The best five days of Dwarka (Jamnagar)

The best five days of Dwarka (Jamnagar)

Having reached Dwarka in the middle of night, the best course was to retire for the day post meals and look forward to an elaborate stay in the temple town. Innundated with the overwhelming need to be with the Reigning Lord Dwarkadish, the elaborate tryst began the next day. Getting the much-desired opportunity after three years the Reigning Lord's compassion let me to revel in the simplicity of the town and its inhabitants. Up in the morning, the town is well prepared and seemingly plausible for the anticipated rush - and no commotion whatsoever showed the peace it has been with itself for ages. Mornings and evenings reserved for the Lord, the intervening period saw me converge at different points; one being the sakh market (vegetable market) that saw convergence of people and views. Adjacent to this were a slew of public sector banks and equally comforting were the positioning of provision stores. The tea to be tried at the Raj centre or those carryong in different carts are quite energetic. As for the meals one has to scout around and hope to have a fill that could be sumptuous and summing the mood.

Two days later Nageshwar on the agenda and post Lord Dwarkadish visit, i stood next to a road from where the plausible transport could be sighted. The wait wasn't enduring as i hopped on to an auto intending to go towards Nageshwar. The Adwent Cinema on the way reminded me of Naqab i had seen in 2007. Seated on the back seat were three upcoming priests and i comfortable on the front. The young boys who were ordained to be priests were not in the thick of any discussion probably propelled by the songs that their mobiles were beaming. Withing half an hour we reached our intended destination and post Nageshwar visit , i opted for chakda rickshaw as no other mode of transport could be sighted that would take me to Mithapur. That brought fresh memories of the Chakdas i boarded while doing an assignment on Gir Sasan in May 2005. The first half an hour ride was bumpy given the potholes that had tarred and tarnished the road and post this level of discomfort the commute was a consolation. Once at Mithapur, the mode of transport again had to be reverted back to the shared auto.
With jetty being my intended target, the auto discovered its moments of movement after the requisite passengers had been arranged and in half an hour i was in jetty to board the vessel for Bet Dwarka. The canteen run by the Gujarat Maritime Board helps you to recharge thanks to the strong tea they serve.

Once inside the vessel, the boys who were manning it wanted to ensure no visible space should go unoccupied and here the authorities were lukewarm to any suggestion of the vessel getting overloaded. Once the vessel began to move some of those on board opened their umbrellas and some reached out to their cells to update others about their movement. After deboarding the vessel, the 10-minute walk was all it took to reach where Lord Bet Dwarka resides and getting a glimpse more than once was enough to cheer me up. It was inching towards 1 in the afternoon and the concern was to get the return ride which began only after the boys manning the vessel were assured that all visible spaces had been occupied and no extra load could be entertained. The return ride took more time, probably compounded by the load more than it could bear. Here there was no security whatsoever on either side to ensure that no overloading was done - and this made most observe that this had been continuing unhindered for a good time.
Back to jetty, the slew of tea cups was all i could lay my hands to keep myself in motion. The search for transport that would enable me to reach Dwarka led me to try two different modes; one maxi cab which had to abandoned as requisite passengers could not be traced and this followed by the bus going towards Rajkot.
Beyond Tuesday lay other commitments peppered with the prasadam i had at Swaminarayan temple courtesy Ratna bhai from Rajkot ( about four years ago it was the Jamnagar Seth who had organised the elaborate prasadam in the same Swaminarayan Temple after flag-hoisting in temple) and the search for other accommodation if ever i intend to visit again. During one such visit to Balaji Bhawan Yatrik Niwas, i came across a family which showed its desire for an ac accommodation failing which they would try other place. Perhaps the tourists coming here were not acclimatised to have a shorter stay with no ac around and to look for comfort was demeaning.
It was Thursday when i left Dwarka to head towards Porbandar. It was six in the evening and the concern graduated to sublime level when no transport could be sighted. Again with the active intervention of others the city ride bus came and i was on my way to the next destination.
The churn the temple town may not have witnessed, thanks to the constant fixation of being calm and not cagey. Being the abode of Lord Dwarkadish, the serenity is palpable and the pulse of the town quite true to its potential. Skirmishes are next to nil, and the active interface with those from different strata shows the depth of emotions they are flowing with and the honest template they work against.
Swelling with pride or sore with returns may tax some but in entirety most are at peace and the peaceful trajectory they want to endow those who visit them occasionally. Though the Okha port was something i lost out this time, i hope to catch on the next visit.

Some of the places that i tried and came across
- Raj Centre for tea. The tea comes for Rs 5 and is strong and enduring.
- Adwent Cinema (show timings 12:45, 3:30, 6:30 and 9:45)
- On the Devi Bhawan Road is the Sri Sri Rukmini Dwar
akadesh Mandir, Sreeram Investments (trying to offer solutions on investment riddle)
- On the other side is Bangad Bhawan ( dormitory option can be tried here)
- Teen batti chowk happens to be epicentre of activities and emotions and nothing best illustrates the pulse of the town than this one.
- tea and milk carried on innumerable carts by vendors are also worth trying if established shops have down their shutters during afternoon.

Love you Jai Dwarkadish