Udaipur Diary

My grandmother turned 100 years old recently. Almost our entire family gathered in Hyderabad to celebrate. My brother, Karan, and his wife, Myra, also came over from the US. So we thought we would do a short family trip to Udaipur. My. brother, Prasan, knew Udaipur fairly well as work took him there often. I was looking forward to the trip as this would be the first trip after my Hip Replacement Surgery.

Krishna Dal Bati

Dal Bati Churma is one of our family's favourite foods. Introduced to this dish by a neighbour about 30 years ago, we have it at least once a month. So, when my brother told us about Krishna Dal Bati in Udaipur, we immediately wanted to go. As soon as we landed in Udaipur and checked into the Trident Hotel, we took a cab and headed out to this place. Like almost all authentic restaurants, Krishna Dal Bati also had pretty pedestrian interiors, purely functional. But the food was another level. Probably the best Dal Bati Churma I have ever had, it was accompanied with Gatte ki subzi, chutney and a dry capsicum-besan curry. A good start to our trip!





Lake Pichola

Lake Pichola is the the most popular among the 5 lakes of Udaipur. The lake has the iconic Taj Lake Palace nestled right in the middle and access is only via boat. Many other hotels, including ours, have come up around it. We did a boat ride one evening as the sun was setting with the refrain of mellifluous bhajans from a temple on the shore adding that ethereal touch. Some good restaurants have been setup around the lake which provide for a lovely view while sampling the local Rajasthani cuisine.

We also visited the Sajjangarh Palace one evening which is located almost a kilometre above sea level atop the Bansdara mountain and overlooks Lake Pichola. The palace was used as a summer retreat for the Mewar kings.


Missi Roti, Ker Sangri, Sev Tamatar, Kadhi Pakodi


Sajjangarh Palace


View from Sajjangarh Palace



Ranakpur Temple

On the last day of the trip, we visited the famous Ranakpur Jain Temple, constructed by Dharna Shah, a Jain businessman, about 600 years back. The temple is known for the 1,444 intricately carved pillars, no two of which have the same design! The entire temple has exquisitely carved ceilings and walls with the first Tirthankar, Bhagwan Rishabhdev as its Moolnayak or presiding deity.

We did pooja there, had a simple, delicious lunch in the bhojanalay and headed back to Udaipur.

Afternoon Tea

I have been fascinated with the idea of a British Afternoon Tea for a long time now. So, when Karan threw the idea of doing an Afternoon Tea at the neighbouring Hotel Udai Vilas, I jumped at the offer. As it turns out, Karan and Myra love Afternoon Teas as well and they've done quite a few. Udai Vilas serves their Afternoon Tea at the bar and we soon found ourselves in a cosy nook of the bar which had very elegant interiors. 

There were two options - Indian or Victorian. I picked Victorian while Karan and Myra chose the Indian option. Soon, the tea was served - I had asked for my favourite - Darjeeling Second Flush. It was truly the best I had ever had. I wonder where they sourced the tea from? Accompanying the tea was an elaborate array of savoury and sweet snacks. They had traditional Cucumber Sandwiches, Canapés with a mushroom and ricotta cheese filling, avocado on toast, Cream Puffs, Vanilla Scones and Macarons. All Vegetarian. The food was excellent. We ate so much we had to skip dinner that day.






Dialysis 

When I travel for more than one night away from home, my biggest challenge is trying to get nocturnal dialysis - night time dialysis for 7-8 hours. The beauty of nocturnal dialysis is I don't need to restrict my diet and fluid as it is much easier pull them off during a night session and also, my days don't get taken up by dialysis leaving me time to enjoy the place.

Luckily, NephroPlus has a centre in Udaipur, in the famous Paras Hospital. The team there including the Operations Manager ,Vishal Shukla and the technicians, Ravi and Devendra really did everything they could to make me comfortable. I did a night session on the second night of three-night my stay there ensuring that I don't go without dialysis for more than one night.


With the team after my dialysis, early in the morning


This just goes to show that dialysis need not restrict you from traveling for a nice holiday. It gives you a refreshing change from your routine life. I really enjoyed this trip with my family and look forward to more such trips.

Comments

Biswajit Roy said…
It’s lovely to read your travel blogs. I was there in Jaipur Nephroplus (Fortis) and Udaipur Nephroplus (Paras) and all the technicians and center managers were super helpful. Last year I went to Auli, Gurgaon, Jaipur, Udaipur, Bangalore and this year I am looking forward to see the Srinagar Nephrolus center.

I wish to congratulate you on the patient centric culture that you have built in all the centre’s. Looking forward to the opening of a Dubai Nephroplus center, a Maldives Nephroplus center and a KL Nephroplus centre. :)

Best Regards,
Biswajit Roy
Nisha said…
Dear kamal ... So good to know that you had a lovely time .As always. Lovely post . I went back to 2009 when I used to sit in the attenders area outside the dialysis unit and read your blog . Take care . God bless !!☺️��

Usha balu
Lovely blogpost. Very well written.
Take Care.

Dr Chainulu
Kamal D Shah said…
Thanks so much Biswajeet, Usha ma'am and Dr. Chainulu for your comments! Really appreciate you stopping by to comment.