Sarah Hits Rajasthan... Indian State Claims Largest Sales Day of Year

We arrived in Jaipur without incident. I recall the rickshaw driver taking us in the opposite direction of our hotel for a while, but that's pretty standard. Our room was nice, the hotel had an internet connection, and we splurged on a room with a TV. What can I say? We're high rollers.

Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan, is known as the "Pink City", after the color of the buildings in the old part of town (they really have more of a  salmon shade, but the "Salmon City" has less of a ring to it, and there would always be that question of where the river is and so on). It's a big, sprawling metropolis which seems to put a lot of visitors off, but the shopping is great and there's a lot to keep you occupied for a few days... as long as you like to shop.

 I love to shop. Brendan was, for the most part, a very  good sport. We discovered a ton of useless-to-us-yet-fun stuff for sale while I attempted to buy up all the silver in Rajasthan (I failed btw - there's way too much silver here). But casual browsing was impossible. Every five feet someone would be up in my grill, shoving fabric at me and desperately blurting out one or more of the following phrases:

1. "Hello how are you where you from? From Australia?"

2. "Yes please, very good price, cheap price for you my friend!"

3. "Madam you want pashmina? Beautiful pashmina for you madam!"

4. "Hello what is your name please?" (This one is the worst. So invasive!)

5. "Only 20 rupees for this!" (When you pause to give it a look, they claim they actually said "220 rupees")

6. "Hello just come look, you don't like you don't buy.. looking is free! Oh hahaha!"

And so on.

We got used to this sort of pushiness in Jaipur and didn't let it bother us too much, but I can see why the city has such a crappy reputation among travelers. With great shopping comes great hassle.

Speaking of hassle, I took a pic  of what I thought was an authentic street snake charmer, that is until he chased me down afterward and demanded money for the shot. I gave him half of what he wanted and when he argued that it wasn't enough, I pointed out that without some sort of sign or pricing sheet on display, he really was in no position to convince anyone that they were stingy tourists. If I knew he wanted money, I wouldn't have taken the picture. He sulked away and probably told the cobra all sorts of terrible things about me.

Another big tourist attraction in Jaipur is its astronomical observatory, an ancient collection of sundials and baffling zodiac structures that kind of resembles a playground. The idea is that during the day, falling shadows indicate the position of stars and planets and calculate the lunar calendar. We really didn't know what to make of it.

The most popular day-trip out of Jaipur is probably a visit to the palace and fort  looming over the nearby town of Amber. We unwisely chose to go on a Saturday and had to share our experience with countless tour groups and families and begging children, but it was interesting nonetheless. I wasn't overly impressed with the palace itself as it was being renovated and kind of a mess in places, but the views from the fort above were great, and the hike to the top of the hill was the most exercise I've had in an embarrassing length of time. Rajasthan is known for its palaces and forts, so hopefully I'll be back in shape by the end of the month.

On Christmas Eve we left Jaipur and took a train to Kota, followed by a bus from Kota to the small city of Bundi, where we stayed for nine whole days of rest and relaxation. It was awesome. Details in my next entry.

Love,
s

 

Comments

[Tom]

Glad you're having fun.

[John]

People have to make money someway, I guess that's just how they do it. It seems they do get a litte pushy though. Be careful not to go over your budget, you may have alto of that silver but will you can food to eat an a place to stay. I love the pink color, it makes the city look calm.

-John-

[Dennis D]

Sounds Like a Crap Hole to me, Mark it down as were not to go in the world.

[Walter C.]

Bundi was still cool even after the monkey attack during breakfast? Cant wait to read that.

[Scott Mayfield]

Sarah and Brendan,

I finally returned after being abroad for a longer-than-I-thought period of time, and turned AOTS and discovered neither of you were there. The show is still great and it still gets my geek on, but you two are missed. I wish you the best in everything you do and congrats on the wedding!

Great trips and journeys,

Scott Mayfield
Founder, Pianist and Head Geek-Connecticut Revolutionary Ensemble

Sarah - you look totally HOT standing in front of the Libra structure. such beauty.

[Joseph]

These blogs are such a joy to read. Once again, thank you for putting so much effort into this!!! Sarah, you're the sh_t.

[Walter C.]

^^OK. Hey when is the Bundi wrap-up coming?