Jaipur - The pink city

Jaipur is called the 'pink city' because in the late 1800's, all buildings were painted pink as a welcoming gesture for the Prince of Wales' visit. The Palace and old city are surrounded by pink gates. Jaipur is also the capital city of the state of Rajasthan.

On my first night there, I went to see a great Bollywood movie at the impressive Raj Mandir theatre. The film, called 'Vivah', was about the traditions of Indian weddings - a really interesting insight into the country's culture. I've never experienced such open displays of emotion in a theatre before - people in the audience were cheering, screaming, booing, hissing, clapping and, at the end, shamelessly sobbing.


The next morning, I visited Amber fort just outside of Jaipur. Tourists had the option to take a ride up to the fort on colourfully painted elephants. Up until about 30 years ago, a goat was sacrificed daily at the fort's temple.
On the way to the fort, I saw Jaipur's landmark, the 'Palace of the Winds' a pink building that looks like stacked honeycombs. This is where the ladies of the royal household used to sit and look down at the happenings on the street from behind the laticed shutters.

Within the pink gates is Jaipur's City Palace. The current Maharaja (who is a polo chum of Prince Charles) lives on the far side of the complex. Inside the courtyard, a white marble hall contains 2 enormous silver vessels which are considered the largest silver objects in the world. The Maharaja used to transport holy water from the Ganges river to England in them.

Within another courtyard at the palace I admired 4 colourful and ornate doors, each representing one of the 4 seasons. The most impressive was the Peacock gate.