INDIA - DAY 5

We were up early and off to the Amber Fort where we would have an elephant ride up to the fort. Amber Fort was the capital of Jaipur until 1728. It is built on a hill and that is what you ride up. On the way we passed the Hawa Mahal, known popularly at the Palace of the Winds. There is a façade built for the ladies of the royal household to look out during the 19th century. Our guide that day was Dilip, another movie star looking man. Dilip has been a guide for 14 years and he knew his stuff.

Grace and Ken in front of the Hawa Mahal – Palace of the Winds

Grace and Ken at the start of the elephant ride up to Amber Fort

Our elephant driver and the elephants going up and down to Amber Fort

Grace and Ken in Amber Fort – it was hot

Stained glass window in Amber Fort

Grace and Ken through a portal at Amber Fort

Then we went to a rug and fabric plant where we ended up buying several things – gift for friends and a Nehru jacket and Nehru shirt for Ken

Scraping the water off the drenched rug to bring out the colors

Clipping the rug to bring out the colors

Burning strands off the rug to bring out the colors

Grace pounding the block for the block printing of some fabric

We went to the City Palace.

Picture of Grace and Ken in a built in wall mirror at the City Palace

Our guide Dilip explaining the City Palace

Peacocks over a portal in the City Palace

We then went to visit the Jantar Mantar. This is an strological and astronomical observatory built by Maharaja Jai Singh in the 18th century. There our guide wanted us to meet his “guru” or mentor, Daulat Singh Rajawat. Mr. Rajawat has written several books and his latest is Jaipur’s Jantar Mantar. Quoting from his Introduction – “Jai Singh, the great Maharaja of Jaipur who not only founded Jaipur but built five stone observatories in India.”

He built these observatories between 1708 and 1743. “He died in 1743 AD, two hundred years after Copernicus, and his wives, concubines, and science expired with him on his funeral pyre”.

Anyhow, this place has many stone and other constructed instruments that tell you time, date, seasons and anything else you need to know. It contains the largest sun dial in the world.

In any event Dilip introduced us to Daulat, who was having a coming out party for his new book, which we bought.

Grace, Ken and Daulat at the reception for his new book

Ken, Daulat, Grace and Dilip at the reception for Daulat’s new book in front of the large sun dial

Last stop before returning to the airport to fly back to Chennai and board the ship was the Water Palace. As one can see it is built in the middle of the water.

Ken and Grace at the Water Palace

Next stop - Singapore.