Drive to Orchha, Khajurao and Panna

The Temples of Khajurao at night

The Journey Begins with Agra

For some reason the impression in mind was that Madhya Pradesh is quite far from Gurgaon. But when I checked , Gwalior was just 310 km's from home. So if one starts early in morning and crosses Delhi before rush traffic starts one can get to Gwalior in less than 6 hours. So ideally Gwalior should have been the first stop but we couldn't leave early morning on 24th December as Devicka and I both had work till 2 PM so we left home at 3 PM. Instead of Gwalior we decided on Agra as our night stop and took the Yamuna Expressway. Reaching Noida took a long time even in afternoon but once you are on Expressway - it is nice and smooth. So we started from Haryana and then went through UP, Rajasthan and UP again till we reached Madhya Pradesh. 

Marriott Courtyard is a hotel I am familiar with in Agra as early in the year we had a school batch reunion there. My friend Trevor had got us a great deal with the hotel and we had decided to stay here both ways. Its a nice and comfortable hotel and we were there just for the night as we checked out at 7.30 AM the next morning, had a quick breakfast and strong coffee and we were on our way to the temple city of Orchha, bypassing Gwalior and Jhansi. It's kind of funny when you stay in Agra and don't do any sightseeing. The city is full of historical treasures and no matter how many times you visit this city, you will always find some historical monument or garden which will surprise you. 

Temple town of Orchha

We had studied Orchha in history but recently a friend had recommended the town which used to be the capital city of Bundela Rulers in 15th century. He had described it as a nice and calm town on the banks of Betwa river known for its fort and exquisite temples. The town is also famous for its 'chattris' or 'Cenotaphs' which actually are the memorials for departed Bundela Kings. 

The Chattris (Cenotaphs) are spread over a large area with nice gardens on the banks of River Betwa.

We were in Orchha in less than 5 hours and realised that what I had booked was tented accommodation next to the Chattris very near the river. Devicka wasn't too pleased to spend a night in tented accommodation on a winter night but she didn't have a choice as the other hotels we had tried to book had all been sold out. So it was time to take a round of the town and visit whatever it had to offer. 

Everything appeared to be in vicinity of our 'Orchha resort.' We didn't even need to take out our car from hotel parking. Chaturbhuj temple stands out as it stands so elegantly and tall and you notice it as you walk down a few hundred meters. It is a temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu and is known for one of the tallest Vimana amongst the hindu temples. You have to climb several uncomfortable steps to reach the temple but it has some nice architecture and the views are pretty good. 

The Chaturbhuj Temple at Orchha

Next to Chaturbhuj temple is the Raja Ram temple which has a long story dedicated to it. But important thing is that this is the only temple in the country where lord Ram is worshipped as a King. As we entered the temple we were asked to go out and come in the evening as it was the resting time for the King. 

Our tented accomodation at Orchha Resort was just under the famous Chattris. 

Before visiting Orchha I had no clue about what kind of town it was. I had expected a more spread out city than what it actually turned out to be. The Chattris and the Chandrabhuj temple were really very nice and the gardens in which Chattris were located were spread out and it was nice and peaceful sitting on a bench surrounded by the history. Betwa river flowed next to it. We did enjoy sitting there under the winter sun and a photo shoot of a newly married couple with all the poses and drama kept us amused. 

The Orchha Fort. It has a palace built specially for Mughal Emperor Jehangir

Last year during the Rajasthan road trip we had seen enough forts but this was an opportunity to see a fort built by Bundela kings. It was quite different from the Rajasthani forts and a full wing had been made for the Mughal emperor Jehangir as Bundelas always tried to remain in good books of Mughals. It's another matter that Jehangir spent just one night in the huge palace and it remained locked up for all the other time. We had a terrible guide so not much knowledge was gained from him but there was a sound and light show in the evening which lasted an hour. That told a lot of stories about the Bundela Kings and was quite useful for our knowledge. Besides that the fort and buildings looked quite nice all lit up during the show. 

While we were here as a tourist who had come for buildings, architecture and history - majority visit the town as pilgrims. So the quality of the crowd is what you typically find in temple towns and most of them had come in big groups in chartered buses. 

We were woken up early by loudspeakers at 6.30 AM warning people not to swim  in Betwa river and stay only on the edge of river and not go deep. These must be real enthusiastic people who were swimming in cold water when temp was 6 deg C. Now that we had got up early, we dressed up and left for Panna immediately after breakfast. 

Panna Tiger Reserve

Safari Time

It was around a 3 hour drive to Ken River Lodge from Orchha. Panna town is still 40 minutes drive from here but we had come for the wildlife sanctuary and not the town. Madla Gate is the best place for safari and our bookings for afternoon safari was from here. Madla is right in the beginning of the reserve and it was just 10 minutes drive from our hotel. As number of jeeps allowed to enter are restricted, one has to book safari much in advance from MP forest website and then come to the office of Madla gate to pay for a jeep and guide. Hinauta is another gate for Safaris and that is 15 km's away and not too popular. 

Ken river lodge was a nice resort with the river Ken flowing under the resort. We had a nice view of the river from our cottage room and from the restaurant Deck. After checking in we spent some time on the banks of river and it was real nice and calm. The river Ken flows through the Panna reserve and has a lot of crocodiles. All meals had been included in our package and they were happy to serve coffee or sandwiches at any time that we asked without charging extra. It was nice having a hot cup of tea and pakoras after we came back from our Safari as the evening had become chilly. It was then followed by a documentary about some past Tigers of Panna. Another good thing about the hotel was that the food was very similar to home food with no extra masalas or oil. We enjoyed the time we spent here. 

Ken River flows through the entire forest

Panna is popular but Bandhavgarh is much more popular. Bandhavgarh is another 4 hours drive from Panna and its difficult to get safari bookings at the last minute. Tiger and Leopard sightings are much more common in Bandhavgarh. So after 2 hours of roaming around in the jungle we thought that we should have gone to Bandhavgarh. It had been many many years ago that we had actually seen a Tiger in natural habitat and since then many visits to Corbett or Ranthambore had been just blanks. It is then that the elusive 'Kanha' suddenly got up from his camouflaged position in a muddy pond and started walking majestically. Kanha had some problem in his eyes so was nicknamed Kana (One with a single eye vision) by the guides and forest staff. But the director of forest advised them not to use such derogatory term for this majestic animal and renamed him Kanha - a short form for Kanhaiya. 

Kanha on prowl

When King of the Jungle walks - the world follows. News spreads fast and all the jeeps came rushing to the spot. It became one big carnival with happiness all around as sighting had been achieved. Soon the tiger disappeared in bushes and people wanted to get out of jungleas they had seen what they had come for.  No one had any interest left in Langoors, Neel Gais, Deer or any other animal. The evening before there had been Leopard sighting in the forest so it was good for all the tourists who had visited on these two days. 

Panna is known for diamond mining but much to Devicka's disappointment, the permission from government is required for visit to the mines and that takes time. The evening at the lodge was spent in front of a bonfire with drinks and sadly due to the pandemic not much socialising happened between the tourists. Our next destination was Khajurao but that was very near so we had enough time on our hands in the morning to explore the areas around. It was a beautiful drive with forests on both sides as we drove towards the Panna town. On the way we stopped at Pandav caves and falls which were very nice. Apparently the Pandavs had spent some time of the 'vanvas' here. There was no water in the waterfalls and the falls only get active during monsoons. We saw some pictures which the guide showed us and the area really looked beautiful with the falls in action. Tiger sighting is not very common here but the Tiger does come by once in a while and the guide did show us a few pictures. 

At the Pandav Caves

Panna itself was a small congested town with narrow lanes but it boasts of some really pretty temples of Bundela era. The Baldeoji temple is actually inspired by Roman architecture and has a gothic feel to it. There were other temples like 'Jugal kishore' and 'Ram Janki' etc and we visited them quickly before heading the same route we had come from, as Khajurao was situated between Orchha and Panna.

Khajurao and its magnificient temples

I liked Khajurao. The road leading to the city was nice and broad. It was just around 20-30 minutes from the Panna Sanctuary. On our route Khajurao turn came first and then then Panna sanctuary and then Panna town. We had decided to do Panna before Khajurao so drove back to Khajurao. The avenue did not have Khajoor (date palms) trees or any exciting stuff. We crossed the swanky new Airport terminal which has remained shut with no flights in last couple of years due to Covid. We checked into Clark's hotel at around noon before driving to the 'Western group of temples' further down the road. Clark's had huge grounds and it was a great property for walks, jogging etc. All the other famous hotels like Chandela etc were also similar with low rise buildings and lot of grounds. They were on same road near each other. It so happened that my friend Anjani was also visiting Khajurao at the same time with his family. We had studied together in same school and then were room mates in College in Delhi. So we met up briefly for a drink in evening and met up each other's family.

Built by Chandelas around a 1000 year ago these temples of Khajurao are famous for the erotic images they display. As you enter the complex gates, the maintenance of the place catches your attention. It is all very clean and serene. The temples are spread out over a large area and the lawns were beautifully maintained. We took a guide for Rs 1600 but it was really worth it as he was quite knowledgeable and had the requisite patience and style to impart his knowledge. 

It soon became apparent that though the erotic images were an integral part of the intricate work presented by great workmanship, they remained just one part of the entire concept of 'day to day life' of those times. What has been displayed in the temples are gods and goddesses of those times, the way people dressed, the way people worked, the way people celebrated, the way armies lived and the way people had sex (natural and unnatural). War, peace, alcohol, fashion and sex is all depicted very clearly and beautifully. To depict what they did a thousand years ago in such a fashion shows the thinking of the rulers of those times. The guide also emphasised on the Hindu way of life at those times which is depicted in all those beautiful temples. The temples are all tall and built on huge platforms - perhaps to protect them from floods or other natural elements. 

Army sepoys having sex with horse. 

One temple has been left outside the gated complex for people to pray and all others are well maintained inside the complex. So this makes the complex exclusive and it is not the religious tourist but tourist looking for history who visits Khajurao. With the Covid - there are no foreign tourists now and the domestic tourists have also dried up. The lawns inside the complex are beautiful and the atmosphere is nice. One can spend a lot of hours in the complex. Due to the holiday time a few people were there otherwise the guide told us that not many visitors come nowadays. 

The temples got saved from invaders for several centuries as after the Chandela dynasty, the temples almost ceased to exist as they got hidden in thick forests. For almost 800 years no one knew of their existence otherwise I doubt if the invaders would have left them intact seeing the kind of work there was on them. It had Hindu gods and goddesses and also the explicit sexual carvings which would not have been tolerated by the North Indian rulers who ruled between 1100 to 1900 AD. 

The visit to Khajurao had been long overdue and I am glad we could do it. It's a trip which we all must make to learn what India was all about more than a thousand years ago. Pictures speak better than manuscripts and Khajurao temples are all about pictures.