FOOD&TRAVEL
LEFT: LEELA PALACE HOTEL, UDAIPUR. ABOVE: ADINATHA JAIN TEMPLE, UDAIPUR
provides a good alternative to shopping, especially since in the Old Delhi market, ‘shopping’ means perching precariously on bicycle rickshaws, becoming part of the crazy traffic system. Before setting off for Udaipur we visit the ancient Qutub Minar, a tomb built in 1199 and now a Unesco World Heritage site. If your time is limited in Delhi, it’s the one site you must see. ‘You gotta love my Banynan tree,’ says Reggie Sing, our handsome host, cousin of the Maharajah of Jodhpur and a larger-thanlife throw back to the days of the Raj. Sitting in a garden at a massive table laden with food, we are being waited on by men wearing army uniforms and saffron festival turbans. It is a scene straight from a Bollywood movie and we are grateful for the shade of Reggie’s Banynan tree (we have already drunk two large Pimm’s, mixed by the man himself). A Van Morrison CD blasts out from the colonial-style bungalow lounge into the surrounding valley and mountains. We have popped in to The Mountbatten Lodge on our way to visit the Jain Temple at
Ranakpur. If you go, ask Reggie to tell the story of how he just missed out on becoming a king. Glorious though it is, I wouldn’t advise drinking two large Pimm’s before visiting the extraordinary Adinatha Jain Temple; it makes negotiating the 24 pillared halls and focusing on the extravagant detail of the 1444 marble pillars that bit trickier. But this is an experience of ‘old’ India which is simply unbeatable. We are lucky to be travelling over the wedding season when young brides dress in red saris and walk in giggling gangs to the local village to make their matrimonial purchases. We come across dashing grooms riding proudly on decorated horses behind processions of local musicians and karaoke vans blasting out Bollywood hits. Seen from the car, you get a clue as to village activity from the colour of the turbans worn by the bare-chested locals: red for shepherds, green for carpenters, gold for priests. Back at Leela Palace, on the shores of the romantic Lake Pichola, just in time to watch the sun set over Udaipur City Palace, I think to myself, it doesn’t get much better than this – then my iPad packs up.
Reception immediately sends a sort of cyber butler – a charming young chap with a degree in IT, who arrives to fix it. I stand on the balcony and watch another young chap dressed in the traditional long kuta shirt, waving a flag and chasing pigeons in the grounds of a neighbouring hotel. I am told these professional pigeon chasers are employed to save buildings from the birds’ droppings for it is against the Hindu religion to put spikes on the buildings for fear of injury. Though of similar ages, the pigeon chaser confidently preserves the best of ancient India, whilst the cyber butler shapes a part of her future. Suddenly, a pair of those fat pointless birds land on my balcony. I find myself thinking that actually, they are really quite pretty. A 7 night trip to Delhi and Udaipur costs from £2,350 per person with 2 nights at The Leela Palace New Delhi and 5 nights at The Leela Palace Udaipur, based on 2 adults sharing, including return economy class flights and transfers. To book contact abercrombiekent.co.uk/ 0845 618 2214. theleela.com 97
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