Bundi

So tonight I reside in a town called Bundi. I'm staying in a delightful little haveli. I arrived late last night and didn't get a glimpse of the town.

he room I'm in feels like a guest room of a family house. The double bed tucked into the corner dominates the room. Other pieces of furniture are two cane chairs and a coffee table in the opposite corner. The walls behind the bed and near the chairs have inlaid shelves and these are decorated with various Rajasthan-related tourist material and the odd peacock feather. Above the shelves are typical paintings from this part of the world. The feature though, is an elaborate 3d picture of Rama & Sita. The part which makes it a genuine room in a haveli - and not a hotel room - is the lack of a tv. In Porbander I stayed in a single room for Rs.150 per night, which came with, even at that rate, a tv and 50 million channels!

But to really drive home the effect last night was probably the best i've slept since leaving Bangalore. I felt like I was home!

The haveli is itself very impressive. Somehow despite the heat outside, inside it's quite chilled. As you enter there's a central courtyard surrounded by rooms. The second floor follows the same design only that instead of the courtyard, one can see straight through to the ground floor. Above the second floor is the terrace, with it's roof top café.

So like I said, I arrived late in the night and didn't see much. So when I went to the café for breakfast imagine my astonishment when confronted with this...(pic will come later!)

And I haven't seen the palace or the fort yet. That's tomorrow along with Sukh Mahal, the place where Kipling stayed while writing Kim.

PS I just came back from dinner(at 2130), and the front door was closed but not locked. As I walked in it felt as though I came home really late after a night out!