Bundi

There is something charming about the old city of Bundi, admittedly it could do with a bit of brush and polish!    Not so many tourists visit,  the main attraction is the Bundi School of Mogul paintings in the old crumbling Palace, plus the surrounding countryside.

We stayed at Nawal Sargar, formerly part of the royal palace.   Good choice.  Right in the middle of town with a garden over looking the lake.   Nice place to sit, eat and relax.

With only a few days to go before Diwali the market was bustling.   

new bangles

all the old bangles, except two, are cut off

the new set is separated and, one by one, heated on

charcoal, a piece cut out (to fit?) and placed on the arm

the bangle is pushed together to form a circle then

manipulated between the two old bangles

eventually the last two original bangles are cut off

so may decorations to choose from

A trip to the Villages - every village has it's own distinct dialect and local crafts as well as being set is rich fertile farming land.  The Basmati rice was ready for harvesting, one of the major crops in this area.

SATOOR

Mostly traditional houses here with very few modern monstrosities.   It has a feeling of calm and peacefulness - and lots of children!

the village potter

and his wife - fascinating watching her decorate the pots

with a simple brush divided into two, using white clay. 

 Circles, lines, squiggles and dots produced with in seconds

typical houses

look, quilts drying on a roof!

this next to the dhobi ghat which also has separate area for men and woman

to bathe.    So you do you washing, hang it out to dry and have fun with you 

friend splashing about in the water

part 2 very shortly

in need of a cup of chai

the connection is a bit slow/tedious!