Friday May 2, 2014
Welcome to the desert city of Jaipur, also known as the "Pink City of India".
The city is unusual among pre-modern Indian cities in the regularity of its streets, and the division of the city into six sectors by 34 m wide streets.
Down town Jaipur.
Now this guy has a load on... And there is nothing as refreshing as fresh fruit on a 43 degree day.
Nothing more refreshing except perhaps an air cooler or 12. Surely there is room for just 3 more...
Our regrettable tuk tuk driver for the day who thought he knew everything and listened to nothing.
First stop, the City Palace.
Door hardware.
Trooping the colour. We saw the same roof from the inside.
It's very pink.
A large open pavillion.
A photo of Lady and Lord Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of British India in 1947 during a visit to the palace. The British Raj (or rule) lasted from 1858, when the rule of the British East India Company was transferred to Queen Victoria, until 1947 when the the British realised they had worn out their welcome.
Across the road, the Jantar Mantar is a collection of architectural astronomical instruments, built by King Sawai Jai Singh.
Finally a monument to science instead of wealth and religion...
Would make a great water slide...
Hawa Mahal, "Palace of Winds" or “Palace of the Breeze”. Built in 1799 in the form of the crown of Hindu god Krishna. Proving that it's not just Australia that feels the need to build giant pineapples, bananas and sheep as tourist attractions.
Its unique five-storey exterior is also akin to the honeycomb of the beehive with its 953 small windows called jharokhas that are decorated with intricate latticework.
The original intention of the lattice was to allow royal ladies to observe everyday life in the street below without being seen, since they had to observe strict "purdah" (face cover).
After a very nice spot of lunch we were off to the Amber Fort in the desert.
Lloydnalex
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