The Idea
Road trips have long been a fascination for me, but due to paucity of time I could not plan one till October’18. In Durga Puja vacations my daughter was first time coming to home after joining college and we wanted to make it a memorable vacation for her. Me and my wife needed a break from our routine busy life as well and a road trip was the best option for utilising this short spell of festive season.
My son was equally excited for the road trip and was the first to broadcast the news about planning of this 'much awaited road trip' among the kids of our friends' families. I talked to my friends and finally we, four families from Bhopal and one from Delhi, decided to visit the Royal Rajasthan on a short trip. After much deliberations we planned a compact road trip from Bhopal to Udaipur and Chittorgarh whereas one family from Delhi had to join us in Udaipur. For me, the main attraction of the trip was having my best buddies as my drivemates, that too on a leisure trip.
My son was equally excited for the road trip and was the first to broadcast the news about planning of this 'much awaited road trip' among the kids of our friends' families. I talked to my friends and finally we, four families from Bhopal and one from Delhi, decided to visit the Royal Rajasthan on a short trip. After much deliberations we planned a compact road trip from Bhopal to Udaipur and Chittorgarh whereas one family from Delhi had to join us in Udaipur. For me, the main attraction of the trip was having my best buddies as my drivemates, that too on a leisure trip.
My 11 month old Tata Nexon (XZ+ Diesel) had the responsibility of taking my family on this Odyssey from Bhopal and my three drivemates were to cruise in their Duster, Creta and Polo GT alongwith their families. I was really excited to take my beast on the long drive and it was the best time to test it's might before the third servicing scheduled in November.
The Plan
Our trip was to start from Friday of the festive week which was a holiday. So we planned to drive out on Friday, and reach back by late Monday after covering both Udaipur and Chittorgarh.
We had a set itinerary with planned activities for each day but that was not followed exactly to avoid the stressful punctualities of departures and halts and we decided to go on with our group's relaxed pace.
Day 01: Driving from Bhopal to Udaipur
Day 02: Udaipur tour
Day 03: Driving from Udaipur to Chittorgarh and Chittorgarh tour
Day 04: Driving from Chittorgarh to Bhopal
The Drive Map
Bhopal to Udaipur
Udaipur to Chittorgarh
Chittorgarh to Bhopal
Day 1: Driving from Bhopal to Udaipur
It was a beautiful Friday morning. We started from home at 6:50AM which was already late by 50 minutes from our scheduled departure. But we all knew that no matter how well we plan our journey, we always feel rushed on such trips with a group. Here we were four families comprising of 15 persons (8 adults and 7 kids) traveling in four vehicles so these delays were inevitable. Later I realised that these sort of delays made our journey even more exciting and satisfying.
Ready to take-off…..
Bon Voyage!!!
We took SH 18, Bhopal- Indore road after crossing the city area via Bhauri Bypass. This was a straight drive up to Dodi where we took a halt for having breakfast. Road was smooth with very less traffic due to holiday. We cruised this portion of our journey of 104 Kms in 1 hr 30 min and reached Highway Treat Dodi at 8:20AM.
More smiles with more miles… biggest perk of a road trip with family.
Highway Treat, Dodi is an excellent place for stopover on Bhopal-Indore highway for meals. Good location, ample parking space, good food and hygienic toilets is USP of this MPTDC run restaurant.
After a lazy but sumptuous breakfast at Highway Treat, Dodi we started again at 9:15AM.
Roads are made for journeys, not destinations….
We drove to Ujjain via Dewas and took the ring road to bypass the busy traffic of Ujjain city. After crossing Ujjain we took SH17, Nagda road for onward journey.
…in the midst of movement and Chaos!
Aren’t they more orderly and law abiding?
After munching 203 kms more from Dodi, we took a halt at Jaora to have our lunch at 12:25 PM in Cafe Joyo. We covered this distance in 3Hrs 10Minutes enjoying the road side views of chaotic human life and disciplined herds of animals.
It was fun having meal together at Cafe Joyo. Food was good and service was also not that slow. Kids loved the food and had their favorite delicacies at fast food corner and ice-cream stall outside the restaurant.
Food is fuel and it’s time to top up our ‘tanks’..
With heavy tummies and satiated spirits we started again at 01:50 PM on SH31 towards Mandsaur.
We bypassed both cities of Mandsaur and Neemuch and kept on driving on SH31.
The road is there. It will always be there. You just have to decide when to take it.
Traveling – it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller.
We took
a short break at a road side tea stall just after crossing the integrated check
post on the border of Madhya Pradesh. Tea was really refreshing after the long
post-lunch driving. Here kids again gathered for some brief masti time.
Take me
anywhere … with my beast!
A
journey is best measured in friends rather than miles… Chai break!
Please
excuse the mess, we are making memories.. JJ
After
25 minutes break we drove towards Nimbahera at 4:00PM. We took the Nimbahera
bypass to mount on Nimbahera-Mangalwar road and drove towards Udaipur via
Mangalwar. Road condition was OK but this 40 Kms long road was open to all
type. There were taxis, buses, cycles, bikes, pedestrians, cattle and everything
else rushing from all sides. This 40 kms long road took more than one hour time
to bid us adieu. But my Nexon was still blissfully gliding without any
grievances and so were we.
Where
you lead, I will follow..
Call me, beep me if you wanna reach me.
On
reaching Mangalwar Chauraha we got NH27/NH48 Udaipur-Chittorgarh road with
heavy traffic, couple of speed breakers, some diversions and other obstacles.
Our destination was 72 kms away from this place and it took almost 1Hr 20
minutes to traverse this distance. We reached our destination at 6:20PM and
till then we had covered 546 kms distance in total 11hrs 30minutes time out of
which 9 hours were purely of euphoric sailing in my Nexon with my family.
Be ready for the landing… nearing to Udaipur.
Our
sojourn in Udaipur was Zade Mount View in Sajjan Nagar area. We had booked two
complete villas having 6 rooms in ‘Zade Mount View’ which is a bit ‘far from
the madding crowd’ of city to enjoy the fun of togetherness. Here we got warm hearted welcome from our
friend from Delhi. It was fun having a wonderful reunion after a wonderful
drive and we enjoyed it to the fullest till late night.
Best group of buddies ever!
Create your own happiness! At Zade Mount View, Udaipur
Day 2: Udaipur Tour
Saturday morning
everybody looked refreshed but interested and excited about the Udaipur tour.
After having breakfast at our own comfort in Zade Mount View, we decided to
start our tour from Fateh Sagar Lake. Taking our car in the busy lanes near lake
and city palace was a herculean task so we decided to hire a bus for local
conveyance with a local guide. We boarded the bus at around 9:45AM and headed
to Maharana Pratap Smarak and Moti Magri via Fateh Sagar Lake. The sky was
bright and sunny but comfortable.
We are off today..
Our Chariot for Udaipur tour.
It doesn't matter where you're going. It's who you
have beside you
Maharana
Pratap Smarak is situated atop Moti Magri or Pearl Hill on the banks of Fateh
Sagar Lake. It is a historic site dedicated to the gallant Maharana Pratap and
his horse Chetak. From the comfortable height of the hill, you can click some
of the best pictures of Lake and Udaipur city.
Imposing, mighty and proud- Maharana Pratap Smarak
Wherever you go becomes a part of you somehow…
Fateh Sagar Lake, Udaipur
Say Cheese, Kiddos!
Clarity, peace, serenity – a sight to behold
Friends.. forever and always!
Mother nature doesn’t need a filter. A view from
Moti Magari.
After
taking beautiful pics of the scenic beauty around the lake and the park, we
took the bus to visit our next spot Saheliyon ki Bari.Our guide was most
interested in taking us for some shopping and on the pretext of cleaning in
Saheliyon ki Bari he took us to the nearby handicraft shops on Saheli
Marg where we didn't find anything worth buying.
We
moved towards Saheliyon ki Bari and reached there at around 12:00 noon.
Saheliyon ki Bari is a major garden and a popular tourist place of
Udaipur. It was built by Maharana Sangram Singh for the royal ladies. It has
fountains and kiosks, a lotus pool and marble elephants. There is also a small
museum here. This was heavily crowded and busy place. We spent 35 minutes
enjoying the beautiful garden and cool breeze of fountains.
Just the two of us… at Saheliyon ki Bari
Lotus Pond at Saliyon ki Bari
Kalangan..the museum.
Time for some Vitamin See..
It
was almost lunch time, so we decided to have lunch. After some googling
about the nearby eateries we decided to have lunch in Rajwada Bites near
Swaroop Nagar. Here our guide announced that he was leaving us as no outside
guide was allowed at our next spot, City Palace. We agreed to pay and relieve
that good for nothing guide who was least interested in our tour and was with
us to mint some money from our shopping only.
Food in
Rajwada was good but service was a bit slow due to heavy crowd. But it was overall
good experience of authentic Rajasthani cuisine.
It’s lunch time…
Rajwada Dining
After
the heavy lunch we boarded the bus at 1:40PM for City Palace. We had to leave
the bus about 1.5 kms before the palace. We took auto rickshaws to reach the
main entrance of City Palace which is known as Bada Pol and purchased the
tickets for museums and Palace visit. For better understanding of grandeur of
the palace we hired one guide and entered the museum. The palace complex is
full of wonderful collections of numerous objects of artistic, cultural,
historical and scientific importance depicting the grandeur of Maharanas of
Mewar. Delicate mirror-work, marble work, murals, wall paintings, silver work, fabric
paintings and a lot of colored glasses make this palace a perfect example of
the splendour that the rulers of Mewar enjoyed centuries ago .
Crazy roller coaster ride in auto rickshaw..
Bada Pol, City Palace.
City Palace- The epitome of royal splendour
The Squad at City Palace…
Visit of City Palace – a visual treat !
Surya Chopar, City Palace
Mor chowk, City Palace
Antique storage vessels.
A private Royal audience room..
Royal Sawari in Bagghi Khana
Venue for royal weddings
Tripolia Gate…
The tans will fade, but the memories will last
forever..
One
need to devote one full day to do justice with the beauty of City Palace.
However we tried to capture as much as we can in 3 hours time. Needless to
say this visit was really grand. We left the palace from Tripoliya side
at around 5:15PM and moved towards the Lake Pichhola in auto rickshaws again
for enjoying the sunset boat ride.
After
taking tickets we landed on the boat.The amazing view of mountains, Palaces,
Temples, Ghats, Havelis all lined up along the bank of Lake made us realise why
Udaipur is often called "The Venice of the East" and "The Most
Romantic City" in India. Breathtaking views of dazzling sunset rays on the
honey coloured monuments and sun hiding behind the mountains made
this boat ride even more captivating.
Stunning view of City Palace from the lake
God's painting in the sky! Sunset in Lake Pichhola.
Boat ride in Lake Pichhola
Taj Lake Palace
City Palace.. sprawling along the lake.
Capture the moment..It lives forever..
Sunsets are proof that endings can often be
beautiful too…
After
this mesmerizing experience in Lake Pichhola, we rushed to Bagore ki Haveli for
the dance show scheduled at 7:00 PM. We reached Bagore Ki Haveli at 6:40PM and till that time tickets were sold out. But
we were lucky enough to not miss this special attraction of Udaipur as another
extra show was also there at 8:00PM kept in view of heavy crowd of
tourists.
We
bought the tickets of Dance Show and decided to have some snacks at nearby
rooftop restaurant of Hotel Udai Niwas. It was very relaxing break after a
hectic, but memorable tour. We enjoyed the picturesque night view of Lake
and city from the rooftop of Udai Niwas. Snacks were also tasty and now we felt
contented with the failure of getting the tickets of 7:00PM show.
We
entered Bagore ki Haveli at 7:55PM and hurriedly occupied seats wherever we
could find in the small Neem courtyard. The one hour show was nicely packed
with folk dances, traditional music, puppet show and an act loaded with vibrant
dance and music. Kids just loved the puppet show . Chari, Terah taal, Ghumar
and Bhavai dances made this show a perfect closing event of our wonderful
Udaipur trip.
Hypnotic music and vivid dance of Rajasthan…
We
boarded the bus and returned to Zade Mount View at 9:45 PM where we had
dinner together followed by some late night tattle .
Friends are recipe to life. Dinner at Zade Mount View
Day 3:
Driving from Udaipur to Chottorgarh
On
third day, everyone woke up late. After having tasty and heavy breakfast
we departed Zade Mount View with sweeter than sweet memories of Udaipur. Here I
would like to share our experiences at Zade Mount View. Zade Mount View is about 7.0 kms away from
City Palace and it is a great choice for those who want to stay away from the
hustle bustle of the city without compromising with the
amenities. Ambience of the Villa was very calm yet happy and the cleanliness
was impeccable. Rooms were spacious, neat and tidy with great interiors. Food
was at the same time very nice. Menu was limited but we could get delicious
home cooked food of our choice. Staff is very courteous, cheerful, kind and
helping. Their personalised services made us feel at home. Property Manager is
a gem of a person who was always ready to make adjustments according to our
requirements. Overall we all had an incredible time in Zade Mount View. Thanks
to the staff for the warmth and hospitality extended to us during our stay.
Departure from Zade Mount View..
We
started for Chittorgarh at 10:30AM and took Udaipur-Chittorgarh Highway
(NH27/NH48). Though we had planned visit of some more places en route from
Udaipur to Chittorgarh , we decided to
skip them and drive straight to Chittorgarfh so as to save time for the fort .
Keep calm and travel on… Driving to Chittorgarh.
Wanderlust and city dust…
The
road was full of closures and diversions due to ongoing construction of
overpasses at various highway intersections. These diversions on this otherwise
good road killed our driving time and we could finish this travel of 120 kms in
2 hours 20 minutes. We had booked Kundan Leela Resort for our stay in
Chittorgarh which is a newly built property outside the city. It is around 12
kms away from the fort. Rooms are
spacious, clean and nicely decorated but some mismanagement or you may call it
inexperience can be sensed just by looking around. The restaurant is not a
regular type and we had to wait almost one and half hour to get our food ready.
This delay in restaurant service actually wrecked our already compressed
program of Fort tour. Restaurant ambience
was like a roadside cheap Dhaba and hygiene was also not up to the mark. The
only good thing of the restaurant was the taste of the food. However,
restaurant services need drastic improvements otherwise this resort will end up
being a marriage garden only. Overall, the resort seemed to fall short of our
expectations and we would definitely not dare to give it another try.
Day 3: Chittorgarh Tour
Here we
hired one guide who actually spiced up our Fort tour with his interesting
narratives. In the fort area we drove in
our own vehicles while our guide escorted us on his Royal Enfield.
Our
first spot was Vijay Stambh (Victory Tower). This 9 storeys tall tower was constructed
by King of Mewar Rana Kumbha to celebrate his victory over the combined forces
of Malwa and Gujarat led by Mahmud Khilji.
Vijay Stambh- testament to pride and valor
Adjacent
to Vijay Stambh there is beautiful Samadhishvara temple dedicated to Lord
Shiva. It was built by Raja Bhoj as a token of gratitude for great hospitality
extended to him by Mewar King during Raja Bhoj’s one night stay in Chittorgarh.
Here the proud Mewari guide told some very interesting stories about Kings of
Mewar and also underlined the differences between Mewar and Marwar regions of
Royal Rajasthan. The guide was such an excellent storyteller that the kids were
also engrossed in usually not so interesting historical tales.
Samadhishvara temple, Chittorgarh
We rule these ruins..
Sunshine smile..
From
the temple complex itself, we had the
iconic view of the reservoir which is the most popular spot for photography by
tourists. This Gaumukh Kund reservoir was the main source of water at the fort
during numerous sieges. A spring feeds the kund from a carved cow's mouth in
the cliff continuously but still it’s not exactly known that from where this
water comes. In the same premise we could see Jauhar Sthal where Rani Padmini
along with other royal Rajput ladies preferred to die through the Rajput's
ultimate tragic rite
of
Jauhar.
Beautiful things don’t ask for attention.. the iconic view of Gaumukh Kund.
We take photos as a return ticket to a moment
otherwise gone
From
the Vijay Stambh we drove directly to Rani Padmini Palace skipping some not so
interesting spots as we were already running short of time. Padmini palace
premises has beautiful gardens and mainatained somewhat in better condition
than other ruins of Chittorgarh. It was built for queen Padmini having an
adjacent Jal Mahal built in the centre of a large pool as her summer residence.
This Jal Mahal is the place where the queen was standing when Alauddin Khilji
caught a glimpse of her.
Padmini
Palace entrance..
Jal mahal- Beholder
of Beauty, Brain and Bravery of Rani Padmini
Garden at Padmini Palace
After
spending some time in Padmini Palace, we drove for the next spot having a brief halt to have the panoramic view of battlefield
surrounding the fort of Chittorgarh. Now this battlefield is being used by
tribals for farming.
Queued up for the mission!
Battlefield
of Chittorgarh..
Next we
came across the Suraj pol. As the name suggests it was the first place of
Chittor to receive sun rays in the morning. The gate was the main entrance from
the east side and approach was strategically designed to foil an attempt of
attack by enemy.
Access to
the Suraj Pol..
It was
getting dark so we skipped some more spots and drove straight to Kumbha Shyam
temple which shares the same compound as the smaller Meera Temple. This temple
was a private place of worship for Meera Bai. Our guide beautifully
narrated the stories about Meera Bai and her single-minded devotion to Lord Sri
Krishna. Kumbha Shyam Temple is dedicated to Lord Vishnu, who is worshipped
here as Varaha. The temple possesses footprints of Meera's Guru, Sant Ravidas
of Varanasi.
Meerabai Temple… A testament to pious love and devotion
At around 6:30PM we reached Kumbha palace which is on a walking distance from the temple complex. We purchased tickets for the Light and Music show produced by ITDC and operated by RTDC.The show narrates the story from the starting of the 6th century when King Chitrangada started searching land for his capital and found Chittor as the safest place from any invasion. Bravery of Bappa , beauty and pride of Rani Padmini, devotion of Meera, sacrifice of Panna Dhai and many more interesting and exciting stories depict the valour, pride, history and traditions of Mewar. I was a bit sceptical about kids’ interest in this show but was relieved after hearing their giggles during the show.
Light & Music show at Kumbha Palace - feast for
the eyes and ears!
While
driving back to resort from the Fort we took a brief pause in Gandhi Nagar area
for energising tea at a road side Gumti. We reached resort at 8:50PM and sat
for a refreshing drink followed by a succulent dinner.
Day 4: Driving from Chittorgarh to
Bhopal
Next
day morning, it was a slothful start and after having heavy breakfast we could
leave the resort at 10:40AM for our return journey. Here our friend from Delhi
bid us as he was having his train in afternoon.
Hero of the trip with the cruiser of the
trip…
Kundan Leela
Resort, Chittorgarh
We
took NH56 and drove straight to Jaora bypassing the busy towns of Nimbaheda, Neemuch
and Mandsaur. Road was smooth and pothole free. I could test the sprinting
might of my Nexon on Chittorgarh-Nimbahera road with speed surging up to
150Kmph. Excellent performance with rock solid stability and full control on
road. Full marks to Nexon-the beast J.
We
travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us
Attitude is
everything! …..driving from Chittorgarh
to Nimbaheda
The 159 Kms long road from Chittorgarh to Jaora was finished
in just 2 hrs and we decided to have a tea/ice cream/chhachh break at Café Joyo in Jaora.
Eat good,
feel good! At Café Joyo, Jaora
We
left Jaora at 1:15PM driving towards Ujjain via Nagda on SH17. This road was
also pretty smooth and we reached Ujjain at 3:00PM covering almost 100 kms. We decided to have
lunch in Ujjain so driving on Agar Road we entered Ujjain city skipping the Ring Road at Mohan Nagar chauraha.
It's all about the wild stuff that happens along the way
‘Tadka’, one of my favourite eateries in Ujjain, was the best option for
a square meal after this long drive. Food was awesome as always and after this
unrushed tasty lunch we all set for our return journey to home at 4:35PM.
Combating the urge to take a nap after lunch @Tadka food
zone, Ujjain
The
drive back to Bhopal was comfortable and relaxing and we covered this distance
of 200 kms in 3 hrs 5 minutes and reached home at 7:40PM. It was wonderful
satisfying feeling of finishing the trip where we were able to
make a plan to spend some time with our family and friends and
accomplished what we set J.
ciao-for-now…
where to next?
Summing the Smilometer
Our
total trip was of 1175 kms with an average driving speed of 64.5kmph. During
this journey AC was on full time and speed was between 80-100 kmph on highways
with frequent bursts up to 120kmph on smooth portions. On some more polished
portions I could test the beast up to 150 kmph speed. In city areas I kept the
speed between 40-50 kmph. Almost 60 percent drive was on Sport mode which
I find thrilling on long runs in moderate traffic. My Nexon gave an average of
19.2 kmpl (tankful to tankful method) whereas meter displayed 21.8 kmpl, I
think this fuel efficiency is on lower side as compared to the claims by other Nexon drivers but that may be due to my ‘Test Mode’ driving style for this particular
trip with Nexon. Overall thrilling, satisfying and comfortable driving
experience!
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