Continued from Jaipur Day 1.

I slept, but then got cold in the middle of the night and had to go put on another shirt. The nights get kind of cold over here since it’s a desert climate and I slept with the window open.

Aloo Paranthas it is.

The hotel has a nice dining area outside, but all the shaded ones were taken, so I elected to sit inside.

Seeing the clientele here, I further confirmed my intuition. It’s a much older crowd here, and most don’t even seem like they are here as tourists. I don’t think I’ll be making many friends at the hotel.

Brunch and Chai Time!

Streets of Jaipur in the day time. I went out seeking a rickshaw that would take me to the old city for 40INR. That’s what the hotel said I should pay.

I shot down a few guys offering it for 50, then I walked a little farther away, and they quoted me even more…I had to come back with my tail between my legs and take the 50. Sigh.

The interior of my rickshaw. They heart hearts.

Jaipur can almost be considered orderly.

Turning into the old city. This is the part of Jaipur that is referred to as the Pink City.

This part feels more like the India that I know. Though, things are still relatively orderly here compared to Varanasi and Old Delhi.

Almost all the buildings here are pink, hence the name.

I’ll be making a trip to this minaret later.

Into another archway leading behind another wall we go.

Yet another wall.

In the almost two weeks that I’ve been in India, I’ve wanted to get a photo of “straight guys” holding hands. Well, here you go. Two guys, holding hands, no one bats an eye. They are not gay, allegedly. Thank god it’s not a man and a woman holding hands. There would be hell to pay…Sigh, repressed societies…

Here’s City Palace.

First, foreigner priced tickets.

I have no descriptions for anything here because I didn’t bother getting a guide or an audio guide.

I think the photos kind of speak for themselves.

They were indeed pretty big.

Ohhhh, how do I get there to the palace? I asked a guard, and it turns out that I can indeed go there, if I had paid for a 2500 INR ticket. That’s $50! What crack pipe are they smoking? I don’t even pay $50 to go inside the Louvre or Versailles!!

Wheels. Did you hear about our neighbor’s new carriage? It’s got front and rear independent suspension!! Carriages have come a long way! We are so advanced today!

OK, I am done with City Palace. Kind of disappointing because I didn’t get to see the actual palace and I literally blazed through the whole thing in less than 10 minutes. Lame.

This photo was better than everything I saw inside the City Palace(without the palace) combined. Those are puffy breads.

Next to the City Palace is Jantar Mantar. It’s a collection of massively sized astronomical instruments. Jai Singh II, the founder of Jaipur, had it built and he also built 4 more in other cities. There’s one in Delhi and also one in Varanasi. Dr. McCartytheonemanparty, you would have enjoyed these.

Essentially a massive sun dial. The description claims that it’s accurate to within 2 seconds.

What are those?

Here’s the description.

Found Gemini tucked away back in the corner.

Oh, what have we here right smack in the center taking up the most important premium spot?

I am the best!(for those who do not know me, this is always a joke)

Sun dial that mimics the really big one. My watch is still pink from Holi.

Not sure what this crazy looking one is.

That was pretty cool. Too bad astronomy isn’t really my thing, but I appreciate the engineering that went into making these instruments.

Walked out and saw this comically proportioned double decker bus.

Tons of pigeons in this area. I realized that flying birds makes for cool photos. I had a better chance earlier, when a whole flock was flying towards me. But I was too scared that they were going to poop all over me to take a photo.

They love feeding the pigeons over here.

Yup, feed them next to stands that sells food, so all the poop can contaminate.

Pinky City is pink.

Hawa Mahal(Palace of the Winds). This is one of the most famous landmarks here in Jaipur. It was built to allow the women of the royal household to observe the street life outside.

This is one of the most popular tourist spot here, and there are no tourists around. I am further convinced that I will travel single for all days here in Jaipur. There does not seem to be many tourists, and of the tourists who I have seen, most are in big groups. On a plus note, I am getting almost no hassle out here on the streets because there are so few tourists here!

In order to enter Hawa Mahal, I had to walk around to the back.

Bangle shops everywhere in this area of Jaipur.

The business end of Hawa Mahal. Into the business end I go.

I am a royal woman observing the fascinating street life through one of the many windows. I see road construction. How fascinating!

View from the street side. Bearded lady.

Where are all the tourists?

Made it to the very top and some of the passages here are extremely small.

Can’t fit walking straight through. I had to turn sideways to squeeze through.

That’s Jantar Mantar ahead.

I had to come back down to the front and get a photo of myself taken with it. I was finally able to track down one single tourist to help me take the photo.

What will he do with all those keys?

Sidenotes:

All over India so far when locals comment on my facial hair or long hair, they want me to buy something from them.

I walk down the street minding my own business, often some guy will start talking to me and ask me where I am from. I used to tell them quickly that I am from the US. Now, I hesitate before replying, and they start guessing outloud. They’ll go through all the Asian countries first, 99% of the time starting with Japan, and when I finally say United States, none of them can believe me because I am Asian. Apparently, no Asians live in America. When they hear that I am from America, they always say “Great Country!”.

Sometimes, they ask me where I am from and I reply India. They’ve got their lines so memorized that when I say India, they’ll go right ahead to their next question without thinking over what I’ve actually said. They would continue with their gambit for a few more seconds before pausing and bashfully chuckle at what I’ve said. It does a pretty good job of throwing them off their game so they stop hassling me quickly.

To be continued at Jaipur Day 2 Part 2.