Manali – Delhi – Alwar (overnight bus and train)
This time there were no traumas or catastrophes when catching the bus. The express service was worryingly empty so it morphed into a slow local service for the first 100kms. Once the bus was full it was time to get our heads down and try and snooze to Delhi. Ah! That’ll be the DVD player going on then! A Bollywood version of Fight Club was not really what we had in mind but luckily the volume control was broken, on very quiet, so it didn’t bother us. Still we couldn’t get comfy so the journey was long, tedious but mercifully uneventful. We might have been on good roads by now but have you witnessed the driving in India?!!
We were dumped in some out of city bus station and all attempts to find the bus to Alwar were in vain. In fact no one was listening to us and assumed we wanted to go to Agra. We thought we’d got the message through and were told to jump onto a bus that was just leaving the station. Luckily Steve thought to ask again and it turned out that he wasn’t going to Alwar at all. Ah – the joys of Delhi! We never did get any sense out of anyone so decided to go to the train station instead. We knew there was a tourist ticket office there so would be able to talk to someone sensible and book a seat.
After much haggling with numerous tuc-tuc drivers we eventually made our way to New Delhi Railway Station. We were too early for the ticket office so was pounced on by ticket touts. They were all shouting; Agra, Jaipur, Udaipur and on saying Alwar we were met with stony silences. It got them off our backs while waiting for the ticket office to open though! The bloke in the ticket office had to be seriously coerced into giving us Alwar train information. Come on chief, it’s your job. It turned out that the next train would be going from OLD Delhi Railway Station at 11am. So we returned to the madness outside the station to bargain for another tuc-tuc. Luckily there was a pre-paid booth but we were still getting hassled left, right and centre. One particularly persistent chap was determined that we would be using his taxi service to Agra. Listen mate – we want a train and we want to go to Alwar!
By this time everyone was up and Delhi was in full swing. We crawled through the thronged, polluted streets seriously wishing we back in the mountains. Once at the old railway station things calmed down a little and people left us in peace. We were fed up of trawling the bags around so I found a quiet spot while Steve went to make enquiries. He got passed from counter to counter, went through the Alwar not Agra routine on each occasion, before finally gleaning the necessary information. There was an express train at 11.45am and we’d be able to book a seat at 9.45am. Fine we’d sit and watch the world go by with a brew.
You didn’t really think that was the end of it did you?!! By the time 9.45am came around the next hurdle to jump was completing a booking form. Fine but we couldn’t complete most of it as we didn’t know the name or number of the train. Finally the forms were filled in and Steve queued yet again only to find the computer system had crashed – come back at 10.30am. You’re catching up aren’t you? Yes, the system was still down, so we had to buy a ticket for cattle class and hope we could upgrade once we were on board. The train eventually put in an appearance at 12.05pm but the coach code on our ticket didn’t correspond to any that were on the carriages. There was no way we were going to squeeze into third class, where we should have been, so stood in between 2 sleeper class carriages. As luck would have it I spotted an empty luggage rack with the middle shelf missing. Bags on top and us on the bottom with the door open for a view – grand!
Our ingenious seating arrangement caused many a stare but luckily the ticket inspector didn’t move us. They shifted plenty of others though. As the train filled up more and more people were opting for roof-top travel. Mind you, the lathi (stick) wielding guards were on board by this time, and were actively trying to prevent open air seating. I would hazard a guess that the majority of them were fare dodgers. Never a dull moment in India!
Alwar is most definitely off the tourist trail but luckily we found one decent place to stay, namely Alwar Hotel. It was much more expensive than anticipated but truly clean sheets and fluffy towels for the first time in 3 weeks made it worth every rupee. Plus we had a fridge and Ashes cricket on the TV. We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around Alwar seeing what it had to offer. Not a great deal to be honest but it was lovely to be able to wander around without being hassled. As Indian towns go this one is very clean and relaxed. The locals were curious and wanted to say hello but only to be friendly. That evening we found a little garden eatery, New Tourist Hotel, which served up some very tasty rice, curry and naan bread all washed down with a cool Kingfisher.
The main reason for venturing into off season Alwar was to visit the nearby Sriska Tiger Reserve. We’d read conflicting accounts as to whether or not they actually have any tigers. Some reports claim they were poached to extinction a number of years ago while others say that tigers have been re-introduced recently. We were hoping the latter was true but the park itself looked worth visiting, as there is a fort and temple within its boundaries. On getting to the local bus station we were quickly pointed in the right direction, boarded the bus and instantly set off. The journey through rural Rajasthan was lovely and we were feeling positive about the day ahead. Once again the locals helped us out and made sure we got off the bus at the right place.
Why did the reserve have a decidedly shut feel to it? Ah! That’ll be because it was shut! The board outside the park and all the tinterweb information said it was open all year round. Apparently not anymore! We were soon back on the bus and heading back to Alwar wondering what to do for the rest of the day. We decided to jump off the bus near the turnoff for Siliserh Lake Palace Hotel, walk the 4kms to the hotel and treat ourselves to a nice lunch. It was a very pleasant walk through countryside and farmland with friendly welcomes from all we passed. An added bonus was seeing loads of birds, fruit bats, macaques and langurs – probably all we’d have seen in Sariska to be honest.
On rounding the final bend we eventually reached the Lake Palace Hotel, it had obviously been a grand building in its time. Restoration work was in progress but we were told the restaurant was still open. We paid our entrance fee only to find the restaurant in tatters. We eventually secured some cool drinks and dragged a couple of chairs onto the terrace to enjoy the view. There was no way we were going to get anything to eat so we walked back down the lane and found a simple eatery that served up dhal and chapattis. We were almost back to the main road when a tempo, bound for Alwar, pulled up so we jumped in. Tempos are basically oversized stretch tuc-tucs that can hold up to 20 people both inside and balanced on the roof. Luckily ours wasn’t too busy but it was incredibly old. Every time we hit bumps in the road we felt sure parts of it would start falling off! The day might not have panned out the way we hoped but we enjoyed pottering around none-the-less. Sometimes it pays to stay on the tourist trail.
Neemrana
We went for a change of style for the last 2 days of our holiday. No more local buses and nights in tents for us – oh no! We organised a 2-day car hire with driver to bring us to our final destination and then take us to the airport. We enjoyed the short 75km trip from Alwar to Neemrana as travel in India is far from dull. Women in brightly coloured saris tending the crops and carrying huge bundles of grass home balanced on their heads. Observing the daily, who can cram the most passengers into whichever mode of transport, was closest to hand. Add in the erratic driving and variety of vehicles; buses, trucks, tuc-tucs, cycle rickshaws, bullock carts, camels carts etc, etc. Then there’s the suicidal animals choosing to cross the road at the most inappropriate moment and so on. See what I mean?
We reached Neemrana in good time but were disappointed to find ourselves driving through an industrial estate. We were headed for Neemrana Fort Palace Hotel and had been led to believe it was on the outskirts of Neemrana village. A collective sigh of relief followed on spotting a sign for the hotel and realising we were in the wrong part of town. Sure enough the signs took us away from the industry and into a narrow-laned, old village. We’d seen an imposing looking building, on a hillside from some kilometres away, and could only hope it was our hotel. Following our experience at Siliserh we were still a little apprehensive. All our fears evaporated on climbing up the hotel’s approach road.
We reached the enormous, impressive gateway and were instantly greeted by helpful, friendly staff. They checked our names were on the guest list, promptly took our luggage and asked us to proceed to reception. We had to be semi checked in at this point as the hotel gets many people just wanting to come in for a wander. To prevent the place from being overrun by sightseers an entrance fee of Rs500/= is charged. Why so much? Neemrana Fort Palace was initially built in 1464 and various rulers have lived in it through the ages. Eventually it became too expensive to maintain, the facade crumbled and the ramparts began to give way. In 1986 the hotel chain acquired it for restoration and it took them 20 years to restore the place to the fantastic hotel / living museum it is today. Now this place really does have character and old-world charm.
The rooms vary considerably and of course the prices reflect that. All creature comforts have been provided wherever possible but you are asked to remember you are in an historical palace. Some may say that it’s a little rough around the edges but we felt it was all part of the experience. To justify classing itself in the ‘top hotels’ category extensive work was undertaken to build a huge new wing that includes a pool. It’s easy to spot the new stone work and so on but the whole thing has been built in the original style and blends in superbly well. This new section is where all the ultra-modern air conditioned rooms are to be found. We knew we’d gone for none A/C as off season it meant a 40% discount on the room rate, making it affordable for us. We’d booked the room so far in advance that neither of us could remember its name or category – we could only hope it was in the old section.
We arrived at the hotel early, even so we checked in but had to wait for the room to be available. We stashed our bags in the luggage store and set off to explore. Clambering up the first narrow staircase we stumbled upon we found ourselves on a terrace right at the front of the hotel. On trying to order a coffee we were pointed towards a self-service counter that turned out to be complimentary. I just about managed to sit still long enough to finish my brew before I was up and ready to explore.
To describe the place as a labyrinth of passageways, alcoves and seemingly secret staircases is a huge understatement. We filled the 2 hours we had to wait for our room to be ready without even trying. We explored passageways, staircases, terraces and turrets to our heart’s content and found umpteen private seating areas. At every turn there was another surprise or delight. Many of the original features such as nooks and crannies for storage, lighting and religious icons have been maintained. Wherever possible; trees and flowers have been planted to add texture, colour and shade. The pool area was the only part of the 11 levelled rambling building that was busy. Understandably so – it was very hot and we planned to be cooling off in there before too long. However, follow and few twists and turns and investigate a ‘hidden’ stairway and sure enough you’ll find another quiet, private seating area.
On eventually working our way back to the main entrance we were told that our room was ready. Luckily it wasn’t too difficult to find and on descending one of the few staircases we’d missed earlier we found ourselves facing a superb old wooden door. The room actually opened up into the bathroom with the loo in an old archway and the shower in a mini turret. Sounds odd doesn’t it? However, just before you reached the sink there was a very narrow staircase leading down into the main bedroom chamber. The bedroom was so narrow that the double we’d booked turned out to be 2 single beds placed head to head along the inner wall. The entire length of the other wall consisted of latticed, shuttered windows that looked out onto the gardens at the front of the hotel. At the end of the galley bedroom we found another small flight of steps leading up to our very own private turret. The views from in there were amazing and it was great to open all the windows, to receive the maximum breeze, while ensconced on the padded windows seats.
Steve was highly delighted to discover that the room had been designed with me in mind i.e. everything was in miniature! The shower head was even slightly too low for me to stand under at full height, the writing table and stool were perfect for me and the wardrobe was so small that Steve’s shirt was too long to hang up inside! It was the most amazing, charming room we’ve ever stayed in and all for 25 quid B&B including complimentary brews, high tea on the terrace and cultural show. How many of you can say you’ve spent the night in a 15th Century Fort Palace?
All too soon it was time to head to the airport and fly back to KL. We’d had a fantastic holiday. Not only did we get to experience this fabulous place but we trekked through some of the most amazing mountains we’ve ever seen and reached the heady height of 6153m. Finally, don’t forget that bus ride; it led to me write almost 4000 words! The Indian Himalayan experience might be over, and finally recorded in this journal, but rest assured there’ll be more travel tales to follow.
Travel information
If you fancy a Raj experience, check out www.neemranahotels.com they have great and unusual hotels across India and they are a bargian out of season.
