Unique Romantic Ancient City in India: White Buildings Along the Lake, Remarkably Clean
In the western part of India, there is a 'City of White', one of the famous tourist cities 'City of Colors' in India. Before traveling to India, I had repeatedly seen photos of this city, and it is hard to imagine that there is such a clean and elegant place hidden in India, like a fairy tale world, unless I am actually in this city. It is Udaypur.
Udaypur is a historic city in the southern part of Rajasthan, India, about 550km from the capital New Delhi. You can fly to here from New Delhi for about 1 hour 20 minutes, or take a train, which takes about 12 hours. Train is the main transportation in India, but due to the slow speed of trains, the time taken is relatively long. However, after waiting for Udaypur, it will all be worth it.
Udaypur was the new capital of Mewar in history, built in 1568, with a history of 450 years. It was built by the ruler Uday Singh II. Initially, the capital of Mewar was in Chittorgarh, but due to the disadvantages of the location in Chittorgarh, it was often attacked and occupied by the Mughal dynasty, so it was finally built here as the new capital, Udaypur.
Udaypur is located in a desert valley, surrounded by mountains on all sides, with mountains and water. From a strategic point of view, it is easier to defend than the previous capital. However, Udaypur was still attacked by the Mughal dynasty again and again, but it was successfully resisted, which became a Feng Shui treasure land for the Mewar people.
Because Udaypur is located in the desert valley, Uday Singh II used the green marshland in the desert to build a series of artificial lakes. The most famous one is Pichola Lake. Today, Pichola Lake still moistens this city and gives Udaypur beautiful mountain and lake scenery, making it one of the most famous tourist destinations in India, known as 'Oriental Venice'.
If water is the soul of Udaypur, then the white buildings in this city are the most beautiful embodiment of Udaypur. Especially the palace-like building in the lake, the whole building is built of marble, showcasing nobility and elegance, which is Udaypur's business card. It is known as 'Lake Palace' . It has attracted countless tourists.
Now it has been transformed into a hotel, one of the most luxurious castle hotels in India and the world. White buildings and blue lakes are all full of romantic atmosphere. The famous 007 series 'Auggie' was filmed here.
Compared to the noisy and dusty cities in India, Udaypur gives people a feeling of being clean and comfortable. It is truly unlike India. Walking in this city, you can see white palaces, temples and European-style buildings everywhere. It makes you unbelievable that you are in India. I posted a that day, and my friends thought I went to a small town in Europe.
Udaypur's attractions are not many, but each one is a boutique. Udaypur's City Palace is the largest palace in Rajasthan, located on the east bank of Pichola Lake. You need to buy a ticket to visit the palace, and it is the only local attraction with the same ticket price for locals and foreigners.
The whole palace is cream-colored, more than 240 meters long and 30 meters high. It was initiated by Uday Singh II in 1559, and later in the 16-20th centuries, it was continuously built and expanded by successive rulers, and the architectural style during this period was consistent, which was impressive.
The architectural style of the City Palace is particularly distinctive, combining the national style of the dynasty and the Muslim architectural style of the Mughal dynasty. It is still well preserved today, and the tourists have shown the living scene of the Rajasthan royal family. There was a war in the City Palace, that is, Udaypur's royal family led 20 elephants to fight against the British army.
Not far from the City Palace is a temple, namely 'Jagdish Temple', which is the largest Jain temple in Udaypur. What impresses me most about this temple is the exquisite carvings on the walls, including elephant and human figures. It is not required to buy a ticket to visit this temple, but you need to wear shoes and cannot wear revealing clothes. Girls can wear long skirts or long pants.
For me, traveling to Udaypur is not just for the human history of these palaces, temples and buildings, I am more interested in walking around in the old city, feeling the life atmosphere of this city that is known as one of the 'cleanest cities in India'. Udaypur is a city that is suitable for slow living. There is no noise and chaos, the streets are very clean.
Although the streets here are very clean, you can still see free-roaming cows in the streets. Cows have a high status in India, and they are like gods. Hindus cannot eat beef. This is a local custom. When you travel to India, you must not bring beef snacks.
Entering the residential area, you can see that the houses here are mostly white, and the mottled walls witness the hundreds of years of history of Udaypur. The people living here are very comfortable. Many people who have traveled to India in the future may have a biased view of this city. I have contacted many Indians, and they are all very friendly to Chinese people. They will often praise you when you mention that you are a Chinese tourist.
Every city has its own disadvantages. During the trip to Udaypur, I entered a dense residential area. The houses here are distributed in the mountains, with different colors and some exposed red brick houses, but they are generally clean.
Three children were playing in front of their houses, probably because they were just waking up, they looked a little dazed. When I raised my camera, they didn't dodge, they looked at my camera and made a victory gesture. Their clear eyes, tender faces and pure smiles still appear in my mind from time to time.
Udaypur is a magical existence in India. The beautiful mountain and lake scenery, the magnificent palace and the friendly people all make me feel like the greatest harvest of my India trip. If I have another opportunity, I will definitely go again.
