thursdaysd,
Yes, I've been reading about it, too, what is happening to the people in the north is very sad.

We were much more fortunate, the temperature in late January to late February was extremely comfortable, with daytime temperatures in the mid-70s to low 80s and very low humidity.

<b> Jaipur
Photos are here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/129067489@N04/albums/72157667888139470</b>
They show more if you make them large!</b>


Our Jet Airways flight from Chennai made a stop in Aminabad where an Indian man splendiferous in his flashy new-age-guru-garb and shoulder-length mane boarded with his entourage, and they all sat in the row directly in front of us. As we continued on to Jaipur, he was diligently attended to by his minions. En route we flew over numerous clusters of tall mystery-stacks, emitting streams of white smoke, which we'd also see later throughout Rajasthan and would find out were kilns firing clay pots. As we made our descent to Jaipur International Airport, the sun was low in the sky and glowing like a fireball through the murky Jaipur haze that would remain a constant during our stay.

For our first 2 nights in Rajasthan I'd booked us at the Marriott. Usually I prefer smaller hotels with more character, and had almost booked us at a haveli. But since we'd have just finished a tiring drive and flight, and since we'd be staying in many more places with character during the following weeks, I opted for predictable comfort, and that worked out well.

As we waited for our bags, we got our first taste of the tourist hustles of Rajasthan, which we saw more frequently than in the south. A man approached the baggage carousel with a cart, exclaiming that he must free us from the unbearable burden of our 2 wheeled suitcases. I told him that I didn't want his help and could easily handle those light spinner bags, but he ignored me and whisked them onto his cart. We're usually pretty good about extricating ourselves from this sort of thing, but in this case, I was tired, so I let him. But it became ridiculous when we were about 100 feet from where we'd meet our driver, and several more of his accomplices apperated through some ancient magic that I know not of, each prepared to sacrifice their health and life in assisting in the Herculean task of moving that lightly laden cart. I had not known such goodness could be found in the human heart. I told them we didn't need their help and that they should leave, but they continued pretending to help. So when we arrived at our car, I tipped just the original porter, ignoring the howls of protests of his fellow scammers.

(BTW, I wasn't going to mention anymore Spellcheck travesties, but when I just typed "extricating ourselves" in the previous paragraph, Spellcheck changed it to "excreting ourselves". Spellcheck is very immature.)

The Marriott is located near the airport, and originally we'd planned to just take a taxi, but Nikhil had kindly offered to have our driver pick us up for the very short drive. And sure enough, when we exited the baggage area, there was Raj, waiting for us with a smile. He was a soft-spoken man who we would find possessed a sardonic sense of humor, and we liked him immediately.

We'd been traveling for many hours, so we decided to eat at the hotel and have Raj pick us up in the morning. The Marriott had pretty good food at their enormous over-the-top and slightly silly buffet. Accompanied by over-the-top and slightly silly service (which would continue during our stay). All along that seemingly endless line of buffet stations, young tourists took selfies in front of those massive beds of bounty. And after consuming probably too much of that bounty ourselves, we fell into a deep sleep in our massive bed.

Of course like everyone else, we had to visit the Hawa Mahal (Palace of the Winds). It was more beautiful in the morning light than I'd anticipated, and I felt compelled to climb to the top, leaving C in the car to calm Raj, who feared that my going alone might invite calamity to beset me at any moment. We also visited City Palace and the markets, and then had a lovely lunch in the garden of Narain Niwas Palace (a heritage hotel) at the recommendation of Nikhil. The food was very good and we had the garden to ourselves, our table planted on an expanse of soft grass under towering trees in which many brightly colored parrots cavorted. Afterwards, strolling the grounds redolent with the scent of many flowers was intoxicating. The next evening at dusk we would meet the charming and urbane Nikhil on the verandah of Narain Niwas for a pot of Masala chai. By this point in our trip, C had become obsessed with Masala chai. Nikhil brought along a cell phone for us to call Raj during the trip, as well as several throw pillows we'd requested for the long drives in the car.

While planning the trip, I'd vacillated about going to Amer Fort (known in the west as Amber Fort). After I learned about the hard lives of the elephants who give tourists rides up the hill ramp, we opted not to ride them, even though they would have solved the problem of C not being able to walk up that hill. So we ended up deciding that we'd rather just go to other forts that we thought would be as rewarding, like the one we'd visit in Bikaner in a couple of days, the one we'd stay in at Jaisalmer and in some ways best of all, the magnificent Mehrangarh Fort in Jodphur.

In Jaipur, we did visit Jaigarh Fort (located high above Amer Fort), which at sunset was bathed in red light, with fantastic views of the fort's outer walls topped with embrasures, undulating up and down hills below us into the distance, reminiscent of the Great Wall of China. The Langur monkeys there had a gentle temperament compared to the more aggressive Rhesus macaques we'd seen elsewhere. And looking down to Amer fort was very impressive.

We liked Jaipur, but as anticipated didn't really love it when compared to the rest of our destinations in Rajasthan.

(coming up next, the painted havelis of the Shekhawati region.)

Wow, you lucked out on your weather and you may have been lucky enough to catch an Indian wedding that time of year...one of my regrets to having missed. Your itinerary sounds great. After our last trip to India, I felt like we had seen enough, but as you know we were thrilled with many aspects of the trip and probably less than enamored by parts of the trip due to being sick a good part of the time. (Unrelated to India - just brought a bug from home and was generous enough to pass it on to my husband after I recovered). Like you, some of my biggest regrets was not getting to Amritsar and Calcutta. As i journey along with you, I am once more tempted to return to see some of what we missed. There's never enough time to see it all. This October we will see a new and very different part of Asia - Japan, but I am already dreaming about India.

Love your photos looking down to Amer Fort. And continuing to enjoy your writing once more.

I've been in a 24/7 work situation for the last several months. Just coming up for air and looking forward to reading both this and your Rifaximin thread. Took a glimpse of your photos and....wow!!

rje: your photos are amazing..........thank you for showing what I did not see at Hawa Mahal. As at the Amer Fort, I was so taken by the advance air cooling systems Hawa Mahal and the Forts in Rajasthan built centuries ago as well as how they were able to bring water up from below............ideas we still use today. the north is an architectural wonder..............can't wait to see and read more. You've captured what I remember...........and shown why the Country is such an amazing place to visit time and time again.........thank you.

dgunbug,
From what local people told us and from historical averages, it seems our weather was pretty typical. We picked January and February for that specific reason. Cochin was only a bit hotter than the historical averages, and everywhere else in both the north and south were within normal ranges. Obviously that can change, and the last few months in India have been brutal. But sometime between mid-December to mid-February still has the best odds for pleasant temperatures in much of India. But it is startling to me how fast it heats up after mid-February.

We actually did get to a huge wedding celebration in Bundi, but we were really tired, so we had to just observe a bit of the festivities and leave. That was OK though, because by then our reservoir of riches was getting close to being full!

You had so many great experiences in India, but I know what you mean, there are always so many more that after a little while we're tempted to return!

tripplanner001,
The view from Jaigarh Fort was so good that we only left because it was getting dark! And amazingly, there were only a few people there at sunset.

crosscheck,
Hope your work loads lighten soon.
And yes, the Rifaximin seemed to work perfectly for us, and we really put it to the test by eating freely. But of course anyone considering it should consult their doctor.

dragon88,
Thank you so much! And you're right, the north is an architectural wonder! But some of the temples in the south are engineering marvels, too. For example the huge stone sculpture at the top of the tall temple in Tanjore. Scientists are still arguing about how that was accomplished with so little technology available to the builders.

Looking forward to more! This is exciting as I plan my trip for March.

RJE!! More Rick's Riches!! ! Thank you!!! In addition to the great, evocative place descriptions and fantastic photos, your funny tidbits ( "titbits" as a menu in India had it) of a day in the life of a tourist--for example, your airport helper/helpers assist with luggage--are hilarious, and bring back great memories. (At least there was no fist-fight, which our arrival via train into Amritsar caused among dueling porters over which got to take ONE carry-on bag!) Ahhh India! Funny funny funny, brilliant, bigger than life, sadder than life, magnificent, endearing, irritating by turns. It's why when someone says their India trips went exactly, seamlessly, as planned, I'm highly skeptical. If it's true, something essentially of this country was missed.

I too was less than enamored of Jaipur...although (unless it's in an upcoming episode) you missed my one unmissable place there--the Monkey Temple, GaltaJi, with fresh springs, partly carved into a mountain (ok, a big hill!) via a village about 5 miles from central Jaipur. Few tourists (none, the day I went)---lots of the eponymous greedy creatures.

Re your one Marriott stay: Soooo wise to know the point in a trip when modern and predictable is exactly what is needed!!

BostonWriter,
Good to read that your trip is now simplified and coming together. I'll soon be reporting on 2 places we stayed where you'll also be staying, RAAS and Rawla Narlai.

CaliNurse,
Like India, your writing is colorful, unexpected, and funny, and happily, neither frustrating nor irritating!

I had GaltaJi on our list, but sadly ended up having to miss it. One of the draws for us would have been the spectacle of many pilgrims, but none of that was happening when we were there, so it became less of a priority, although I'm sure it would have been worthwhile anyway. But even though this was a longish trip, we still had to sacrifice many enticing destinations. That just gives us a reason to return!

I feel about Jaipur like I feel about Sorrento. It is not that they are bad. It's just that they both just suffer in comparison with what is nearby.

<b> Shekhawati region
Photos are here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/129067...57668414629701
They show more if you make them large!</b>


Getting out of Jaipur seemed to take forever. One reason may have been that that a lot of the city seen on that route looked grey and a bit depressing to me. I think seeing everything through a veil of air pollution was part of it, along with the lack of color compared with the preponderance of bright colors (both natural and manmade) in the more tropical Southern India we'd just left. And we were driving through a long expanse of a more "industrial" area.

Also, I suddenly realized that in contrast with the south, there were far fewer women then men on the streets. This "sparseness of sari" also contributed to the lack of color! I remarked about this to C, who agreed with that observation. One of my first impressions of Rajasthan was that women just didn't seem as free to come and go outside the home here as they did in the south.

I was to notice that sometimes even in villages women were more fearful and suspicious of me then they had been in the south. And less friendly, and less willing to be photographed. Not always the case, to be sure, but more commonly than I'd experienced in Tamil Nadu or Kerala or Karnataka.

Shortly after, my observation was echoed by a passage I came across in Lonely Planet, describing how disheartening it can be for a visitor to India to see women covering their faces at their approach. But sadly, to do otherwise risks their family's honor from accusations of immorality.

Luckily, there were many exceptions where this was not the case for me, and using the international symbol of the friendly smile I was often able to interact with women and take photographs. But sometimes I was not welcome, and I tried to be very sensitive to this matter.


More about this from the Country Studies Series by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress :

<i>Veiling and the Seclusion of Women
A particularly interesting aspect of Indian family life is purdah (from the Hindi parda , literally, curtain), or the veiling and seclusion of women. In much of northern and central India, particularly in rural areas, Hindu and Muslim women follow complex rules of veiling the body and avoidance of public appearance, especially in the presence of relatives linked by marriage and before strange men. Purdah practices are inextricably linked to patterns of authority and harmony within the family. </i>

Before we left home I'd decided I needed to hire a guide for the Shekhawati region. While I knew a number of specific havelis I wanted to see there, I wouldn't be able to give directions to our driver, nor know the best order to in which see them. So I'd emailed a guide who I'd read good things about named Shekhar, a young man with an excellent command of English.

Luckily, while typing that email, I noticed that Spellcheck had changed <i>"the many havelis of Shekhawati"</i> to <i>"the many hovels of Shekhawati".</i>
Spellcheck is really trying to provoke an international incident.

Shekhar was an interesting, informative, reliable and accommodating guide, and I'd recommend him to anyone desiring a guide for the Shekhawati region. He lives in Mandawa.
[email protected]

Our hotel in the Shekhawati region was Vivaana, a tastefully renovated old haveli located in the middle of a small village called Churi Ajitgarh. Vivaana is quite beautiful, with an outside still showing the effects of time, but in a good way, and an interior whose walls had the trademark frescoes of the region.

Some of the most amazing rooms are on the 2nd floor, and I might have gone for one of those, but I was trying to help C by limiting how many stairs she'd have to climb. And even though those rooms were only up one flight, the bathrooms for those high-ceilinged rooms were situated on a balcony up yet another flight of steep steps. As I write this I'm trying not to imagine the consequences of that for anyone with "stomach issues" while staying there! So I opted for a ground floor room, which may not have been as big or as frescoed, but was still beautiful, comfortable, and full of character and history, with heavy antique doors and (surprise!) explicitly erotic wall paintings in a small 2nd bedroom. And the plumbing and fixtures were new, as was the unusually comfortable (for India) bed. The entire hotel was full of antiques and interesting touches, and as in our Chettinad hotel, was an attraction itself. And as in that other hotel, we never found the time to indulge in the attractive pool.

When we arrived at our hotel, our guide Shekhar was already waiting for us in the lobby. We checked in and after our bags were brought to our room we all drove the short distance to Mandawa, a dusty haveli town in a region full of dusty haveli towns. But Mandawa is the most developed, and since we only had one day, we decided to concentrate our haveli tour there. One day was barely enough time, and I would have liked to stay at least a couple of more days to have been able to take in more of the rural village life there. And there are so many havelis in the region that it would take quite a number of days to visit them all.

Mandawa is located in the area that was formerly part of the Silk Road, where camel caravans had carried silk, spices and other goods. Like others in the area, it became a town of merchants trading with China and Middle Eastern countries. Those wealthy merchants built themselves many havelis. Interestingly, they ended up amassing much more wealth after the disappearance of the Silk Road, after having gone to cities like Calcutta, where they made huge amounts of money from opium, sugar and jute, and later building factories producing steel, sugar, cement, cars and polyester.

To paint the Havelis, local artists would ferment dyes from cow urine, pulverized minerals and stone and apply layers of colors on wet lime plaster. After the dye and plaster were dry, a second layer of the painting would be applied, making the frescoes less vulnerable to sun and the wear of time.

In some havelis, the frescoes have been recently "restored" by crudely repainting over them, diminishing them, in my opinion So I asked to concentrate on havelis with the original frescoes, which meant they would be faded and sometimes peeling. But to me this added to the romance and beauty. Because of this, we actually often preferred havelis less commonly recommended to tourists.

And since all of the Shekhawati region is not on the primary tourist circuit, we had the havelis all to ourselves, with the exception of one, where once <i> again!</i> a big bus full of French tourists pulled up and filled the courtyard while we beat a hasty retreat.

Our first stop was the Castle Mandawa hotel, converted from the old Fort by the Thakur of Mandawa. We parked in a huge sandy area inside the walls, and were accompanied by several men in bright uniforms while our guide showed us around. But although the former fort had its attractions, it soon became apparent this wasn't what we had traveled all this way to see. When I finally thought to ask where we were next headed, our guide enthusiastically replied "To tour the swimming pool, sir"! Aargh! I told him we'd rather spend our time in havelis, which is what we spent the remainder of the day doing.

Among the havelis in Mandawa we liked best were the Gulab Rai Ladia haveli, the Sneh Ram Ladia haveli and the Mohan Lal Saraf haveli.
The Gulab Rai Ladia haveli was notable for its decorative walls with pieces of mirror and glass in a floral motif.

We left Shekhar in his hometown and on the drive through the countryside to our hotel I asked Raj to stop when I saw a cadre of camels nibbling on tree leaves. We'd already seen many camels in our short time in Rajasthan, usually pulling a cart, but this was my first opportunity to spend quality time with these peculiar beasts, and they displayed their great affection for me with their delicate and lyrical vocalizations of love.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtezAP-AbzY

After we returned to the hotel, I went for a walk alone through the sandy streets of Churi Ajitgarh as the sun sank low in the sky. I was taking photographs, and when I spotted a woman in a bright sari walking with a bright yellow sack on her head, I started following her down narrow streets and around corners, trying to compose a shot with good background behind her. When she became aware of my presence she became a model, stopping a couple of times to pose for me. After getting as many shots as I felt I could reasonably hope for, I said shukriyaa (thank you), which she seemed to understand, and as she walked away I realized I was lost! While following her, I'd stupidly forgotten to keep looking for landmarks to guide my way back to our hotel. I didn't have a card for the hotel with me, either, which is always a good thing to have when traveling, as I could have shown it to local people to communicate where I was trying to go. Instead, I was left with only 2 words to try and communicate my desired destination. All I could say was "Vivaana" and haveli. This was met by puzzlement over and over. I think local people just didn't use the word "Vivaana" to describe the hotel. It probably had some old name of what the haveli had been before being turned into a hotel. So I wandered for over an hour. Yo may be asking "How do you manage to get lost in a village?", but it was a surprisingly large maze. Several times, local people heard me ask "Vivaana Haveli?" perhaps only focusing on "haveli" gestured to invite me into their own haveli homes, which was a treat. But it was starting to get dark, so I couldn't keep doing that! Finally, I asked a couple of young men, who luckily spoke some English and did know Vivaana and they pointed the way. Turns out, by then I was only a few blocks away, but didn't know it! And amusingly, I saw the same 2 guys later at dinner in Vivaana - they were local lads who worked for the hotel! I need to remember that my little tip about just jumping in a tuk-tuk when lost only works if the place you're lost in actually has any tuk-tuks!


(coming up next, Bikaner, Gajner and the road to Jaisalmer)

Caligirl - I love your comment "more rick's riches! (Didn't know Rje's name).
Rick - your report is so rich in describing your sights. I'm loving it. We did not make it to the mandara area, regrettably. I'm sorry you missed the monkey temple. I highly recommend a stop there for others, as well as a stop at the stepping wells if one journeys between Jaipur and Agra. We liked Jaipur very much. As we arrived at the crack of dawn, we took the opportunity to take a long walk on the Main Street which was very interesting as the vendors and people were just starting their day. Also, we had the best lassi there at a famous lassi shop on the streets. I would return just for the lassi!
Looking forward to more of your report. We spent several days in jaisalmer and loved it.

Oh...and about your observations about the number of women on the streets...you are absolutely correct. This was something that we noticed immediately and there were times that I felt uncomfortable walking around when there were all men. In fact, we limited our nighttime exertions greatly as it was even more noticeable then. After returning from our first trip, we were greatly alarmed by the reports of rapes.

We found most women and children wanted us to take their picture, but many expected money in return. What I did not like was when people asked me to take their picture and then expected monetary reimbursement. I always showed the people my pictures of them and they seemed delighted to view them.

Dgun, RJE's first and lat names are on the photo links he sends. Lassi...yummy.. If ever returning, I'll ask you for the name of that place! And Jaipur's other attraction for me--and future ref for readers- is the main branch of the small Soma Shops chain--a wonderful block print fabric clothing place!! (There's also a branch in New Delhi, but alas, the Ft Cochin one is closed.

But i digress..

RJE, fascinating commentary, including the Library of Congress passage, about women's clothing. Perhaps the heavily Catholic religion in much of Kerala has contributed to a different standard? Still, that would not explain the difference in Hindu TN. Interesting food for thought.

Haha comparing Jaipur to Sorrento (a town I quite liked!) as perfectly fine, but paling in comparison to other towns in the region. (In terms of encounters with shoulder to shoulder tourists screaming into their cell phones (my fellow Americans!) on crowded narrow roads, I'd more compare to Positano--nice place to visit for an afternoon, then get back to a "better" Amalfi Coast.

Onward to your photos!!!!!

the amel vid--thanks! Before watching it, I wondered what you have that I lack, as you received "delicate vocalizations of love"--while my close encounter led to being spit on! Ha!! The camel at 00:56 sure sounded lovelorn!

Re: typos, so none of us feels alone with spellcheck absurdities: check out damnyouautocorrect.com Haven't seen one about hovels yet!!

Appreciate your observations about women in the north versus the south and the contrast in colors, although the north seems vivid from your photographs. And, oh, I would love the tiger chair for my apartment.

Stunning pictures!

CaliNurse ,
You're right when you point out that Positano ain't what it used to be. I first went there in 1985 and even then it was already somewhat spoiled. I've been there several times since then, but haven't actually stayed there since 2004. When we saw it a couple of years ago, it made me a bit sad. Not that it isn't still beautiful, but so much of the original attraction has been lost. The last 2 times we stayed on the Amalfi Coast we stayed in Atrani and Nocelle.

dgunbug,
Excellent decision to go out super-early! Doing so lets you see a side of India most tourists don't see while they are sleeping in their rooms, you avoid crowds at some (but not all) attractions, get great light for photography, and you also avoid the heat that can come later in the day!

tripplanner001,
Color and India are inseparable for me, and admittedly Rajasthan has boatloads! But it also has air pollution in some places, and that can grey out some of the color. And I really noticed when we were in areas with mostly men and few woman how much the color levels went down! But as you pointed out, I still found lots subjects with color to photograph.

Oh, what a way to spend a cloudy cool Bay Area afternoon: India photos!!!
They're all great, colorful, evocative...I'm back there with you, either remembering places seen, or in dreams of places to go!
A few comments/questions:
The "foggy" looking pix in Shekwhati regions--are those dust, or early morning smoke fire, or actual fog?
The chubby slightly cross-eyed mother holding baby with arrow:Do you know if these are some of the numerous gods? Or just regular daily life (as if every baby gets an arrow!)?
Love the signs!! Airtel! Vivienne! Town sign! Jars filled with mystery items, on store shelves! No STD signs? Those made for a puzzled double take, seeing them on first return trip in decades.
Amazing views from Jaigarh Fort. Gotta add to "the list" if in Jaipur again, along with Dgunbug's Lassi Shop!
Movie billboard--"India's First Porn-Com!" India--land of contrasts, indeed! The girl in short-shorts which, if seen onin reality on an Indian girl on the street, would cause a riot, and which are totally inappropriate on Western visitors, as you showed in earlier pix
Jindel Arms Shop--A relative of Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, who is anti gun-control laws? (-:

Love the description of the you following the lady down the alleys as she posed for you. Sounds like a scene from a novel about Venice, or a French movie )9whihc, i'm not sure!) Re "Shukriya" as "Thank you."

Granted, the following is anecdotal only, but perhaps useful for visitors. Depending the region of India, it might be better to use "Danyavad" (not sure of correct spelling--that's what it sounds like, sort of.) "Shukriya" is more used in the Punjab (both India and Pakistan sides)--at least I was told this (and mildly told OFF for using the "wrong" version several times). While both are understood, it seems "Danyavad" is more universally "accepted." Of course, there are many local languages and dialects in, for example, Tamil Nadu and Kerala ("thank you" as "Nandri" and "Nanni")--it all is pretty confusing, and no sooner do you think you've got it right, then you're off to another area! One of our drivers amazed us by speaking seven different languages on a trip into parts of Kerala, TN, and Karnataka!

p.s. Re cow urine dyes...Cow urine is used in some fantastic soaps in India. No kidding. If any of you sees it, buy it. You'd never know from the fragnrace what it contains!

Calinurse - our driver also spoke 7 languages - was your driver's name barath? Ours was a young man who was amazing.