Monsoon magic in Malshej Ghat

 A trip to the state of Maharashtra during the monsoon was long due in the bucket list. Of course, a trek to any one of the innumerable forts of the state was the ideal way to relish the true beauty of the place.  But gradual research had revealed that many of them were quite demanding in terms of physical strength and stamina. And we were definitely not in the mind set for a trek this time. After lot of contemplation about several forts and ghats, the list was brought down to two places: Lohagad fort (that was considered ‘easy’ in terms of difficulty level) and Malshej ghat (to enjoy the scenic view of uncountable number of waterfalls).

A separate blogpost will follow for more details on Lohagad fort. I am sticking to Malshej ghat for this one.

Since it was third in our list of itinerary, the drive to Malshej had started at the base of Lohagad fort and had passed through Lonavala and Khandala. The winding roads of the ghat and the backdrop against which the buildings stood during the drive had made us stop several times. The building complexes looked like tiny, packed boxes against the background of lush green mountains with crevices made exclusively for waterfalls. I envied the people who had a chance to live those buildings with such a view to behold each day of the monsoon.

A 3-hour drive of 130 kms in drizzling rain along the way and a late afternoon snack of vada pav had brought us to the base of Malshej ghat. The whole stretch of road bore the colours in shades of green and the hillocks that rose between them added a new dimension and depth to the landscape. It was the first trip where we (my daughter and I) shot the most number of videos instead of photos. 

Breathtaking view throughout the way...

Malshej is often referred to as the Rain Traveller's Abode. Its numerous lakes, waterfalls and mountains make it a favourite spot among trekkers and local tourists. Harishchandragad fort and Kalu waterfall trek are the most famous treks around this region which we hope to complete sometime in future. Malshej is one of the numerous mountain passes in the Sahyadri mountain ranges. In historic times, it was used by Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj to gain access to Deccan plateau.

Though most travellers from Mumbai and Pune make a one-day trip to the place (weekends being an exception), we had decided to stay at the base of the ghat and spend the next day exploring the whole stretch of ghat. 

After reaching the base village, we were definitely tempted to drive towards the ghat for once. We were sure that the crowd would be very less since it was a weekday. Though thick fog enveloped the stretch, we drove another 10 kms ahead of our hotel and stopped at various small waterfalls for a quick play. Eventually, the visibility grew so low that we had to drive back. 

Various viewpoints at Malshej Ghat

Casa De Recurso, the hotel hidden amidst the lush greens of the place, were very good hosts with compact rooms and delicious food served at night. 

The reminder that the following day was a Saturday and we had to avoid the crowd had driven us out of our beds and to be back on road. And as expected the crowd was dense and the fog very similar to previous evening. We drove through various viewpoints that are thoughtfully constructed. The best among them being the Car Wash point (where the water from cliff falls directly onto the roof of the car while driving) and the Tunnel point. The end point of these viewpoints is the place where the MTDC hotel is located further which is the Pimpalgaon Joga backwater, highly popular for camping. It is the location to reach the base village Khubi Phata for the most spectacular Kalu Waterfall trek (which is still in the bucket list).  

Pimpalgaon Joga lake and dam

By late afternoon, the fog lifted and revealed us sights unmatched by anything else. There were shades of green as far as our eyes could see which was broken by either the white waterfalls or the brown mountains. After completing the journey by late afternoon, we had devoured on a meal of Bhakri and Thecha (a Maharashtrian specialty chutney) only to end the journey on a bad note with a lost network and maps and losing our way towards Pune. With low fuel and no petrol bunks near our sight, we drove towards Thane instead of Pune. When we thought things were getting under control, we were stuck in a traffic on the expressway due to the long weekend madness! 

Village scenes from Malshej ghat

The landscape enveloped in fog 

A small video of the foggy drive ...

Laxmi Vilas Palace, Vadodara

The sole purpose of traveling to Vadodara during a family trip to Ahmedabad was to visit Laxmi Vilas Palace and Tambekar wada. If you have missed reading about Tambekar wada, read it here. 

A less than two hours drive from Ahmedabad through the immaculate Expressway had taken us to the city of 'Banyan trees'. Vadodara- is believed to be a corrupt form of the Sanskrit word 'Vatodar' that means belly of a Banyan tree. The British changed its name to Baroda to ease the pronunciation. But, in1974 it was renamed Vadodara. The wide and clean roads of  Vadodara that sit on the banks of Vishwamitri River had welcomed us to our first stop of that day- the Laxmi Vilas Palace. 

Built on a whopping 700 acres of land, the Laxmi Vilas Palace is reputed to be four times the size of Buckingham Palace. The palace was built during the reign of Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III in 1890 with an estimated cost of 180,000 pounds. Interestingly, Maharaja Sayajirao was the first Indian ruler to introduce compulsory and free education in 1906. 

The Maharaja named the palace after his third wife, Rani Laxmibai from Tanjore. Set inside a sprawling ground replete with greenery and golf courses, it was initially designed by Major Charles Mant who had designed the palace in Kolhapur. However, the Major committed suicide out of guilt later convinced that the palace would not be stable but the palace withstood the tests of time and proved Mant to be wrong. Later, the palace was completed by Robert Fellowes.

It was originally built for only two people-the royal couple, with astonishingly 170 rooms in it! The palace architecture is a perfect blend of Indo Sarcenic architecture- with Mughal styled domes, Hindu and Jain motifs, and towers that resemble European style. The stones came from as far as Pune, Ajmer, and Agra. The palace's façade is made of golden stones from Songarh mines that give it a distinctive golden shine in dark and in the early morning. It is an amalgamation of details from nativity with a room for modern comfort and amenities. 

The royal family still resides in the palace, hence only a few sections of the palace are open to the public. About 10 sections to be more precise. The sections that are open to the public include the Durbar Hall, Gaddi/Coronation Hall, the Royal Armory/ Pratap Shastragarh, the Museum, and the Gardens. 

The Durbar Hall is exquisite with chandeliers (sadly they were all covered in white cloth)and bright Belgian stained glass windows. This engineering marvel which is 95 feet long was built without any supporting pillars. The first floor of the hall has intricately carved jharokhas.  

The Coronation Hall is special as it has some of the most sought-after paintings from Raja Ravi Verma. In 1881, Raja Ravi Verma was invited by Sir. R. Madhavrao, the British Regent of the State of Vadodara, to paint the ceremonial portrait of Sayajorao III, the Gaekwad of Baroda. A special studio was created for him in the palace. During this stay, Raja Ravi Verma painted two dozens of paintings depicting episodes from the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, and a good number of life-like portraits of the royal family. Paintings like Nala-Daayanthi, Radha-Madhava, Shantanu-Matsyagandhi are some of the examples that are on display in the Coronation Hall. Check out the family portraits created by Raja Ravi Verma in the following link 

The armory or Pratap Shastrgar houses some unique sword collections. There are charts depicting different parts of a sword. The Sunken Gardens, is the famous garden located just outside the mansion. A little walk in the garden, and pass through the fountain to get a panoramic view of the entire palace. 

Some facts to be aware of for planning  a visit to the palace

Photography inside the palace is strictly prohibited.

Audio guides are available that take you through  the rooms and corridors of the palace as well as back in time to tell you stories about the rajas.

The entrance ticket is exorbitantly priced! Can't expect it to be reasonable like the Government property. WE have had similar experiences at Bangalore Palace. 

The staff is very rude.