TRAVEL GUIDE

Watson Museum

An enjoyable day spent in the Jubilee Gardens is the perfect way to enrich one's body and mind. Watson Museum and the Lang Library are the gifted places from the environment. The Museum is named in honour of the British Political Agent in Kathiawad who initiated the documentation of historical artefacts with due patronage of the royal families in the region. The collection houses paintings and artifacts donated by the various royal families, an extensive memorabilia of Colonial rule and influence with textiles and jewellery depicting Bharwads, Ahirs, Darbars and other indigenous people of the province. There is also an interesting collection of Indus Valley Civilization artefacts garnered from various sites around the Saurashtra region. General people can visit the museum and see the collection. It is open from 9 in the morning to 6 in the evening. It remains closed on alternate Sundays and Public Holidays. Entry fees for entering the museum is Rs 2/- for Indians, Rs 50/- for Foreigners.

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The Lang Library

The Lang library on the other hand has an extensive collection of old literature, lovingly bound books with the wafting aroma of aging leather and the soft crinkle of delicate pages keeping time with thin material of handmade paper etched in gold. The library has an enviable collection of Kathiawadi and Gujarati literature and a vast collection of fictional and reference material linked to the colonial era.

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Kaba Gandhi no Delo

Karamchand Gandhi, father of the Mohandas Gandhi a.k.a Mahatma Gandhi was appointed as Diwan of Rajkot and lived in what is today called as 'Kaba Gandhi no Delo'. It is situated just off the busy Gheekantha Road. The house offers a pictorial tour of the Mahatma's life with bilingual captions i.e. in Hindi and Gujarati. Moreover, an NGO runs classes in embroidery and sewing for young girls within the compound. The Delo is open for public viewing six days a week from 9 am -12 pm and again in the afternoon from 3pm to 5pm.

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Rashtriyashala

Gandhiji returned back to Rajkot, the place of his former schooling in 1939 to help set up the Rashtriyashala, the first of many institutions expressly maintaining the values of Swaraj and instigating a sense of pride leading to freedom from the colonial rule. The shala (school) today imparts education and vocational training and has initiated projects in weaving khadi, cotton and manual oil pressing. The shala also introduced local weavers to the art of single ikat weaving leading to a distinctive Rajkot style of ikatsaris which have gained acceptance in the market. The premises are open from 9am to noon.

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Bangdi Bazaar

The market is located in the old part of the city which has narrow alleyways, lanes and dead end streets. Shop fronts and fort paths displays a huge range of embroidered fabrics, beadwork, bandhanis and readymade flow in profusion to the colourful riot of Bangles in every shape, form and colour giving the market the unique title of Bangdi Bazaar. Near to the bangdi bazaar is the bazaar of the Sonis, the traditional community of gold and silver smiths.

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Rajkumar College

The Rajkumar College was set up in 1868 under royal rule of the British crown to impart a complete finishing education to the young princes of Kathiwar to enable them to rule their provinces better and be groomed into the ideal noble gentlemen. Series of colonial buildings, housing, living spaces, classrooms, offices sprawl in an area spanning 11 acres. 'RKC' as it is lovingly called was the first elite institution to open its hallowed doors accepting deserving students from all walks of life post independence.

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Ramkrishna Math

In the mid 19th century, Ramkrishna Paramhans set out to regenerate Vedic philosophy and principles amongst the people of India. Following in his steps, the Ramkrishna Mission-Rajkot, located on a serene campus offers a value based education which has a public library and an Ayurvedic centre, plus guest house and a permanent exhibition showcasing the life of Shri Ramkrishna Paramhans. The timings of prayers are: Morning Aarti- 5am and Evening Puja- 7:30pm.

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Khambhalida Caves (Near Gondal)

At Khambhalida there are three caves, the central one being a 'chaitya' with a worn out stupa. The entrance of the chaitya is flanked by two large sculptures of the Bodhisatvas-Padmapani on the right and Vajrapani on the left. These caves dates back to 4th-5th century AD and are scooped out from the local limestone rock.