Indian adventure - Udaipur... Rooftops for days

Udaipur is roughly 12 hours drive North of Mumbai by road. The best way to make this trip is flying, so we ignored this and caught an overnight bus. The bus was geared up with carriages holding double beds, or more accurately, containment areas for human lotto balls.

As we arrived at the bus depot rickshaws and motor bikes were sprawled everywhere, Udaipur appeared to be a watered down version of Mumbai. However, after a quick ride we emerged at a stunning man made lake lined with palaces advertising ancient Indian architecture and wealth.

More importantly, our hotel was pimped out with a king size bed, ensuite, wifi, all the good stuff.

At the pinnacle of our hotel was a rooftop restaurant with a unobstructed view of all Udaipur had to offer; from the towering city palace lit up like a stadium, to the lake palace which now serves as a high-end hotel, to the monsoon palace watching the city from the mountain top near by.

Our first touristy stop was city palace, which can be summed up in one word; lush. Originally constructed around the time that the lake was made, the oldest part of the palace dates back to around the 1300’s. As each king inherited the palace they renovated and added a new section, resulting in a huge cascade that starts high above the city and ends up leaning against the lake.

Palaces aside, Udaipur is famous for its art, in particular “miniature paintings” which are incredibly intricate paintings executed with a brush made from individual squirrel hairs. We found some rad squirrel hair paintings and stocked up.

After a quick Indian appropriation of a complimentary continental breakfast, we hopped back in the car with our driver named Hari who is a total legend by the way, and said our goodbyes to the lovely Udaipur. It was a very welcome start to Rajasthan.

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