Tag Archives: Jaipur

About Eastern Rajasthan Jaipur Sights Review

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About Eastern Rajasthan Jaipur Sights Review

Consider buying a composite ticket (Indian/foreigner/foreign student ₹50/300/150), which gives you entry to Amber Fort, Central Museum, Jantar Mantar, Hawa Mahal and Narhargarh, and is valid for two days from time of purchase.

Old City (Pink City)

The Old City (known as the Pink City by some) is partially encircled by a crenellated wall punctuated at intervals by grand gateways. The major gates are Chandpol (pol means ‘gate’), Ajmeri Gate and Sanganeri Gate. Avenues divide the Old City into neat rectangles, each specialising in certain crafts, as ordained in the ancient Hindu texts Shilpa-Shastra. The main bazaars in
the Old City include Johari Bazaar, Tripolia Bazaar, Bapu Bazaar and Chandpol Bazaar.

City Palace

(Indian/foreigner incl camera ₹75/300, video camera ₹200, audio guide ₹80, human guide from ₹300, Chandra Mahal tour ₹2500; h9.30am-5pm) A complex of courtyards, gardens and buildings, the impressive City Palace is right in the centre of the Old City. The outer wall was built by Jai Singh, but within it the palace has been enlarged and adapted over the centuries. Despite the gradual development, the whole is a striking blend of Rajasthani and Mughal architecture. The price of admission also gets you in to Jaigarh Fort (the fort above Amber Fort, 10km from town), a deal that is valid for two days.¨

Mubarak Mahal

Entering through Virendra Pol, you’ll see the Mubarak Mahal (Welcome Palace), built in the late 19th century for Maharaja Madho Singh II as a reception centre for visiting dignitaries. Its multi-arched, colonnaded construction was cooked up in an Islamic, Rajput and European stylistic stew by the architect Sir Swinton Jacob. It now forms part of the Maharaja Sawai Mansingh II
Museum, containing a collection of royal costumes and superb shawls, including Kashmiri pashmina (wool shawls). One remarkable exhibit is Sawai Madho Singh I’s capacious clothing. It’s said he was a cuddly 2m tall, 1.2m wide and 250kg.¨

Diwan-i-Khas (Sarvatobhadra)

Set between the Armoury and the Diwan-iAm art gallery is an open courtyard known in Sanskrit as Sarvatobhadra. At its centre is a pink-and-white, marble-paved gallery that was used as the Diwan-i-Khas (Hall of Private Audience), where the maharajas would consult their ministers. Here you can see two enormous silver vessels, 1.6m tall and reputedly the largest silver objects in the world; Maharaja Madho Singh II, as a devout Hindu, used these vessels to take holy Ganges water to England.¨

Diwan-i-Am

Within the lavish Diwan-i-Am (Hall of Public Audience) is an art gallery. Exhibits include a copy of the entire Bhagavad Gita handwritten in tiny script, and miniature copies of other holy Hindu scriptures, which were small enough to be easily hidden in the event that Mughal zealot Aurangzeb tried to destroy the sacred texts.¨

The Armoury

The Anand Mahal Sileg Khana – the Maharani’s Palace – houses the Armoury, which has one of the best collections of weapons in the country. Many of the ceremonial weapons are elegantly engraved and inlaid, belying their grisly purpose.¨

Pitam Niwas Chowk & Chandra Mahal

Located towards the palace’s inner courtyard is Pitam Niwas Chowk, with four glorious gates that represent the seasons. The Peacock Gate depicts autumn, with zigzagging patterns and peacock motifs – around the doorway are five beautiful repeated peacock bas reliefs in all their feathered glory. Beyond this chowk (square) is the private palace, the Chandra Mahal, which is still the residence of the descendants of the royal family and where you can take a 45-minute guided tour (₹2500) of select areas.

Jantar Mantar HISTORIC SITE

(Indian/foreigner ₹40/200, audio guide ₹150, human guide ₹200; h9am-4.30pm) Adjacent to the City Palace is Jantar Mantar, an observatory begun by Jai Singh in 1728 that resembles a collection of bizarre sculptures. The name is derived from the Sanskrit yanta mantr, meaning ‘instrument of calculation’, and in 2010 it was added to India’s list of Unesco World Heritage Sites. Jai Singh liked astronomy even more than he liked war and town planning. Before constructing the observatory he sent scholars abroad to study foreign constructs. He built five observatories in total, and this is the largest and best preserved (it was restored in 1901). Others are in Delhi, Varanasi and Ujjain. No traces of the fifth, the Mathura observatory, remain

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Jaipur City Walk

Jaipur City Walk – Pink City

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Entering the Old City from 1 New Gate, turn right inside the city wall into 2 Bapu Bazaar. Brightly coloured bolts of fabric, jootis (traditional shoes) and aromatic perfumes make the street a favourite for Jaipur’s women. At the end of Bapu Bazaar you’ll come to  3 Sanganeri Gate. Turn left into 4 Johari Bazaar, the jewellery market, where you will find jewellers, goldsmiths and also artisans doing highly glazed meenakari (enamelling), a speciality of Jaipur.

Continuing north, walk past 5 Jama Masjid, with its tall minarets, then duck through an archway (between Nos 145 and 146) that leads into a bustling half-covered alleyway, sparkling with the sequined shawls and saris. Turn right at the end for more colourful 6 sari stalls. Return the way you came, turning left to reach 7 Badi Chaupar. Take a quick look at the spectacular 8 Hawa Mahal  before walking west along 9 Tripolia Bazaar, leading to 10 Tripolia Gate. This is the main entrance to 11 Jantar Mantar  and the 12 City Palace  but only the maharaja’s family may enter here. The public entrance is via the less-ostentatious Atishpol (Stable Gate), a little further along.

Further west is  13 Iswari Minar Swarga Sal, which is well worth climbing for the city views (enter from the back). Cross the road here and duck into 14 Maniharonka Rasta (between Nos 349 and 350), an alleyway specialising in colourful lac (resin) bangles.

Walking south, clothes and crockery stores appear as the lane becomes less touristy.  Look out for the green-painted, but rundown 14 Maniharonka Rasta opposite shop No 1129, before turning right through a narrow tunnel, and eventually popping out onto Kishanpol Bazaar. Turn left and walk past a collection of small gkite shops before ending your tour with a well-earned break at the simple but charming hIndian Coffee House (p117), just outside the Old City walls

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About Eastern Rajasthan Jaipur History Review

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About Jaipur

Jaipur Rajasthan’s capital, is an enthralling historical city and the gateway to India’s most flamboyant state. The city’s colourful, chaotic streets ebb and flow with a heady brew of old and new. Careering buses dodge dawdling camels, leisurely cycle-rickshaws frustrate swarms of motorbikes, and everywhere buzzing autorickshaws watch for easy prey. In the midst of this mayhem, the splendours of Jaipur’s majestic past are islands of relative calm evoking a different pace and another world. At the city’s heart, the City Palace continues to house the former royal family, while the Jantar Mantar (the royal observatory) maintains a heavenly aspect, and the honeycomb Hawa Mahal gazes on the bazaar below. And just out of sight, in the arid hill country surrounding the city, is the fairytale grandeur of Amber Fort, Jaipur’s star attraction

Rajasthan History

Jaipur is named after its founder, the great warrior-astronomer Jai Singh II (1688–1744), who came to power at age 11 after the death of his father, Maharaja Bishan Singh. Jai Singh could trace his lineage back to the Rajput clan of Kachhwahas, who consolidated their power in the 12th century. Their capital was at Amber (pronounced amer), about 11km northeast of present-day Jaipur, where they built the impressive Amber Fort. The kingdom grew wealthier and wealthier, and this, plus the need to accommodate the burgeoning population and a paucity of water at the old capital at Amber, prompted the maharaja in 1727 to commence work on a new city – Jaipur. Northern India’s first planned city, it was a collaborative effort using his vision and the impressive expertise of his chief architect, Vidyadhar Bhattacharya. Jai Singh’s grounding in the sciences is reflected in the precise symmetry of the new city. In 1876 Maharaja Ram Singh had the entire Old City painted pink (traditionally the colour of hospitality) to welcome the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII). Today all residents of the Old City are compelled by law to preserve the pink facade.

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