The carvings and details were just exquisite. We were compelled to think how much effort went into making these. Carving these massive stones and then placing them one on top of another without the aid of any modern equipments and cranes is a monumental achievement. It is truly a herculean effort and truly an engineering marvel.

The temples have survived a thousand years of beating from extreme weather, armies of invaders, and natural calamities. It speaks volumes about the greatness of the civilizations India has.

The Temples of Love as they are referred to are not all about sex. Yes, there are graphic and vivid portrayals of acts of Kama Sutra but there are many more sculptures which are equally interesting and not about sex. Each of the temples stands on a massive platform with a defined architecture. Guides are available who speak all the big languages including English, German, Dutch, French, and Japanese. There are also audio aids available at the entrance. Guide books are also available and plaques in English and Hindi are at each of the temples, informing the visitors about the history and architecture of that particular temple.

I was sitting on the stairs of one of the temples. My daughter called me and I stood up with my camera bag.

THUD. THUD. THUD.

Out came 3 of my lenses on the floor. I had forgotten to ZIP the bag, a most common cause of lens damage. I cursed myself, and am still cursing myself, but fortunately all three survived with minor bruises.

After lunch we decided to check out the Pandava falls and caves. The Pandava falls are about 30 kms from Khajuraho in Panna National Park. The gate entry is a further 5 kms from the gate where jeeps for safari go in the park. The falls are half a kilometer from the gate entry. Vehicle entry is Rs. 200. However, if you are on foot, then its only Rs.15 per person.

We parked the car at the gate and decided to walk. After half a kilometer there were 100 odd steps down, which lead to the fall and the pool in front of it. Trust me, don't miss this place. It's an amazing experience. Even though the falls were very narrow, because of poor rainfall that year, but the tranquility of the place is something to experience. We were all alone there for an hour and suddenly we were at peace with ourselves. We were listening to the sound of the falls, the sound of dripping water on the caves, and the amazing sight of a pool in middle of nowhere. Peace is what we experienced here. I am not sure whether the falls are open in the summer, but do make an effort to visit this place.

We returned from the caves in the evening from the falls and decided to check out the Chandela emporium just after the five star hotels. Most of the stuff was from Rajasthan. Boy! What an expensive place it was. Even the pricing was in dollars ! It was certainly not for us, so fifteen minutes of window shopping was all we could afford, so we ran back from there.

We were feeling hungry, and my daughter was insisting on eating pastry. After a bit of a search we found a German bakery, run by a Nepali guy. This bakery is just next to Hotel Gautama, and in front of the lake. We had an apple pie and nut cake, which was delicious. I had never eaten an apple pie before, so you might not want to take my word for it, but it certainly tasted very good. We loitered around in the market for a while then headed back to our hotel. Dinner as usual was good.

Initially I had planned to stay one more day to visit Panna National Park in the morning. But with a small kid and biting cold it was just not advisable to venture out at 6:00am in an open jeep. So we decided to go back home the next morning.