Family Trip to Haldighati, KumbhalGarh, Ranakpur Jain Temple Udaipur,Rajasthan

After the 2 Day Udaipur city excursion, we planned our day 3 to visit places outside Udaipur city which were reachable easily.

The cab arrived at 9 am in morning at the hotel. First we decided to visit Haldighati, then Kumbhalgarh fort and finally Ranakpur Jain Temple all in order of the approachable distance and same direction.Chittorgarh is in opposite direction to these so we skipped it as didn't want teh entire day to be spent in driving.

Apart from these three places few more places including Chittorgarh, Nagda and Eklingji, Nathdwara, and Jaisamand Lake are there to visit if one more day is in your hands.

Since we had only one day, we decided to give a few misses and settled with easily approachable tourist places. Here I am narrating the Day 3 of our excursion which started with a road trip to Haldighati:

Haldighati:

Haldighati holds a glorious mention in the history for the bravery and courage of  Maharana Pratap and his horse Chetak . This is the place where the famous battle of Haldighati was fought in 1576 between Mahrana Pratap and Raja Maan Singh of Amber under the aegis of Akbar, the mughal emperor. 

The name of this valley is gained from the yellow coloured soil which gives a illusion of turmeric(which is also yellow in colour). Haldighati is about 40km away from Udaipur city, so its better to start early in the morning. The road to reach Haldighati is in good shape and safe too. Once you enter the Haldighati valleys all you can see is yellowish mountains, it easily makes one to imagine the war , soldiers who would have stood there sacrificing their lives to retain the freedom of their motherland.

At Haldighati, a museum is set in the fort for which tickets are mandatory. The prominent historical figures, the weapons, the objects used in old days by the royals all are in display in the hallway just after entering the museum premise. After that a well informed 4-5 minutes movie showcasing the history and life of Maharana Pratap is shown to the visitors.The complete recreation of the battle of Haldighati  field map along with the light and sounds, manequins is on display in the museum just like the Akshardham Temple in Delhi and is well explained by the Guide acompanying and directing the group of visitors. No doubt this museum is well maintained and tourist friendly. There is also a recreation area, some small shops to buy the souvenirs, craft work, wooden craved items, rajasthani traditional dresses etc.

All an all its nice if you want to know about history and old times, but if you are looking for some fun then this place is not for you.

The Haldighati Museum in the fort

A model of Haldighati battle map

The swords at the display, along with various wall paintings

After Haldighati, we started for Kumbhalgarh Fort, and on the way we had a great lunch of kadhi rice , sev ki sabji and hot hot fulkas. This was the most soulful simple food I had . Each one of us relished it, especially that sev ki sabji.

KUMBHALGARH FORT:

The Kumbhalgarh fort is surrounded by Aravlli mountains, but is quite accessible since the road is good. It is almost 50km away from Haldighati. We reached in about 2 hours to the fort. Our cab driver slowed the car a bit on the safer side of road and showed us the view of huge and long boundary wall of Kumbhalgarh fort which is not visible fully from any other point . The ancient architecture is mind blowing, all the wonders so strongly built and standing tall and sound even today also. This wall around the fort is approximately 36 km long and is considered second to the 'Great wall of China'. After the car is parked in the parking area outside the fort, walking is required, kids prams are not helpful in the fort, better to leave the prams and anything extra baggage in the car itself safely since to climb this fortress is a jumbo task. Don't forget to take a guide( mostly they are local people only) who will make your visit worthy with his knowledge about the fort and the significance of various places within the fort. 

Kumbhalgarh fort is the birth place of the great Mewar king 'MAHARANA PRATAP'.

At the entrance of the fort there is a series of temples including Ganesh Temple, Vedi Temple, and Neelkanth Mahadev temple which has a huge shivlinga. Various other jain temples are also built in this area. This fort was built by Raja Kumbha in 15th century and was further enlarged in 19th century. This fort is the highest in Rajasthan and is never conquered. It is an example of the brilliant and strong architecture, the width of the wall of this fort is about 15-20 feet, and as per many history books, eight horses can run side by side on this wall. The wall is built on the steep mountains, cliffs and surfaces holding its guard to the fort.

We also visited the Kuldevi temple of the royals. The kings and their descendants still come on every special occassion to seek the blessings of the goddess. 

Lets have a look on the pictures of this fort to treat the eyes. 

The temples in the fort

The huge wall of the fort, it also had stairs from where one can go on the wall

This was the place where the kings waited to meet Mahrana Pratap

This fort is well maintained and a must visit in your Udaipur trip. The ruins has its own charm and charisma.

After Kumbhalgarh fort we drove straight towards Ranakpur Jain Temple. There is also a light and sound show in the evening at the fort, but we couldn't attend it.

RANAKPUR JAIN TEMPLE:

It took almost 2 hours or more to reach Ranakpur from Kumbhalgarh fort. The road is single but in good condition. The temple is open for non-jain visitor after 12 at noon and cameras are allowed at the same time with charges for it. This temple is again a beauty in itself and is one of the best jain temple other than Dilwara Jain temple in Mount Abu. Its grand and built of white marbles only. The priests take visitors on the tour of the temple.

This temple was built by a jain businessman 'Dharnashah'  in 15th century with the aid of Rana Kumbha. Rana Kumbha laid the condition of naming this temple on his name, hence the name Ranakpur came into existence. This temple is dedicated to Lord Adinath . The marvellous Ranakpur temple is built on a huge white marble platform. It has 1444 carved pillars yet no two pillars are same, each has distinct carving, 29 halls and 80 domes. Inspite of such a huge architecture and area, the temple  is well lighted with natural light inside the complex. The temple is designed as Chaumukha which means four faces, and every face leads to the central compound of the temple.
Here comes the picture gallery of this magnificent timeless beauty

The intrinsic engraving of Kalpavriksha considered as  a wish fulfilling divine tree according to Hindu mythology

One of the ceiling architecture

A closer look to the beautiful carvings done on the ceiling

One of the ceilings engraved with AKICHAKA, which represents a man with one head and five bodies resembling air, water, earth, heaven and fire.

 

The beautifully engraved pillars

 

The detailed carvings on the pillar

The marvellous and glorious Temple of Ranakpur

After the visit to this serene and beautiful place finally we wrapped up our trip and headed back to Udaipur city. After reaching Udaipur we shopped for some bed-sheets, traditionally printed palazzos and few kids traditional dresses, few pieces of jwellery including earrings, bangles and one long neck piece whose pics I missed to click. The stuff we purchased from Udaipur is of good quality and thanks to our cab driver we got reasonable prices at the shop.

Around 7 pm we reached the hotel all tired and loaded with shopping bags. Had dinner and retired for the day, so so exhausted.

The other day we had planned to visit Mount Abu, now that trip again coming in the next post, till then stay tuned. Would love to read your comments and suggestions on this travelogue. Hoping this post helped you to get some insights for the trip.