Jaipur, the "Pink City":
After travelling about 6 hours from New Delhi - mostly on divided tolls roads - we finally arrived in Jaipur, the City of Victory founded in 1693. This is the first of the three Palace cities that we visited over three days in the state of Rajasthan, a predominantly Hindu region. Of the three, each had many buildings in the Old City painted a specific color. For Jaipur, it was pink for The Welcoming City.
Our day guide took us to an outdoor observatory constructed in 1728 by the warrior-astronomer Maharaja Jai Singh. It had sundials and other exhibits that precisely measured time by the course of the sun's shadow and charted the annual progress through the zodiac. This was a fascinating look at what scientists were able to accomplish without modern technology and how they understood the relationship between time based on the earth's movement around the sun.
The City Palace tour was a step back to the 1800's, built by the Maharaja who housed 108 wives and scores of military and weapons. In addition to being the capital of the State, Jaipur is also known as the the location to purchase gems and jewelry. And they don't miss an opportunity to try to sell them to tourists. We were then taken to a local jewerly center and did manage to succumb to the hype get a few attractive items for Lauren and I.
Before we left the next day, Stan and Lauren got up at 6:30 am and took a trek up to the Amber Fort which was perched high upon a hill with protective walls extending beyond the fort along the ridges of the adjacent hills. The walls looked like a small version of the Great Wall of China. For those willing to pay the fare, elephants were used to transport visitors to the top. However, they used this opportunity to climb a hill, so they hiked up to the Fort and took some interesting pictures that are attached.
After travelling about 6 hours from New Delhi - mostly on divided tolls roads - we finally arrived in Jaipur, the City of Victory founded in 1693. This is the first of the three Palace cities that we visited over three days in the state of Rajasthan, a predominantly Hindu region. Of the three, each had many buildings in the Old City painted a specific color. For Jaipur, it was pink for The Welcoming City.
Our day guide took us to an outdoor observatory constructed in 1728 by the warrior-astronomer Maharaja Jai Singh. It had sundials and other exhibits that precisely measured time by the course of the sun's shadow and charted the annual progress through the zodiac. This was a fascinating look at what scientists were able to accomplish without modern technology and how they understood the relationship between time based on the earth's movement around the sun.
The City Palace tour was a step back to the 1800's, built by the Maharaja who housed 108 wives and scores of military and weapons. In addition to being the capital of the State, Jaipur is also known as the the location to purchase gems and jewelry. And they don't miss an opportunity to try to sell them to tourists. We were then taken to a local jewerly center and did manage to succumb to the hype get a few attractive items for Lauren and I.
Before we left the next day, Stan and Lauren got up at 6:30 am and took a trek up to the Amber Fort which was perched high upon a hill with protective walls extending beyond the fort along the ridges of the adjacent hills. The walls looked like a small version of the Great Wall of China. For those willing to pay the fare, elephants were used to transport visitors to the top. However, they used this opportunity to climb a hill, so they hiked up to the Fort and took some interesting pictures that are attached.
As connecting highway construction isn't completed for several years, traveling to these cities on the local roads was our only option. The living conditions of the people in these small towns are very run down, crowded and dirty. The women seem to have a tough time as many were carrying goods and tilling fields in very poor conditions. There are many animals living amongst the villaeges including an abundance of dogs, all of the same breed.
The next City stop was Jodhpur, the "Blue City."
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