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We checked into Atithi Guesthouse and almost immediately Claire started to feel unwell. Yep, the infamous Delhi belly had arrived. For the remainder of the evening and all the next day she did not leave the confines of the room. I popped downstairs from time to time to get some food (for me, not for her) and basically laid low for the day. The following morning she was felling much better so we decided to go out and explore the wonders of Jaipur also known as the Pink City and the gateway to Rajasthan.
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First stop, the City Palace. Our tuk-tuk driver "Smiley" tried to warn us that it was overpriced and that only a small number of areas are open to the public. Did we listen to him? No. Should we have listened to him? Yes. It was okay but certainly very miss able. The one highlight (or two really) was that it has the single largest pieces of silver in the world. Two by 390kg urns ratified by the Guinness Book of Records no less. As we were hungry Smiley brought us to an overpriced tourist restaurant where he would obviously get commission. Claire was still tender from the day before and was understandably suspicious of dining establishments so we decided to ask Smiley to take us to the "Four Seasons Hotel" restaurant....in reality it was an upmarket restaurant that played on the recognition of the hotel chain (it was not associated with it). It looked ok, there were Indian businessmen and the interior was spotlessly clean. We took the plunge. The hunger satisfied we hoped back in the tuk tuk and visited a few more minor sites before arriving at the Amber Fort.
You cannot help but be impressed by this huge defensive structure sitting atop a lofty hill. This was a proper fort. Some elephants were being washed in the waters of the foot of the hill while others transported paying guests the 15 or so minutes uphill to the main gate. Once inside there were great views in all directions - probably why it made a good site for a fort. While we didn't get to the Great Wall in China this place gave us an idea of what it must be like. A large defensive wall had been built from one hilltop to the next, everywhere you looked you could see it stretching for miles around the Amber Fort. Most impressive.
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On the way back to town we stopped to admire the Water Palace set out on the middle of a lake but at that stage high winds had picked up and blinding dust had been blown everywhere. It was a hurricane scene with branches being stripped off trees, tuk tuks and cars pulling in to find some shelter & even the cows were running for cover. Then Smiley ran out of petrol. Fortunately we had gotten to a sheltered area before rolling to final halt. A few phonecalls and 30 mins later his brother arrived to bail us out. It was actually a blessing in disguise as it gave us a chance to ask Smiley some of the more important questions....like....who owns the cows? Answer: they are left out in the morning by their owners & will wander back themselves in the evening or when it is time to be milked.
Back in the room Claire took unwell again. Doh.
Our final day in Jaipur we saw no need to head out into the chaotic streets & so stayed in the safety of the guesthouse where the staff were friendly & the food was good but more importantly hygienically prepared.
Having left Delhi & experienced Agra and Jaipur (the Golden Triangle) our impression of India had not improved at all. While the Taj Mahal and the Amber Fort were without question impressive it was everything else around them that had us scratching our heads wondering why people would choose to holiday here. Maybe things will be different up north.
Doorway at the City Palace
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