Jodhpur

We toured around Jodhpur - the Blue City - and then went to visit a couple of rural villages. The Bishnois who have 29 principles of living sustainably (www.bishnoi.org). They are not Hindus but worship nature and do not kill anything including trees. We then went to a village to see an opium ceremony. My mom took the last photograph. Can you guess what I am doing in the final photo?

Jodhpur, the second largest city of Rajasthan, at the edge of the Thar desert was once the capital of the Marwar state. It was founded in 1459 A.D. by Rao Jodha-chief of the Rathore clan of Rajputs who claimed to be descendants of Rama - hero of the epic 'Ramayana'. The city dominated by the massive Mehrangarh fort on a rocky hill is charming with its wealth of historic attractions and colourful markets which specialises in antiques. It is still one of the leading centres of wool, cattle, camels and salt.

Mehrangarh Fort: The Mehrangarh Fort lies at the outskirts of Jodhpur city and is located atop a 125 m high hill. The magnificent Mehrangarh Fort (Jodhpur ka kila) is the most majestic and one of the largest forts in India. It was originally started (c.1459) by Rao Jodha, founder of Jodhpur. However, most of the extant fort dates from the period of Jaswant Singh (1638-78). The walls of the fort are up to 36 m high and 21 m wide; they enclose some exquisite structures.


Mehrangarh Fort & Jaswant ThadaThe fort museum houses an exquisite collection of palanquins, howdahs, royal cradles, miniatures, musical instruments, costumes and furniture. The ramparts of Mehrangarh Fort provide not only excellently preserved cannons but also a breath-taking view of the city.