A Royal Elephant ride at Amber fort

Amber fort is the most popular tourist attractions of Jaipur. This classic and romantic fort is a living tribute of Rajputana rulers and one of the fascinating mixtures of Rajputana and Mughal architecture. This charming fort is white marble and red sandstone, surrounded by picturesque hills. There is a beautiful Maotha lake in the foreground of the fort which heightens the scenic beauty to it.

The elephant ride is the center of attraction for tourists and the most royal and thrilling way to reach at this hilltop fort. This stunning fort is blessed with several attractions like huge halls, majestic palaces, beautiful temples and gorgeous green gardens. 

These wonderful animals are specially decorated by their loving Mahouts. Elephants are washed, painted and clothed with colorful and embroidered saddle cloth. The Mahouts embellish them with the heavy jewellery like tinkle anklets, Ear danglers and coloured brocade scarves for their ears and necks. Their foreheads are adorned with the gold and silver head-plates.

 

Amber Fort View

 This chance to sit on the elephants back on the top of hills is a great experience like the ride of royalty once the kings of Rajasthan did. There are around 80 elephants but for a guarantee ride tourists should visit early in the morning before 9am. To avoid the over work of the elephants the Jaipur government fix a limit to the total number of rounds each elephant can do in a day. Each elephant is fixed to three rounds with a rest period and can carry only 2 passengers with driver or Mahout.

 

Amber Fort Inner View

The ride starts from the main road courtyard to the fort and it takes approximately 20-30 minutes as elephant walk slowly up the hillside. This slow moving animal will give you the complete chance to enjoy the path of rocks and also give you a splendid outlook of the magnificent classic fort. 

This huge and vivacious fort was initiated by King Man Singh 1 and finally completed by Jay Singh 1. There are a number of captivating attractions in Amber fort including Diwan-i-Am or Hall of Public Audience. This hall is known for its design, and decoration. Shila Mata Temple, famous for its black colour deity (Kali Mata), Jai Mander, Sheesh Mahal and Jas Mandir are the prime attraction of this gigantic fort.

Timings

The rides start early in the morning (approx 7.30 AM) and finishes up before the sun gets hot (approx 11 AM).

Number of Persons

·         Minimum 1 person

·         Maximum 2 persons

Cost –Rs 1, 000  to 1,200 for two people.

Duration - Approximately 20-30 minutes (depending on elephant traffic!)

Majestic Hill Forts Of Rajasthan - Included In World Heritage Sites by UNESCO

All people living in this world almost have heard about the beauty and historic culture of Rajasthan. The state is very popular for its historic beauty because many rulers have ruled in the different cities of Rajasthan. Due to this they had constructed many forts and palaces for their living. But after their death, these forts and palaces became tourists’ places because of their beauty. To prevent the natural and cultural beauty of Rajasthan forts is the duty of the people because one cannot get these forts built again.

Gagron Fort (Image by William Warren on Flickr)

Kumbhalgadh Fort (Image by Tushar Dayal on Flickr)

Six majestic hill forts of Rajasthan Gagron Fort, Kumbhalgarh Fort, Amber Fort, Jaisalmer Fort, Chittorgarh Fort and Ranthambore Fort have been included in UNESCO world heritage sites. Aim of putting these forts in world heritage sites is to prevent its value universally. They are included in UNESCO world heritage sites after the approval in 37th meeting of ‘World Heritage’ committee in Cambodia. After the addition of these forts in heritage sites, they will receive the international recognition by the efforts of UNESCO.

Amber Fort (Image by Anthony Gurr on Flickr)

Jaisalmer Fort (Image by Wolfgang on Flickr)

 

All these forts are surrounded by various landscapes of deserts, dense forests, hills and rivers for the defense of the forts. They have water harvesting structures that are still in use today. Six hill forts reflect the power of Rajputs and their political independence.

Chittorgadh Fort (Image by Sandeepgill47 on Flickr)

Vijay Stambh - Tower of Victory in Chittorgarh Fort (Image by Amit Rawat on Flickr )

Ranthambore Fort (Image by TuAnh Nguyen on Flickr)

Forts have several unique properties and for this reason they join UNESCO world heritage sites. Its universal values are:-

Integrity

These six forts form the complete group when seen in a series and demonstrate the properties of universal value without depending on future addition of any forts to the series.

Authenticity

All these forts depict the history, culture and bravery of ancient ruler of Rajasthan. The authenticity of the forts is maintained even today because of their originality in the basic architecture.

Cultural Beauty

The six forts when combined show their eternal beauty all over the world. All of them attract people throughout the world.

Great architecture

All these forts depict the great art and culture of the states and represent the glory of their rulers. These buildings are very good epitomes of art and architecture.

Due to these properties, six Rajasthan hill forts join UNESCO world heritage sites. When UNESCO declared this news, all ‘Rajasthanis’ have celebrated the feeling of happiness together. As soon as this announcement has spread over the state, great enthusiasms have been seen on the faces of all people of Rajasthan.

Following the blog ABC Wednesday for "W"