Around Udaipur

After breakfast on the terrace, we did the tuk-tuk-to-car routine and set off to see a couple of interesting temples.

Our first stop was the ruined Sas-Bahu complex in Gwalior. The name means mother-in-law/daughter-in-law and there are various explanations for it. Shailesh gave us two and Wikipedia has a third.

Built in the 11th century, they were sacked by invaders and looted over the centuries, but the detailed carvings on the twin temples are still very impressive.

From there we drove to the village of Kailashpuri to visit the Eklingji temple complex. No photos are permitted, but you can find them online to get a sense of it.

The main temple is dedicated to the workshop of Shiva and the central idol is a four-faced lingam of black stone. While we were there the priests were pouring bowls of milk, honey, yogurt, and ghee over the statue.

Around the main temple are 108 smaller temples dedicated to various gods. The number 108 is very special in Hinduism and help to enhance Eklingji’s status as a very sacred place.

On our way to lunch Shailesh took us by a really fabulous jewellery shop. We got a tour of the workshop, where they were cutting stones and crafting beautiful pieces.

Udaipur is famous for their emeralds and they also mine star rubies that are like nothing I've ever seen before.

Alice fell in love with a bracelet set with six different colors of sapphire, but when we realized it was more than $1200 she decided she didn't love it that much and we headed back to the car.

Our lunch was at Lily Court Art Space, a lovely restaurant and art gallery on the outskirts of Udaipur.

We enjoyed our meal in their outdoor dining area and then had a delightful time wandering through their collection of works by modern Indian artists.

On our way back to the hotel I managed to get a photo of something I'd seen a few times around the city: a horse caparisoned for a wedding procession, being led by a guy on a motorbike!

Back at the hotel I watched the sunset from the rooftop. Udaipur had the clearest skies of the cities we visited in Northern India, but still enough haze to make every night a sailor's delight.

In the evening we were picked up by a previously arranged tuk-tuk driver. Traffic in the main street out of the neighborhood was at a complete standstill, so he took off across the back lanes and we got a high-speed tour of more residential alleys. And then suddenly we squeaked to a stop and there was Mr. Khan to take us to dinner with Mrs. Meenakshi Singh.

She made us a delicious home cooked meal of chicken marinated in yogurt and spices, as well as eggplant, okra, and a dish of cauliflower, carrots, and peas.

We had a great conversation, mostly about weddings. Her children have both married in the past few years and we got to hear stories of how that was accomplished. That led to the story of how she came from the Himalayan region of the country to marry a gentleman from a family closely connected to the maharanas of Udaipur. We did also get to meet Mr. Singh briefly, but he was caring for his mother, who was not well. It was a delightful experience and we were so happy to meet them during our stay in Udaipur.