Today started with yoga on the rooftop a little after sunrise. It was a welcome way to ease out some kinks, because the beds are rather firm. Our fearless leader Jane runs a lovely gentle routine.
Today's theme was horses 🐴
We took a 20-minute side trip to Dundlod, home to Dundlod Fort and a stable of Marwari horses. The family behind the fort have been at the heart of bringing the breed back. Marwaris have unique inward-curving ears that swivel , which along with their long eyelashes help to keep the sand out.
Marwari horses came close to disappearing. We were told the English favoured their own stallions, and by the mid-1990s only a few hundred pure Marwaris remained. Framed magazine articles at the fort tell the revival story. A British horsewoman, Francesca Kelly, fell for the breed on a horse safari and teamed up with Raghuvendra Singh of Dundlod, known as Bonnie, to found the Indigenous Horse Society of India. Foals are born at the Dundlod stables each year, and the export of Marwaris is still tightly restricted, with only small numbers ever allowed out. Treks are on offer, and we were also told there's a farrier school reviving traditional horse-shoeing techniques, with some international teaching.
Whilst at the stables we found welcome shelter under the khejri trees, which are everywhere here. They're protected, and cutting one down without government permission can bring heavy penalties. Locals trim them back for shade, stock feed and tools, which gives them that knobbly, pruned look.
Next was the family fort. It's in the middle of a huge renovation, and you get the feeling it will always be a work in progress. The frescoes that have been maintained are phenomenal.
Local artisans called chiteras, traditionally from the potter community, paint onto wet lime plaster. The skills have been passed down through generations. Very few of those artisans remain, but modern restoration projects are training new ones, which is essential to preserving this amazing architecture. 🎨
Our last stop was the Seth Arjun Das Goenka Haveli, the one haveli in Dundlod open to the public. Entry was ₹100 (about NZ$2). It was built around 1870-75 by a merchant family who made their fortune in Calcutta, and the layout is very typical. The front is where the men met and traded, with an upstairs balcony where the women could put in their two cents. Behind the trading area lies the family space, which was also used for honoured guests. There are rope-operated fans called punkas, and the restored frescoes are stunning.
Then it was back to Mandawa for lunch and a siesta.
Revived, we wandered the streets with no real plan and stumbled onto a film set. Some of the cast and crew are staying at our hotel. The women's costumes were brightly coloured and I managed to get a couple of photos. We also passed more havelis, a few temples and street vendors whose stalls were a riot of colour.
Back at the hotel we had drinks with some of the crew. One actor explained the film: a Bollywood zombie movie. It sounds ridiculously amusing 🧟
Over drinks we also got a peek at the honeymoon suite, and the bling was something else. Every wall and the ceiling are covered in mirrored mosaic, and a painting of Krishna dancing with the gopis hangs above the bed
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