Rajasthan – A feast for the eyes

 

Our eyes are happy here in Rajasthan.  After a long day of sight seeing and traveling through India's cities and towns, we close our eyes and they feel as if they have just feasted on thousands of aesthetically pleasing images.

As we rode to our hotel today, we zipped through crowded streets and on both sides of the auto rickshaw we could see so many scenes of people in every day life.  Some of the things we saw were: cows, a barber shop, bright colored turbans, bright saris, shops selling only pots and pans, shops with candy, people deep frying all kinds of salty treats, dirty walls, paint shops, various craftsmen and women.  By the time we got to our hotel, our eyes felt like they had just feasted on a delightful meal. 

This same thing happens when we see expansive forts with such beautiful architecture and attention to detail in the carved stone. 

 Fatehpur Sikri

This fortified ancient city was the capital of the Mughal empire between 1571 and 1585.  Akbar (Tal loves that name) was an eclectic, broad thinking, and tolerant Emperor who constructed this whole city because saint Shaikh Salim Chishti predicted that the heir to the Mughal throne would be born there; and his prediction came true.  Akbar (again, Tal’s favorite current favorite word/name which he says spontaneously as we walk down the streets) built this impressive Mosque…

The entrance gate to the Mosque was breathtaking…

Below are some shots from Fatehpur Sikri’s palaces and pavilions….

 

 

Jaipur

We were in Jaipur for their annual Kite Festival which was fun to see.  There were literally thousands of kites flown by very excited children and then there was an impressive firework show after dark…

This crazy city is packed with cars, buses, auto-rickshaws, cows, and an occasional elephant. We found some great food in Jaipur, but our favorite two places in this crazy city were the City Palace and the Amber Fort.

The City Palace…

 

Amber Fort…

There were so many fun hallways to explore and it was all open to the public!

Jaisalmer

A city made rich by its location along the trading route across the desert of India, this whole city was built by the local sandstone and had incredible carved buildings everywhere.

A Jain Temple…

Our hotel used the sandstone and light really well.  We were happy with it…

Jodhpur

You will see many houses that are painted blue in the next set of pictures.  For those that are curious, there are four reasons that many of the houses are blue:

1. To distinguish who is from the Brahmin caste:  If the house is blue, that meant that the house anciently belonged to the Brahmin people.  The Brahmins found it vexing to have the warrior class caste drink alcohol and invade their homes so all of the Brahmins came together and decided to paint their houses blue, which meant that the other castes were not allowed to enter.

2. The blue is famous for handicraft work: because the sun shines off the blue and makes the workspace bright, which makes the fine work easier to see.

3. The limestone in the blue paint keeps the mosquitoes away.

4. It’s cheap: the limestone and blue color is inexpensive and yearly painting is necessary.

This was our view from our hotel rooftop…

Our hotel…

A nice father and son from Sweden that we enjoyed a few meals with.  It was fun to talk with them about various topics and compare notes on our travels.

 

Bundi

We liked this town because it was slower than other places and allowed us to walk around the markets and area without feeling like we will be run off the road.

 

The palace on the hill…

The sage cows…

We are excited to see Tal’s parents in Udaipur in the next few days and then go via Mumbai to Rising Star Outreach in Chennai.  We start our humanitarian work at Rising Star on February 1st.