The Orcha Magic

So, there are only two deadlines we really have while we are here in India. One is two make it back to Dehli in time for our flight home. (so Leslie doesn’t miss school) and the other is to meet my parents on Jan 17th in Johpur for the start of our camel trek that they have treated us to. Of course, my mom knowing Leslie and I all too well is placing bets that we are late (or never make it) to Johdpur to meet them. Determined not to fulfill her prophecy, as well as nervous that she may be correct, we decide to meet them a day earlier than planned in Agra so that we can all visit the Taj Mahal together. We also realize that this will be the only time we can see the Taj on our trip and everyone we know who’s been to India says it does not disappoint.

The trip from Khajaraho to Agra is about 10 hours by combination of bus and train. We decide to break it up into two days so as not to put all our eggs in one basket with India public transportation. We figure with two days, if all else fails we will hire a private driver to drive us the entire way. The logical stop along the way is a city called Jhansi which is three hours from Agra. However, after digging though the lonely planet book a bit we find a more intriguing place called Orcha, which supposedly houses a palace that you can actually shack up in for a night. The town sounds quaint and we hop on the bus for the 6 hour trip to Orcha.

I am generally not a bus person. I hate being stuck in a seat for any length of time and I get carsick really easily. However, there is something about Indian buses that is endearing to me. I actually get disappointed when the bus driver doesn’t blare the loud Indian music for the entire trip. And for some reason the people I meet on the bus seem to be some of the nicest I have met throughout India. (That is, of course, after they elbow you out of their way to steal the last remaining seats.) Also, bus stations, although still full of forms and lines are much less bureaucratic than train stations. The bus ride to Orcha does not disappoint. We travel through some of the most beautiful countryside we have seen thus far. Large mustard fields stretch out in front of us, illuminated by the morning sun. It is a site to see and one which we can’t seem to do any justice with our multiple digital photography attempts. I also meet a wonderful young Indian lad on the bus who at every stop purchases a new and different Indian snack for me to try.

The bus lets us off on the side of the road where we then have to catch a rickshaw to town (about 45 min.) To make more money the driver stuffs in about 30 people in this little ‘buggy’ about the size of a VW Bug and I spend the next 45 min staring at my backpack which is on my lap pressed into my face in order to make room for the twelve other passengers that the driver is sure he can squeeze on. We tell the driver to take us to the palace, deciding that we deserve a little royalty at this point in our trip. However, upon arriving at the palace, we discover that a) the rooms are more expensive that we thought and b) they don’t take credit cards. With only about $20 in our pockets and no ATM we head to town center to find another option. On the way we run into a New York couple that we met in Khajaraho and they point us to a place where they are staying. As always fate seems to work out better than our planning, as we discover that not only does this cute little guest house have the perfect location in this charming little town, but it also costs a whopping $5 per night! Right in our budget!

We only had one day in Orcha, but it was truly the unexpected surprise of our entire trip. The town has a relaxed mellow feel to it that can often be hard to find in most of India. In addition it has about 5 ruins of old palaces that you can walk through. Although they are not very well preserved, it is not hard to envision what this area must have been like when these palaces were thriving cities. The magic and mystery of this era in history continues to excite my imagination as it seems like such a romantic time to be alive (as well at extremely brutal in other respects, especially if you we not among the elite!) One of the palaces it totally open to adventure and one can climb up and around the entire thing. Although this ‘openness’ has allowed for a bunch of graffiti and trash to accumulate, It also was by far the most fun to explore! There are secret staircases throughout the palace and the challenge is to find the right one which leads to the roof and an incredible view of the countryside. Of course, there is always some young Indian boy who is willing to take your money in exchange for the ‘secret tour’, but we preferred to find our own way up. The search was worth is and, as promised, the view was wonderful. We actually attempted to get to the very top of the highest spire, but after encounter the family of bats and their accompanying smell we decided that we didn’t need a case of rabies to interrupt our vacation.

We only spent one night in Orcha and in fact, had to leave at 4am the next morning to catch a rickshaw to Jansi (and then a train to Agra), however, when we head back to India Orcha will definitely be on our list for a longer visit. If you are anywhere near there and need a break from the craziness, Orcha is your spot!