Travel with me #1 Exploring the ahmedabad Adalaj Stepwell

"For my part, I travel not to go anywhere,but to go. I travel for travel' sake. The great affair is to move."

- Robert Louis Stevenson

In times of Ro purifiers and blah blah, l quenched my thirst for an ancient story with mesmerizing Stepwell form beyone era. The is Adalaj ni vav at outskirts of Ahmedabad, Gujarat.

Rudabai Stepwell is a stepwell located in the village of Adalaj, close to Ahmedabad city and in Gandhinagar district in the Indian state of gujarat. It was built in 1948 by Rana Veera Singh of the Vaghela dynasty of Dandai Desh.

General information about place:

Artichitectural style- Hindi and Islamic architecture

Town or city- Ahmedabad

Country-India

Construction started-1499

Completed-15th century

Architect-Local

Stepwell are common in the arid and semi-arid region of india, especially in Gujarat and Rajasthan. The term used for stepwell in Gujarat is Vav in Rajasthan they are called vali. They are similar in form and function, but have unique architectural characteristics which can help differentiate the two. It is believed that 200 such stepwell survie in Gujarat region itself, so it's easy to imagine their numbers in the bygone era. However, stepwell have always been a part of the history in the region -the oldest stepwell (or even cylindrical wells) are believed to have been built at mohanjodaro during the Indian-valley civilisation.

So what on the earth is a stepwell? 

Wastern india has always suffered from scarcity of water. So, the local ruler used to protect the water reservoirs by building a large structure around them. There is basically a pound and large structure around it with step to descend to the water source. It was built by Rahi Roopba,wife of beer Singh, the bagels chieftain. You can check out the noticeboard below more information.

Also, make no mistake,it is not merely a well. It is a complete structure replete with intricately carved mythological sculptures.

             ( Time to click family photo)

            ( little sister)

     (My loving mom & dad)

  ( Too excited for photo)

The Adalaj ni Vav stands as the major monument of its kind, with three entrance stairs leading to step corridor. These three entrance meet at the first storey, underground, in a huge square playroom. There are openings in the many celling which makes way for good vantilation for octagonal well. However, direct sunlight does not touch the flight of steps or landing expect for a brief period at noon. The structure's interplay with light is worth a see. Best time to go would be when the sun is up and when you, are underground.

Magnificence meets marvel! A wonder to behold the architecture of this site and so is the story behind it. If you blood reeks of history then you should pay a visit here.

"We travel, some of us forever, to seek other place, other lives, other souls." 

-Anais Nin