This Spring the team took a return trip to Matheran, reprising our visit from three years ago. Matheran is an eco-sensitive hill station 56 miles (90 km) east of Mumbai at the edge of the Western Ghats. Hill stations are towns at higher altitude than the surrounding area. Matheran is at about 2,600 ft (800 m) above sea level and Wikipedia tells us that “Matheran” means “forest on the forehead.” Hill stations are popular tourist destinations as they are generally cooler than the cities. To get you interested, here is a picture from Louisa Point where we went to see the sunset. Note that clicking on a picture will bring up a full-sized version.

Matheran’s status as an eco-sensitive hill station means that development is restricted. No cars are allowed beyond the Dasturi parking area a mile or so from the main village. Travel into the village is either on horseback or on a narrow-gauge railroad. We drove up to Matheran in several cars, arriving at the parking area by late afternoon.

Our host had arranged for horse transportation. We assembled the group and headed off to our hotel.

On my last trip to India, when I was in Gandhinagar, we left the office a little early to do some sight-seeing. We visited the Adalaj Stepwell, a stepwell built in 1498 by Queen Rudadevi in memory of her husband, Rana Veer Singh, king of the area at the time. Stepwells, large pits cut into the ground or rock, collect water from monsoon rains and are common in the arid areas of India (Wikipedia). One reaches the water by descending steps down into the well, hence the name stepwell. Two ladies are stepping down into the well in this photograph. (Click on any picture for a full-sized version.)

There is a legend about the building of the well. The Hindu king Rana had planned to build a well at this spot, but the project was interrupted when he was attacked by the neighboring king, Mohammed Begda, and killed in battle. Queen Rudadevi wanted to join her husband in death but was forbidden to do so by Begda. Begda offered her marriage and the queen agreed on the condition that Begda complete the well. It was quickly built. At the dedication of the well, the queen threw herself into the well, drowning. The rotunda of the top level of the well shows the intricate carvings that cover the interior of the well.

The five-story deep well had little water as I was visiting at the end of the dry season. This is a view of the fifth level with a bird flying above.

Last October, I was able to take a nice overnight excursion to a small resort on Mulshi Lake, near Pune, about a 100-mile (165 km) drive from the Grand Hyatt in Mumbai. We departed from the hotel just before lunch, having just arrived from Ahmedabad that morning. Our route took us on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway and we left early enough that the traffic was not bad.

Our travelling group took several cars, each leaving from different locations. Our past trips of using a bus taught us that the logistics of getting everyone to one location to start, along with the slow pace of the buses themselves, make a car trip more practical. India has a relatively new policy that requires for-hire cars to have a speed governor that limits the maximum speed to 80 KPH (50 MPH). Our driver’s car did not have a governor. There were several times we wished it did, as he drove very fast and aggressively. It kept us alert.

Upon reaching the outskirts of Pune, we turned off the highway and headed southwest, navigating the difficult Pune traffic. Once out of the city area and into the country, the traffic lightened up, but the road significantly worsened. It was a bumpy ride but quite scenic. After a couple of hours of driving, we arrived at the Residency Lake Resort & Spa, our accommodations for that evening. The resort is about 2 miles (3 km) past the Mulshi Dam. The view from the resort is quite pleasant.

Mulshi Lake holds about 42,420 acre-feet of water (per Wikipedia 0.0523 km³ [0.0125 cu mi]). An acre-foot is the amount of water that would cover an acre (0.405 hectare) to a depth of one foot. It is about 325,853 gallons (1,233,489 liters), the approximate amount of water a US household uses in a year. For comparison, Shasta
Lake, the largest reservoir in the California State Water project, can hold 4,552,000 acre-feet. Mulshi Lake is about the same capacity as the Ice House Reservoir on the American River west of Lake Tahoe. Since the monsoon had just finished when we were there, Mulshi Lake was very full.

Mulshi Dam produces power for Pune with a 300 megawatt power plant run by Tata Power. It was built in the 1920s.

Here is a shot of Mulshi Lke from our hike the next day, and the teaser to get you to keep reading beyond the fold.

On my trip to India last October, the itinerary covered the last days of Navratri, a major festival across India. Navratri means “nine nights,” the last night being a special celebration known as Dussehra. I was in Ahmedabad, Gujarat on the last day of Navratri and was fortunate to experience the very special celebration they have in Gujarat.

According to Wikipedia, There are four Navratris in a year, with the one in the fall, post monsoon, being the most celebrated. The fall Navratri is linked with the goddess Durga and the festival of Durga Puja is at a similar time. Durga is known as a great victor of good over the forces of evil, and Durga Puja celebrates her victory over “the shape-shifting, deceptive and powerful buffalo demon Mahishasura.” [Wikipedia] Rama is also honored at this festival time for his victory of good over evil.

In Gujarat, in northwestern India, a form of dance known as Garba is performed as part of the festival. This practice has spread to many parts of India, but it is particularly celebrated in Gujarat. People dress in elaborate and colorful clothing and dance in a large circle. Venues across the city host these dances on large fields. My hosts had arranged for us to attend the celebration at the Rajpath Club, a private club in Ahmedabad. Along the way I got this picture of a well used two-wheeler with four people on it and one on her phone.

The festivities were well under way when we reached the club facilities. Just outside the dancing area (a large field) there was a small shine to Durga.

Two young ladies were dancing outside. You can see how elaborate their outfits are.

March’s trip to India has produced quite a number of posts. There are Hoysaleswara Temple, Chennakeshava Temple, Elliot’s Beach, and now this post on Pratabgad Fort and Mhabaleshwar.

Leaving Mumbai on a Friday late morning, we started a 170 mile / 274 kilometer 6-hour drive on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, passing through the outskirts of Pune before heading south and then into the Western Ghats or Sahyadri mountain range to the hill station of Mhabaleshwar. Mahabaleshwar is 4,439 ft (1,353 m) above sea level and the weather there is quite pleasant. During the British Raj, it served as the summer capital of Bombay Province. We have often visited hill stations as they are popular tourist sites and in very pretty areas.

We stayed at the Evershine Keys Prima Resort. The hotel was very comfortable and the staff most helpful. We had a pleasant finish to the day with a good meal and good company.

The gardens of the Evershine Keys resort are quite nice

Before I dive into the main topic of this post, I’d like to put in a picture to tempt you to click on the “more” button and read the rest of the post. While we start off at the resort, the real highlight of the trip was the visit to Pratabgad Fort. This fort was the site of a major victory for Shivaji in the Battle of Pratapgarh (Pratapgarh is an alternate Latin character spelling of Pratabgad). More on that below. This bastion is one of its prominent features.

This is the imposing bastion you see as you arrive

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