Some weekend getaways from Delhi

Tijara fort, palace and hotel

This year I spent a few months early in the year in Delhi. Things were improving on the pandemic front but they were not safe yet. So we ended up doing a few day trips to outdoor places where the risk was lower. And surprisingly, we discovered more than a few gorgeous lakes and palaces we hadn't been to yet which was quite a pleasant surprise. Here are a few of those:

• Damdama lake and Lost lake
• Hidden lake
• Safdarjung Tomb
• Sunder Nursery
• Tijara Fort-palace hotel
• Neemrana Fort-palace hotel
• Chandigarh

Damdama lake and Lost lake

Way to Damdama lake

This was our first day trip out of home after a very long lockdown. I had heard a few times about the Damdama lake before and finally we got a chance to visit it. The drive there was quite quick, about an hour or so from home, and through villages which felt so far from Delhi. But the lake turned out to be a bit of a downer. It was quite dry, with just a little bit of water in the centre. We walked all around it, where there were some of the Damdama village houses plus some farmlands where there were some plantations. The vegetation was dry all around except in the farms. 

There were some local fair rides and boat rides available for the lake but it felt too small to do that. So we didn't do those. There was a government tourist resort located right on the lake which had a few rooms and a restaurant. The restaurant wasn't working yet. There were some green grounds around too, so we just sat outside under the trees and had our lunch, enjoying the sounds of the birds and the openness around. 

After that, we drove to the Lost lake which was a bit tough to get to as there was no marked or clear google maps road to get to it. We could see it on Google maps and then kind of had to figure out a way to get there. We drove through a small village where our car got stuck in the sand for a few minutes! (There is a walking path from Damdama too, to get to the Lost lake but as we had a car, we didn't take that route)

The lost lake

The road was also almost missing, so we had to drive the car through the gaps in the ridge forest, through small ravines in the ground. It was a bit of an adventure ride, but somehow we made it there. The lake was a small one, surrounded by the ridge forest all around. There was no one there at that time. It was a pretty place and with the dusk lighting, looked even better. Just the dry vegetation all around on all the hills. We stopped for some time there before heading out before it got too dark. I realised that it would be more fun to trek up here than drive. Will keep it in mind for the future, as I can see myself visiting it again.


Hidden lake

Morning at Hidden lake

Apparently there are a lot of lakes in the Ridge forest, most of which I have never been to. So one of the other mornings, we went 'trekking' to another one, the hidden lake this time, near the village of Mangar. We walked about 30 minutes through the forests, up and down some small hills, making our way through all the dry vegetation to reach this lake which was picturesque in its own way. There was no one around and it was a nice calm way to spend a Delhi winter morning. The hike felt a bit too easy though.

Hidden lake

After a short stay there, we stopped at a hotel nearby - The Lalit Mangar to have breakfast. It felt like a nice place to come to for a staycation in Delhi. We had a nice long breakfast and soon I was back home to start work. After this walk, I was quite surprised by how there were so many interesting places nearby (albeit small-ish) which I didn't even know of before.


Safdarjung Tomb

Safdarjung fountains

One of the days, I was able to visit the Safdarjung tomb in Delhi, for the first time. It is quite a surprise given I have been in an around Delhi since 1997! Anyways on a nice sunny winter day and we spent some time exploring the area around. The tomb is a huge gorgeous monument built in typical Mughal style. With the red sandstone, the domes and minarets, the grand symmetry, it reminds one of all the other Mughal buildings of the era. And as expected, it is surrounded by a huge park, with the long rows of fountains and water on each side. 

Safdarjung fort

Safdarjung was a king of Oudh and a minister to one of the kings. He was apparently so powerful that he was able to construct such a huge tomb for himself, paying for it out of his personal wealth. But he had got so powerful that he wasn't allowed in the city while he was alive. This building is very similar to Humayun's Tomb (which I have not been able to visit yet!), but apparently is more flawed than that one. But of course, my eye couldn't see its flaws 😊.


Sunder nursery

Intricate ceiling carvings
 of Sunder Burj

I had heard about Sunder nursery quite often when in Delhi and I was very curious to see what it really was. So another winter morning, we went there to spend an afternoon in the park. It is a huge arboretum in old Delhi which has been opened relatively recently. It is owned by a private foundation which over the last 10 years has been trying to conserve the monuments as well as the parks in this area. 

There are about a dozen or so old buildings from Mughal times which had fallen into disrepair and now have been restored, for Delhites to come and enjoy. And the gardens around are well maintained to spend time, especially during winter. 

Sunder nursery

We walked around a few of the buildings and the Sunderwala Burj was the most impressive. The highly detailed workmanship on the ceiling was quite impressive. The gardens have also been landscaped with a lot of effort and look refreshing. There were loads of playgrounds for children, a few small ponds and canals to provide some coolness, a local farmers market for shopping and a few eating places, all making it a fun place to spend some time. We ate at the Fabcafe by the lake (Fabindia's cafe) within the nursery which has an impressive (though vegan) menu. Even though it was winter, it soon got hot and we ditched visiting Humayun's Tomb (again!). But I enjoyed the day out and can see myself visiting it again too. 


Tijara Fort-palace hotel

Tijara fort is one of three forts near Delhi which have been converted into hotels by Neemrana group of hotels. Surprisingly I did not even know about it till we decided to go there, and I loved the experience.

Fields on the way to Tijara

We left Gurgaon early morning and had planned for lunch at the fort, spending the day enjoying the warm Delhi winter sun and just exploring it. The fort is a 3-4 hours drive from Gurgaon, partly along the Gurgaon Jaipur highway and the rest through country roads. On the highway, the fastag wasn't working at the tolls and we saw a guy manually charging the fastags 😂 (so much for digitisation). From the highway, we took a turn at Daruheda and then the road was not as great as the highway. 

First look at Tijara fort

This hotel is located near the village of Tijara and we drove through some small villages on the way. It felt like a completely different world, driving through sarson khet and small town roads. I was again struck by the colourful clothes of women everywhere. And then we came by the fort on top of a small desert hill, in the middle of nowhere. From the bottom of the hill, it is still a 2km drive through a completely non existent road to get to the fort. And once on top, it is a completely different place.

Lunch location

The fort is on top of a cliff and made up of 3 separate parts (the reception and two rooms sections, one of which is called mardana section), a central dining and a whole side full of balconies and walkways. Each section is currently at a different phase of restoration. In fact the hotel was opened only in 2016 and is still being renovated. We spent some time exploring it all and loved it. The main reception building has the lunch place which overlooks the fields below with tractors, the village and faraway hills. And it was breathtaking. The food buffet was yum and the service excellent. It also has the hawa mahal which is a very well aired floor and a good place to spend some time.

The rooms

View from Hawa Mahal

Inside the hotel sections

The first section has half of the rooms and has mostly been renovated. There is lot of greenery around and there are lot of open spaces to sit on every floor. Each of the rooms has a name of its own, a mahal in its own right. Also the views from the top are stunning. 

Mardana mahal

The other rooms section, Mardana mahal, is still being completed. It has a huge courtyard in the centre, and has some good artwork and paintings all around. This is also the place where the evening tea is served every evening. We sat around the gardens for some time enjoying the calmness and the views around. We also took loads of photos as it was so gorgeous anywhere you looked. We hadnt realised earlier but it took us the whole day to just walk around all the areas in the fort.

Birds eye view

This whole fort-palace has been painstakingly redeveloped over the years and you can see remnants from the time when it was derelict. Some people's names are still written all over the walls. And there are photos from the time when it was bought to be developed. I really liked this place as it was like an oasis in the desert, a heaven away from everything. It is a place worth spending some time at.


Neemrana Fort-palace hotel

Neemrana palace isn't an unknown place but somehow we never managed to go there as it was always too close to Delhi to go to. But for this pandemic time, it was perfect. We did a day trip to the hotel, leaving early in the morning and were back by sunset, spending the day and lunch within the palace complex.

The fort-palace is located on a hill near the village of Neemrana, in Rajasthan. The drive is a bit long, about 2-3 hours and depending on traffic could get ever longer. The whole drive is on the Delhi-Jaipur highway, and when you come to the village, you just take a right and go through the village go up to the fort.

View of Neemrana village

Firstly, the village felt rich relatively. Most of the houses were pucca and one could see many huge houses. I guess being a tourist place definitely helps the economy of the neighbouring regions. And the first views of the palace from the village are stunning. There was music playing in the village the whole day (probably at a marriage) which felt like a good Rajasthani musical backdrop to our visit.

Neemrana fort

The hotel involves a lot of climbing, as it is built on a cliff. The king (or nawab) here was a small king without a huge kingdom, so his palace was also relatively smaller. The original fort was in ruins some years ago when the owners decided to buy it and they have built most of the buildings again, but in the old architectural style to make it look authentic. The original parts left are quite few. The architect and builders have to be commended though, the whole place looks original, as if it has been just been renovated. 

Jharokha

The hotel consists of the main reception area, and multiple room sections with a few pools and loads of open areas with outside sitting to just sit and enjoy the view. We spent the time before lunch just exploring it, and it was breathtaking. Every angle of the palace was pictureworthy. There is a lot of climbing involved though as the rooms are all at different levels, 10 floor equivalent actually. We walked around through a few of the areas, sat on some of the towers and took loads of photos. It felt exhilarating to be there.

Dusk time

The lunch buffet was average though, unlike Tijara fort who had authentic Rajasthani food which was quite tasty. After lunch, we sat in the gardens till sunset when the palace was all lighted up and you could see beautiful colours in the horizon. It looked really ethereal.

Lights at Neemrana

And by that time, the weather became very pleasant too. Some birds also came out and we saw two peacocks on the roofs. It was good to see the sunset from there, and slowly the village below got fogged a bit too. And by then, it was time to say goodbye and leave. We had a good day out there and enjoyed the service at the palace too, its (again) definitely a place we will come back to some time.


Chandigarh

This was not a weekend trip but I felt I had to write about it. I visited Chandigarh again after almost 25 years and was so impressed by the city. There isn't any other city like this in India, and it felt like I had come to a new country altogether!

We drove from Gurgaon in January early morning, and as expected there was fog to start with. The road along the way was much better than I expected. We first took the KMP and it was amazing, a whole bye-pass to delhi, built up above the ground, to avoid local traffic, it was amazing. And rest of the way was the GT road passing through all the big towns in this area - Sonipat, Panipat, Karnal and Ambala. At Sonipat, there was some construction going on but the rest was all done - with flyovers everywhere. All along the way there is continuous development and there were no empty patches. There were some amazing dhabe along the way. We did not stop there though as it was still the time of pandemic. The drive to Chandigarh felt like a breeze and the quality of driving was also quite good.

As it was the time that farmer protests were still going on near Delhi, we could see a lot of movement. Small groups of farmers driving back in tractors from Delhi and the new shift going to Delhi to take their place. It was quite impressive to see their motivation and organisation, given how cold everything was at that time.

And then Chandigarh was amazing. It is such a well planned city, with wide roads, service lanes everywhere, roundabouts, greenery and basically a lot of sense in it. There are sectors setup in squares and each sector is well planned, with a market and houses lined next to each other. The huge houses were also quite lovely. It was built completely from scratch after independence and you can see it. I just fell in love with the city.

It felt like such a relaxed place. The police is more active and less corrupt here. The rules for driving were quite different in the city. And I actually saw the locals all following driving rules which I have never ever seen before in India. It was quite a revelation to be here, and driving felt enjoyable and convenient.

Chandigarh ki galiyan

I also liked the vibe of the city. Great shopping. Outstanding food. Loud dressing. Fun loving people. People spend a lot, so the shops and all were also quite well stocked with good quality shoes and clothes. I even ended up buying some blingey things from there, which were still classy:). The food over our few days of staying there was to die for. Everywhere. People were relaxed as Chnadigarh has more retired people than working people. And the well planned greenery everywhere just blew my mind. It was like a dream to be there for the few days and I loved it.

Some of the days, we also visited the other similar areas around - Panchkula in Haryana and Mohali in Punjab. They have also been developed in a similar design but were not the same, the same vibe wasn't there. And 10 kms away is the area called Zirakpur, which was as much of a mess as anything else in India:).

There are a few touristy places in Chandigarh too - Sukhna lake, the rock garden and rose garden. But we did none of these. Just visited our friends, lot of who stay in Chandigarh and love it there. I really enjoyed the visit, and though it wasn''t a holiday, it felt like one because of the green and relaxed vibe of the city.