Michelle's Year in Southeast Asia: Jaipur, India

Jaipur was about a five hour drive from New Delhi. As soon as we arrived, we were amazed. There were painted elephants walking alongside our car as we entered Jaipur, also known as the “Pink City”. I didn’t think it was possible, but Jaipur was even less developed than New Delhi. All the buildings were warn down and rustic looking. It looked as if they started building a house and then would just give up half way through. There wasn’t a single street light or sign in sight. When we first got there, Mr. Singh dropped us off at the market. The markets were probably the best ones I have been to since being in Asia. Each store was so colourful and full, it was overwhelming. Fabrics, scarves, table matts, saris, bangles, earrings, turbans, purses, temple pants…anything you can imagine. Each item was available in every colour of the rainbow. The salespeople were aggressive like we were expecting, but almost in a fun and friendly way (so friendly we got asked to go for beers and disco multiple times…but declined politely). At night, Shelby, Mr. Singh and I sat on the rooftop patio and watched the sky light up with fireworks in every directions. According to Mr. Singh, just a typical night in Jaipur with at least 50 wedding celebrations going on at once.

Just some fun market times

Black out? The next morning, we were off to Amber Fort. It almost looks like The Great Wall of China in the way it outlines the mountains. The wall was built at the entrance to the city for protection. It was absolutely beautiful as it consisted of painted patterns, silver mosaics, mirrors, gardens and endless entrance ways and doors. It was quite easy to get lost in the fort with the excessive amount of secret passage ways and doors at every turn.

Next up we visited Jantar Mantar, various Hindu temples, and the Monkey Temple. Jantar Mantar is a collection of architectural astronomical instruments built by a late King. These instruments were used for measuring time, predicting eclipses, tracking stars' location as the earth orbits around the sun and determining the celestial altitudes. The whole place had quite a weird feel with the odd shaped structures, which made it even more fascinating.

Jantar Mantar

Casual camel ride

The Monkey Temple was a lookout point of Jaipur. The view was spectacular! At the top, we got blessed by a family that was actually living in the temple. The lady that lived there then painted henna on Shelby and my hands, which ended up lasting for the rest of the trip!