2 Days in Jaipur – What to See in Pink City, India

How to spend 2 days in Jaipur, India’s most famous World Heritage City. Jaipur is the capital of regal Rajasthan, the famous Pink City in North India. So what can you see on a 2-day trip… the Wind Palace and Amber Fort are magnificent, and I just love those silk saris in the bazaar!

2 Days in Jaipur

I arrived at Jaipur on the early train from Agra where we’d spent a memorable day at the Taj Mahal. Jaipur is the capital of Rajasthan, a remarkable state in northwest India known as ‘Land of the Kings’.

To get into town from the hectic railway station you can arrange a ‘prepaid’ tuk-tuk cab from the official booth outside. The drivers were hassling for fares but an officer ordered everyone aside to let me through.

Our budget hotel in Jaipur was amazing… a beautifully decorated historical villa in a quiet residential area just outside the city centre, Radioli House is the residence of the eminent Singh family, direct descendants of Maharaja Jorawar Singh and the Raiput Dynasty.

Jaipur: India’s Pink City

We hailed a tuk-tuk on the main road into ‘Pink City’ the incredible walled historic centre. Traffic is dense and noisy, but a new subway is being built which may ease the problem. Jaipur is a distinct contrast to decaying Delhi, the ancient walled pink city is carefully renovated and almost looks new!

We strolled down the main street and suddenly came face to face with a building I recognised, one of the most photographed images in the world, the unmistakable façade of the Wind Palace, the stained glass windows glowing like jewels in the fading afternoon light.

The street scene is fascinating with an assortment of roadside vendors, an old man roasting peanuts, ladies selling fruit and vegetables on the pavement, an old-fashioned photographer with vintage box equipment, and large cows wandering along in the traffic.

Surprisingly there aren’t many eateries in Pink City but we found a vegetarian restaurant and, not knowing quite what to order, chose a set meal with a selection of spicy dishes for dinner.

Jaipur: Day 1

In the morning I purchased a combined entrance ticket to the most emblematic sites. First we visited Hawa Mahal, a UNESCO World Heritage site and commonly known as Palace of Winds, it is one of the highlights of an Indian tour. The beautiful pink and red sandstone Wind Palace dates to 1799, a unique honeycomb structure embellished with latticework, a slight breeze cools the interior patios and chambers.

City Palace Museum and the Jantar Mantar (an astrological observatory with the world’s biggest sundial) are just around the corner, they are both worth a visit if you have time.

I walked around, and sneaked a look into small Hindu temples, then made a beeline for the bazaar.

Jaipur is evidently Rajasthan’s capital, women across the state come here to buy elegant saris for weddings or parties. Shop assistants roll out swathe after swathe of fabulous silks while husbands sit patiently, wallets in hand.

Jaipur bazaar is something else… inside Pink City, this is an area with hundreds of small shops selling glittering bangles and shoes, bright saris and Alibaba pants, gold jewellery and silverware, thematic streets and alleyways, stores and stalls of every price range from exclusive to cheap.

I asked the price of a glamorous gold and ruby coloured sari in a window display and it wasn’t so expensive, you’d pay much more for a wedding guest outfit in Europe…I was tempted to buy one, but I don’t know anyone getting married sometime soon!

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Jaipur: Day 2

Next day Juan and I hired a tuk-tuk to take us around all day for a fixed price, as I wanted to see Amber Fort which is a few kilometres out of town in the hills. The 16th century red sandstone fort is an awesome construction standing above Maota Lake and so interesting we spent hours there! Ramparts lead up to Sun Gate the main entrance and into Jaleb Courtyard.

Inside is a fascinating maze of white marble palaces and ornate plazas. I loved the elaborate architecture, imposing columns, engraved ceilings, intricate mirror inlays and discovering every stairway, viewpoint, and fascinating corner of the royal complex. This was the place where the Raiput Maharajas, their wives and entourage once lived.

I’d heard about the Water Palace, an elegant palace in the middle of Sagar Lake, but didn’t realise it is not open to the public although there are vague plans to open it as a luxury hotel in the future. Like many places in India the opulent setting is offset by the poverty of beggar children.

We would have liked to see the Laxmi Naravan Temple and surrounding gardens, a Hindu site dedicated to the Goddess of Wealth, or the famous Monkey Temple but you just can’t fit everything into a day!

The driver dropped us off downtown at the Albert Museum, an ornate 19th century building which houses an array of historical Rajasthan artifacts that we admired along with a group of local school children. The unusual collection includes a motley display of old military possessions -long barreled wooden rifles with ornate ivory handgrips, metal body armour and helmets- original prison carpets, period paintings, drawings and pottery, and a surprising exhibition of Egyptian treasures in the basement.

Walking back from here towards the Old City gates, there are green lawns and parks where homeless men were dozing…the downside of Jaipur, there are so many beggars in contrast to the city’s obvious prosperity, it is heart wrenching.

Strolling further up the main street we came across zones full of flower stalls, wholesale dried fruit and nuts, and local grocery stores.

I bought some cookies and peanuts, got some lager from an off-licence  (the only place you can purchase alcohol in most Indian states), hailed a tuk-tuk back to the hotel, and sorted out train tickets for the next leg of the journey… to exotic Jodhpur near the Great Indian Desert.

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2 days in Jodhpur, Rajasthan

Discovering Jodhpur, India’s Blue City – What to see if you are staying for 2 days Jodhpur Rajasthan.

The train journey from Jaipur to Jodhpur was uneventful, only a slight hitch in the morning as we found the night receptionist asleep with a very loud cock-a-doodle-doo alarm on his phone going off loudly…

Read more…

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