Winter Break Part 3: Jaipur, the City of Forts and a Lot of Kites

We checked out of our hotel in Agra in the mid-morning. As I climbed into the taxi that was to take us to Jaipur I reflected on the day before and how I really wasn't going to be missing Agra very much. We had a fun time for sure but it really grated on my nerves (in case my last post wasn't obvious enough). The day before I had asked our guide how long it would take to get to Jaipur. "Three and a half, four hours," he replied after consulting the driver. Knowing this was going to be a relatively uneventful and easy journey I snuggled into the backseat and prepared to watch the fields go by as we traversed the plains.





Six hours later we reached Jaipur...


Our hotel here was the Jaipur Inn. I would highly recommend it. Especially if you're traveling on a budget. Our room had it's own personal staircase going down to the dining room, comfy beds, hot water, a terrace that we shared with a few other rooms, and a flat screen tv. They have a lot of rooms of varying accommodations. Heck, if you wanted to they would even let you camp out on their lawn. There's a restaurant down on the first floor and a rooftop dining area with a pretty decent view of the city.

The Room.

I really wanted to descend these stairs in the morning like Eliza Doolittle and say, 'How do you do?' to all of the other patrons. Of course I would still be wearing my boxers and a t-shirt. Doubly of course, I did not do this.

View of one of the forts from the rooftop. I'll be damned if I could tell you which one it is though.

I sat and watched Charlie Brown here for at least half an hour as he flew his kite. As you look out across the skyline of Jaipur you keep seeing large birds. Then, you realise the birds are rather stationary and considering that hummingbirds are about the only ones that can do that and then considering the distance (assuming you have decent depth perception) that if indeed these are (humming)birds they would have to be enormous. One then has to come to one of two conclusions. Either A) daikaiju are attacking Jaipur in great numbers and the appearance of a giant irradiated dragon is inevitable or B) there is a lot of people flying kites in this city.

Seriously, kites were everywhere. This one reminded me of brother Chunk's entry for the KFI safety calender. (OK, so I probably shouldn't put family inside jokes up on the blog. Dad, if you find a copy of the calendar scan in the proper picture and I'll post it up here.)

In keeping with the Charlie Brown theme there was even Jaipur's very own Kite-Eating Tree.

The city of Jaipur.

I will never complain again when dad asks me to mow the lawn. At least I don't have to mow the roof like this guy. He's on the third floor.

Sunset over Jaipur.

India is truly a unique blend of old and new. One can go anywhere and look in one direction and see ancient buildings and temples and then right behind them have skyscrapers. Here is just another example in terms of transportation. I tried getting it with a bike and an autorickshaw in the picture as well but my camera wouldn't focus fast enough.

Since we got in so late on the first day we decided to just relax at the hotel and take a breather. The next morning we were ready to go. We stepped outside and were immediately swarmed by autorickshaw drivers who wanted our business. Eventually it was Gopi who won our affections. We hired him for the day and had a very interesting time. When one goes to Rajasthan there is really only a few reasons. Number one though, has to be the forts. The place is crawling with them. There are at least three in the vicinity of Jaipur. Our first stop, therefore, was going to be the Amber Fort. There's not a lot to really say about it so I'll let the pictures do most of the talking.

Riding in the rickshaw.

Approaching the forts.
I think these are of the Amber Fort and Jaigarh Fort (the one with the big tower).

Gopi and I posing in front of the Amber Fort. Kathryn took a similar picture with him. Only I think in that one he was actually smiling and was probably a good three feet closer to her.

An old sentry keeps watch.
(One of these guys charged me later on in the day.)

Amber.

We were going to take an elephant ride up to the fort since I had never done one. However, by about 10.30 they stopped doing rides for whatever reason.

This is the Water Palace. Apparently this is where the king would take one of his wives when they wanted some 'private time.' You can only access the palace by boat.

After the fort we headed in to the heart of the city and visited the royal palace. Again, I'll the pictures talk.

Gopi even let Kathryn drive the rickshaw down a dead street. Personally, I think it was more of an excuse to get his arm around her.

Really, what says, 'India,' to you more than a Christmas tree and a creepy Santa?

Jaipur really had an unhealthy obsession with weapons. I think every place we went to had some sort of arms exhibit.

If I recall correctly two of these huge silver jugs were made and carried water from the Ganges to England for the coronation or something. Of course I could be making all of this up.

The remainder of the day was relatively uneventful. We allowed Gopi to take us to a few emporiums. It's not so bad to get to see how things get made but after seeing how a rug is made for the third time you get rather tired of it. It's also amusing how so many people claim to be the largest operation or even the only ones who can perform this craft. Ah well, if it earns you a buck.

The next morning was all about checking out temples. We first headed to the Wind Temple. After that we headed over to the Monkey Temple. It gets its name from the fact that every night at dusk the place becomes swarming with monkeys. Kathryn was terrified of the path up as it was littered with our distant cousins picking bugs out of each other's hair and running around in general. When we finally got up to the temple she refused to take off her shoes to go inside for fear of hepatitis or something of that ilk. I braved the temple alone and came back with nothing more than dirty socks. You know what they say though, "Black socks. They never get dirty. The longer you wear them the dirtier they get." I was wearing white socks...

That afternoon we checked out Albert Hall, the local museum. It was a relatively forgetable museum filled mainly with copies of pieces from other museums. Probably the biggest thing that sticks out in my mind was their collection of miniature sculptures. They were of men in various yoga positions. The only odd thing was the fact that whenever the sculpture permitted the artist daintily painted in some pubic hairs poking out of the loincloth. I'd show you pictures to prove I'm not lying but then what would you think of me if I was posting pictures of THAT? Do I even dare to ask what you think of me now? Anywho, on to the pictures.

The Wind Temple.

There were even kites in the Wind Temple.

See that weird triangle-like building in the background? At first I had no idea what it was either. Have patience and all will soon be revealed.

At the Monkey Temple.

The path up.

Albert Hall exterior.
I'd be ashamed to show any pictures from the inside.

After a quick lunch we boarded our train to take us in to Delhi. I tell you, by this time I was really getting tired of train food. Think airline food and then take the 'Quality' knob and turn it down a few notches. After a few hours we arrived back in the bustling metropolis that is Delhi. I'll get to that next time.