Shivpuri Trip

After finishing Gwalior site seeing, we decided to go for a jungle safari in Shivpuri.It was once the summer capital of the Scindias.The impassable forests of this historic town were the hunting grounds of the Mughal emperors.Shivpuri is surrounded by deep woody forests that is a treasure house of rich flora and fauna.

We started our journey by taking a bus from Gwalior bus stand.It was a 2:30 hour journey covering a distance of 112 KM.The area around Gwalior to Shivpuri to quite dry with a varied landscape.On reaching Shivpuri at around noon we took our lunch(for which we had a long wait at the restaurant) and moved for Jungle Safari in Madhav National Park in a cab.

Madhav National Park was a hunting place of the Gwalior royal family and later British.It is spread over an area of 157 sq km.There is Sakhya Sagar boat club which provides boat ride.A lot of migratory bird make Vadiya Lake their home.We cruised through the park in a maruti van.We were lucky that we got to see different varities of Deers,Nilgai,Chital and migratory birds.We also saw a fox and black indian vulture very near to a recent leopard kill.The Vadiya lake is also home to some great Crocs.

From Madhav National Park we moved on to Chatri.Chatri's are the royal tomb of Scindia's surrounded by Mughal style garden and orchards.Chatri's depict the cenotaphs of late kings and queens of the Scindia clan.The monument of Madhav Rao Scindia and queen Maharani Sakhya are really attractive for their amusing Hindu and Islamic architectural styles.

After a long day of site seeing and jungle safari we took an evening bus back to Gwalior from the nearby busstand.Night was falling quickly with stars shining brightly in the clear sky.It took around 2:30 hours to reach Gwalior.We had dinner at one of the restaurants near the railway stations (though most of them were Veg Restaurants and we were looking for some non-veg stuff).Dinner was quick as everyone was hungry.We took an auto back to our hotel and there ends another eventful day of our tour.

Gwalior Trip

Being an IT guy we follow a rule "Work Hard Party Harder".So on Christmas weekend we decided to have some fun. After a lot of discussion, agreement and disagreement we 4 guys decided to go on a trip to Gwalior and its adjoining areas.So we packed our bags n off we started on a chilly 25th December early morning for Gwalior on Taj Express in chair car ticket costing Rs.100. It was unusualy crowdy in Hazrat Nizamuddin station and it seems that the whole world is moving with us.The train left at time to our relief and thus our journey started.

We reached Gwalior station at around 1 PM and checked in to a nearby hotel (Hotel Mahima Palace) and booked 2 rooms for Rs.400 each.Our first destination was Jai Vilas Palace and Museum.It is the residence of the Scindia family.Part of the residence have been converted into a museum "Jivaji Rao Scindia Museum".It showcases the executive lifestyle of the earstwhile Scindia family.The palace has been designed by an Italian architecture and its grandure can be easily identified.

Each room in the museum gives a glimpse of the royal life style and culture.I could never find the words to describe the beauty presented there whether it is the Dining room or the reading room or the children's room.Each having its own story to tell.But one thing that disturbed me was the brutal killing of the tigers and other wild fauna.Some of the Scindia family members has killed 8 tigers in one single day alone.After spending few hours in Scindia Musuem we moved to Gwalior Fort.

Gwalior Fort is one one of the highest forts in India made out of sandstone.It has been in the scene of momentous events, imprisonment, battles and jauhars . A steep road winds upwards to the fort, flanked by statues of the Jain tirthankaras, carved into the rock face. The magnificent outer walls of the fort still stand, two miles in length and 35 feet high, bearing witness to its reputation for being one of the most invincible forts of India.The major attractions on the fort are Gurjari Mahal,Gurudwara Data Bandhi,Saas-Bahu Temple,Teli-ka-mandir,Suraj Kund.It was getting dark and we still has to visit Tomb of Mohammad Ghaus and Tomb of Tansen.

With the visit to the Tomb of Tansen our exploration of Gwalior ended and we retired to our hotel dead tired but equally enthusiastic for our next day trip.