We are now on our journey into Madhya Pradesh, having left dry Gujarat this morning. Our accommodation is incredibly varied – we have refrained from posting pictures at each place, because we have too much else to tell you about but to give you some idea of the range, the first post is the place we stayed last night (Jambugoda Palace if you want to look it up), and the place we’re staying tonight (Jheera Bagh Palace).
Are these places now hotels or do they receive guests by some other arrangement? And are you always the only guests? Somehow I got that impression. Greetings from a deeply wintry Uppsala! Gx
They are kind of weird – some still have the Royal Family living in them, although often in rather impoverished circumstances since the British Government stopped their stipend (like the one we stayed in last night); others, like the one we’re in tonight, was restored by a wealthy family from Bhopal who use this place when they feel like it – presumably when they’re not using it – they but rent it out to guests, though adults only in this case. It varies but there are an awful lot of palaces around – just think that there were 200 Maharajahs in Gujarat alone!
Is a surfeit a good multiple for Maharajahs?
Yes, I’d say so – or maybe an excess of Maharajahs? Apparently, of the 400 Maharajahs still on their thrones at independence, 200 of them were in Gujarat. Hardly surprising there are a fair number of crumbling palaces around.