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Day 3 – Fly to Jodhpur. Stay at Umaid Bhawan. Sightseeing.
The 15th century city of Jodhpur, known as the ‘Blue City’ stands at the edge of Thar Desert. The city is totally dominated by a massive fort sprawled across a 125m high hill known as Meherangarh Fort, founded by Rao Jodha in 15th century. . |
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Day 4 and 5 – Drive to Jaisalmer (about 5 hours). Stay at Fort Rajwada. Sightseeing. Camel safari.
Deep in the heart of the Thar Desert is Jaisalmer, one of the last princely bastions in the region. Visit Jaisalmer fort which is the only ‘living fort’ of India with local people living in the fort, which was built in 1156 by Rawal Jaisal. The Fort crowns the 80m high Trikuta Hill. About a quarter of the old city’s population resides within the fort walls. Also visit some of the Havelis, like the Patwon ki Haveli, Salim Singh ki Haveli and Nathmal ki Haveli. In the evening experience the famous Jaisalmer Sunset, perhaps the most colorful display in the world. Take a camel safari. Dine on the sand dunes. |
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Day 6 – Drive to Bikaner (about 5 hours). Stay at Laxmi Vilas Palace.
The desert town of Bikaner is surrounded by a high crenellated wall, and was once an important staging post on the great caravan trade routes. Visit Junagarh Fort, constructed between 1588- 1593 by Raja Raj Singh, a general in the army of the Mughal emperor, Akbar, the fort has a 986m long wall with 37 bastions and two entrances. |
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Day 7 and 8 – Drive to Jaipur (about 5 hours) via Shekhawati town of Fatehpur. Stay at Samode Haveli. Sightseeing. Shopping.
The semi-desert Shekhawati region, well known for its frescoes, lies in the triangular area between Delhi, Jaipur and Bikaner. In Fatehpur visit the Choudharia Haveli with well-preserved paintings and also the Haveli Nadine, formerly known as the Nand Lal Devra Haveli. French artist Nadine Le Prince purchased this haveli in 2000 and she is restoring the haveli. The facade retains some paintings, predominantly in tones of red and blue.
In Jaipur visit Jantar Mantar, an observatory which is equipped with instruments of astonishing size and precision, including a 90ft high sun dial which is remarkably accurate. See the ornate and elaborate Palace of Winds, the Hawa Mahal, a famous landmark of Jaipur and the City Palace museum. Drive past the Moti-Doongri Palace, Ram Niwas Gardens and the Albert Hall museum. Excursion to Amber Fort, a superb example of Rajput architecture, stunningly situated on a hillside and overlooking a lake which reflects its terraces and ramparts. |
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Day 9 – Drive to Agra (about 4 hours) via Fatehpur Sikri. Stay at Oberoi Amarvilas.
En route visit Fatehpur Sikri (one hour from Agra), the once-fabled Mogul capital that has taken on a sleeping beauty quality, lying quietly but wonderfully preserved. Visit the Taj Mahal, more than once, to catch its many moods. Also visit Red Fort, Ramaswami temple at Dayalbagh, and watch the craftsmen at work.
Day 10 – Drive to Delhi. Stay at the Imperial. |
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Day 11, 12, 13 and 14 – Fly to Leh. Stay at Hotel Dragon or similar.
For centuries, Leh and the surrounding Ladakh region were part of Tibet. The Silk Route ran through Leh. It is an 'other-worldly' place with gompas perched on soaring hilltops, and ancient palaces clinging to sheer rock walls. Leh at a height of 3,500m is the main entry point to this region. The Ladhak and Zanskar valleys are a trekker's delight
YOU WILL NEED A DAY FOR ACCLIMATIZATION |
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Day 12 - Leh
Morning visit Leh city, a fascinating labyrinth of winding streets & quaint bazaars. The stroll through the town is followed by a visit to Sankar gompa, about 2 km from the market. It has a number of pure gold icons and richly painted walls, its pictures depicting different stories. On the other side of the town, up a winding road, lies the Ladakh Shanti Stupa.This is a modern structure, built in 1985 by a Japanese Buddhist order.Leh is surrounded by picturesque locales, easily accessible and adding to the whole experience of a holiday in Ladakh. |
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Day 13 - Leh
Visit Stok Palace and Matho Monastery.
When monarchy was abolished in Ladakh, the royal family was compensated by the palace in Stok. The palace, built in 1814, houses rare royal ornaments in its museum. There is a superb collection of thankas, said to be the best in the world. Some of them have been worked in pure gold and paints made of crushed semi-precious stones.. Stok Gompa is a subsidiary of Spitok belonging to the yellow-hat sect of Buddhism and currently has about 20 lamas living there.
Situated on the opposite bank of the Indus, across Thikse, 20km south of Leh, Matho was established in the first half of the 16th century AD, and has a valuable collection of very old and beautiful thankas, some in the form of ‘mandalas’ |
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Day 14 - Leh
Drive to Shey, Thiksey and Hemis to explore some of Ladakh's
ancient gompas.
Deldan Namgyal as a summer residence built Shey Palace in 1645 for the kings of Ladakh. It is the oldest palace in Ladakh and above the palace is an even older ruined fortress. In 1655, in memory of his father, this same king built the two-storey Shey gompa adjacent to the palace. |
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Located on the second storey of the gompa is a large Buddha statue made in 1655 by a Nepalese sculptor who was assisted by three Ladakhi craftsmen. The seated Buddha is 12m high and worked of copper sheets gilded with gold. This Buddha is the biggest metal statue in the region
Thiksey Gompa is the most picturesquely situated monastery in Ladakh, perched high on a hill above the Indus. Its buildings are arranged at various levels, leading up to the private apartments of the incarnate lamas on the summit. From here one commands a magnificent view of the valley.
A new temple contains a 15m tall Buddha statue, constructed in 1970 to commemorate a visit to Thiksey by the Dalai Lama. The statue, made of clay and covered with gold paint, is the largest Buddha figure in Ladakh and took four years to construct. Inside, the statue is filled with the Kandshur and the Tandshur - volumes of Buddhist canonical texts. |
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Hemis Gompa is one of the most important in Ladakh, the largest and also the wealthiest. The king-architect Singe Namgyal, a great patron of Buddhism, built it in 1620. He filled Hemis with golden statues, stupas set with precious stones and thankas brought from many places, including Tibet.
Although only about a dozen lamas actually live here, Hemis has several hundred lamas attached to its subsidiary monasteries.
OPTIONAL EXCURSIONS - Village Skara, renowned for its local archery contests.
Nubra Valley – with its reddish mountain peaks. Look out for the rare double humped Bactrian camel.
Day 15 – Fly to Delhi. Stay at the Imperial.
Day 16 – Flight to onward destination. |
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