Jaipur to Jodhpur

As soon as I got up I checked the status of my ticket and alongside the Booking Status RLWL/2 which means it is on a wait list it has the code H1/C/10/UB which, when I checked on the internet, found out it means I have been assigned Upper Berth in Compartment C Coach H1. So it looks like I am going to Jodhpur today. 

The Codes that tell you whether you are going to get on a train
Checked out of the hotel and got a tuk tuk to the station. The train came in about half an hour late, found Coach H1 and the attendant told me I was in compartment C which turned out to be a an excellent, cosy compartment with just two berths. Just to myself it seems. Swung the lower berth up to make a more comfortable seat for sitting rather than sleeping. To put the icing on the cake,  a man outside just cleaned the window so I have a clear view. 


Jaipur Station

Train arriving

My Coach

My Cosy Compartment

We left Jaipur at 1158, 48 minutes behind schedule. Like most Indian trains it follows a long, meandering route from Kathgodam in the foothills of the Himalayas about 280 km east of Delhi,  through Delhi, Jaipur and Jodhpur to Jaisalmer a town in the Thar desert 575 miles west of Jaipur, taking a scheduled 26 hours for the journey. Leaving Jaipur we passed through some “suburbs’, not really suburbs as I tend to think of them, but individual, fairly new buildings and houses scattered apparently at random. Further out the countryside is flat, dry and dusty with a mixture of agriculture and scrubby bushes. Just a few green areas which have obviously been irrigated. The landscape didn’t change much for the duration of the journey. 

A Rare Hill in a Dry and Dusty Landscape
Arrived in Jodhpur Station less than one hour late from where I got a tuk tuk to the Bhavyam Guest House, or at least close to it. After driving along ever narrower alleys, the tuk tuk driver stopped when he could go no further and told me the guest house was up the alley to the left. I could see why he couldn’t go any further, not only was the alley narrow and steep but it had steps. Found the guest house; it's a small family run place so very different from all the other places I have stayed,  and was welcomed by Asha who seems to be in charge. Had dinner in the rooftop restaurant. It was supposed to be mushroom with cashew nuts but I couldn't taste much of either; on the plus side it did taste different from most of the other vegetable curries I've had. The walls of the Jodhpur Fort rise up behind the rooftop and I can see the lights and hear the  sounds of what I guess is a wedding celebration off to the left. There is a big illuminated building on the horizon straight ahead which I learnt later was the Maharajah's palace completed in 1943 and now a luxury hotel. Suites from around US$2000 a night. But that does include free WiFi!


Can't Get Much Closer to the Fort
Lights for Wedding Celebrations?

Maharajah's Palace in the Far Distance


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