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Join Date: Apr 2018 Location: Pune Posts: 172 Thanked: 411 Times

re: Drive to the heart of incredible India - Madhya Pradesh Part 2: Jhansi - Khajuraho- Raneh Falls - Khajuraho



10 Sep:

Today's plan was to visit Jhansi fort and Orcha, then reach Khujraho by evening. But due to recent rainfalls road to Orchha was closed by local administration, so we decided to skip Orchha. Jhansi fort was just 3 KM away from our hotel and we reached there at 8.00 AM. Parking is available right outside the fort entrance and no govt official guide was available so we hired a local guide for INR 100.



This is the point from where Rani of Jhansi jumped on a horseback while fighting against Britishers





Wide walls of the fort





Bijli (Thunder) Canon





Garden of Rani. A scene from movie "Badrinath Ki Dulhania" was shot here.





Shiva Temple.







Deep thoughts

































From Jhansi, we took Jhansi – Mirzapur highway for Khajuraho. This is a lane road with many patches near MP and UP border. The bridge on Betwa river was broken, luckily a local informed us. While trying to get across the river, I followed a local on a motorcycle through an unmapped (on Gmaps) road. Initially, I was a bit afraid to follow him but when we were joined by two couples on the bike, I was able to relax. We reached Khajuraho around 2.00 PM and decided to visit western groups of Monuments. Here I have booked a room in “Hotel Isabell palace”, it’s a budget hotel just 3 KM away from temples.

While searching for parking near the temple, a guide started to pester us for hiring him to visit eastern temples. There is no decided parking and I didn’t want to park on road. So, I found an open parking space few 100 metres away from the main side and parked the car. The caretaker of property asked me to reverse park the car and this guide followed us here and again started to haggle for hiring him. I got a bit distracted and did not notice the wet surface in front of me and the car got stuck. :(



I immediately tried to reverse but right-side wheel got dug deeper into the surface. By now many locals had gathered nearby and were suggesting different ideas to excavate the car. I was planning to remove the pebbles and mud from behind the tyre but one guy suggested to tow out the car. But unfortunately, no one had a towing rope and the care-taker got a nylon rope from somewhere. I knew it would not be able to handle the stress but they were adamant on helping me.



So, we tied the towing on the back side of my car to a force traveller and tried to get the car out. As expected the rope broke and right tire was dug even deeper. Now I started to panic and started removing mud using hands. I found a broken piece of large pipe buried just behind the right front wheel. With help of iron rod somehow, we managed to dig it out and the car came out in reverse with a push from 6+ people. But clips from front rubber lip (under the bumper) was broken. I salvaged one clip and tried to fix it back, but it didn’t work. We decided to visit the temples first and get it fixed later. In the western group of temples, the only govt authorised guides are allowed and can be booked from the counter. We got Mr Prem as our guide for INR 600 and he was very knowledgeable and fun. He made the tour interesting and by the end of it I was able to differentiate between Kaama and Tantra poses, different kinds of temple build styles and the time period during which these monuments were made.

































































After the visit of the temples, I took the car to a car wash and fixed the rubber lip lid with help of elevated platform and locals.















Next day we visited the eastern group of temples. These temples were built by Jain kings and are still functioning. Unlike the western group of temples, there is no kaama/Tantra stone carving here.































Ranhe falls is approx. 20 km away from main Khujrao city, the road is very narrow but in good condition. I had to get down from the road to give a pass to oncoming vehicles. You need to pay an entry fee of INR 600 for 4-wheeler for entry into the forest area. And last 200~300 meter is mud road but easily manageable in a hatchback.























In evening we saw light show at western group of temples, with voice of Amitabbh bachchan it was awesome. Jhansi - Khajuraho- Raneh Falls - KhajurahoToday's plan was to visit Jhansi fort and Orcha, then reach Khujraho by evening. But due to recent rainfalls road to Orchha was closed by local administration, so we decided to skip Orchha. Jhansi fort was just 3 KM away from our hotel and we reached there at 8.00 AM. Parking is available right outside the fort entrance and no govt official guide was available so we hired a local guide for INR 100.This is the point from where Rani of Jhansi jumped on a horseback while fighting against BritishersWide walls of the fortBijli (Thunder) CanonGarden of Rani. A scene from movie "Badrinath Ki Dulhania" was shot here.Shiva Temple.Deep thoughtsFrom Jhansi, we took Jhansi – Mirzapur highway for Khajuraho. This is a lane road with many patches near MP and UP border. The bridge on Betwa river was broken, luckily a local informed us. While trying to get across the river, I followed a local on a motorcycle through an unmapped (on Gmaps) road. Initially, I was a bit afraid to follow him but when we were joined by two couples on the bike, I was able to relax. We reached Khajuraho around 2.00 PM and decided to visit western groups of Monuments. Here I have booked a room in “Hotel Isabell palace”, it’s a budget hotel just 3 KM away from temples.While searching for parking near the temple, a guide started to pester us for hiring him to visit eastern temples. There is no decided parking and I didn’t want to park on road. So, I found an open parking space few 100 metres away from the main side and parked the car. The caretaker of property asked me to reverse park the car and this guide followed us here and again started to haggle for hiring him. I got a bit distracted and did not notice the wet surface in front of me and the car got stuck. :(I immediately tried to reverse but right-side wheel got dug deeper into the surface. By now many locals had gathered nearby and were suggesting different ideas to excavate the car. I was planning to remove the pebbles and mud from behind the tyre but one guy suggested to tow out the car. But unfortunately, no one had a towing rope and the care-taker got a nylon rope from somewhere. I knew it would not be able to handle the stress but they were adamant on helping me.So, we tied the towing on the back side of my car to a force traveller and tried to get the car out. As expected the rope broke and right tire was dug even deeper. Now I started to panic and started removing mud using hands. I found a broken piece of large pipe buried just behind the right front wheel. With help of iron rod somehow, we managed to dig it out and the car came out in reverse with a push from 6+ people. But clips from front rubber lip (under the bumper) was broken. I salvaged one clip and tried to fix it back, but it didn’t work. We decided to visit the temples first and get it fixed later. In the western group of temples, the only govt authorised guides are allowed and can be booked from the counter. We got Mr Prem as our guide for INR 600 and he was very knowledgeable and fun. He made the tour interesting and by the end of it I was able to differentiate between Kaama and Tantra poses, different kinds of temple build styles and the time period during which these monuments were made.After the visit of the temples, I took the car to a car wash and fixed the rubber lip lid with help of elevated platform and locals.Next day we visited the eastern group of temples. These temples were built by Jain kings and are still functioning. Unlike the western group of temples, there is no kaama/Tantra stone carving here.Ranhe falls is approx. 20 km away from main Khujrao city, the road is very narrow but in good condition. I had to get down from the road to give a pass to oncoming vehicles. You need to pay an entry fee offor 4-wheeler for entry into the forest area. And last 200~300 meter is mud road but easily manageable in a hatchback.In evening we saw light show at western group of temples, with voice of Amitabbh bachchan it was awesome. Last edited by Who_are_you : 8th November 2018 at 21:24 .