Another day, another early start. This time the local bus was waiting for us in front of the hotel, which made the commute easier. It was still cold but not as cold as the local train. The chair were very comfortable also and between sleeping and snaking on Chocopie biscuits, the 8 hours ride from Jaisalmer to Jodhpur passed faster.
Prepare your trip to India with the Lonely Planet guides. Click on the photos see the more details:
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We arrived in Jodhpur in the afternoon and we didn’t have a lot of time before arriving to the hotel and leaving for the Mehrangarh fort. We were to have only half a day in the second biggest city of Rajasthan and the plan was to zip-line at sunset. I hesitated because of my fear of flights but in the end I told myself that it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to “fly” above a fort in India so I did it.
The zip-line centre is located inside the fort and by doing this at sunset you get to wonder around a bit alone, without the tourists inside, at the end. Flying Fox has been operating in Jodhpur for over 10 years now and they appear even in the Lonely Planet as one of the best activities in the area. They have 6 zip-lines that sum 300 meters in total and pass over 2 lakes. We also trekked through the Rao Jodha eco-park while going from one zip-line to the other and enjoyed stunning views of the fort. The adventure comes with a high prices though, 1800 rupees, which for India is a fortune.
The training was simple and fast, we got to test how the equipment works in a beautiful garden, between two trees. Then we climbed some stairs and arrived on an edge of the fort, our starting point. The first line was going over a lake and the distance to it was pretty high. My heart was jumping out of my chest and my hands were already sweaty. I waited and see how everyone else was going while I couldn’t seem to get the courage to be next.
And there is was…. my turn. I didn’t think I got the chance to take a deep breath as the guide pushed me and the journey begin. I screamed and then I opened my eyes and saw the beautiful sights around. It felt that I was sliding very slow, even if it probably took less than a minute to get to the other side.
I started to get used to it by the last line, which took us back to the fort. It was a great experience and an awesome feeling!
At the end we enjoyed the sun setting down over the city. About Jodhpur I can’t tell you a lot due to the fact that we only spent an afternoon there. It is not known why the city is painted blue: some people believe that the color is associated with the Brahmin Caste, India’s priestly caste, and the people living in the blue houses belong to it; other people believe that painting the house blue was a way to keep termites away, due to the chemicals in the paint.
Our guide mentioned that a scene the Batman Dark Knight Rises was filmed at the fort.
*Pictures taken with Samsung Galaxy S4
Ahh thats an interesting post… Zip line was nice thing.. I did not know people in Jodhpur follow caste rules so strictly or the chemical reason.. It would sound much better- the city with one color theme 😉 I wanna try out Zip-line .Maybe someday 😉
This sounded both terrifying and exhilarating haha! Your photos are beautiful.
WOW! That looks like an incredible experience. I would love to give it a try. The colors from sunset and the buildings are incredible.
This got to combine between two favorites things! Forts and zipines!! It’s like ‘Divergent’ novel! I am not used on Heights or Speed, but lately I was trying new adventurous things cause it’s once in a lifetime opportunity! And I am glade you did it, or you would’ve missed the fun!!
Gigi
Reading your blog is like I am there with you ziplining in the blue city, I was wondering as to how often you travel if you don’t mind me asking?
beautiful images. I did not try zip line when I visited but got some pics of this lovely city..
I’ve never even considered visiting Jodhpur, let alone zip lining there! I need to add it to my list of places to visit now… The list is ever-growing but the pocket is not 🙁 ha
What am incredible experience- that’s one for the bucket list!
Looks like a fun zip-line! Usually the ones I see are in and out of trees/woods and I am terrified of being impaled by some wandering tree limb or something… not this one!
Looks a good to go for me. Things like these are adventurous and fun. Not exactly a warzone situation, but doing this will give that exact feel 😉