Day 1
It seems that the only thing missing in Rajasthan is the sea. I
mean, Mother Nature has given it just about everything - beaches
(er, I mean the sandy desert), lush green forests, rivers, lakes,
waterfalls and even a hill-station,
Mt. Abu. We checked into the hotel after a lovely one-hour drive
up from Abu Road at the base of the hills. After a light lunch, we
went to see the Dilwara Jain Temples.
 We
had heard a lot about these profusely carved marble temples, but
no words can describe the breathtaking beauty of the Dilwara
temples, which have been carved with such delicate
intricacy that the effect is not of marble but of frilly paper
cuttings. At places, the marble has been so finely shaved that it
is actually translucent!
The worksmanship is much, much superior than the more famous Taj
Mahal or any other monument in India... or for that matter the
world. The only other place which comes close to it is
Ranakpur.
The MBA in me could not help asking about the Motivation Factor
behind it. It is said that this astonishing delicacy of carving
was achieved by offering the artisans the weight of their marble
shavings in gold... the more finely they carved, the more they
earned. Wow!
Back in Mt. Abu, we watched the sun set spectacularly between
two rocky peaks as we worked up an appetite paddling our boat in
the Nakki Lake.
In the morning we visited the various centres of
spiritual learning that dot Mt. Abu and the Achalgarh
Fort with its superb view of the surrounding plains. We
felt like taking it easy for the day and skipped going to
Guru Shikhar, the highest point in Rajasthan and
the nearby wildlife reserve with its sloth
bears.
 Instead,
we took a leisurely walk around the pretty Nakki Lake with its
charming English countryside cottages (built by the British to
escape from Rajasthan's hot, dusty plains in summers) and the
inevitable pleasure palaces of various Maharajas.
In the evening we went to Sunset Point, with its lovely view of
the surrounding hills.
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