John had planned a tight itinerary for us for the next two days. A vehicle was booked for us for our time in Jaipur at Rs. 1000 per day. We woke up in the morning and went straight to the market for breakfast. We hogged on chaat and headed to Jaigarh fort. It is a huge place with the highlight being one of the biggest cannons you can see, with a range of over 30 kms. The fort periphery is vast and you can see the outside walls going for as far as you can see.
The cannon at Jaigarh fortWe then moved on to Nahargarh fort, which is a little more beautiful than Jaigarh. Jaigarh is anyway knows to be popular for its size rather than its beauty. While at Nahargarh, I stumbled upon a beautiful dugout and called Chandan to take some pictures. We then realized that there was a way to go down inside it and called everyone else. At the bottom, we took many many pictures and sat down to look at the magnificence of the architecture.
Wrinkles on stone - the dugoutThis dugout is, by the way, the same place where some scenes of Rang De Basanti were shot...this is the "masti ki paathshaala"! The Nahargarh fort is also where the auditorium scene of RDB was shot, when auditions are taken for the roles of various people in the documentary they are going to make. I can only imagine all the performances that took place here in the Maharaja's time!
Manish jumping from the stage on the crowd (or well....erm...just on the camera)Still 09 Jan 2009 People: Alpana, Manish, Roopali, Nanu, Pedro, Chandan, John, Gayatri + Vedant.
Our next stop was Amer fort, but before that we had to pick up Vedant who had just reached Jaipur by train. We asked him to get to Amer by a cab and we saw him there, put his luggage in our vehicle and went in Amer fort.
Amer is mindblowingly beautiful. You enter into the main compound through a gate having a plethora of colors. Then there is the Diwan-e-aam, with its myriad pillars and the Sheesh Mahal, with mirrors showing a beautiful imagery of light and relection. There were also colorful gardens adorning the interior and exterior of the palace.
Entrance to main compound at Amer fort
Diwan-e-aam
Ceiling at Sheesh Mahal
Garden inside the palace
Garden outside the palace - view from the top of the palace
But what made everything worth it was the guide we had. We hadn't taken any guides at Jaigarh or Nahargarh and decided to take one here. The fella quoted Rs. 200 for a group of more than 6 people and Rs. 150 for lesser. Since we were more, we haggled for him to get us the lower price. He finally agreed and gave us on of the most informative tours we've ever had. He took us through each and every corner of the place, explaining the history and architecture behind it. In fact, he was prompt with all the answers to our questions or doubts as well and seemed to know the subject matter like an expert. His erudition was a league above the guides at Ranthambore fort and Taj Mahal. He impressed us so much that we eventually gave him his Rs. 200 because we really felt he deserved it.
The guide at Amer. You can tell we are engrossed! L-R: Pedro, Nanu, Guide, me, Vedant, Roopali, Manish, Gayatri, John.
Note: When you're at Amer fort, take one of the guides. They are excellent!
We finished seeing the fort by 1800 hrs and then made our way to the memorabilia store at the exit. I bought some wonderful saris for mom and myself and a beautiful painting for home. However, you may want to skip the sari buying here and take a look at Jaipur market instead. You'll get similar stuff for half the price, if you bargain well.
Buying complete, we were off to Choki Dhani for dinner and a Rajasthani cultural experience. They put on a great show there, with folk music and dance, fair rides like the ferris wheel, camel rides, and so much more. There are also little stalls that are either selling food or small memorabilia items or have games on offer. I hung out with John, Vedant and Chandan, playing each and every stupid game - shooting balloons on the wall, throwing rings on stuff to win them, dropping bowling pins with a ball, and what not!
But the main attraction was the food! When you enter Choki Dhani, you get a coupon with the time that you can sit to eat (like in a restaurant when there is waiting). We could only sit at 2300 hrs and so we passed our time first with all the rides and games and stall food. At our stipulated time, we sat down in true Indian style. On the floor with our legs crossed paalti maarkar. One by one, the food started coming in. Yumm....!!! What was awesome was the guys who serve the food, would not listen to you when you insisted that you'd eaten enough. No siree! "You have to eat more than that!!!!" Plop! Another spoon of food in your plate! We then realized we had to eat slowly so that our plates didn't look too empty. At the end of it, we were super stuffed and I got high like I always do when I eat too much! That means that I was dancing and going round in circles around myself at one point of time, but lets not talk about it too much now.
Back to our hotel, we played more Uno until most people were asleep. At the end, it was just me, Chandan, Manish, John and Gayatri. John made us play a game in which we all tell each other what our first impression on everyone in the room was and what we thought of them now. I remember saying that I always thought of Chandan as a quiet, nice boy. I remember stressing on the word nice. And how I thought John was a player and that kinda hadn't (and still hasn't) changed up until the game. And how Manish was and is one of my best friends ever. And how I appreciated Gayatri for being a chilled out chick and coming for every trip we have, irrespective of any problems or issues within the group. We should play that game again!
10 Jan 2009 People: Alpana, Manish, Roopali, Nanu, Pedro, Chandan, John, Gayatri + Fahim.
Early next morning, Fahim arrived, but he was not gonna stay with us that day. He would visit Ajmer Sharif and then join us in the evening. A whole bunch of people were leaving on 10th and a lot of shopping had to be done. So Manish, Roopali, Nanu, Pedro and John left the hotel by 0900 hrs while the rest of us took our time to wake up, get ready and finally leave. We met the rest of the gang directly for lunch at 1300 hrs at Jaipur station. We said our goodbyes to them and decided to see the city in the vehicle that we still had.
Jaipur is a gorgeous city. The buildings are stunning and the statues and memorials on road junctions are stare-worthy. Old Jaipur, which is supposed to be pink, is not really pink. Its brown. Seriously. That's not pink.
Chandan, Gayatri, Vedant and I stopped at the Jal Mahal, in the middle of a lake, as the name suggests. We then headed to Jaipur fort in the main city. With a guide, we wandered the fort with trivia about the history and artifacts kept there. It was a good looking place, but I think we'd had enough of forts for a while! Make a trip to the memorabilia store in the fort. You get awesome coffee mugs for Rs. 20 bucks each. They're a steal! We picked up one titled Nine Boys. It's a wierdass picture that'll make you think..."Whaaa!!!" Lol.
Nine boys
It was 1700 hrs now and Hawa Mahal had already shut. We just took a look from outside and headed for the market to shop! We bought a lot of bandhni material and I also bought another sari that was similar to the one at the store outside Amer fort for half the price. By this time, Fahim was back and while we (Chandan, Vedant and I) were finished with our shopping (erm, actually my shopping), Gayatri still had more to go. We were tired and headed back to the car while Fahim took care of his woman. We ate some more chaat and hot milk, and after a proper dinner at some pointlessly classy restaurant somewhere (I don't remember the name of the restaurant or the location!) for the five of us, we headed towards the train station where we had to catch a 2357 hrs train to Jaisalmer.
We reached the station about 20 minutes before time. To top that, the train was late. We stood at the platform and bought chains for our luggae (first time!). A Palace on Wheels had just arrived and with whatever glimpses we could get of the inside, it was spectacular! The beautiful beds, the resturant, the lights, the bar....all of it! Vedant and I walked the length of the train and ogled at the expensive upholstery and the rich people inside.
Most of Chandan's platform time was eaten by a serious discussion between him and his girlfriend (or ex girlfriend, debatably) while Gayatri and Famu were chatting about each other's days. Vedant was checking out everything at the station while I don't remember doing anything interesting.
While at Jaipur market, I remember telling everyone to buy blankets if they didn't have one already. Chandan and I were the only two who had endured the last train journey's cold and we had to warn everybody! Vedant, for some reason, didn't take us seriously and pooh-poohed our suggestions. So that night, when the train finally arrived, and we took our berths and went off to sleep, Vedan't probably had one of the worst nights in his life. With everyone sleeping comfortably inside blankets, Vedu couldn't sleep one wink. He was lying down, but the chill would not let him get any rest. We had a bottle of whiskey in a bag and he took 4-5 swigs from it. That gave him some warmth at least. He woke me up somewhere around 3 or 4 am and apparantly told me his situation, but when I sleep, I act subconciously and I don't remember a word of what he or I said! So I wasn't of any help to him. When the sun was rising and it was getting a little warmer, Vedu finally caught a few winks, though it wasn't all that comfortable - the windows would not close completely and sand from outside kept making its way through to him. Poor Vedu! If only he'd taken a blanket!
Amer is mindblowingly beautiful. You enter into the main compound through a gate having a plethora of colors. Then there is the Diwan-e-aam, with its myriad pillars and the Sheesh Mahal, with mirrors showing a beautiful imagery of light and relection. There were also colorful gardens adorning the interior and exterior of the palace.
Entrance to main compound at Amer fort
Diwan-e-aam
Ceiling at Sheesh Mahal
Garden inside the palace
Garden outside the palace - view from the top of the palaceBut what made everything worth it was the guide we had. We hadn't taken any guides at Jaigarh or Nahargarh and decided to take one here. The fella quoted Rs. 200 for a group of more than 6 people and Rs. 150 for lesser. Since we were more, we haggled for him to get us the lower price. He finally agreed and gave us on of the most informative tours we've ever had. He took us through each and every corner of the place, explaining the history and architecture behind it. In fact, he was prompt with all the answers to our questions or doubts as well and seemed to know the subject matter like an expert. His erudition was a league above the guides at Ranthambore fort and Taj Mahal. He impressed us so much that we eventually gave him his Rs. 200 because we really felt he deserved it.
The guide at Amer. You can tell we are engrossed! L-R: Pedro, Nanu, Guide, me, Vedant, Roopali, Manish, Gayatri, John. Note: When you're at Amer fort, take one of the guides. They are excellent!
We finished seeing the fort by 1800 hrs and then made our way to the memorabilia store at the exit. I bought some wonderful saris for mom and myself and a beautiful painting for home. However, you may want to skip the sari buying here and take a look at Jaipur market instead. You'll get similar stuff for half the price, if you bargain well.
Buying complete, we were off to Choki Dhani for dinner and a Rajasthani cultural experience. They put on a great show there, with folk music and dance, fair rides like the ferris wheel, camel rides, and so much more. There are also little stalls that are either selling food or small memorabilia items or have games on offer. I hung out with John, Vedant and Chandan, playing each and every stupid game - shooting balloons on the wall, throwing rings on stuff to win them, dropping bowling pins with a ball, and what not!
But the main attraction was the food! When you enter Choki Dhani, you get a coupon with the time that you can sit to eat (like in a restaurant when there is waiting). We could only sit at 2300 hrs and so we passed our time first with all the rides and games and stall food. At our stipulated time, we sat down in true Indian style. On the floor with our legs crossed paalti maarkar. One by one, the food started coming in. Yumm....!!! What was awesome was the guys who serve the food, would not listen to you when you insisted that you'd eaten enough. No siree! "You have to eat more than that!!!!" Plop! Another spoon of food in your plate! We then realized we had to eat slowly so that our plates didn't look too empty. At the end of it, we were super stuffed and I got high like I always do when I eat too much! That means that I was dancing and going round in circles around myself at one point of time, but lets not talk about it too much now.
Back to our hotel, we played more Uno until most people were asleep. At the end, it was just me, Chandan, Manish, John and Gayatri. John made us play a game in which we all tell each other what our first impression on everyone in the room was and what we thought of them now. I remember saying that I always thought of Chandan as a quiet, nice boy. I remember stressing on the word nice. And how I thought John was a player and that kinda hadn't (and still hasn't) changed up until the game. And how Manish was and is one of my best friends ever. And how I appreciated Gayatri for being a chilled out chick and coming for every trip we have, irrespective of any problems or issues within the group. We should play that game again!
10 Jan 2009 People: Alpana, Manish, Roopali, Nanu, Pedro, Chandan, John, Gayatri + Fahim.
Early next morning, Fahim arrived, but he was not gonna stay with us that day. He would visit Ajmer Sharif and then join us in the evening. A whole bunch of people were leaving on 10th and a lot of shopping had to be done. So Manish, Roopali, Nanu, Pedro and John left the hotel by 0900 hrs while the rest of us took our time to wake up, get ready and finally leave. We met the rest of the gang directly for lunch at 1300 hrs at Jaipur station. We said our goodbyes to them and decided to see the city in the vehicle that we still had.
Jaipur is a gorgeous city. The buildings are stunning and the statues and memorials on road junctions are stare-worthy. Old Jaipur, which is supposed to be pink, is not really pink. Its brown. Seriously. That's not pink.
Chandan, Gayatri, Vedant and I stopped at the Jal Mahal, in the middle of a lake, as the name suggests. We then headed to Jaipur fort in the main city. With a guide, we wandered the fort with trivia about the history and artifacts kept there. It was a good looking place, but I think we'd had enough of forts for a while! Make a trip to the memorabilia store in the fort. You get awesome coffee mugs for Rs. 20 bucks each. They're a steal! We picked up one titled Nine Boys. It's a wierdass picture that'll make you think..."Whaaa!!!" Lol.
Nine boys It was 1700 hrs now and Hawa Mahal had already shut. We just took a look from outside and headed for the market to shop! We bought a lot of bandhni material and I also bought another sari that was similar to the one at the store outside Amer fort for half the price. By this time, Fahim was back and while we (Chandan, Vedant and I) were finished with our shopping (erm, actually my shopping), Gayatri still had more to go. We were tired and headed back to the car while Fahim took care of his woman. We ate some more chaat and hot milk, and after a proper dinner at some pointlessly classy restaurant somewhere (I don't remember the name of the restaurant or the location!) for the five of us, we headed towards the train station where we had to catch a 2357 hrs train to Jaisalmer.
We reached the station about 20 minutes before time. To top that, the train was late. We stood at the platform and bought chains for our luggae (first time!). A Palace on Wheels had just arrived and with whatever glimpses we could get of the inside, it was spectacular! The beautiful beds, the resturant, the lights, the bar....all of it! Vedant and I walked the length of the train and ogled at the expensive upholstery and the rich people inside.
Most of Chandan's platform time was eaten by a serious discussion between him and his girlfriend (or ex girlfriend, debatably) while Gayatri and Famu were chatting about each other's days. Vedant was checking out everything at the station while I don't remember doing anything interesting.
While at Jaipur market, I remember telling everyone to buy blankets if they didn't have one already. Chandan and I were the only two who had endured the last train journey's cold and we had to warn everybody! Vedant, for some reason, didn't take us seriously and pooh-poohed our suggestions. So that night, when the train finally arrived, and we took our berths and went off to sleep, Vedan't probably had one of the worst nights in his life. With everyone sleeping comfortably inside blankets, Vedu couldn't sleep one wink. He was lying down, but the chill would not let him get any rest. We had a bottle of whiskey in a bag and he took 4-5 swigs from it. That gave him some warmth at least. He woke me up somewhere around 3 or 4 am and apparantly told me his situation, but when I sleep, I act subconciously and I don't remember a word of what he or I said! So I wasn't of any help to him. When the sun was rising and it was getting a little warmer, Vedu finally caught a few winks, though it wasn't all that comfortable - the windows would not close completely and sand from outside kept making its way through to him. Poor Vedu! If only he'd taken a blanket!
