Jaipur
Rajasthan's pink capital
We arrived in the afternoon from Pushkar, so after checking in at the quirky Pearl Palace Hotel we went for a stroll around the big city.
The hotel, a heritage styled one, has a very allegorical decor, very striking. Our room was the Nirvana, so above the bed there was a big Buddha, as it was decorated in the style of Ladakh, a region of the state of Jammu & Kashmir, where Buddhism prevails. Sculptures, paintings and colourful motifs recreate the wild characteristics of the area.
We were supposed to stay only one night there and the next night in Jaipur, in a better category but further away from the city, but a last minute change of the agency determined that the two nights in the city we would stay at the Pearl Palace. It was a good change as Jaipur is a very big city and being closer to the attractions was more convenient. In addition, the hotel had a very good restaurant which we enjoyed both nights: the Peacock had an eye-catching décor and a nice terrace. We were served very good food at a very good price. The only drawback was that it was not in the haveli itself, but a few blocks from the hotel, so you had to take the complimentary tuk tuk transfer.
That day was cooler than the previous ones so we had to wear a coat.
We left our things, freshened up a bit and Mahindra took us to one of the traditional markets of the city, the Chandpole Bazar. Unlike Pushkar, there were textiles everywhere, but not with western designs, but rather the typical saris, kurtas and wholesale fabrics. What I did find were some shoes, like mules, with the Turkish blue eye which, after the usual bargaining, I bought for less than five dollars, 70% less than the original price. In truth, everything was a temptation, but we were determined to keep the suitcase light so that the trip would be easier. More luggage always means more hassle. That's why one of @tripticity_’s suggestions is to always travel as light as possible. And although it was hard in India, we had to honour that mandate.
We strolled through one of the many alleys of the huge market and then went to the cinema, which is an attraction in itself in the city.
Jaipur is the place to see a Bollywood film, in the famous Raj Mandir, cinema, voted by CNN as the third best cinema in the world. Huge, just like the cinemas of yesteryear. On the billboard that day was not a typical sappy Bollywood film, as we would have liked, but an action movie, a copy of Top Gun, with a good-looking, hyper-famous Indian hunk, Hrithik Roshan, who played the role of Tom Cruise. It was quite an experience. The film was called Fighter, a nice, high-budget copy & paste.
The Indian in the auditorium metabolises the plot and interacts by unabashedly releasing himself in his seat. The enemies were, of course, the Pakistanis, and we found it remarkable to watch the audience whip the bad guys like a crowd at a football match; to cheer at an act of justice, to laugh out loud at a gag, or to sigh at the first romantic encounter. The music of Indian cinema is another must: between the missiles and bombings, there was time for the stars to sing and dance to a song.
The next day we had a whole tour of the neighbouring city of Amber, with its incredible fort, and also the main attractions of Jaipur.
But it so happened that our hotel was right in front of the Shri Bisari Ji temple, where every dawn the drums and bells were ringing with the Hindu rite of aarti, so we had to tour Jaipur with a poor rest.
We started at Amber Fort. One option allows you to ride up on an elephant for about thirteen US dollars but we decided to enjoy the scene from below, partly out of pity for the huge animals and partly to take care of ourselves. The idea of being on these huge creatures seemed very nice but it also took time, and it was not so safe, which we confirmed as soon as we returned home, at the end of the trip, when we watched on the news that a tourist had suffered serious injuries when she fell from an uncontrolled elephant in the same fort.
I had ridden an elephant on a trip to Thailand and I felt it was not right to do it again.
Goladji, our guide, a Hindu and vegan, didn't even eat eggs because egg, he explained, is life, but he defended the elephant taxis. Elephant taxis, in fact, whose work is now unionised, as they are expected to work by the book, with hour limits, housing and a daily ration of twenty kilos of bread and molasses. Elephant statute...only in India!
At the fort's main entrance square was the place where the elephants finished their tour and where the tourists started their sightseeing, so it was a crowded and packed place with hawkers and tourists.
Once inside, after paying the entrance fee and climbing a very steep staircase, we passed through the new part of the royal quarters of both the summer palace and the winter palace, which had innovative systems for cooling the terraces.
The Rajput and Mughal architecture is impressive. The fortress-palace is simply majestic.
Then we discovered the beauty of an interior.
And then the old palace, where the twelve concubines of the monarch lived, each in her own chambers. In one of them, the sculptures and paintings of the Kamasutra are still preserved.
The forts in Rajasthan are as beautiful as the royal palaces hidden within them but @tripticity_’s perennial favourite will be the one in Jodhpur, perhaps because it was one of the first to be visited. Equally, the beauty of Amber Fort is truly extraordinary.
Before heading down to the city, we stopped at the Anokhi Museum, a well-known textile brand, to learn about block printing, which is located very close to Amber Fort.
The guides offer to take you to places where they also demonstrate the technique, but this museum has an entrance fee -although lower- which is worth it, as the exhibition on this handmade craft is very well organised.
We also stopped at a stone shop. India is known for its precious and semi-precious stones but neither Jodhpur nor Jaipur convinced us. Perhaps because these huge sales centres offer all qualities from thousands of dollars to a few fives, all in the same shop. So it was not very tempting for us to acquire the precious Indian stones.
We then entered the city of Jaipur through one of the gates of its bustling and colourful markets. It was already midday so the activity was in full swing.
The first stop was at Jal Mahal (the Water Palace).
Then on to Hawa Mahal or Wind Palace with its iconic pink colour, which is present throughout the city. This is the pink sandstone building covered with windows topped with delicate filigree. From its small windows the royal women could watch the festival parades pass by without being seen by men.
While the horn orchestra thundered on, we took the classic photos of the façade and then hopped into a rickshaw that took us to the astrological observatory, which we found to be a work of genius. It is named Jantar Matar, built because of Maharaja Man Singh's great fondness for astronomy and astrology.
We continued the circuit visiting the Gaitor cenotaphs, with a stop at a tea and spice vendor, although we found it much less attractive than the Seven Sisters shop in Jodhpur, to which our guide Jasu took us.
The last stop was at a textile shop where we were given a demonstration of block print and where Mr @tripticity_ bought a shirt with a funny elephant print.
On the way back to the hotel we made an appointment to take massages that were on offer.
Jaipur is also known for its Ayurveda centres and Ayurvedic massages.
Within seconds, the receptionist coordinated with the centre to pick us up from the hotel. An Indian uber took us through the traffic chaos to the Kerala Ayurveda Kendra. The feeling of being handed over to fate was felt again.... Almost like all destinations in India it is a training to trust.
The Abhyangam massages were very relaxing. The name of the girl who did them I can't even remember and even if I did I couldn't pronounce it. One of the things I struggled with in India was pronouncing the exotic names of the people we met.
The minty aroma I came back to the hotel with from the oil she used for the massages was impossible, but hunger and tiredness won out so we decided to go straight to the Peacock Restaurant for our early dinner, so as to rest, as we were leaving early the next day for Agra.
For starters we ordered the honey chilly potato, crispy fries with a mixture of honey and spice. Next, we enjoyed Afghan rice, a Thai-style curry with jasmine rice and for dessert, hara pista, a delicious pistachio ice cream that will live long in our memories. As much as the beautiful and chaotic Jaipur.
