Jaipur is a relatively new city, but in the 18th century on the expectation of the maharajah, Jai Singh II, this city was built as the city of Amber was overcrowded and struggling for water. The state of Rajasthan is almost 60% desert.
So Jaipur was built and is northern India’s first planned city with wide roads, palaces, high walls and gates to enter the city. The palace sits magnificently in the centre of Jaipur and is still owned by the royal family of Jaipur. Generously they open the gates during the day to allow cars and vehicles to drive through the grounds to access the other side of the city, but the gates close at 10pm, probably all the tooting and honking of horns keeps them up at night.
A night visit to the Hawa Bazaar was an experience. This area is renowned for its silks, jewellery and we were later to find out, its carpets. Walking the almost one and a half kilometre stretch of the bazaar you walk past hundreds of tiny stalls who are all very willing to invite you in to just have one look! It was safer to walk on the road!
Heading to our hotel we came across a wedding procession. Elephants, camels, horses, band, dancing and a groom.
Morning saw us head to Amber Fort. 11kms from Jaipur and high up a hill, this Fort was constructed in the 16th century around the town of amber. The Fort consist of palaces constructed from red and yellow sandstone and white marble. In the back ground, high above it, is the victory Fort.
We didn’t do the elephant ride (animal welfare reasons) but headed up in 4wd instead.
The palace grounds are a maze of rooms, apartments, pavilions and courtyards for the royal family. The town, including the Fort are surrounded by a great wall, which can be seen in the photos on the surrounding hill tops.
A quick photo stop at the summer Palace which sits in the lake.
After lunch a visit to the Jantar Mantar, a 18th century observatory built by Jai Singh II to identify the local time, the Ian bodies and the constellations. There are 5 of these in total, and I visited the Delhi one when there.
Final sight seeing for the day was at the City Palace, which I think is still in some offical use. Right in the centre of the old city (which is walled and gated) it too is a complex of courtyards, gardens and pavilions. Originally built by Jai Singh II, it has been expanded over the years. It’s museum housed original garments of some of the previous maharajah but nothing from the current, 20yo polo playing, jet setting young royal who oversees a family fortune of between $700 million and $2.8 billion.
Finally, why is it called the pink city? Upon the request of the maharajah the old city was painted pink as a sign of welcome to the Prince of Wales, later Edward VII, on his official visit to Jaipur in 1876. As a consequence, it has since been maintained as pink and is protected under local laws.
India and Nepal 2019 