The Blue City

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Suprisingly enough, sleeping on the train to Jaipur was easy. I'm sure it had to do with it being two in the morning and mightily fatigued. Only Settle had a problem, as Indian sleeper trains are not designed for people over six foot. Indeed, he is always being looked at in the street. For some reason people like calling out "long man, long life, long wife" at him. We haven't worked that one out.

Jaipur is a great city. Presided over by the massive Mehrangarh Fort, a great deal of the city is painted blue, which certainly gives it a certain charm. This sense of charm was duly augmented by the guest house we are staying at, Cosy's. Up winding streets so narrow that you have to walk the final distance to it, the guest house has an amazing rooftop view of the fort and the old city. The owner is what we would term a chief.

Suprisingly enough, and in keeping with our tradition of seeing someone from home at every stop, a friend was also staying at the guesthouse. Bec, the sister of Nick (who came to India but left before I arrived) and the person had recommended Cosy's, was still here when we arrived. So we spent the first there day with her, begining with a long breakfast, and then a trip to the train station to book some tickets. While waiting for Bec to buy a ticket, I struck up a conversation with one of the soldiers there. It became quite long, and it was certainly great to have an indepth conversation with an Indian who was not out to get something - a rare thing. He was very interested as to the independance of the youth in Australia, as well as the fact that I didn't mind whether I got married or not. He was however, annoyed that the only Indian "hero" that us Westerners knew was old Gandhi.

The following day we tackled the Fort. Run by a trust set up by the current Maharaja, the Fort is a model of a well run attraction. One of the people we met here summed it up in saying that it was great to see something that was being protected and venerated, as opposed to being haphazardly "improved" like so many other things (the Amber Fort in Jaipur, for example). The audio tour, which we indulged in, certainly made the experiece "the highlight of our week" as the ticket man assured us. Spoken by an Indian with an English public school accent, it gave a great insight then we could have got alone, while interestingly glossing over things like the lower levels of the caste system, and the concubines the Maharaja's enjoyed.

The little boy in me just wanted to sit up on the ramparts by the numerous cannon and imagine attacking the place, while the tourist in me wished to see the whole thing through the screen of my camera. It was great.

Chris left the next day for Mumbai to meet his cousin, and Bec left for Pushkar. So it was just Sammy and I. We duly spent the whole next day on the internet, talking to people from home. We did get out however, and wandered around the streets of the city, cameras in hand. The narrow lanes are so full of people there is always something to see: old men playing cards, women buying groceries, the flames from a streetside food vendor and the glimpses of haughty old Indian women in rickshaws. Killing time at Cosy's until our 1130pm train, we left for Jaisalmer in the evening.

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Photos

Me and the Fort
Not a bad view from our hotel, really.

The Blue City
Anything looks pituresque from so high up, but Jodhupur is also charming on street level

Street Level
Charming. Most of the streets are like this. At peak hour the place is a bustling mass of people.

The Residences
The fort was a palace too. It looms above you as you come in, awesome is a good word here.

The View
Where once height was good for fields of fire, now it is a good place for another type of shot.

The Walls
Almost 600 years, and the place hasn't fallen. Not hard to see why.

Staircase
Don't know where it goes, looks nice though.

The Fort's interior
Ornate, this was where the women lived. The idea was that they could look out the windows and not be seen by the men below

Little Kid
This child was playing inside the fort.

More of the Fort
I took a lot, but only because the place was so conducive to taking shots

Cricket
We played a quick game of cricket with these kids. The uneven ground certainly made batting interesting.

The Gang
Chris, Sam and myself eating Samosas.

The Market Place
Lots of people, lots of noise

A Nut Seller
Each store here only sells a few things - no supermarkets here.

Comments

[Lyn ( Chris's mum)]

great photos
Hi Tristan, love the photos and hearing about little snippets thank you! i've heard (via praharan) that Chris and Eff are safely in Mumbai, and that another cousin will be there on the 26th - Australia Day, timely for an aussie catch up ! cheers Lyn

[Ames]

TRISTAN! Just read through all of you blogs...and i'm soooo jealous! Great to hear news of your trip, can't believe its taken me so long. Sounds like you're having an awesome time. Where else is this trip taking you? When do you return? The photos are brilliant and the place looks amazing. Keep it up! Only news I have that is worth mentioning is that I got into a postgrad dip of psych at monash. Keep having a super time and take care! :)