Day 12 : Jodhpur

We arrived in Jodhpur at about 10 in the morning.
A driver took us at the station and we went to our Hotel Ratan Villas.
It was a nice colonial house built in the 1920s.
The owners were very kind and they were the fifth generation living in this house.






Mehrangarh Fort or the Citadel of the Sun
Then, we decided to visit the fort. It was constructed in 1459 like a real eagle nest by the founder of Jodhpur: rao Jodha who gave the name of Jodhpur. The fundation is dominating the town at 135 meters above the city ; its width is 250 meters.
Mehrangarh (meaning Majestic Fort) is one of the largest forts in India.
Maharajahs lived there until the 20th century and then go the Umaid Bhawan Palace (I will talk about it later).
Battle scars of canon ball hit by attacking armies of Jaipur can still be seen on the second gate. To the left is chhatri of Kirat Singh Soda, a soldier who fell on the spot while defending the fort against the armies of Amber.
There are seven gates, which include Jayapol meaning victory built by Maharaja Man Singh to commemorate his victories over Jaipur and Bikaner armies. Fattehpol also meaning victory gate was built by Maharaja Ajit Singh to mark the defeat of Mughals. The palm imprints still attract devotional attention and are covered by vermilion paste and paper-thin silver foil.
We took the audio guide to have the whole story of this fort.


The blue city
Jodhpur is the second largest city in the Indian state of the Rajasthan. Jodhpur is a popular destination, featuring many beautiful palaces, forts and temples, apart from a stark, scenic desert landscape. The city is known as the "Sun City" for the bright, sunny weather it enjoys all year. It is also referred as the Blue City, due to the indigo tinge of the whitewashed houses around the Fort. Jodhpur is also known for gentleness of its people. The old city of Jodhpur is surrounded by a thick stone wall. The wall has six huge gates called Nagauri gate, Merati gate, Sojati gate, Jalori gate, Siwanchi gate and Chand pol.