Jodhpur Tourist Destinations

Set at the edge of the Thar Desert, the imperial city of Jodhpur echoes with tales of antiquity in the emptiness of the desert. Once the capital of the Marwar state , it was founded in 1459 AD by Rao Jodha, chief of the Rathore clan of Rajputs who claimed to be descendants of Rama - the epic hero of the Ramayana.
The massive 15th century A.D. Mehrangarh Fort looms on the top of a rocky hill, soaring 125 Mts. Above the plains. The city is encompassed by a high wall -10 km long with 8 gates and innumerable bastions. A major trade centre of the 16th century A.D. the fortress-city of Jodhpur is now the second largest city of Rajasthan. While the graceful palaces, forts and temples strewn throughout the city bring alive the historic grandeur, exquisite handicrafts, folk dances music and the brightly attired people lend a romantic aura to the city. The jumbles of wide winding streets are flanked with pavement stalls. The lifestyle in Jodhpur is unusually fascinating with folks wearing lovely multihued costumes, artistically designed. Women folk wear wide gathered skirts and a hip length jacket, with three quarter length sleeves, covering the front and back. The colorful turbans worn by the men folk add more color to the city. It was from here that the popularity worn baggy - tight, horse riding trousers- 'Jodhpurs' took their name.

PLACES OF INTEREST ARE:

Mehrangarh: One of the most stunning hill forts of Rajasthan, Mehrangarh appears to rise from the bluff-coloured sandstone hill itself, so well built into the base that it is difficult to tell where the hill ends and the walls begin. Founded in the 15th century by the Rathore Rajputs when they shifted their capital form nearby Mandore to Jodhpur (or the region known as Marwar), it is approached by a series of seven gateways set at an angle so that armies could not charge them with any success. Pass the gates, the fort-palace take one's breath away. Across form huge courtyards are set wings of palatial apartments that have been built over five centuries of bristling history. Today, managed as a museum by the royal trust that maintains it, only some of the more spectacular palaces of Mehrangarh are open to visitors. These consists of Moti Mahal with its pierced screen windows overlooking the coronation seat where the Rathore rulers have been ritually appointed to rule, Jhanki Mahal, the Apartment from where the zenana women would watch ceremonial events; Chandan Mahal, where affairs of state were discussed; the royal Darbar Takhat or throne room with its octagonal throne; and the Rang Mahal where the Maharaja would play Holi with his zenana. Also noteworthy are Sheesh Mahal, Phool Mahal, Umaid Vials and Maan Vilas, while a large ten seized from the Mughals in battle is spread for viewing in what has come to be referred to as the Ten Room. Mehrangarh from the outside is impressive, and certainly forbidding. There is a surprising lightness to it though, once actually within the fort. The builders seemed to want to make up for the stern austerity of its wall with an overwhelming profusion of windows and jharokas at the upper ends. The effect seems to exaggerate its already impressive height.

Umaid Bhawan Palace: Umaid Bhawan Palace can qualify for several firsts: the largest private residence in the world, the finest extant example of art-deco, the only palace to have painting from the Ramayana painted by a Polish artist, the first to use air-conditioning, electricity and elevators, and the most impressive for its size and dimensions. Yet, that should be hardly strange, for the architect, H.V. Lancaster, who planned it, wanted it to rival the Vice Regal Lodge (now Rashtrapati Bhawan) then being planned by Sir Edward Lutyens in the new capital at New Delhi, also then under construction. For starters, Umaid Bhawan is a formal building that is perfectly symmetrical, and its 347 rooms offer few concessions to Rajput architecture other than such devises as concealed corridors and balconies for the women of the zenana, and the use of courtyards around which the several wings of the palace are arranged.

Jaswant Thada: A cluster of royal cenotaphs in white marble built in 1899 A.D. in memory of Maharaja Jaswant Singh II. Within the main cenotaph are the portraits of various Jodhpur rulers.

India b2b Dmc