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On the second day in Jaipur we visited the Amber Fort where tourists can queue and ride an elephant up the winding path to the top. We didn't bother in the end as the queue was huge, so we just got dropped off at the top instead. the fort isn't as impressive as previous ones we've seen but the glass room was an exception with silver and mirror work adorning the walls and ceiling. Having finished exploring we headed over to the old city to Jantar Mantar; a historic observatory, City Palace and Hawa Mahal; a palace designed for royal ladies to watch city life and processions unobserved. First stop was Jantar Mantar. We were really fascinated by this place and the sculptural scientific instruments dating from the 1700s. Many of the structures were too confusing for our meager brains to understand, charting the positons of celestial bodies and zodiac dates. We were able to grasp the giant sundial though which was a beautiful instrument in it's own right. Next stop in the old town was the City Palace. To be honest we were feeling a little palaced and forted out so we sat and had a drink and then had a quick look round at the largest silver vases in the world and the beautiful 4 gates that represent the 4 seasons, our favourite being the peacock gate as you've probably guessed was adorned with beautiful sculptures of peacocks. Final stop in the old town was Hawa Mahal also known as the Wind Palace (not for that reason) because people inside experience a cool breeze through the holes in the facade. The small holes also allwed royal ladies to view processions and life in the streets undetected. After we had explored the palace and got the great views from the top we headed to a restaurant for lunch, where I couldn't miss the opportunity to get a photo with the mustachioed porter, a definite Movember contender.
That afternoon we drove up to another royal crematorium (The royals love to be burned in public here). We were rushed around by a guide who looked rather gutted when I tipped him 10 rupees (about 15p). Outside the crematorium we clambered up a walkway to the top of the hill and to the Ganesh Temple. Bloody knackering but gave us a great view over Jaipur.
That evening after tea we heard alot of commotion coming from next door and when we went to inspect we found ourselves in the middle of an Indian wedding being fed ice cream and invited in to meet the groom. I'm not sure who was more surprised but we were made to feel really welcome and watched as the procession marched and danced off down the street under lights to the sound of a marching band. Another great but surreal end to the day...
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