Jaipur - The Pink City (1)

On Tuesday, August 5th, the whole group left Bangalore and traveled up to Jaipur after having a morning lecture (our professor will literally find any time that he can to squeeze in a lesson or two haha). The actual flight and bus ride took a total of 9 hours (from hotel to hotel). All of this traveling is really starting to take a toll on me! During this commute/travel, we all had to work on an essay about social entrepreneurship and so we were completely exhausted and worn out by the time we arrived at the Hilton Hotel of Jaipur. Again we were spoiled with an amazing accommodation! The reason why we have been able to stay in some really awesome hotels is because it is monsoon season, and being monsoon season it is the “down season” in India. So that is something that has definitely worked to our advantage!

The first full day in Jaipur, August 6th, we started off by visiting the Amber Fort and Palace. On the way up to the Amber Fort we rode on elephants and it was THE.BEST.EXPERIENCE.EVER! I honestly cannot describe how much fun it was being on an elephant, going up a sloped hill, while racing other elephants, hahaha. My elephant legitimately was racing the elephants ahead of us, and it made me so happy. We had seen some elephants in Mysore, and it was clear that they were very sad and mistreated, but these elephants were so happy! They only had to do 3 climbs per day, and got a day off every third day. It is just easy to tell that these elephants are happy, haha. 

When we reached the top we toured the fort, and then went in to check out the palace. Rajasthan in a Hindu state so they have maharaja’s. Currently there isn’t a maharaja of Jaipur, so no one resides in the palace. It was an absolutely beautiful palace built in the 17th century! In the Amber Fort and Palace, there are about 100 rooms, with huge courtyards and the grounds are beautiful. The fort is also surround by the Wall of India, which is pretty much the same as the Wall of China. My favorite part of the palace were the gardens. All of them were so beautifully designed and all of the plants and flowers were just gorgeous! I have a few pictures below!

After the Amber Fort and Palace, we went to the Jal Mahal (literal translation of Water Palace). It was a leisurely palace (no sleeping quarters) built on a lake in Jaipur and it was absolutely beautiful. A few years ago the government took ownership of the palace, but they did not keep up the palace at all, so a private entity then purchased it in 2005 and completely restored it to what it would have looked like in the 17th century. Unfortunately it was much too hot and humid to enjoy the beauty of the palace, but it was gorgeous. At this point we also hadn’t eaten for over 7 hours, so everyone was just beyond exhausted!

After finally getting some delicious lunch, we went to an orphanage that houses and educates about 400 street girls and boys called Lidli. The girls there study as well as make different forms of art such as necklaces, bracelets, bags, and block printed shirts. By creating and selling these items, all of the girls are able to have bank accounts with some savings so that when they are 18, they have some money to start their lives. It was very grounding being able to stay there for a few hours and chatting with the girls. Sometimes it is just so easy to get caught up in your menial problems. It is refreshing seeing different people enjoying the little things in life that you forget about. I honestly wish we could have spent more time with them. 

We ended our first day in Jaipur with a trip to the grandest hotel here, Rambagh Palace. It was ridiculously expensive but it was interesting seeing what the grandest hotel in Jaipur looks like! It was very, very similar to the Taj Hotel of Mumbai. Definitely an eventful day! From 8AM to 11PM!

Emalisa xo

The Amber Fort from a distance. 

While taking pictures of the Amber Fort, there was a snake charmer on the street. After finding out that the charmers actually de-fang the snakes and drug them so that they don't run away or attack people, I stopped being fascinated by the art of it. 

We then rode elephants up the fort. I thought it was the most thrilling experience ever, but my friend was crying the whole way up, hahaha. 

View of the Wall of India from the Amber Fort. So gorgeous.

Panorama of the entire Fort. Beyond this area is the beautiful palace!

Cheesing at the palace!

Where the Jaipur Maharaja addressed his people, and where people came to seek justice. 

The entrance to the Amber Palace. I absolutely love the architecture. 

Group photo in front of the entrance to the palace! I have become quite accustomed to the cotton pants, haha. Love it!

View of the gardens outside the Amber Fort. So beautifully built. I can't get over how beautiful all the green is! So weird seeing as Rajasthan is a desert state. 

The gardens inside the palace. Same design as the gardens outside the palace. 

This is where the maharaja threw parties. The walls have small mirrors built into them making it very different and beautiful. Inside, was where the maharaja would retire after a long day's work.

Different colored glass was also used. So pretty!

Posing in the gardens because why not! Haha.

Jal Mahal = Water Palace.

Took these beautiful boats to the Jal Mahal.

At first I thought it was a palace that was built and then flooded, but later learned that it was built on the water. Still don't understand how people in the older days built such great structures without any technology.

The Jal Mahal is a leisurely palace, meaning there are no rooms. This was the top floor: just gardens and the small structures to sit in. 

They were beautifully decorated though!

Another view of the gardens. Too, too beautiful!