Bhopal was my second trip in MP - second in the space of a month after Omkareshwar and Maheshwar. The motivation - none, except for the kicks of travelling and exploring a new place (probably the way Kerouac would put it).
The plan was to start from Mumbai after the Dussehra lunch, reach Bhopal by early Friday morning, explore the city through the day, then Saturday dedicated to surrounds - Sanchi, Vidisha, Bimbhetka - then Bhopal again on Sunday till noon and then return to Mumbai. I'll cover the surrounds in another post, and restrict this one to cover Bhopal through my eyes.
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I arrived in Bhopal early on Friday morning, checked in with my host - Airbnb this time - and got out to explore. The local bus network in Bhopal is quite efficient by the way, and much much cheaper on the pocket compared to the exorbitant rates of the rickshaws. I took a bus to the New Market, and then a connecting one to Moti Masjid in Old Bhopal. That was my first stop for the day.
Old Bhopal, by the way, is inundated with mosques and for a newcomer it may seem like every other building is some kind of a mosque. The major mosques are the Moti Masjid and the Taj-ul-Masajid (note the extra a, more on that later). Moti Masjid is an imposing structure in all its right and looks over a busy junction. The structure is mostly stone, with a small bit of marble embellishments.
After the Moti Masjid, I went through a series of buildings from the days of the Bhopal Sultanate - all of them well past their glory days. The first one was Shaukat Mahal, one of the early residencies of the royalty. This building is a mix of indo-islamic and burboun (french) architecture. The Bhopal royalty had a thread connecting it to the French Burboun royalty - more info on wikipedia. Now-a-days, the building is used as any normal residential building and is slowly crumbling away.
Next up was Moti Mahal. The scale of the outer structure betrays the utter ruins that one sees inside. This place till a while ago housed the Bhopal Post Office. Now, only ruins.Sadar Manzil, the erstwhile court of the Sultanate was converted to Bhopal Municipal Corporation office and was systematically deprived of its glory. The offices have now been shifted, but the damage has been done. Its gonna be a long restoration process, that is if someone is actually willing.
I had a quick tea-n-samosa break at the world famous (in Bhopal) Raju Tea Stall. The place was itself in the middle of a face-lift, but the main attraction - the tea - was perfect! Then came the weirdest quest I've ever found me in - searching a restroom in the middle of a busy city. The suggestions of the locals were even weirder - use the wall, the corner of the garden next to a blood bank, and similar ideas. I finally found one in the campus of the sprawling Hamidia Hospital.
Relieved of my misery, I visited the Taj-ul-Masajid. The name literally translates to 'The Crown Of All Mosques' - masjid = mosque, masajid = mosques -and befitting its name it is also the world's third largest mosque. The sprawling building is a bit bland when it comes to artwork, but nevertheless it showcases the grand ambitions of the Bhopal Royalty.
Next up, I'd planned the Gauhar Mahal but it was closed till 3pm. So a walk by the Upper Lake ensued, followed by a quick nap in Kamla Park. Another long walk took me to the Indian Coffee House in the New Market Area. An old establishment of the Coffee Board from Jabalpur, the place is famous among Bhopalites for its coffee and dosas. I had a sampler of both as a light lunch. Worth a visit.
A Rs100 rickshaw ride from here took me to the museum area near the Shyamala Hills area. There are three museums here, the State Museum, the Tribal Museum and the Musum of Man. I did the three in the same order. These places are simply amazing - especially the tribal museum. I made a mistake of not opting to take the pics; make sure you don't.
I was halfway through the Museum of Man, when is was closing time - 5:30pm. I hitchhiked on a milk-man's moped and then took a bus to the New Market to just while my time away there. A bit of riding around the town was followed by dinner at the 'Winds and Waves' restaurant by the Upper Lake.
Another post-dinner exploration of the Old Bhopal followed, this time with my host for company. The Upper Lake looks gorgeous by night, and so does the Tal-ul-Masajid with its lighted towers. Most of the corners of the old city are dotted with people indulging in their pass times - chess, cards and the likes. We were also lucky to witness a procession related to Muharram next day (not the actual Muharram procession). We returned by midnight.
The next day was spent in Sanchi and Vidisha, so didnt see anything in Bhopal. Again on my last day, time crunch dictated that I could only see the Van Vihar park. The place is like a zoo with larger cages - but not a sanctuary. The best way to see the park is to cycle through it - cycles can be rented at the gate.
I ended my spree in Bhopal with a quick shopping round at the New Market. Then on to the railway station for my train back to Mumbai.
© Kapil Pilankar
The plan was to start from Mumbai after the Dussehra lunch, reach Bhopal by early Friday morning, explore the city through the day, then Saturday dedicated to surrounds - Sanchi, Vidisha, Bimbhetka - then Bhopal again on Sunday till noon and then return to Mumbai. I'll cover the surrounds in another post, and restrict this one to cover Bhopal through my eyes.
-x-x-x-
An empty train - Paradise!!!
I arrived in Bhopal early on Friday morning, checked in with my host - Airbnb this time - and got out to explore. The local bus network in Bhopal is quite efficient by the way, and much much cheaper on the pocket compared to the exorbitant rates of the rickshaws. I took a bus to the New Market, and then a connecting one to Moti Masjid in Old Bhopal. That was my first stop for the day.
Old Bhopal, by the way, is inundated with mosques and for a newcomer it may seem like every other building is some kind of a mosque. The major mosques are the Moti Masjid and the Taj-ul-Masajid (note the extra a, more on that later). Moti Masjid is an imposing structure in all its right and looks over a busy junction. The structure is mostly stone, with a small bit of marble embellishments.
The minimal marble work in the masjid
A reflection of the corner spires in the masjid pool
After the Moti Masjid, I went through a series of buildings from the days of the Bhopal Sultanate - all of them well past their glory days. The first one was Shaukat Mahal, one of the early residencies of the royalty. This building is a mix of indo-islamic and burboun (french) architecture. The Bhopal royalty had a thread connecting it to the French Burboun royalty - more info on wikipedia. Now-a-days, the building is used as any normal residential building and is slowly crumbling away.
Next up was Moti Mahal. The scale of the outer structure betrays the utter ruins that one sees inside. This place till a while ago housed the Bhopal Post Office. Now, only ruins.Sadar Manzil, the erstwhile court of the Sultanate was converted to Bhopal Municipal Corporation office and was systematically deprived of its glory. The offices have now been shifted, but the damage has been done. Its gonna be a long restoration process, that is if someone is actually willing.
The Iqbal Maidan, the centre of Old Bhopal
Overlooked by the Moti Mahal (pink) and Shaukat Mahal (white)
Pic taken from Moti Masjid
The old Peer Darwaza connecting the Moti Mahal and the Shaukat Mahal
There are many such old jeeps dotting the landscape near the Moti Masjid
The inner artwork in Sadar Manzil
Sadar Manzil artwork
Sadar Manzil lawn and entrance.
Upper Lake in the background
I had a quick tea-n-samosa break at the world famous (in Bhopal) Raju Tea Stall. The place was itself in the middle of a face-lift, but the main attraction - the tea - was perfect! Then came the weirdest quest I've ever found me in - searching a restroom in the middle of a busy city. The suggestions of the locals were even weirder - use the wall, the corner of the garden next to a blood bank, and similar ideas. I finally found one in the campus of the sprawling Hamidia Hospital.
Relieved of my misery, I visited the Taj-ul-Masajid. The name literally translates to 'The Crown Of All Mosques' - masjid = mosque, masajid = mosques -and befitting its name it is also the world's third largest mosque. The sprawling building is a bit bland when it comes to artwork, but nevertheless it showcases the grand ambitions of the Bhopal Royalty.
The Taj-ul-Masajid - human for scale at right bottom
The main 3 domes of the Taj
The more-or-less bland inners of the Taj
Next up, I'd planned the Gauhar Mahal but it was closed till 3pm. So a walk by the Upper Lake ensued, followed by a quick nap in Kamla Park. Another long walk took me to the Indian Coffee House in the New Market Area. An old establishment of the Coffee Board from Jabalpur, the place is famous among Bhopalites for its coffee and dosas. I had a sampler of both as a light lunch. Worth a visit.
The Gauhar Mahal
The Upper Lake
My lunch at the Indian Coffee House
A Rs100 rickshaw ride from here took me to the museum area near the Shyamala Hills area. There are three museums here, the State Museum, the Tribal Museum and the Musum of Man. I did the three in the same order. These places are simply amazing - especially the tribal museum. I made a mistake of not opting to take the pics; make sure you don't.
The gate of the Tribal Museum
A deepmaal at the Museum of Man
I was halfway through the Museum of Man, when is was closing time - 5:30pm. I hitchhiked on a milk-man's moped and then took a bus to the New Market to just while my time away there. A bit of riding around the town was followed by dinner at the 'Winds and Waves' restaurant by the Upper Lake.
Another post-dinner exploration of the Old Bhopal followed, this time with my host for company. The Upper Lake looks gorgeous by night, and so does the Tal-ul-Masajid with its lighted towers. Most of the corners of the old city are dotted with people indulging in their pass times - chess, cards and the likes. We were also lucky to witness a procession related to Muharram next day (not the actual Muharram procession). We returned by midnight.
The next day was spent in Sanchi and Vidisha, so didnt see anything in Bhopal. Again on my last day, time crunch dictated that I could only see the Van Vihar park. The place is like a zoo with larger cages - but not a sanctuary. The best way to see the park is to cycle through it - cycles can be rented at the gate.
Ride of the day
This hyena seemed to derive some pleasure just going round and round in circles
The bear at Van Vihar
Tiger ... Van Vihar has 17 in all
The lake by the Van Vihar cafeteria
I ended my spree in Bhopal with a quick shopping round at the New Market. Then on to the railway station for my train back to Mumbai.
© Kapil Pilankar
I have been there often but not seen so many places shown by u--thanx.
ReplyDeletethank you :)
DeleteNice to know about bhopal
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