During our five day trip to the state of Rajasthan, my friends and I were lucky enough to not only visit the state capital, Jaipur, but also to travel to the state's city for romantics: Udaipur. Udaipur is undoubtedly the most breathtakingly beautiful place I've been to in India thus far, especially because it looks unlike any other city here. The name "Venice of India" or "Venice of the East" refers to the fact that the city is built around a large central lake, with many ghats (pier-like structures used for bathing, Hindu rituals, an recreational swimming among other things) stretching out into the water. Homes, hotels, shops, and temples are built right up along the edge of the lake, creating the illusion that the entire city itself is suspended on the water.
Although I only got to spend a day and a half in Udaipur, my time there was unforgettable. Our first full day was one of the happiest days of my life. Driving into the city from the train station, my eyes filled with wonder as I glimpsed the lake for the first time, the early morning mist glittering with sunlight that seemed to swirl about the entire city, the majestic green mountains that ringed the urban center. It felt as though we had left India, left earth altogether, and somehow ended up on another planet, one full of magic and splendor.
In Udaipur, there was always something wondrous to discover: jolly little donkeys trotting down the street single file with no herder in sight, modern art-influenced graffiti spray-painted alongside murals of Hindu deities, silver jewelry glittering outside storefronts, and the ever-shimmering surface of Lake Pichola. The city palace felt like an amusement park for interior decorators. Ordinary alleyways beckoned with their splashes of color and tinkling wind chimes. Everything seemed filled with joy. Everything was peaceful. The four of us, so used to Hyderabad's chaotic traffic and pollution, and having just left the fairly rough, even rude, locals in Jaipur, wondered if perhaps those emerald green mountains somehow protected this city from the noise, negativity, and stress of the real world.