Sunday 3 January: Arrived 11:00 am at the delightful Hotel Plaza in Jalgoan. Caves closed on Mondays so time to relax and review my trip plan. The Indian government has just changed the visa rules - no re-entry within two months of exit - and as I only wanted to be in Bangladesh for three weeks - I need to rethink. Probably spend more time in India before heading north to Nepal and Annapurna in Spring when the Himalayas warm up a bit.Tuesday 5: Local bus to the Ajanta T-junction then green eco-friendly bus (38th mode of transport) to the caves - not really caves but rock-cut caverns sculptured out using hand-tools, some dating back to 2 BC, to produce temples and monasteries - some decorated with carvings and frescoes.
Photos of the Buddhist caves at Ajanta.Local bus onto a brick-hard dorm bed, and breakfast, at the Youth Hostel in Aurangabad.
Wednesday 6: Day trip to Ellora Caves where Buddhist, Jain and Hindu rock-hewn temples and monasteries line the river bank. The most magnificent is Kailasa Temple 'built' by a reduction process - chiseling out a cliff to 'expose' the ornate temple within - great planning!.Returned to Aurangabad by shared jeep taxi (39th mode) for dinner and a cold beer.
Photos of all three styles of cave at Ellora.Kailasa Temple is the biggest rock monolith in the world and both sets of caves are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
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