exquisite golden plated wooden models of Jain life and Jain mythology showing figurines, buildings, monuments, and transport. The entire hall is richly adorned by glass, mosaics, precious stones, gold and silver work, and definitely worth a look! A great suggestion from Sanjeev!
The Pushkar Detour
As we neared the turn off to Pushkar, Sanjeev asked us if we wanted to have a look and visit the famous Brahma Temple which holds utmost importance to the pilgrims as it is the only temple in India dedicated solely to Lord Brahma - the Hindu God (Deva) of creation.
So, we decided to have a 2 and a half hour stop in Pushkar, including having some lunch.
After parking the car at the Lakeview Palace Hotel where we'd have lunch, Janice and I walked through the streets and markets where I bought a 2 layered skirt for $8. AUD (in Aus I'd pay min. $40. for it!), and we purchased a packet of petals (yellow and orange) and white sweets (currants size and mostly made of sugar), so we could make offerings (respecting the Hindu religion) and receive blessings in the Brahma Temple. We left our shoes and bags with the shop keeper and proceeded to the temple. Of course, there were 'guides' everywhere, and one young man said that he wanted to show us and tell us all about the temple without us paying any money to him, only to give a donation to the charity organisation (Government run) that helps out the poor. We agreed and had an in-depth tour of the Temple, built with marble, and decorated with silver coins and also has a red Spire. The temple walls are also adorned with graceful peacocks, the celestial vehicle of Goddess "Saraswati" (The Goddess of learning and wisdom, and Consort of Lord Brahma.).
We were then led and directed to one of the nearby ghats of Pushkar Lake. The lake is believed to have been created by the falling of a lotus flower from the hand of Lord Brahma and is considered as one of the most sacred spots, has fifty-two bathing ghats built around lake, and the water around each ghat is supposed to have special powers of healing and even fertility.
Before we could properly thank our guide or ask where the donation box was or take a step down to the lake, a 'priest' (one for Janice and one for me) led each of us to a step close to the lake (away from each other) to repeat Mantras, and prayers (this was unexpected and took a while) to enable us to receive blessings of good health and good fortune for us, our families, our sons, our daughters, our relatives, etc..., and lastly, the remaining flowers and sweets were spread out on the water as offerings. Of course, I should have realised the priest wanted money for his 'service' (even though I hadn't asked to receive the blessings at the Ghat in the first place). I was happy to give a donation to the Government based charity (my choice of how much and not what this priest was insisting me to give, which was much more than I could afford), and after some discussion (both of us 'smiling' and still being reasonably polite) and my insistence of giving him a small donation (he wanted more), I departed the ghat and joined Janice (patiently waiting). We headed quickly back to have a quick lunch at the hotel, and take in the beautiful views of Pushkar, it's lake and surrounding hills/mountains, before continuing our drive to Jodhpur, arriving there as the sun was setting.
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Price Guide:
Soni Ki Nasiyan Temple, Ajmer Entry fee (incl. camera fee) - 85 INR ($2. AUD)
Comments:
You can see quite a lot of Pushkar in less than a day, if you don't want to stay overnight. It's a small town and you can walk around the town easily. Government busses do depart from Ajmer to Pushkar (cheap fares) if you haven't already hired a taxi, which can be hired from Ajmer, Jaipur, or Jodhpur.
Beware of scams in Pushkar (apparently there's quite a few of them for the unweary tourist), and only pay out to organisations/guides/holy men/children what you are prepared to give, even if you have to argue the point, politley of course, if they keep wanting more.
Also, we were told that we couldn't take photos from some of the ghats or areas around the lake. ?, or that we'd have to pay a fee for doing so, (we didn't, though we did appologise) and there were no signs to warn us not to take photos.
Useful Links:
http://www.indiatransit.com/public_transport/rajasthan_state_road.aspx - For public transport (busses) info.
