Hello!
One of my goals for this year was to go somewhere new. A place I hadn't been to before.
And I am happy to report this year I managed to go to 3 new places- Aurangabad, Kalimpong and Cooch Behar.
Cooch Behar is a town 3 hours away from my hometown, Jalpaiguri.
I had never been here before...no..wait..I did for a wedding reception when I was three, so that doesn't count.
I wanted to go see the palace where Maharani Gayatri Devi grew up.
We made a day of it and left home at around 10:30 am, a three hour drive on pleasant country roads we arrived in Cooch Behar.
This massive red and white palace greeted us as we walked in through the palace gates.
So vividly beautiful.
The palace was built in 1887 but was destroyed in an earthquake in 1897 and rebuilt later inspired by the architecture of Buckingham Palace.
Old fashioned shutter windows.
The palace is surrounded by gardens and lawns.
Some beautiful ceilings inside the palace.
Pictures of the palace's former inhabitants.
The Royal Seal.
Travel Tips if you are visiting the Cooch Behar Rajbari.
1. Wear comfy shoes, there is a fair amount of walking involved.
2. Don't carry plastic water bottles, they will make you throw them out. Especially the single use kind.
3. Also, don't carry any food wrapped in plastic..like biscuits or chips, they will make you throw it out.
4. Flash photography is prohibited.
5. Try not to use the bathroom, they were all filthy and smelly.
6. Winter is the best time to visit. Especially if you want to spend sometime in the lawns or sit by the lake. It was too warm when we went, around noon and we couldn't explore the lawns.
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