A Trip to India Part 5 - Gujarat Wankaner, Rajkot, Junagarh

(pics to be added)
Near Wankaner, by some miracle, which are pretty common in India, we spotted our friend Chota and  driver-guide Jonny, standing near Jonny's Toyota Innova amidst a few hundred people and a few dozen other vehicles waiting for us by the side of the busy road.  Jonny had driven from Ahmedabad and picked up Chota along his way to this place by the road.  We had our mobile phones and numbers, so we would have, eventually, found each other, but this was easy.  Jim paid the driver from Bhuj and we then went onward in the Innova.  When we lived in Bangalore we had an Innova with A/C and found it to be a very comfortable vehicle.  Since then Many people in the tourist industry have gotten these spacious and comfortable cars and many tourist companies use them-  as we had on the earlier part of this trip in many places.
A couple of phone calls were made about getting in to see Wankaner Palace and we had not gotten a certain reply so Jonny suggested that we go to an Art Deco Hotel that he knew about in the interim.

He took us there and the caretaker said it was closed as there were no guests booked- the last had left that morning.  Jonny and Chota made some calls and persuaded the caretaker to let us look around. Chota is from one of several royal families in Gujarat and these families generally know eachother  or are distantly related and are one friendly terms, so his connections allowed us to visit several places that we would not have seen easily otherwise. Wankaner Palace and this Art Deco Hotel were two such places.
In the 1920 and 30's the Maharajas had a lot of money and power and influence and often spent some of that on modern buildings, furniture, autos, air planes, etc.   This hotel was built as a guest house- long ago, but apparently, was updated around 1930 with Art Deco furniture and decorations inside. It is really very nice to see so many rooms with consistent styles of decor in such a faraway place from Europe or the USA.  We later saw a number of old buildings with Art Deco style exterior decoration in Palitana and Bhavnagar and wondered what they look like inside.  At this hotel the swimming pool is enclosed and has a strong Art Deco feel to it as well.
We got the word that they were expecting us at the Palace so we drove there. It stands high up on the hill with great views over the area.  It suffered some damage in the 2001 earthquake- especially to one tower.  Were taken inside and allowed to walk around several huge rooms on the main floor that have their original decor with lots of stuffed animal trophies all around from times up into the 1960's.

The Maharaja from here was a minister in the government of Nehru.  It was in the early 1970's when Indira Gandhi, essentially, revoked the agreements that had been made with the many royal families across India and they lost much of their income and property.  There is still much animosity about that.   Our visit to this beautiful mansion ended with them serving us tea on a porch.  On the drive away from the home we saw a mongoose looking for food.
We drove to Rajkot and had lunch at a well known eatery.  The entry way had around 50 people waiting to be seated and served.  Indian lunchs tend to be fairly quick, so it took only around 20 minutes or so for these many people, and us, to be seated. The lunch was a thali where servers came around and gave small quantities of various foods- it was really quite good, but felt hectic with the many people talking , eating, coming and going... a typical Indian scene for middle class Indians.
After lunch we went to the Rajkot Museum which also goes by the name of the British Colonel who collected items and set them up here long ago.  Chota had been there long ago and expected it would only take 15 minutes to tour, but he was very surprised to find that it had been compeletely

reorganized and now has a flow and sense to it rather than just being a collection of odd stuff.  The woman museum director greeted us once she learned of Chota's royal connections and gave a bit of a tour before going back to her duties.  Like in many countries, where royals have no real power, they still have some influence, and are usually treated with extra respect.
The museum was interesting to see but not a high point of this trip.
We drove on to Gondal where Jim stayed the night at the Orchard Palace. This is another former royal guest house that is now a hotel. The room was on the first floor above ground level (second floor in USA naming).  The room was huge and had A/C but it was a bit dark.  He had a good dinner and met a couple from the UK who were traveling a similar route- he saw them again the next day in Junagarh and the day after that in Sasangir.  
The Orchard Palace has nice grounds and a nice car collection, but Jim has seen plenty of older cars and did not feel the need to see the ones here. So, we left fairly early the next day because we expected it to be a full day in Jungarh.
On the way, Jonny said there is a Buddhist cave group, so we took a detour and went there. The caves were rather minimal.  Nearby there was a fairly large new complex that is unoccupied- apparently built by the government with intent to be part of a " Buddhist Trail" .  It was great to walk around this site that is becoming overgrown with vegetation and pigeons.  It has the "feel" of a Buddhist place and there were a small number of Buddhist images, but it is largely unfinished and unoccupied and was a good photo-op. In the distance, a large Hindu temple that looked fairly new, is visible.

We drove on to Junagarh (often written as Junagadh).  Jim saw descriptions in the guide books that  did not really give a good feel for this place- though it was obvious there was much to see here.

As we drove into town we came to a beautiful mausoleum - it was quite amazing, but in fairly poor
state of repair- it is clear that it is not beeing maintained.  It has been suggested that upkeep of many muslim related sites is not being supported by the present government of India. This could be true, but it is also still a country - like all others where choices on where to spend have to be made. The feeling seemed to be that the chouce not to spend on Muslim related sites is worse than in the past.

We then went on to visit a place that Jonny had seen when staying in Junagarh in the past. It is a set of mausoleums apparently built in the 1700's for members of the local ruling families. It is





surrounded by buildings and walls and not easily found but very interesting to walk through.  It is overgrown with weeds and shrubs and in a state of decay, but some of the sarcophagi had newer textile covers over them- probably from newer generations of the families interned here.   There was one woman in one of the structures- she might have been living there- with no other home, or she might have been a caretaker.  In any case, it was fun to see such a relatively un-visited place.
We went on to see the "Ashoka edicts".  Ashoka was a ruler who embraced Buddhism more than 2000 years ago. He had certain inscriptions put in stones in several places across his empire and one of these is at Junagarh.  Today the stone is inside a large building... and it was CLOSED for some sort of maintenance !   However, the attendant said that there is a copy down the road that was made by an englishman.  So we drove down the road a short way to find there is a large bould with a lot of inscriptions that were difficult to discern as well as some writing in English that is also difficult to discern, so we took some photos and left.
The guide books mention buddhist caves in Junagarh and Jonny knew of 3 groups - maybe 4. It was a bit hot in the sun but we made our was to three groups and walked around them. One is quite extensive with many chambers and wells while the others were smaller.

We then went on top of the hill in the city to see the old fort and remnants there.  This was quite interesting, but we were tired too, so it was less thrilling than it might have been. Jim met the UK couple from the Gondal hotel while viewing a step well on top of the mountain.
We had some lime soda and rested and then drove back down to the city center.  There are some wonderful colonial era buildings-  mostly in a poor state of repair but great to see.  This was an important city long ago and during the British rule too.
Jonny pointed out a group of boys riding in the back of a truck who looked African. He said that long long ago (1300's?) the local king had a princess from Ethiopia (or thereabouts) as a wife and she brought something like 50 families of servants with her. Their descendants are these people who look more African than Indian.
We drove on the Sasangir where Jim Stayed at the Taj hotel for 3 nights.

A Trip to India Part 4 - Kutch, Gujarat

We traveled to Gujarat twice in 2010 and thoroughly enjoyed those visits. We became enamored with the many varieties of elaborate and colorful embroidies and other forms of textiles for which Kutch and Gujarat are known. With that history another visit to Kutch and to much of the rest of Gujarat seemed like a good add-on to the tour already described.
Jim left Mumbai  around 6:30 AM Nov. 10, 2017 and flew to Bhuj in the center of the Kutch region.  The improvements to the Mumbai airport since 2010 were very much appreciated and Jet air seems a good airline.
In Bhuj Jim was met by Salim, who would be the guide for the next 4 days. We had met him in 2010 and found him to be very knowledgeable and easy to talk to.  A couple days later he said he was recognized by "Lonely Planet" as guide of the year for the region - or some similar recognition.
Jim stayed at the Prince Hotel near the center of town. We stayed there in 2010 and it has undergone a significant upgrade since then. It was a comfortable place to stay but it is run rather casually. Jim Checked in and we headed off by 8AM or so to go in search of interesting sites and very interesting textiles.  We went to a few places where we had been in 2010 with friends Linn and Anita, but also a few where we had not been including a somewhat obscure small village with a very interesting embroidery style that seemed different from others we had seen.

Many of the women do this beautiful work when they are not tending to household and family chores- to make very elaborate and colorful garments for themselves and family members- and to sell.  There are several "cooperatives" like Shrujan and Kala Raksha and Qasab that take much of the work of these many women and sell it in shops and give the women a fair share of whatever they sell for. Overall, this is probably a good arrangement, but the variety of work may be a bit reduced and this could be bad for the long term.  This is a concern that several people acknowledged, but it does not appear to be a problem yet.
One one day we drove to the "Great Rann of Kutch". This is a low lying area to the north, west and east of Kutch that floods during monsoon season and then the water evaporates the rest of the year to leave an enormous white range of salts. When we visited in Jan. 2010 it was dry and white. In the second week of Nov. 2017 there was a lot of water, so it had a very different feel.
Unfortunately, the are now have huge "tent cities" that have been put up to encourage Indian tourists to come and stay a few days for big festivals.  It was state run before but appears to be privately run now.  While the road to get to the Rann is better, the rather ugly structures and tents seem like detractors compared to what seemed like a wilderness before.
On the second day we drove south to Mandvi.  On the way we stopped at a 10th century Shiva temple that was in very bad shape after earthquake damage long ago- as well as more recently in the very bad earthquake they had in Kutch in 2001.  Jim wanted to see the construction of the big wooden boats that are still made in Mandvi- though, apparently, fewer than in the past. We were able to drive right up to the boats being built, and, with a little permission, walk around and even inside a boat being built.  These are NOT small personal boats- they are quite large and intended for hauling goods around. Apparently, the customers are primarily middle eastern coastal people and Africa.  This was very interesting the see and the huge teak logs used to make the ship frames were impressive!
There was a saw mill very near the ship building and we could see very large band saw blades being sharpened.  They were using a smaller saw to cut some smaller  pieces of wood- the blade was probably 4 - 6" wide or deep.

After seeing the boats we drove to a village where many of the houses are owned by Jain families. Apparently these homes date from around 1900- some older and many newer- and the owners mostly live in bigger cities and come back for vacation or festivals or family events.  The architecture was very nice and it was fun to see these places.
On the third day we drove to Dholavira. This is one of the Harrapan or Indus River civilization sites dating from around 1600 BCE.  There are a few larger sites in what is now Pakistan, but this is the largest in India.  We visited a smaller site- Lothal- in 2010.  It is pretty much a full day trip to get to Dholavira and back in the same day. Salim had a rugged vehicle which was probably necessary to make the trip because the roads had been severely damaged in some areas in the rainy season and were under repair.  There were a few more conventional cars on the road, but a SUV is a wiser choice.  It was a rough ride!  Jim's "fitbit" recorded over 15,000 "steps" for the day but only 2-3000 of those were real steps taken!

It was hot in the bright sun at Dholavira. The visitor's center was interesting and gave a good overview.  Salim got a guide for us- someone who had worked there many years for the government in the past.  In Kutch the local language is Kutchee while most of Gujarat speaks Gujarati ( as well as English or Hindi).  To really get around it helps to know Kutchee and Gujarati!  The guide spoke mostly Kutchee to Salim who translated.   The site was buried for, perhaps 2000-3000 years and much of it is still buried, but what is uncovered is quite impressive!  We often forget that these ancient people were quite smart and creative when it came to thinking of ways to solve practical problems like how to store water and move water to where it was needed.  They had some clever ideas way back then!   We did not stay long- Jim just wanted to see the place and get a feeling for how sophisticated it was.   The archeologists indicated where a river once flowed near the town center here. It is widely believed that big changes to the water supply is what ended communities like this.
The ride back over the same rough roads seemed faster, but we did take a somewhat different route for part of it that the driver thought might be better. It was a little different scenery and worthwhile as it did not take longer and may have been shorter.  We learned in Africa that a day of bouncing around in a car can be very tiring and this day was not an exception to that learning.
The last day in Kutch was spent visiting the Shrujan Museum, a weaver who makes rugs from Camel and goat hair,  a "bandani" or "tie-dye" maker who also exhibits at the Santa Fe Arts and crafts show in the USA.  The Shrujan Museum is very nicely done and the displays of many of the embroideries were soften spectacular.  The building is quite large and has two large galleries- at present, only one of these is occupied.
The Driver took Jim from Bhuj  in Kutch east to Wankaner the next morning where Jim was met by our Friend Chota and driver- guide Jonny.  Part 5 will pickup from that point. 

A Trip to India Part 3 Ajanta and Ellora

We Stayed at a nice hotel in Aurabgabad for 2 nights and got up the first morning for a long bus ride to Ajanta.  The bus had to park a bit away from the caves and we took a different bus in poor condition to closer to the caves where we then "walked the gauntlet" through dozens of people selling stuff.  Jim has been through this many times and just ignores the sellers or politely, says he is not interested and pushes on, but some of the people were taken aback by the aggressiveness of the sellers- even some tough NYC residents had a tough time being cajoled so aggressively!  We finally started the walk up the hillside to the caves. One or two people took advantage of the "dholis"- 2-3-4 guys who carry people up in a chair - somewhat like a sedan chair only not very luxurious and maybe not so clean.  This mode was tempting but Jim, being a big guy with a conscience, decided he could not bear the idea of these slight, but strong, fellows carrying him.  The walk was not that difficult as it turned out, but it was long.

We spent most of the day at Ajanta.  Most of the caves date from 400- 600 CE but a couple may be as early as 200 BCE.   A few were never completed to the point where sculptures or paintings were done.  Many have remains of wall and ceiling paintings that are quite glorious, but dark as they are trying to preserve, them as best they can.  Most of the group managed to see all the caves that are open and we spent a lot of time in the few that have more extensive paintings.  Jim's camera was just sensitive enough to let him take some pictures inside without too much vibration, but it was difficult without a tripod or other steadying device.

The stone carvings were quite remarkable too, but the paintings are the highlight because so few have survived from so long ago.
We were visited by Monkeys about 2/3 the way through our tour.
The next day the group went to Ellora- passing a huge old fort at Dalautabad that looked interesting! We did not see all of Ellora. We saw a few old Buddhist caves then several Hindu ones and a HUGE standalone temple carved completely out of the mountain side- it is amazing how much work was done to make this!

We went back to the hotel for lunch and then to the airport to fly back to Mumbai. We checked back into the hotel and got our stored luggage.   Most of the group left in the evening or early morning hours.  Jim Road to the airport terminal around 3:30 AM with our overall USA tour director who was flying home while Jim flew to Gujarat around 6AM.   Ajanta and Ellora seem like the highlights of the trip to this point.  The remainder of the trip was arranged by Jim with suggestions from friends and past experiences in India.  That begins in Part 4.