I had recently been to kutch to see the rann utsav and other tourist places around the area. This is an account of my trip.People hoping to visit the place can pick up something from it.We reached mata ni math by dawn. Its a temple attached with a dharamshala where you can freshen up.About 150 odd kms from bhuj.The temple has a legend associated with it and its quite revered. Next up was narayan sarovar. It is one of the holiest places to take a dip in.The lake is serene and has a paramount importance for people living in the area. Koteshwar temple is adjacent to the lake and it has a magnificent view of the arabian sea. Clear blue water.There is a border security post gate upto which one can go.A visit in the morning is quite refreshing here. Just a short distance from it is the lakhpat fort. Not much remains of it but if you a history afficianado you can certainly visit it. At noon, we started for white desert. Around 200 kms from there. Enroute we had lunch. It is advised that you have lunch at narkhatana and not in kutch as they charge exhorbitant rates. Also, hajipir visit can be done while going to white desert. It is 30 kms to the left of main highway,so if you have time only then you can go there. The mosque is beautiful though. We reached kalo dungar( black hill ) at around 4 pm. Its a short distance ahead of white desert and is the highest point in kutch. It is worth watching the sunset from here.The sun setting on the salt pan with its magnificent orange hue is truly a sight to behold!
The rann utsav has two parts-tent city and normal tourist section. If you have booked a tent to stay there for a couple of days, then all sorts of amenities are provided to you. If not,then you can visit tourist exhibition center which showcases different tourist places of gujarat and their significance.In the morning,camel rides take place and if you happen to visit it during makar sankranti( a big festival in gujarat),you can see kite flying taking place. Further up( about 3 kms), lies the white desert. We reached there at around 10.The white desert is basically made up of only salt and is the only such place in the world.As you walk on the path on both sides of which there is only salt,you feel as if you are walking in heaven. The full moonlight falling on the salt makes it glisten and one can do nothing but watch in awe!
Dholavira is another ancient place where the harappan civilization flourished. It is a whole lot of distance from white desert though. Around 400 kms. Travelling to the place at night is not advised as there are no villages or civilization enroute. Also, one has to take their own food as no eateries exist in dholavira. We made a night halt at bhuj. Thereafter in the morning we went to see aina mahal and kutch museum. Both are seeped in history and have their own significance. Bhuj is also a place to buy good handicrafts and we made full use of the opportunity.Just outside bhuj town lies the swaminarayan temple. One must visit it to experience what peace of mind actually means.Too good it was! A couple of days trip shall suffice for visiting all these places. Happy journey!
