Tuesday, June 18, 2019

Kota - Off season traveller



The best time to visit Kota is from October till March
29 May, feeling like I’ve stepped in boiling rice starch

I got down from a train full of India’s future engineers
soon to be the prized catch of eager tuk-tuk charioteers

We took off looking for the regal Umed Bhawan palace
which turned out to be just 2 km away by God’s grace

Sautéed & stung by the scalding hot wind of Rajasthan
I shuddered to think if I would have to change my plan

But the pink-hued sandstones carved a place in my heart
So did the Edwardian clock & antique Rajasthani craft

An evening stroll revealed peacocks, langurs & nilgais
Still, it was the sunrise I waited for, as night passed by

to witness a sight that had sought my attention for years;
a river with a notorious past that had reaped many fears

Now discreet & distant, it flowed through a 300 ft gorge
cutting through pristine wilderness that eyes can’t dodge

tottering near the cliffs to get a little more of this terrain,
I nearly crossed path with a peacock with an ornate train

Stunned by blue & bright fluorescent colours all around
I settled under a tree, as the Chambal got me spellbound

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