Patiala: Granduer Revisited. Review on Patiala

Continuing my exploration of places nearby Mohali, I decided to visit Patiala. Having heard of the Maharaja of Patiala and his palaces, me and my colleague set out to Patiala on his bike. We had decided on 9 hour visit. Of which 4 hours for travel, and rest to cover sheesh Mahal and the fort called as Qila Mubarak.

Patiala is on NH64 and is a pleasure to ride with nice wide roads and lush fields on both the sides. The distance is approximately 70 KM.

We set out after having breakfast in Mohali. We averaged 45-50 Kmph and reached the outskirts of Patiala at around 10.30 AM. We saw a fort there which was converted into a police commando training center. We took a chance and asked the sentry whether civilians were allowed. After showing identity card and entering names/addresses and phone numbers we were allowed to enter.

The fort was in bahadurgarh. The fort like all other forts in India is almost neglected, but the structure is still holding its grandeur. A part of the fort is converted into a obstacle course. We were not allowed to explore fully as SLR firing was already started in full swing and red flags were up all over the place and sentries roaming around to keep the visitors’ head down. The fort is grand with two fold moats and huge spiked iron doors guarding the 40 feet tall forts.

Next stop was to sheesh mahal through the city. Unlike Mohali/chandigarh, the city has retained its old world charm and has mysore’s feel to it. Sheesh mahal palace is good to visit. Entry is 10 Rs per head and parking is Rs 5 for two wheelers. Visitors are sparse and parking is not a problem. The actual sheesh mahal is barricaded inside building to prevent people from actually plucking the octogonal glass pieces from the walls. There are 3-4 rooms decorated entirely from glass pieces. Unfortunately photography is prohibited. There is a small museum with nice displays of statues among other things. The maharaja's medal collection was closed to visitors The stuffed animals are in dire need to protection. Priceless tiger and lion skins are grossly neglected. Also on display are rare stuffed birds. The park outside attracts couples and i  think  it is one  the hangouts .

I did not see autorickshaws nearby. I guess using public transport might be a problem. The bus stand is approximately 5 km from the place. Getting transportation back to bus stand might pose some problem.

Next stop was to the actual Patiala Fort. The fort is in center of the town market near “Gur Mandi”. The fort is two fold with the outside fort called as “Qila Mubarak”  and the inner fort with residence quarters called as “Qila Androon”. The renovations inside the fort prevented us from going inside the inner fort. Few locations in the outer fort needs renovations/preservations urgently. We visited the durbar hall outside the “Qila Androon”. Entry is after obtaining 10 Rs ticteks. We also got tourism brochures explaining the structures.  The displays in the hall were exquisite with huge chandeliers, guns, swords among others. The gun display was particularly amazing with multi barrel muzzle load guns.

We were told photography will be allowed after obtaining permission from someone sitting in chandigarh sector 35! J.  So much for promoting tourism.

There were two huge canons placed between the two forts. Seems like one of the cannons was a gift to the king. We circumambulated the fort from outside and had a good time exploring dilapidated structures.

All in all, a day well spent revisiting History.

Way to go: Distance 70 KM.~Time: 1 hour 30 Min.

Chandigarh > Zirakpur > Banur > Rajpura > Rurki Kasba > Patiala

Eat: snacks inside sheesh mahal, lunch nearby to Qila mubarak.(I like to eat from street vendors; good places to eat found near bus stand)

Road: Picturesque highway, can drive/ride safely.

Directions: People helpful, easy to find directions

Must do: Rest your backs if using two wheelers; carry water bottles. Not many places in between to catch up on water.

For history: Read up wikipedia entry or better read another superbly written review on Patial in MS:)

Incase u need to see pictures, M2M me your mail id, will send picasa's web folder link