What a journey, today I’ve been EVERYWHERE. Beginning in Bundi, travelling to Chittorgarh and doing a spot of sightseeing before getting back onto a bus and travelling to Udaipur…phew…a long day.
Setting off for the train station at the early hour of 8.45am was a little harsh as I was still half asleep, but the ticket office was quite easy to find, so I class that a success. After purchasing tickets to Chittorgarh, I waited, but the train wasn’t on time, it was about ten minutes late.
After boarding I was not entirely sure that I was in the correct compartment for my ticket. I paid ₨85 and sat in the ‘Sleeper’ section. The train got to Chittorgarh after about three hours and everyone who stepped off of it was instantly besieged by Auto Rickshaw drivers.
I was lucky enough to find a rickshaw driver who said that he would take me round the Fort for ₨300, and that he would wait as I went around each of the monuments/ruins/temples, and then take me to the Bus Station when we were finished. I thought that this was an excellent deal.
Now for the information bit:
Chittorgarh is actually the name of the Fort of the town Chittor, and it is widely thought to be the greatest in Rajasthan. It sits above the town, rising from the land in a quite amazing way. It is nearly 6km long and surrounded on all sides by sheer cliffs. Over the years Chittorgarh has been the scene of horrible battles and attacks. Three times Chittorgarh was under attack from a more powerful enemy; each time it’s people chose death before dishonour, performing Jauhar. Jauhar is ritual mass suicide by immolation, traditionally performed by Rajput women at times of military defeat to avoid being dishonoured by their captors. This happened in 1303, 1535 and 1568 and following this there were no attempts to resettle the fort, though it was restored in 1905. Walking around each part of the fort I felt like I was an extra from ‘Jumaniji’ or‘Tomb Raider’ as most of it is overgrown and in ruins. This does make it very fun to explore and take photos of. It was nice to have a driver to explain what everything is and what it all meant back in the day. I think that Chittorgarh is the type of place that would be quite difficult to visit just on foot, as everything is so spread out over a large area.
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