Rajasthan(the hype is real) — Jaipur
(Part 1 of a 4- part series)
Well, a few weeks ago, I went on a trip to Rajasthan with my wife- after prolonged research and tons of pre-planning, that is :). The in-house “research” suggested that the best time to visit Rajasthan is during the winters; that coupled with the intent of reducing the peak-tourism cost towards the year-end led us to finalize the 1st week of December as the one for the trip.
We had 4 cities on our itinerary — Jaipur, Udaipur, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer (and back). The idea was simple — savour the quintessential “Rajasthan experience” to the fullest extent possible, come what may — and sure as hell, the experiences we had there are some I will remember for a lifetime.
Our flight from Bangalore landed on time at Jaipur(around 8:30 AM)on day1-we had planned on a one day stay at Jaipur, and had planned to cover all the major architectural landmarks of this wonderful, beautiful “pink” city in the first day itself — City Palace, Jantar Mantar, Amer Fort, Jal Mahal, etc. — we probably covered them all.
City Palace is an absolute treat for the senses — vivid colors, courteous staff and overall, a wonderful place to visit and experience. The premises are well-kept with manicured gardens, clean pathway, et.al. Jantar Mantar, the largest sun observatory in India, is about 500 meters from the City Palace, which we paid a short and quick visit to as well. Point to note though — Hawa Mahal is highly overrated — one can simply view the structure from outside (though that’s easier said than done, given the sheer traffic on one of the busiest roads of the city)
Our next stop was the magnificent Amer Fort — the precursor to the city of Jaipur itself. This is located at some distance from the main city of Jaipur, and atop a hill. The architecture is a mix of Indian and Mughal styles, with a Diwan-i-aam a temple dedicated to Kali Maa(the Sila Devi temple), all at the same place. Though a bit confusing at first, the contrasting nature of the architectural styles does manage to bring out the best of both styles.
We ended our day trip with a visit to Jal Mahal, a palace built in the middle of the Man-Sagar Lake in Jaipur city (the lake itself is artificial). Built in traditional Rajput architectural style, this monument lies witness to many a sweeping change in the city over the past several decades — a silent observer. Though significantly damaged due to the extensive pollution of the lake waters as well as the problem of water-logging, the palace is now maintained by the state government and is under their direct supervisory control.
With all the major spots for the city done and dusted, we decided to call it a day and head back to our hotel room, to have a good night’s rest so that we could start early for Udaipur the following day.
I wish to bring to the readers’ notice a few things that they should keep in mind if they ever plan to visit the city/state — these tips hold good for almost all of the major tourist spots and cities of Rajasthan — Tourism is one of the major income generators for a large population in the city and there are thousands of regular folk who depend on tourism directly and/or indirectly for their livelihood. While this sounds good on paper, fact is, tourism is, for the most part, a seasonal industry out there, given that the temperatures are on the higher side for the better part of the year. Folks here try to make the most when the sun shines especially considering the months from Dec-Jan are the ones when most of the tourists visit the state. The food though tasty and sumptuous, is highly overpriced, the rates for lodging and hotel stay shoot up like there’s no tomorrow and even the most basic of goods and services are marked up at a much higher price than they normally would be on other days. One needs to choose and exercise their options wisely and explore all possibilities. Also, try and negotiate a good bargain at all times- 8 on 10 the vendors and shop owners, being worldly-wise, would outsmart you but there would be those 2 cases where you would win. Do keep this in mind when planning a trip and alloting your finances.
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