Saturday 18 February 2017

When Three Days Were Not Enough For Us - Jaisalmer (Part 2)

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In the first part of my blog, I have shared my experience of Day 1 in which we explored Amar Sagar Jain temple,  Kuldhara and Sam sand dunes. As we reached Jaisalmer that day itself and enjoyed these places to the fullest, we were terribly tired. Next day we had to get ready by 9 in the morning to explore other sites of  the cities.

Day 2
The next morning I got up by 7 and it took me almost an hour to arouse all of my friends. Such an arduous task. However girls were ready before the deadline which was surprising,  but as said by one friend, they did not put on makeup so it was not a hard task for them.We were all set to explore the beautiful city of Jaisalmer after a dose of delicious parathas in breakfast.


Jaisalmer-War-Museum
Jaisalmer War Museum

     We started our tour with visit to Jaisalmer War Museum, located 10 km from Jaisalmer city on the Jaisalmer-Jodhpur Highway. It has been set up by the Indian Army to commemorate the bravery and sacrifice of soldiers, specifically during the 1965 Indo-Pak War and the 1971 Longewala battle. It also traces the evolution of the Indian Army. There are many war trophies and vintage equipment on display, along with tanks, guns and military vehicles.

The Museum has:

·        Two information display halls(Laungewala Hall, Indian Army Hall)

Jaisalmer-War-Museum
Indian Army Hall

·        An audio visual room

Jaisalmer-War-Museum
Audio-Visual Room

·        A souvenir shop 


It is a top tourist attraction due to its aesthetic layout, fountains, green lawns and amenities. The Jaisalmer War Museum is considered by the international online travel guide TripAdvisor to be one of the top war museums in Rajasthan.
                After visiting War Museum it was time to visit Gadisar Lake, an artificial water tank made by Maharwal Jaisal in 1156 A.D. This lake was basically created for drinking and daily use because there is scarcity of the water in the area. Lake was used as drinking water source till 1965. It has two umbrella structures. 
Gadisar-Lake
Gadisar Lake

We enjoyed the boat ride and during ride, one of my friends reminds me of a song from Nadiya ke Paar movie. We have sung this song except Raubinsh, who protested not to sing it.
Gadisar lake
Boating in Gadisar Lake

After boating, it was time to try some Rajasthani dress. Dev, Sneha, Shweta and I agreed to dress in Rajasthani Costume. We clicked many photos and it was most memorable moments of my life. 
Gadisar-Lake
Gadisar lake

Raubinsh was busy in clicking our photographs and we were thoroughly enjoying the moment. After that we visited a Shiv Mandir near the Gadisar Lake which gave us a marvelous view of that lake. 
Gadisar-Lake
Gadisar Lake

We tried golgappe outside Gadisar Lake and it was best golgappe I have ever eaten. However, credit for this awesome golgappe goes to Raubinsh
   After having delicious golgappe we proceeded to Patwaon Ki Haveli which is an interesting piece of Architecture and is the most important among the havelis in Jaisalmer. 
Patwaon-Ki-Haveli
Patwaon ki haveli

In Jaisalmer, Patwas were very rich traders along the old silk route. They built the Patwon Ki Haveli which took over 60 years to complete. This Haveli was started by Guman Chand Patwa, a wealthy banker in 1805. He ordered the construction of separate Havelis for each of his 5 sons. Presently one Haveli was owned by a businessman, one under Archaeological Survey Of India and other three are still owned by his sons.
Nevertheless, even after these encroachments and abuse you can find a good amount of paintings and mirror-works on the wall. 
Patwaon-Ki-Haveli
Mirror Work Inside Patwaon Ki Haveli

The other important aspects are its gateways and arches. You will notice individual depictions and theme on each and every arch. Although the whole building is made yellow sandstone, the main gateway of the Patwon Ji ki Haveli is in brown color.
We entered in this five-storeyed complex a part of which has now been converted into a museum exhibiting the 19th century life of these wealthy merchants. It is richly beautified with wonderful Belgium mirror work and exquisite wall paintings.
 Built in yellow sandstone, Patwon Ki Haveli, has exclusive intricate carving in the Jharokhas (balconies), windows, corridors and archways.


The museum displays rich artifacts which give an idea of erstwhile lifestyle.
We moved from one room to another, one complex to other and then reached the terrace from where we get the best views of the Golden Fort of Jaisalmer. This magnificent Haveli is a delight to see and takes an hour or so to explore depending upon how much time one spent for looking around.
Patwaon-Ki-Haveli
Road In which Haveli is Situated

Patwaon-Ki-Haveli
View Of FOrt From Haveli

After having woderful exploration of the Patwaon Ki Haveli, we were ready for another exploration. We reached Nathmal Ji Ki Haveli, which is marvel in stone architecture. Maharawal Bairisal got this ornamental two storied haveli constructed in the year 1885 A. D. and gifted it to Nathimal, his Diwan. 
Nathmal-Ki-Haveli
Nathmal Ki Haveli

Stone elephants on both sides of the platform of the haveli signify the grandeur and position of diwan. The 7th generation of Nathimal lives in this haveli. Hence we were not allowed to go inside. But we can see the Haveli from outside.
              We were so engrossed in the beauty of these places that we did not even stopped for our lunch. That is what Jaisalmer does, its beauty  makes us forget about our hunger. Finally had our lunch at 5 in the same lovely place as yesterday and we called the day off. It was a very tiresome noon with sun blazing in its full might. We went back to our rooms for some rest and girls as usual went back with their discussion on the shopping that they did. At night all of us enjoyed the last T20 match between India and England and it was one hell of a match with a nail biting end. India won the match and all of us were in good spirits. All of us slept peacefully.
               Next day and the final day of our journey was also dedicated to the exploration of the city. Due to time constraint, we were unable to see sites of Laungewala( border of India and Pakistan) and Tanot Mata temple.
We had Jaisalmer Fort and Salim Singh ki Haveli kept for our last outing for the awesome journey. And as goes without saying shopping was in our itinerary for the last end of our journey


To  be Continued (Day 3)
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