02/04/2012

Today we got up at 7:00 as we had a busy schedule ahead of us - we thought. We generally slept well overn-night, at least until around 3:00 when suddenly I woke up to an unholy noise emanating initially from what I thought was the air-conditioning unit, which was already a fair bit noisy. It turned out that while the air-condition was the cause (vibration) it wasn't the new noisy bit - it was actually a broken window on top, which could move/vibrate within its frame. After thinking about a solution for about 15 seconds I finally came up with a solution - lean two 1l bottles of mineral water against the window and the vibration will be absorbed - job done  - and I could go back to sleep ;-)
Anyway, we showered and got up to have breakfast for 7:30 - we had pre-booked it last night because of the time. At 8:00 we went outside and our auto-rickshaw driver was there waiting. We said goodmorning and I went on to tell him that we didn't want to do any shopping (he asked us yesterday whether we wanted to go and see suits for me and clothes for here). After that he was in a bit of a foul mood but never mind - we ignored it and were on our way to our first stop at the Amber Fort.
It is indeed as impressive as the guide books suggest. The sheer size of it and the surrounding walls on the hills (not unlike the Chinese wall), which span between the three major Forts, must have been a daunting sight for any wood-be attackers of Jaipur in its time. Definitely worth a visit. We, like most other tourists, did the corny thing and took the elephant ride up to the Fort from the bottom, which was next to a small lake on which "floats" a big square flower garden and plantation.
Up there we first explored the vast space and courtyards and then went on to navigating the nooks and crannies around the place - it was nice and good fun. It also helped that we were there before it got really hot.
Next on the list was Jaigarh Fort, which was generally pink - just like the Old City of Jaipur. It paled in comparison to the Amber Fort but it was OK to walk around and have a look while the temperature was being cranked up to probably 40C. We also met a guy by the name of James from Bristol who was an engineer and was temporarily stationed in India as the engineering company he was working for was attempting to set up in India - so he had taken the opportunity to take some holidays and go off and explore India - nice chap indeed, and we swapped a few stories and things to do along the way.
Finally, it was Nahargarh Fort, which was also impressive but didn't have much to see by means of objects - all the rooms and courtyards etc were empty. Worth a visit nonetheless, even if it was insufferably hot around there at this point around 12:00.
Then we asked our driver to take us down to the Old City as I had spotted a barbershop near the entrance and really needed a haircut. Again, the driver was being sulky and pissy - but didn't really offer a good reason given that we were customers and had the right to make decisions about what we wanted to see and where to go - so we decided to dump him altogether - missing the Monkey Temple & sunset point with him - but we weren't really bothered at this point given temperature and amount of sights we had seen. When we reached the Old City we told him of our decision and gave him Rs. 600,- (700 was agreed, which included the temple/sunset) so he got a good deal, especially when compared to other tourist outlets and fixed trips etc. He was still pissy but we walked off and let him stew on his own - no time for that kind of crap.
So I went off to get my hair cut but there was a bit of a misunderstanding about using the trimmer (with a plastic number 9 distance yoke) and he started on my hair without one, which effectively removed nearly all my hair near my right ear before I managed to stop him. So then I told him to just trim it with scissors - but for sake of symmetry he ended up having to do the same thing on the left side - and of course, Claire was nearly pissing herself laughing with the other Indian gang while all this was going on. In the end he did an alright job (for about 80 euro cent!) and the "missing" (or rather, very short) hair didn't really look too bad after all - and with my hair growth it will have grown out before the end of the week anyway - until then I will just have to resign myself to even more curious stares - now also at my hair...
Then we went back to the same food-Wallah where we ate yesterday and had a nice Chowmeing (Claire) and Special Coconut Upanam - both were nice - with Ginger Ale and finally two cups of coffee. Just what the doctor ordered!
Afterwards we walked in the old city and through sheer spontinuity I popped into a watch shop and had a look at the selection there - and ended up buying a new watch (FastTrack). My old cheapo plastic Casio's strap was breaking and it was only a matter of time before it would get lost. So I preempted it with a bit of retail therapy - Claire picked the new watch between those that I liked so let's just hope she picked right ;-)
At this stage we had had enough and were well hot and bothered so we flagged a rickshaw and returned back to the hotel at around 16:30 where we relaxed and showered - again...
At around 18:30 we went up to the rooftop restaurant of our hotel and had vegetarian meals - both Biryanis. Claire's stomach is still sick, most likely from the antibiotics, and so I was the only one having a few beers while we were reminescing on the trip so far and the future ahead - until around 21:30 when we returned back to our room and went to bed.

Some points about Jaipur that we have found while being here:
- The people here are generally friendly - about the same level as that of Amritsar
- However, the auto-rickshaws, Wallahs, shopkeepers etc are very aggressive in their way of hanging on to you as soon as they spot you - they will sell you snake oil even if it is to get them off your back. You just have to be firm and have a firm look in your face - sometimes you may however have to resolve to outright rudeness to get them to back off - it's a balancing act - start nice and then go nuclear if the need arises
- It is unbelievably hot here - forecast will perhaps say 38-39C but it must be around 40+ at times as a light "breeze" actually feels hotter than still air.

The Amber Fort in all its glory

Inside the Amber Fort

The entrance to the Amber Fort from above

Some of the impressive architecture within the Amber Fort

The flower and plantation island as seen from the Amber Fort

A wee garden within the Amber Fort

Even the monkeys are completely conked out in this heat!

The default means of tourist transportation from the lake and up to the Amber Fort

A small park by the lake at Amber Fort

There are a lot of camels around the place in Rajasthan - but sure it's practically a desert alright!

The pink-ness of Jaigarh Fort

The largest cannon in the world rests at Jaigarh Fort - the stuff in the end could be Indian hippie equivalent of "make love and not war" - but who knows... ;-)

The Amber Fort and surroundings as seen from Jaigarh Fort

Nahargarh Fort - the west wing, I think...

Inside Nahargarh Fort there are some impressive paintings on the wall

A view over Jaipur from Nahargarh Fort - yup, it's big - as in geographically! And rests with large hills most of the way around.

Inside the Nahargarh Fort

Another section inside the Nahargarh Fort

Claire being friendly with the local donkey

We passed this (privately owned) palace on the lake at Jaipur as we were coming back - very impressive! Used to be State owned but some very loaded person bought it off them!