A Glimpse of India: Jaipur

Another long bus ride today as we make our way towards Jaipur. After days of travel through the countryside, the sights still provide endless fascination. At one point, we come upon shepherds herding their goats down the middle of the road. Other shepherds are nearby with sheep, donkeys and camels grazing in the harvested canola fields.

Approaching a wall of goats on the highway

Squeezing by

One could not help but wonder how many miles this shepherd has walked in his lifetime; his brown weathered skin, lithe body, erect stance and the gentle smile on his face spoke volumes

Meager sustenance in this harvested canola field; nothing is wasted

Jaipur is the capital of Rajasthan and is a sister city to Calgary. It is a progressive and modern city and, of all the cities that we have been to, it is the cleanest. Rapid transit bus and train systems are under construction. It is known as the “Pink City” as much of the old city was built with pink sandstone. The color pink means welcome.

Some of the new modern structures being built in Jaipur

Construction of overhead transit systems

The streets in the old city are comparatively wider than in many other cities, but the traffic chaos still exists

The ornate facade of the old city buildings; only room for one vehicle at a time to pass through the gate

A woman selling pappadams on the street

In the mid-afternoon we visit the open-air Jantar Mantar Observatory. This observatory was built between 1727 and 1734. The site contains a number of large astronomical instruments that are very sculptural in design. These instruments measure data such as time, predict eclipses, determining the declinations and daily motions of the planets as well as astrological phenomenon. Many of the instruments are apparently still surprisingly accurate.

The shadow cast on the increments marked on the curved marble surface of the sundial called the Laghu Samrat Yantra (meaning Small Supreme Instrument)

A description of the Laghu sundial.

A cross-section of the Laghu sundial

This demonstrates the sculptural and artistic quality of the instruments.

The Vrihat Samrat Yantra (the Large or Great Supreme Instrument) is the world's largest sundial, standing 27 meters tall. It can give the time to an accuracy of 2 seconds.

Nearby the Observatory is the City Palace

One of two very large, silver vessels on display in the City Palace. These 4000 liter vessels were used by the maharajahs to transport water from the Ganges on their travels to England.

Monkeys abound on the palace buildings

Some of the palace apartments are still occupied by descendents of the maharajahs, but rest has been converted into a museum

The Peacock Gate

A myriad of ornate arches

The Hawa Mahal is part of the city palace complex. The latticework windows allowed the ladies of the royal harem to watch street life and processions while remaining hidden from public view.

The proverbial snake charmer

Late in the afternoon we drive north to Dera Amer, a private estate located in the hills behind the Amber Fort. Our first activity is to go for an elephant ride for about an hour. We feed bananas to the elephants, skin and all, before climbing up to an elevated platform where we board the ‘giants’. We sit in pairs on a howdah behind the mahout; our inside foot is forward against the front of the howdah while the outside leg is hanging down to a wooden platform on the side. We saunter off slowly but deliberately, rocking gently from side to side … a calm, peaceful ride. The landscape gently undulates through small ravines. Along the way, we stop at a platform where we are offered drinks (a little hokey, but it was hard to refuse a beer or a glass of wine!) After disembarking, we have our evening meal in an open air restaurant. They have fires burning in metal grated inclosures, however they regularly throw kerosene on the fires to make them burn more vigorously and this produced a very unpleasant atmosphere.

The line up awaiting our arrival

Apparently, the elephants were very well cared for here compared to many other working elephants in the area

How do you steer an elephant? Using commands and pressure with their feet, the mahout can direct, steer and command the elephant.

Our procession through the countryside

View forward and the mahout

Cheers Denell!

The next day begins with a visit to the Amber Fort and Palace. It is located in the town of Amer, 11 kilometers from Jaipur. Built from the 10^th Century onward by a succession of dynasties, it reached its height in the medieval era. From the base we ride up to the Fort by Jeep. One could have also road an elephant up to the fort for a price. The site is very crowded with tourists. It is a very beautiful and opulent palace.

The Amber Fort

The entrance to the Amber Fort, the Ganesh Gate. Lord Ganesh is the deity who, it is believed, removes obstructions likely to come in the way of human beings in their every-day life. His likeness is therefore traditionally painted or placed over the main entry into a building

Close up of Lord Ganesh

Marble floors and columns in a breezeway

A fortified wall lines the ridge-tops surrounding the fort

Inlaid stone and carved marble panels

The Shish Mahal (or Palace of Mirrors) in the Amber Fort in the third courtyard is where the private quarters of the Maharaja, his family and attendants were built.

Convex inlaid mirrors were made to flicker in the candlelight

Mirrored mosaics

An elephant train transporting tourists up to the fort

Another view of the walls surrounding the fort

A mosaic garden courtyard

On our way back to Jaipur from the Amber Fort, we stop at Anokhi Haveli. It is a very large store of Rajasthani art and crafts. We begin by watching demonstrations of block printing by hand and of carpet making. This is followed by a display of the large collection of carpets that they sell. This is a highly orchestrated event, one main salesman in a suit describing the carpets and his assistants rolling out the carpets for your viewing. They start with the least expensive carpets and work their way up in cost. Soon the floor of the whole room is covered deep with carpets, the most expensive ones at the top. This was a very similar production to carpet sales in Turkey. We were a bit more use to the bartering game this time. Carpets are only one of the items they sell. The store is full of beautiful textiles, carvings, and metal work to name a few.