The extensive scenic view of Amber Fort from the magnificent Jaigarh Fort, Amer, Rajasthan! 

There is a history of this scenic view. Back then, when Maharaja Man Singh became the successor of the throne of Amer, as the first Kachwaha Rajput ruled the Kingdom after Meenas, he constructed, renovated and redesigned the huge palace of Amber Fort during his reign. And, after his reign, the fort took many renovations under the rule of his successors till the reign of Jai Singh 2. This Maharaja has marked his place in history for many political and geographical changes in Amer and Jaipur.

Though the Amer fort has constructed as the escalating palace with wide road and protective walls on the banks of Maotha Lake, somehow it used to get attacked frequently and thus, the thought of constructing the Jaigarh fort came into the mind of Maharaja Jai Singh 2 to protect the Amber fort and its palace complex.

Constructed on the highest hill of the Aravalli range of mountains, the Hill of Eagles (Cheel ka Teela), this fort acted as the protective cover for the kingdom of Amer. In some hazardous situations and weak moments, the royal queens, princes and other people from the palace of Amber fort used to get shifted to Jaigarh fort through the subterranean passage which connects from Jaigarh fort to Amer Fort.

This whole construction looks breathtaking from the peak of the Jaigarh fort. Indeed, I have been there and witnessed the bird's eye view of Amer from the "Sagar Chatri" of the Jaigarh Fort. The name Sagar Chatri seems so related. Like, how the Maotha Lake, located nearer to the Amber fort, similarly, the Sagar Lake has located nearer to the Jaigarh Fort.

The square-shaped exterior fort corridors which give the ultimate view of the whole Amer has viewpoints under the umbrella-shaped architectural constructions on the corners of the corridors. Chatri means umbrella and being on the edge of the Sagar lake, this whole exteriors of the Jaigarh fort, has named as Sagar Chatri.

After crossing Lalit Mandir, inside the premises of Jaigarh Fort, and crossing too many mystifying corridors, you will end up in a huge opening, which serves as an open courtyard of the fort from which you can go through the corridors of Sagar Chatri. Trust me, you will be surprised to see such a view in life. Due to its elevation, it looks kind of scary, but you will feel like an adventure.

Similarly, I started walking in the corridors of Sagar Chatri. As it is a defense fort of Amer, the walls constructed in such a way that a soldier can shoot his enemy through some cleverly constructed spaces which are left in between the fort walls. They are both architectural and technical too. The interesting fact is this fort has never got conquered and the only fort to remain undefeated in the aspect of attacking.

The rock resembled red sandstone walls, the corridor passages and the yellow painted umbrella-shaped pavilions at the corners and the three arches in the middle of the fort, look like entrances, the garden in between the fort space and the view, just makes you fall in love with every detailing.

I was so fortunate enough to visit this fort when it was raining and started exploring the exteriors when it was sunny. The smell of rain-soaked fort walls and the contrasting colors gave me the energy to move forward in the vast space of Jaigarh fort. You surely get tired of walking all the Palace as it extends to 3 km. Hence, I took some breaks by appreciating the view from the architectural Chatris of Jaigarh fort.

As it is constructed on the Hill of Eagles, it gives the Eagle's eye view. If I'm not wrong, Eagle is the highest flying bird existing and hence, you can imagine the view. The previous day, I have visited the Amber fort and from the first pillar of Diwan-i-aam of the palace, I could see the glimpses of the passage which connects both the forts. But, that day, from that viewpoint, I could see every single part of Amber Fort including the Maotha Lake, the open courtyards, the four gates of Amber fort.

Then, I understood the brilliant minds behind the construction of the Jaigarh fort. This fort has a spy eye on the whole Amber palace and the protection aspect was on point because a soldier could see the whole palace around him from the top of the fort. The sandstone construction of the Amber fort bears resemblance to a sandcastle in Disney movies. The beauty of the view has been just indescribable and unimaginable too.

The previous day's imaginations were not even close when I witnessed the view with my naked eyes. And next comes the passage that connects to the Amer Fort. This also acts as a protective shield to transport soldiers from one place to another place during the attacks and to shift royal people from one Palace to another. Soldiers used to run in this passage during the attacks to create confusion in the minds of the attackers. And the attackers couldn't see the movement of soldiers because of the elevation of the fortified walls constructed all along the Cheel Ka Teela.

I have never been to the Great Wall of China, but that passage seemed like it. To give a break to such view and to shift from one Chatri to another by passing through the open fort corridor, I have focused on the garden which is beautifully placed in between the fort outer spaces. It surely gave a great view too.

The pruned plants and the trees planted by the queens of the fort are still rooted in the soils of Jaigarh fort. It was like a beautiful rose stuck in an armed hand. The two contrasting views inside and outside of this fort must be visited. It was a sort of confusing for me to focus on.

On one side, you can see the whole inside the premises of the fort with a beautiful Moghul inspired garden with colorful trees and flowers and the other side, you can see the fortified walls of Jaigarh Fort and the Sagar Lake with the passage connecting to the Amber fort and Maotha Lake. Trust me, it was too much for me to fill the beauty in my eyes.

And from another viewpoint, you can see the whole earthy view of the Amer town and also if you see a bit ahead, you can find the Pink City too, as it is only 11 km ahead of Amer and from that Hill of Eagles, it felt like watching the whole world at once. I allured the whole view indeed, but the routes which direct to this view made me confused and I have heard the stories of people missing their paths when they roam inside the Jaigarh fort.

Well, to unleash the puzzle, I will get back to you with another blog showing you the confusing corridors of this defense fort.