Visiting the Largest Statue in the World

 

This unplanned trip was in the planning for several months! Several months ago there was a colleague that did a presentation on India and mentioned the largest statue in the world--Sardar V. Patel. Patel was the first Prime Minister of India. He united all of the Princely States so that when the British left and India gained independence, they could have a unified country. Through diplomacy and negotiations he was able to get all reigning Rajas to unite. 

Several years ago, the Governor of Gujarat--now the current Prime Minister of India--decided to create a monument to Sardar Patel. They collected old recycled iron from farm equipment and build the statue. It was amazing to see. Completely in the middle of nowhere, but incredible to see. 

Ever since that presentation at work, I have wanted to go. But it wasn't until another colleague said they were going that we decided to join them and make it a reality! A group of us jumped on a plane and headed to Gujarat--the state just to the north of Maharashtra where we live in Mumbai. 

We landed in Vadodara (like Mumbai and Bombay, Vadodara is also known as Baroda). The next several days we spent exploring all over the countryside. The first stop was the Statue of Unity!

One of the favorite parts of the trip was riding on pink rickshaws. We only have boring black ones in Mumbai. Not only were they pink, but the were electric and driven all by women to help promote entrepreneurship for women! SO amazing! 

Compared to some of the other large statues in the world! 

Just to show how big this guy is...we posed next to his big toe!

It is so detailed there is even stitching on his slippers. 

This dam was envisioned by the same man, Sardar Patel and bears his name. It generates enough electricity to power 4 states of India. As we were walking by there were power lines and they were humming and crackling with electricity. 

I loved going through the little villages. After visiting the statue we saw some more villages that have existed for thousands of years. We stopped in one village to see the village gates that once guarded the city. We went to Dabhoi Village and saw three of the remaining gates with such intricate carvings. It is amazing to see that they have survived all of these years. 

I loved going through the villages and waving to all of the people as we went. Such great people. 

Our last stop was the Laxmi Palace. There is still a Maharaja that lives in the palace with his family. It is a sprawling building that is ornate and beautiful. We could take photos of the outside but were unable to take photos of the inside. Sadly. Because it was a breath taking building worth seeing. 

Some of the best part of the whole trip was the food! We stopped at several hole-in-the-wall food places that were amazing! All of us, including the little Muggles loved the food!