Chittorgarh (March 12-13)

And now, brought to you by Lori and John, another whirlwind tour........

Alright, so after a quick 2.5 hour train ride from Bundi, we arrived in Chittorgarh (Chittor), found a guest house, hit the fort in a rickshaw, returned to our room for a break, dined and found the nearest internet cafe..... tomorrow a.m. we head for Udaipur! There is so much left to see in Rajasthan before we leave April 4th!

This town is known for being the previous capital as well as the home of Rajasthan's largest fort - 28 square kms to be exact! Within it's seven gates and extensive wall, are nestled numerous palaces, temples and towers... there have been many contributors to the structures here beginning in the 8th century and technically up to present day (with lapses in between ;D). There has also been a lot of restoration - all this is evidenced by the shade of the stones and the sharpness of the carvings.



Here below is the stunning view of the valley and surrounding plateaus just outside the 7th gate - this is where all the battles occurred. Hard to believe now as it is productive farmland.

This Tower of Victory stands 9 stories tall and is absolutely stunning - the detailed carving inside and out is remarkable - from ceilings and doorways to walls and window screens - all are carved from stone, much of which is worn shiny from thousands of hands and feet through the centuries.

Much was destroyed due to the town being sacked three times in its history. The stories tell of how on these 3 occasions on which it had been attacked by invading Muslim armies and how when it looked like they weren't going to be able to hold it, the Rajput Muslim people committed their own version of hari-kari....the women burning themselves on a pyre while the men road out of the fort and into the enemy fighting till the last man was gone!

Hard to imagine such a large fort being pummeled 3 times....