Amber Fort
Nana (No, Not That One)
It was here also that we met the old Indian gentleman who was to become our guide to Jaipur. 70 years old, honest to a fault and forever evoking tales of local folklore, Nana was an instantly memorable character. All this from a rickshaw driver who was at the right place at the right time (though the years of experience he has suggest that was no coincidence).
His rickshaw driving alone was memorable. To drive on Indian roads you need top notch reflexes and spacial awareness. Nana's had faded with time. Not just his spacial awareness but his awareness in general. We've only witnessed three collisions in rickshaws here so far, all with him as our driver. Not serious collisions, more amusing than anything else, which somehow added to his charm. As well as ferry us everywhere, we ate some of his delicious home-made parantha (though not as delicious as my own nana's baking) and shared a couple of chai teas with him while he regaled us with stories about his family and his month spent working as a cook in Paris back in the seventies.
He was one of many highlights in Jaipur, which also included the view of the city on our approach.
The floating palace was especially astounding. This first impression, of a quiet and serene city by a lake, proved to be a bit too good to be true once we left the lakeside. Jaipur's heart has far more in common with Delhi, all hustle and bustle once more, though slightly less crowded than the capital. However, with cows, camels, cars, elephants, bikes, rickshaws and people all jostling for position on the streets, chaos was still the norm.
On to the tourist activities, first up being the Hindu monkey temple (not it's official name) that looks over the city from a hill to the south. Spectacular views and monkeys were on offer here. It was great to see monkeys roaming freely, and they lived up to their cheeky reputation by almost making off with my water bottle at one stage, snatching it right out of my hand when I wasn't watching. I got it back mind.
After the ctiy palace, which gave an excellent account of Jaipurian history, and the observatory (also very interesting), I suffered my first bout of temple fatigue. It was at a tomb of which I didn't know anything about. It looked very nice, but not knowing the history of it and having no information at hand meant it was just another tomb. I hope this doesn't occur too often, because, to be honest, it was boring.
Our last day in Jaipur was spent exploring the Amber Fort which had so impressed us the day before. In any kind of fort or castle I've visited back in the west, your tour route follows a very linear path, usually guided by velvet rope or something similar. Not here. The fort was completely open. We could go anywhere. Not only that, but the audio tour signs were often pointing completely the wrong way, due to restoration work that was in progress. The fort is massive, and we got lost a couple of times, with only a dodgy tour map to guide us. It was like a treasure hunt trying to find the next tour point listed on the map. Great fun though.
Without Nana, I think our visit would have been half as good as it was. Because it's not just about temples, forts and other sights to see. It's about people too. From that point of view, Jaipur was great.
It's still amazing to think that the city, which seems tiny in comparison to Delhi, still has a population greater than that of Ireland (5 million). After India (and China), Ireland will seem smaller than ever.
where did you get them runners? he he
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