Pink... Its My Favorite Color

A decision had to be made about our transport to Jaipur. Either go back to Agra, adding another 2-3 hrs of travel to take the train OR take the bus straight to Jaipur from Fatehpur Sikri. Ok, your thinking take the bus cause its quicker, however you don't know the bus system in India. Actually you don't know the road conditions in India. We took a deep breath and boarded the bus headed for Jaipur. Luckily it wasn't jam packed so we were able to spread out and try to get comfortable for the 5 hr bus ride. The bus was a cross between a city bus and a school bus, nowhere near the niceness of a tourist bus. For $2 what do you expect, right?

Bicycle Rickshaw

Well, we started off and let me just say it was like driving through the outback. These were the most pot-holed roads you could imagine. My butt left the seat for at least half the trip there. No napping and only two pit stops. (Sorry Mom you would have never made it!) The second pit stop was a roadside stand. All the men went into the tall crop being grown, the women had a patch of sand surrounded by grass reeds, yet another toilet experience in India. Now you might think 5 hrs would go by so slowly, however, never underestimate two very vocal foreigners.

Bus to Jaipur

Marisa and I started talking with the other people on the bus. We have been getting really good at our Hindi this way. We even got the men in the back to sing a Hindi song for us and then of course we sang some American songs, Amazing Grace was a hit! I whipped out my camera and started video taping everyone singing, took pictures and we played our Ipods for everyone. Nataniel was not at all amused; he doesn't really like the stares and questions we continually get. Plus the exhaustion of no sleep was wearing on him.

Exactly 5 hrs later we arrived in Jaipur and man was it busy. Couldn't believe the juxtaposition; from the small town of Agra and quiet Fatehpur Sikri to huge crazy shopping madness. Bazaars, people, cars, rickshaws, tall city buildings and the pink walls to the old city of Jaipur were our new surroundings. Nataniel didn't know what to say except "Oh Man!" KerGufta took out her book and away we went walking the streets of the Pink City figuring out what we were going to see tomorrow. After finding a hotel we settled in and found a bar to just chill and recover from the long day we just had. Tomorrow was going to be our last day traveling and we had a lot planned.

Jantar Mantar

We woke later than usual, exhausted, and headed back to the Pink city of Jaipur to take KerGufta's walking tour. The first stop was the Hawa Mahal, "Palace of Winds," on of Jaipur's most distinct landmarks. The front façade is like a honeycombed hive towering 5 stories. From there we walked to Jantar Mantar, by far my favorite experience in India, which is an observatory full of instruments of calculation. Extremely fascinating wandering around reading about what all these instruments did, calculating sunrise, sunset, time of day, monsoon season, you name it, I was in heaven. Wished my father could have been there with me, I could just see us spending hours watching the sun move and figuring out how each apparatus worked. Our next and almost final stop was the City Palace. Another complex of buildings, museums and courtyards where the dignitaries resided, actually still reside. Last stop was the Iswari Minar Swarga Sal, Heaven-Piercing Minaret. Interesting history on this Minaret, but the best part was the view. Winding ramp to the top gives you a view of Jaipur from its observatory at the top. Finally some fresh air and a quick photo and off we went...SHOPPING. We got the important historical, educational items crossed off the list and now we hit the bazaars.

Nasty Snake Charmer

I must say that after 2 months in India I am really good at bargaining or maybe just getting stupider. Even so, I found amazing bangles, beautiful pashmina shawls, a Kashmir shawl and some silver jewelry. All this for less than $20. Finally finished my gift shopping since I am missing everyone's Christmas, birthday, and most important ENGAGEMENT (sister's!!). It was almost 5 pm and we now had 45 minutes before our train was leaving, so we hopped in a rickshaw picked up our bags and headed for the station. This time we took the 2A/C chair train, best travel experience thus far, and arrived back in Delhi for a good nights sleep.

Palace of Winds