Impregnable sea fortress, Janjira, on the coast of Maharashtra, India – this fort was said to have withstood the attacks of the Portuguese, the Dutch, the British and the Marathas and until the independence of India, remained undefeated. After independence, like all the princely states in India, the state of Murud-Janjira joined the Indian Union, and ownership of the fort passed on to India.
India’s own Battleship Island (remember the villain’s hideout in the James Bond movie, Skyfall? That's in Japan). This is India's version – Janjira Fort, Maharashtra, India
Another coastline, and another beach. This one from across the Arabian Sea, in the west Indian state of Maharashtra. This area was once part of the princely state of Murud-Janjira, a mini kingdom ruled by the Siddis, descendants of slaves from the Horn of Africa (area around Somalia and Ethiopia).
The Siddi were originally brought to India by Arab and Portuguese merchants. Some of them gained a reputation for their strength and loyalty, and later became warriors for hire (mercenaries). They eventually went on to possess their own state at Murud-Janjira. Most of them are Muslims.
Family outing at Janjira Fort, Maharashtra, India - notice how small Justin is at that time? He's like 13 months old then
A view at Janjira towards the mainland
The entrance to Janjira Fort, on the north coast of the island, accessible only by boat from nearby Rajapuri
The river mouth at Murud Town
Amrita at a beach near Murud, …think it’s Kashid (Google Map …what else hahaha)
Sunset at Kashid Beach, Maharashtra – and from here, we drove all the way home to Daund the same evening-night! Some 250 kms, and more than half of that on congested or rural roads. That's one of the reasons why Anu hates my travel plans... but we got to see an entire new area, and such an interesting fort, didn't we?
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