Jaipur - Ragasthan

It was the day to explore Jaipur. On the plus side we had no long car journey and a later alarm call than the previous days. On the minus side, our alarm still went off at 7am. Lallu, our driver from the prevous day, was again our driver, working with our tourist guide Odu. What Odu does not know about Jaipur, we suspect is not worth knowing. His mind of information was probably wasted on us, but he was a great host. First stop Hawa Mahal (Palace of Winds) a pink sandstone facade emulating a Palace, built with numerous windows and stone screens to allow cool air (Hawa) to circulate for the Women of the Royal Palace to remain concealed, but still see the city life beyond the palace. 

Hawa Mahal - Palace of Winds

Then onto the wholesale fruit and flower market of Jaipur. An amazing market that provides for the city and has every ingredient to cure your ailments or alternatively make a curry hot enough to forget about them. We arrived late morning when a lot of the trade was completed, but there was still a wonderful buzz around the whole market. 

Next stop on our whirl wind tour was the Amber Fort, which is close to the amazing Panna Meena Ka Kund Deep Well, which is 200 metres deep, built over 1000 years ago to supply the Town of Amer water.

Up the hill from the Deep Well is Amber Fort, which is both architecturally amazing and contains a number of construction innovations, including a water based cooling system  (an ancient air conditioning system) and Turkish steam baths. 

Then onto the Jaipur  observatory (Jantar Mantar) -  this has some incredible astronomical devices, including the largest Sundail in the world, created in the early 18th century.  It can measure time to the accuracy of two seconds.

After all the sight seeing, we decided to try something a little different. We headed to the Polo bar at Rambagh Palace (thanks Divya). This hotel has Royal connections, providing a very different view of India. It felt like we had just walked into the East India Company during the Colonial occupation. As we left we noticed a vintage S class 1961 Mercedes, which we found out to be owned by the Royal Family. This car was immaculate and clearly had not been driven on the streets of Jaipur. The proud keeper soon offered to take us for a drive around the grounds in this amazing car, which proved to be a great way to end our visit. 

The drink of the day - The Jaipore Martini Rambagh Palace, made with rose syrup to give it the pink colour which Jaipur is famous for - The Pink City. Cheers to Jaipur for your hospitality. 

RecipeGin blended with home made rose syrup, Add Martini Rossi to create a martini that signifies the beauty of the pink city.

Agra to Jaipur

Another early morning to amplify the impact of jet lag. The alarm was set for 5am alarm to give us time for our sunrise visit to the Taj Mahal. A 05:00 am wake-up is 11:30 pm at home, so our body clocks are between morning and evening. The Taj Mahal was built around 1631, but even though it is nearly 400 years old its marble still glistens in the light, so sunrise is a perfect time to visit. Only a short walk from the Home Stay we arrived before the 6am opening in time to join the already forming queue, which meant we were one of the first in the race to get photos without the crowds.  

As usual a local man started a conversation in an attempt to make our visit an even better experience. He was previously an “official photographer” so he knew all the right places for our photos. He clung to us like superglue, so he soon became our official photographer moving us quickly around the wonderful building taking photos on our iPhone. To be fair, he knew all the best photo points and could drive the camera on an iPhone much better than we could, so the result was some fantastic photos. We tipped him 600 rupees, which he quickly pocketed and then chased after another unsuspecting tourist who would benefit from his skills. Some of his photos below.

Our visit finished by 7:30, returning for breakfast at the Home Stay, which included Bananas, Yogurt Toast and Peanut Butter, a Curry Rice dish and Indian Bread.. It doesn’t sound like an obvious combination, but it was superb and set us up for an adventurous five hour drive to Jaipur. 

Our driver, Lallu, was our guide for the day. His task was to navigate the roads to various sites between Agra and Jaipur. Fortunately the road was a dual carriage way, unfortunately the highway code in India is very different to the UK. But Lallu was confident and passed on his tip for a safe journey:

• Good Horn
• Good Brakes
• Good Luck

Fortunately, he used all three throughout the day, hooting, weaving, breaking and riding his luck around lorries, cars (some oncoming cars ignoring the concept of a dual carriageway), water buffalo, motorbikes and the occasional person who strolled out into the oncoming traffic to cross the road.  Our first stop was the deserted Fatehpur Sikri deserted Mughal City which was abandoned due to lack of water after construction. Created in 1571 as the capital of their empire in India, it was abandoned after 12 years , but remains in incredible condition . 
Second stop was the Chand Baoli step well. Construction started around 800 and finished 900 BC, before the Moghals modified in the 18th century. Probably the most impressive historical site we have seen since arriving in India. Its a World Heritage site and has featured in the third Batman film and more impressively the Michael Portillo BBC Great Train Journeys..     

Our journey for the day ended in Jaipur, another busy city, with a population of 3 million. The Dara Rawatsar hotel. Vegetable curry on the menu… 

Dara Ravadsar’s finest Vegetable curry

Delhi to Agra

An early start for our train journey to the home of the Taj Mahal : Agra. As we travelled to the station to leave Delhi, we once again hit organised chaos on the roads. What stood-out throughout our short time in Delhi is how relaxed everyone is given the way people move around the city. No one seemed to be upset when one Tuk Tuk cut in front of another. If a bike pulled in front of a car. In london there would be war on the roads. In Delhi it is just part of their lives. At no point did we feel threated on the crowded streets. Pick pockets are active everywhere, so it is not a place without crime, but we observed so little anger, more curiosity about these strange two visitors walking their streets. In a city with extreme poverty and inequality, there seems to be more tolerance and a live and let live attitude missing in many of the big cities in the world we have visited.

A quick Taxi from station to our accommodation for the night. 

The Coral Tree Home Stay

Tonight is a Home Stay, the Coral Tree, close the Taj Mahal, which we will get up early to see in the morning sunrise. The Coral Tree has a few rooms on multiple levels in a beautiful garden setting. If feels like a sanctuary compared to the Florence Inn New Delhi. 

Our afternoon adventure was to see the sights of Agra by car. The photos are Baby Taj Mahal built prior to the Taj Mahal, apparently the first full all Marble building, the Taj Mahal and the Agra Fort. 

Enough sight seeng for the day, the sun is still out and the Coral Tree offers cold Kingfisher beer (our drink was a little disturbed when a couple of monkeys strolled past). A nice way to finish the day, a cold drink before our Vegetarian Curry.. cheers..

Arrived - New Delhi

 

Day one of our journey and we have arrived in New Delhi. A modern airport with a touch of Dubai about the arrivals area. A very English speaking recorded message broadcasting out over the tannoy. Perhaps New Delhi was going to be a little more modern than we thought. 

As we landed at 1:30 am we could see the lights of New Delhi through what seemed to be a light mist in the air. After collecting our bags, we headed outside to discover the mist was in fact a light but slightly toxic smelling smog [apparently its the post harvest field burning time of year]. New Delhi is a city dependent on road transport, even at 3am our taxi driver weaved through lorries, cars and Tuk Tuks, using his horn to get us to our hotel in the fastest time he could achieve. Chaos theory underpins the road system in New Delhi and everyone is comfortable with it, apart from those in the back of a Taxi who have just arrived,

Flight over

Our view from the room

The Florence Inn

For sure this is a living city and very welcoming, but  to survive they need to be street wise. As two white Europeans we stand out and are a target to be sold too or street curiosities for selfie photos. The streets are full of salesman, who are extremely skilled. A welcoming hello, an offer of help and guidance. At the end of the conversation it turns out they can take you to visit the whole city in their Tuk Tuk, visit the highest quality weaving factories, the best restaurants and shops in Delhi. They can do all this while making you feel that they are only motivated by making you feel welcome in New Delhi. Great people and you have to admire their persistence.

As the day gets later, Delhi bursts into life, the roads evolve into markets full to bursting with people and noise. Sensory overload soon kicks in as you manoeuvre the streets of motor bikes, Tuk Tuks Rickshaws, Dogs, Cows, and thousands of people. Think of Oxford Street at Christmas, add Brick Lane and Petticoat lane, then multiply and it’s unlikely you are close.

The magnificent Jama Masjid Mosque 

Rickshaw ride with our tour guide Arvi

Spice Market

A great day, only dinner to go and then hopefully sleep to clear the jet lag. Tomorrow we head by Train to Agra.

Mixed Emotions

Today was a first, I declared myself unemployed. I publicly announced my leaving and my role is now being advertised to find a replacement. Even more bizarrely I wrote the job spec for the advert. My last working day is the 28th October, two days before we fly. It seems strange that I will be walking away from a job which has been completely consuming for the last 6.5 years, but the idea of waking up on Monday morning without it is very exciting.

The travel itinerary is finalised and we now have Visas for India and Vietnam. A Cambodia Visa is the last one we need. The India Visa process was a brief introduction into what we can expect in India. To be honest I didn’t make it easy for myself by making a minor mistake on the application form, but the result was a two week delay,  many hours queuing and waiting in a chaotic room, plus many emails which seemed be ignored. My passport is now back and I feel I have had the smallest peek at what David our travel advisor refers to as crazy fun in New Delhi and the wider India. 

The final decision is what baggage to take. Rucksack or suitcase? Are we backpacking or just going on a long holiday. Probably the later, but a rucksack would make it feel like backpacking. So the compromise is a hold-all with handle and wheels. For sure this is a first world problem. 

So we are nearly ready to go. I have even bought a new pair of shoes for the journey..Roll on the 30th.