Coronavirus pandemic brought the world to a standstill. Plans stood cancelled and some were put on hold. After seven long months, my husband and I made an abrupt decision to go for a weekend trip. We did our overnight research and shortlisted some states which are now open for tourism in India and finally zeroed in on Udaipur, the city of lakes and palaces, in Rajasthan.
Arming ourselves will all precautions, we boarded the Mewar Express and arrived at our destination Udaipur, the next day, half an hour before the scheduled arrival time. No points for guessing, we found both the boarding and destination station quite empty.
Covid-19 virus is still very much out there but with proper measures and precautions, we can start travelling and it would help the travel and tourism industry get back on track.
While exiting the station our temperatures were checked and then we went out and took an auto to reach our hotel. We had booked ourselves a budget hotel with a lake facing room on Lake Pichola and were looking forward to it.
The streets and alleys leading to Lake Pichola and the surrounding areas were undergoing construction, under the smart city project, so a number of roads were blocked for vehicles and walking was the better alternative. We also noticed a number of shops, eateries which once adorned the streets closed. Quite a few shops had 'For Rent' board hanging over the shutters.
On reaching our hotel we were asked to fill a self-declaration form about our health and our temperature was taken. A copy of an order by Government about safety precautions and dos and don'ts related to covid was kept at the reception and guests were encouraged to read it. We spoke with the receptionist about tourism and were told that though tourists have started coming in now, but it is nowhere close to the pre-covid times which was understandable, to say the least. He showed us a lake-facing, work-in-progress snack bar, which now had a bleak future as they did not have enough funds to complete it.
We took rest for a couple of hours and then set out on foot to explore Udaipur. We were met with warm smiles wherever we went. People we spoke to, almost everyone had a similar story. Covid disrupted their lives and income. We wanted to help wherever we could by buying things from local shops, it wasn't much but a drop in the ocean, nevertheless it was self-satisfying.
We went to the boating point near Dudh Talai and were informed that boating has not resumed since months. The only way you could go for the experience was by buying tickets for boating from City Palace which would cost you INR 500/- per person and includes a stop at Jagmandir, the entry fee for City Palace (not City Palace tour) is INR 30/- only, you can buy the ticket from the counter near the Jetty or from the counter near the main gate. However, the price increases significantly from 4pm to 6pm and the same ride would cost you
INR 800/- per person.
We did go for the boat ride and explored few places on foot and auto-rickshaw and ate at local shops. On our second day of stay, we went to have lunch in a not-so-fancy place called 'Trilok Anna Restaurant' near Jagdish Chowk, they served hot and delicious homely food, but the sad part was it was 3pm and we were seemingly, their first customers.
I love collecting fridge magnets, so when I came across a shop which displayed fridge magnets outside the shop for sale, I stopped by. The shopkeeper invited us in and we were mesmerized by the art which was on display inside the shop, we also came to know that the creators of all the artwork was the seller and his father. I bought a beautiful framed piece of art from the shop-'Gangour Art School', at a really affordable price. Surprisingly, the shopkeeper requested for a picture, I smiled at his request and told him, 'but we are domestic tourists', he said 'No madam, you all are God to us', I could feel his happiness and pain, the crisis that they were going through somehow seemed evident. We also took his photo and left the place with a big smile (behind our masks!).
This particular trip was an emotional roller coaster ride, seeing the locals struggling yet putting on a smile with the hope of getting back on track even after facing massive losses due to Covid, was really inspiring.
It may be an unpopular opinion at this moment, but I have come to believe that keeping safety first and adapting to the new normal of Covid, we should start packing our bags and travelling again. This will slowly but surely help millions of people with their livelihood.
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