Happy Holi!

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Arrived Jaipur early morning after a torcherous, cold night bus from Jodhpur. It was the typical scenario of arriving at the bus station, finding the correct bus, loading up our bags, arguing with the kid demanding 20 rupees for opening the luggage door so we could load our bags, me finding his boss and reporting him, his boss laughing, me seething (but not paying any rupees), me finding the nearest chai chai man, downing a tea, still standing outside hoping that damn kid doesn't pee on our bags, finally boarding the filthy bus and praying to Shiva for the best. One of the most intense things about travelling as a woman in India is the sheer overabundance of men and lack of women everywhere. It's as if there is one woman for every 20 men in this country. I think it's really about 10 to 7 (men to women) or something like that, but women stay hidden away quite a bit more. This really hits you when you get on a bus or train and you realise you and your blonde friend are the only two chicks on the bus. It's not dangerous, just weird. Anyway, I digress.

We arrived Jaipur very early the next day and after finding a guest house, we made our way into town to see the ancient palace and grounds designed by Maharaja Jai Singh, the warrior ruler/astronomer who founded the city in the late 1600s. The palace and armory displayed an impressive collection of Saris, furnishings and war weapons.

While touristy, it was nice to see that there had been some effort put into the refurbishment and upkeep of the palace in Jaipur. When we were in Udaipur for example, the fort's walls were messily reinforced with concrete; in Jaipur they at least tried to paint some of the concrete to match the walls.

By far, the most impressive thing about Jaipur in my book is Jantar Mantar, the ancient observatory built by Jai Singh II. It's a field of geometric towers, sundials and charts to read the movements of the sun, moon and constellations. It's like walking into some sci-fi setting in ancient times.

Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan, is known as the Pink City, since a former king had the town painted pink to welcome King Georges in the late 1800s. I will never forget this nomiker, especially since this is where we spent Holi, the festival of colour, and since then my hair has been bright pink. Holi is the celebration of the arrival of spring and let's just say the Indians really let loose. It's mainly a northern festival, since the hot south doesn't really have a spring to welcome in. The streets are packed with people dancing, singing, all armed with bags and bags of ghoulou, the finely ground, intensely coloured powder to signify spring. The powder is ground limestone, coloured with natural flowers and herbs, which is deceptive because it might as well be Manic Panic punk hair dye. Not to mention that everyone is dumping buckets of water on top of the powder so it really sets in. Oh well, it's a look. I always wanted bright pink hair...

We spent the day on the rooftop of the nearby restaurant at Pearl Palace, a fabulous guesthouse decked out with artsy chairs, a peacock canopy and an hysterical owner Mr Singh. Soaking wet, bright pink, yellow and green and nice and drunk from a day of dancing at the party, we made it an early night. The real surprise was the next morning when I took a shower thinking all the colours would come out -- Holi mother of God, I looked like an alien with bright pink skin and hair. What a festival!

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Comments

[aj]

pretty in pink
No pictures?!