Jumping Jaipur

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So much to see in this amazing land of contrasts. I’m enjoying observing regular people going about their lives perched above them from our tour bus window, and I love interacting with locals when I get the chance. Indian people are warm and friendly.

Several times we’ve been photographed by locals who are intrigued by our differences, and on a few occasions I’ve been asked to join a group shot, not dissimilar to travelling in Japan!

This time I’m writing while travelling from Jaipur to Agra, the home of the uber famous Taj Mahal. I’m glad we’ve left the Taj well into the tour, otherwise I fear all other monuments will pale into insignificance!

Back to Jaipur, and in fact Pushkar which we visited for one night en route from Jodhpur to Jaipur. Pushkar is a smaller city than most of the places we’re staying so it was nice to see how a ‘regional’ town operates.

Pushkar was still bustling and like all other places quite overwhelming at times. We saw a local bazaar complete with cows ambling along Iike they own the joint, and pushy salespeople. We also enjoyed the luxuries of a beautiful five star hotel which closeted us from the mayhem on the streets and the cheeky little monkeys trying to break in!

Onwards to Jaipur we enjoyed much of what this interesting town had to offer. Jaipur is a tourist city full of people like us from all corners of the globe ticking off their list of attractions.

On our first evening we visited the Burla Temple which looks like an ancient monument but was built in the 1980s. I enjoyed the short ‘service’ that we attended complete with the sprinkling of holy water, known as a ‘blessing’ - quite an honour.

The next day we started early to cram in as many sites as possible which was both enjoyable and a little exhausting. On the way to the famous Amber Fort, we drove through the old part of Jaipur known as the pink city. It is called that because when the Prince of Wales (Prince Albert, the son of Queen Victoria who went on to become King Edward VII) visited in 1876, the town’s buildings were painted in a shade of pink. Albert reportedly named it the ‘pink city’!

The Amber Fort which is a UNESCO World Heritage site, is an impressive edifice perched high on a hillside. The main detraction was the huge number of tourists who were also visiting alongside us, and the very very persistent street sellers who were peddling everything from pens to scary-looking puppets!

I’m always attracted to the stories about women when I visit palaces and am often struck by the restrictive lives they lived. At the Amber Fort we saw the small windows that were installed to allow the royal women to look out at the people below but not be seen. If they ever left the palace they travelled in covered palanquin (sedan chair) carried by attendants or animals so they effectively spent their entire lives locked away. The man who built the Amber Fort had 12 wives so at least they had each other for company, and I’m sure they spent much time focused on producing male heirs!

After the Amber Fort, we stopped by the Jaipur City Palace which while impressive, wasn’t quite as interesting as the Fort, or perhaps I’m getting monument fatigue!!

And finally we were let loose in the Bazaar for an hour of shopping. I was a little disappointed by the experience, although I enjoyed the sport of haggling with local shopkeepers. Dad would be proud, he loved a good haggle. They play hard here and make outlandish claims like it’s ‘handmade’ when you know it’s bullshit!!

For our evening meal we were treated to a visit with a local family in their home, complete with a cooking demonstration and an explanation of their lives in a multi-generation home. The young couple who hosted us had been married just two years and appeared happy with their marriage arranged by their parents!! But you couldn’t help but be swept up by the romance of it all and the beautiful home they occupied.

Encounter Travel describes these dinners as ‘Highlight’ meals and this one certainly lived up to the description. It is the best meal I’ve had so far in India. I particularly enjoyed a dish made with okra and another with eggplant. Delicious.

Tomorrow I’m looking forward to a dawn yoga class with a view of the mighty Taj Mahal.

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