After a good night's sleep, we woke up next morning, and Mr Newton came by again to say hello. After breakfast, we were given a complete tour of his beautiful guest house, including his personal living quarters and he took great pleasure in showing us his future plans with the newer guest house that is almost ready now. His married son, with wife and a child live in the newer quarters, and we met with his lovely daughter in law. The Newton family is gracious and they own and manage a beautiful guest house.
We took a lot of pictures of this guest house, paid our bill - Rs 1220 total, Rs 895 for the room and Rs 325 for the meals.
We thanked Mr Newton, he came out to see us off. As we were leaving, we tipped his staff really well, and at that time realized that we needed a bottle of water. As we wanted to pay for it, Mr Newton got us one and refused to take any payment for it. He said we had paid enough. We Left feeling very good about this place and would definitely stay here again.
9.30 am - Left Newton's Manor. Withdres Rs 10,000 from a UTI Bank ATM machine. Bought a few items from a grocery store close to the ATM machine : soup packets, crackers, chips etc for Rs 305.
10.00 am - Went to Umaid Bhawan. A lovely and majestic structure with a beautiful circular drive leading to it. One can see it from a distance and is overawed by its beauty amongst sprawling acres. We paid Rs 50 entry fee per person (well worth it), and as we entered the Palace, a local guide welcomed us inside and showed us everything in detail.
This information is taken from the Umaid Bhawan hotel website for our readers:
Perched high above the desert capital of Jodhpur, Umaid Bhawan Palace is the last of the great palaces of India and one of the largest residences in the world – set amidst 26 acres of lush gardens.Named after Maharaja Umaid Singh, grandfather of the present Maharaja of Jodhpur, this golden-yellow sandstone monument was conceived on the grandest possible scale, in the fashionable Art Deco style of that time. After 15 years in construction, the 347-room palace was finally completed in 1943 – and has served as the principal residence of the Jodhpur royal family since. Designed by renowned Edwardian architect Henry Lanchester, the palace is a blend of eastern and western architectural influences. Its majestic 105-foot high cupola is influenced by the Renaissance, while the towers draw inspiration from Rajput tradition. The lavish interiors with gilt furniture and elegant artwork follow the Art Deco style, complemented by the exotic murals of the self-exiled Polish artist Stefan Norblin.
Our guide was very pleasent and knowledgable. He showed us the towers and explained that they were actually water tanks......we saw an actual dining table in the showroom and also a photo of Smt Indira Gandhi who had accopnaied her father, late PM Jawahar Lal Nehru sitting on the same very table. The hotel is gorgeous and the rates start from Rs 25000 up. The left side of the Bhawan, which is now a Museum, is open to public and the right side is a hotel where the present Maharaja, grandson of Maharaj Umaid Singh lives today.
11.00 am - Went to the Jaswant Chattris - another beautiful marble structure. Jodhpur we found was so clean and advanced. The roads and monuments are so well cared for. It was a pleasure to visit Jodhpur in all respects.
12.05 pm - Went to the Fort, paid Rs 170 total : Rs 20 + Rs 15 + Rs 50 for entry, elevator and camera fee in that order.
We were quite tired of climbing all these forts all over Rajasthan. Most people, when they claim they have visited Rajasthan, they are mainly talking about a select few destinations: Jaipur, Udaipur, Chittorgarh, Jaesalmer etc. So, when we found an elevatorto take us up at Rs 15 each, it was a sreal! We met with another couple in the elevator, they too said they had been to the whole of Rajasthan till we asked them a few places like Dausa, Tonk etc, when they clarified excatly the places I have just mentioned above. They had been in Rajasthan for a week, we had just completed 3 and a half weeks and still going! The ride up to the top of the fort was charming and quick! We had a lovely view of Jodhpur from the top, and in many photos had seen blue houses all clustered together. Wow, what a sight these blue houses make. Needless to say, we photographed them from every angle that we could. On our way down, we shot more and more pictures. This Fort too is massive and very attractive. How did they ever build these forts in those days?
1.05 pm - Climbed down form the Fort and had coconut water. Asked Sarawan Singh also to koin us, as they looked so refreshing. Paid the coconutwala Rs 45 at Rs 15 each. and left for Jaisalmer, as it is 305 kms from Jodhpur.
Jaisalmer is our 27th District.
1.55 pm - We are on NH 114 and about 248 kms away from Jaisalmer. As we are driving, the scenery is slowly changing. We are so excited at finally going to the Sand Dunes in Jaisalmer. We have to go via Pokhran, this is where ex Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had ordered Nuclear testing in 1998. We had heard so much about it at that time in the US that it certainly had a lot of significance for us.
Around 4.30 pm - I heard a commotion, and on looking to my right, saw hundreds of camels - Sarawan also saw them at the same time. Pavan wa taking a nap, I quickly asked to get his camera and meanwhile, Sarawan stopped the cab about 100 yards ahead. As we stopped, I saw Pavan running to get the shots of so many camels, and I was also getting ready to get mine out, when the phone rang and it was Bhaiya. I had to talk to him but did explain to him about this sight, and told him I will call him at night. Meanwhile, I saw that Pavan was talking to the owner of the camels. The owner was telling Pavan to get onto a camel to ride a bit. He also told Pavan that he had 200 camels with him at that point. They started to run, so the owner had to follow them. That was an amazing sight, one that we will never forget. Wow.
On the NH we stopped stopped to get some lunch. Sarawan Singh took us to a restaurant called Haveli Restaurant, it was open air and set on a very huge lawn with tables so far apart that one had total privacy. They had very clean bathrooms etc, which was a added plus. This place also had a village style setting with thatched roofs and even had a gift shop. We ordered Daal fry, Bhindi (Okra) Masala, Vegetable Raita (yogurt salad), Green salad, and 4 chappatis (Rs 360 + tip = Rs 400). The food was excellent - highly recommended!
6.30 pm - Reached Jaisalmer and went to Hotel Moonlight, which was known to Sarawan Singh. Again, a very good find. I was a bit curious at the name, but the hotel is very centrally located and they have all marble and wrought furniture. We selected a room on the ground/first floor, just by the entrance to the hotel. Everything was just right in the room. Good clean appearnce, a huge marble, 8 ft long countertop (circular at the right end to accomodate a large TV) with 2 cushioned chairs (wrougth iron) where we both could sit and work. The room had a very pretty bay window, a small dressing area before the huge bathroom. Nice, very nice. They gave us at our request extra blankets and pillows and the eternal mosquito repellant.
Sarawan Singh escorted us to a dinner place that night, where he thought we would be able to eat every meal. The food there was pretty nice, but Pavan and I like to try different restaurants. We enjoyed the dinner although found it a bit expensive. We had tomato soup and sandwich for Pavan, mutton biryani and green salad for me and bottled mineral water. The bill was Rs 315.
After that, we lost the signal, and did not get it back at all. We were expecting calls from both Payal and Sagar and also Sunder, plus we had to call Bhaiya. When we tried to get connected all evening after dinner, I went to the hotel reception to see if I could make a long distance call to Bhaiya to request him to either call Payal or Sagar and give them the hotel number. For some reason, when Payal did call, they were not able to forward the call to our room, so he requested Payal to call his cell number so that he could bring the phone to our room. After that Sagar also talked with us on this guy's cell phone. What customer service, not only that, he left the phone with me till I finished my conversations. The hotel was very understanding and cooperative. I was supposed to pay Rs 6 long distance charge, which they never took from us. I did compliment the owner next morning about the manager on duty the night before about his courtesy and help.
The nights in Jaisalmer are quite cold, so we used the extra blankets.
The room rate is Rs 1160 per day. We are booked to stay here for 2 days. And our room number is 103. Total Rs 2320. They do not yet have a restaurant, and since it is new, they are working on it. There are a lot of restaurants around here and also mom and pop stores around.
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