Dunlod and Parasrampura, North of Jaipur

	Dunlod and Parasrampura, North of Jaipur
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The most obvious target for a day-trip from Nawalgarh is nearby Dunlod, 7km north and the site of an old fort and some large havelis. It's possible to get there by bus, but most people walk across the fields - a leisurely amble that's enjoyable save for the last two kilometers, which you have to cover via a rough sandy track linking the village with the main road.

The fort, like most others in the region, has been converted into a luxury hotel, the Dunlod Castle (phone 01594/52519 or book through Jaipur on 0141/361611; Rs2500 and upwards), but its murals are mediocre and the rather shabby rooms, which have been tackily restored, lack the atmosphere of those at Mandawa and Mahansar. Radiating from its southeastern walls, the village streets harbor several interesting havelis, painted around the turn of the twentieth-century, and the delicate Chhatri of Ram Dutt Goenka, a cenotaph erected in 1888 with vibrant friezes lining its dome.

More painted buildings are dotted around the serene hamlet of Parasrampura, 20km southeast of Nawalgarh, amid some of the most attractive desert scenery between here and Jaisalmer.

Buses run every half-hour or so, or you could cycle (although be warned, if you do, that several stretches of the track degenerate into soft sand).

Monuments include the Gopinath temple, built in 1742, whose murals include depictions of the torments of hell (a common theme in the eighteenth century), and images of the local Rajput ruler, Sardul Singh, with his five sons; flocks of Persian-style angels look down from the ceilings. Some of the paintings are unfinished, as the artists were diverted to decorate the chhatri of Rajul Singh, who died that same year.

The large dome of his exquisite cenotaph, supported by twelve pillars, contains a flourish of lively and well-preserved murals. Once again there are images of hell, and of Sardul Singh with his sons; this time he's also seen smoking a hookah and enjoying a tiger hunt. Parasrampura's modest fort, in reasonable repair, is on the west bank of the dry riverbed.