According to our itinerary, we
were due to arrive in Jaipur at 3.45 a.m. We can confirm
that this was indeed the time that we arrived, because
neither of us had slept very much. The train had shaken
us, rattled us and rolled us so much that at best
we had managed to doze. At one point during the night,
another train passed us, hooter blaring. It is inconceivable
that anybody slept through that! From 3.45 until 6.15
however, we fell into a coma and were still fast asleep
when we got our wake up call from Sid.
Breakfast was served by Sid and
Prabhu at a small shared table in the lounge at the
end of the carriage. We got to know our fellow travelling
companions a little better over the meal. There was
an American called Bruce, Australians Sonya and Lauren
and an Indian couple from London, Mr and Mrs Siddiqui.
Just before 8 o'clock, we got
off the train and made our way along the platform,
where we were welcomed by people from the city of
Jaipur with their colourfully adorned elephants. There
were more flower garlands and another red dot on the
forehead. Then we boarded one of the three waiting
coaches for our tour of the city.
Jaipur is one of the best
planned cities in the world of its time, so the guide tells
us. It is the capital city of Rajasthan and is popularly
known as the Pink City, although it has spread beyond the
old city walls. The Pink City itself is surrounded by pink
(well pinky-brown) walls and the buildings are painted the
same colour. The city blocks and frontages give the place
a co-ordinated look.
We stopped to take photos
of the frontage of Hawa Mahal (or the Palace of Winds).
It is five storeys high and highly decorative, with semi-octagonal
and delicate honey-combed sandstone windows.
Crossing the busy road was an adventure in itself, but we
lost no-one!
A milk market at the side of
the road, where farmers bring their milk and would
be buyers dip their arms into the churns to check
the consistency and quality of the milk, before deciding
whether or not to buy and what price to offer... nice!
We then drove up to the
Amber Fort, built high in the hills above Jaipur. It is
surrounded by a long wall.
We ascended the long steep sloping path from
the road to the fort on elephant back. The tour price included
the price of the ride, but it was suggested to us at the start
of the ride that we might like to offer the elephant man a
tip of 50 rupees per couple at the end of the ride. When we
arrived at the top, we offered the recommended tip, but were
firmly advised by him that the "tip" would be R50
each!
This video gives some idea
about how uncomfortable the ride was!
Our elephant was a frisky young thing
and kept overtaking others.
At the end of our tour to
the Amber Fort, we were taken back down to our coach in
a convoy of jeeps. Hawkers were everywhere!
Heading back into the city,
we paused briefly to see this palace in the lake
Next stop, the block printing
demonstration at the local craft and carpet shop
Geoff attempted to avoid the
hard sell in the shop, by sitting with one of the
craftsman and taking an interest in what he was doing...
until he too demanded a fee for the privilege!
Marjaana made the mistake
of showing a little interest in one of the carpets, but
then changed her mind.
It took some persuading to convince the vendor that she
really, really wasn't interested!
Lunch stop at a five star
hotel
After lunch, it started
to rain, but the tour continued regardless.
Our guide told us that it never normally rains at this time
of year!
We visited the Jantar Mantar,
built in 1728 and having a collection of architectural astronomical
instruments.
The Jai Prakash Yantra (one
of a pair) at Jantar Mantar, acted as a reflection of the
sky above.
The Mubarak Mahal palace
The City Palace
A late afternoon treat. More shopping,
this time at a jewellery shop.
We returned to the station to
prepare for dinner, passing this rather elegant building
on the way. Unfortunately, the train "wasn't
there", because this wasn't the same station
that we had disembarked from and it had not yet arrived.
We couldn't verify this ourselves because we were
not allowed off the coach. After waiting for around
fifteen minutes, it was announced that we would be
returning to the City Palace for an earlier than planned
dinner.
We were given a special welcome and then escorted to
our tables for a buffet-style dinner.
Unfortunately, the unseasonal rain and accompanying icy
wind, which whistled through the open sided eating area,
made it difficult to relax and enjoy our meal, but we
were nevertheless treated to some very graceful dancing
and good music.
After supper, we were taken
back to the train, which had by then "arrived"
at the station. We did find it interesting to see that it
was located alongside a short platform and that most of
the length of the train didn't actually fit on the platform.
In fact, there was a low-rise wall alongside all of the
end carriages and it was clear that a part of the wall,
directly in front of our carriage door, had recently been
hammered away (rubble still piled on one side) to allow
us to get on! We suspect that this was the real reason why
the train had apparently not "arrived" earlier.
The train was probably there all along, but nobody knew
what to do about the wall!
