Jaipur, The Pink City: Last Frenetic Stop Before Amanbagh

We have arrived in Rajasthan. It's 6:15 AM on March 3, 2007. Yesterday we took an early morning flight from Delhi. Unfortunately there had been dense fog in the morning and when it cleared there was a backlog of airplanes trying to get clearances. We ended up waiting over 2 hours to get a clearance (to contact ground!) and our 30 minute flight ended up taking 3.5 hours. It's always something it seems.

After about an hour of waiting with the door closed, ready to taxi, the woman sitting next to Karin (I was by the window and she was in the middle seat), called a flight attendant over and sternly told her that she wanted to get off the plane because her meeting in Jaipur was going to be over by the time she got there. The FA was gracious and tried to calm her down but Karin's neighbor began getting really irate. The FA said she would work on it. From that point on, every time an FA came by, our neighbor would give her an earful. Finally, the pilot made an announcement over the PA and said that although he was sympathetic, it would be impossible to let people off because that would activate a bunch of security issues which would delay us significantly and might mean losing our place in the queue to get clearance (it had taken 2 hours to get from 35th to 2nd). The woman was incensed. She called over an FA and said that she would not allow the plane to take off if she was not permitted to exit immediately. The FA said they were working on it and eventually told her that security would be by to escort her off. Fifteen minutes later, the FA came by and whispered to our neighbor that she could leave. The woman was escorted off the plane and the door was closed. The pilot then came over the PA (in a thick Australian accent): Ladies and Gentlemen, We apologize for this delay. The passenger was allowed to deplane and we managed to keep our place in the queue. We will be taxiing in 2 minutes. Just so you know, that passenger did not advantage herself in any way. She was taken away by security and will be held until the plane lands in Jaipur and is cleared. It will be up to them how to handle her after that.

About 35 minutes later we were landing in Jaipur (note that driving or taking the train to Jaipur takes 5 to 6 hours on a clear day). Once in Jaipur we grabbed a cab (through the "government prepaid office") and headed to the Sheraton Rajputana. The hotel itself is nothing to blog home about but it was really hard to get anything so last-minute in Jaipur.

We had decided to do a walking tour of the old city that is laid out in Lonely Planet Rajasthan. I had a train ticket that I had to cancel and the concierge told us that the train station was just behind the hotel - "walking distance".

Karin, I apologize for that walk. While it only took 4 or 5 minutes, it was disgusting. When people, cows, dogs, monkeys, and goats use roads as lavatories, they require regular street cleaning. As street cleaning has apparently not yet come to Jaipur, pedestrian activity is to be avoided.

We arrived at the train station, and while there was not a word of English on any of the signs, a couple of people in line immediately offered to help me navigate and I quickly ended up in the correct line with the correct form and accurate instructions as to how to proceed. People here are are constantly offering assistance (not just the touts).

Once the ticket was canceled we grabbed a cab and headed to the New Gate of the Old City. We had lunch at Ganesh Restaurant, which was recommended by Lonely Planet. Tons of tourists use the Lonely Planet guide so the place was full of non-Indians - even though it did not even have an English menu. It was actually an open-air concept on top of the old city wall itself. Food was tasty but neither of us reacted well to it. I think that is going to be our last adventurous meal of the trip... particularly since we are soon heading to Amanbagh.

Following a tasty lunch, we headed into the bazaars of the Old City. There are hundreds and hundreds of tiny shops - most with someone outside trying to pull people inside. Karin was tiring of being constantly approached by shopkeepers and others trying to sell us silk and silver and saris and... sweets (had to find something that started with "s"). But I was getting into it. I was haggling over prices and kidding with them. It's fun to see how fast the prices plummet when walking away from a shop. The further into Jaipur we got, the fewer tourists we saw, and the less we were approached. I don't think Karin enjoyed that walk as much as I did.

As you might expect, cows are all over Jaipur... but so are monkeys. It's quite something to be surprised by a dozen monkeys that show up out of nowhere and sit down to take in the view.

The walking tour ended at what I am guessing is the only McDonald's in Jaipur. We checked out the menu (click on the pic to see Paneer Wrap and more) and used it as an emergency bathroom stop. We then crossed the street to negotiate for a ride back to the hotel. Our choices were a taxi-van or a tuk tuk type open motorized 3-wheeled vehicle. Since we had paid 50 Rupees for a taxi (Ambassador) coming to the Old City, we balked at the 150 Rupees that the taxi driver quoted us. He immediately went to 100 Rupees. We told him we would pay the 50 Rupees (~$1.15) that we had paid to get there. He balked at that. After a serious standoff he was at 80. We then turned to the tuk tuk driver who was offering to take us for 50 then 40. Karin took over this negotiation. She was really standing her ground. Eventually the tuk tuk went to 35 rupees ("lower than Indian price") and Karin had squeezed the taxi driver down to 60 Rupees. We agreed to the 60 and took the taxi. The tuk tuk driver, who had been negotiating hard to get our business shook my hand warmly and smiled after we told him we'd be taking the taxi instead. I think he had enjoyed the 3-way bargaining session.

As soon as we were back at the hotel, Karin hit the bed. I, on the other hand, hit the internet. For the third time since I arrived, we failed to muster enough of an appetite to actually have a real dinner.

Overall I really enjoyed Jaipur. The haggling was fun and I like interacting with the shopkeepers and Jaipurians, and especially with the cute kids that are always interested in talking to us. I could do without the begging and the touting and the horrendous smells (I'm gagging just mentioning them) but that is part of the cost of visiting these places and one learns how to minimize that exposure after a while.

Here is the blog plan: Since I neglected to post for a number of days, I have a backlog waiting to be added. I'm going to post about all that from Amanbagh over the next 3 days. This is going to be a welcome respite following the hectic pace at which our senses have been confronted over the past week and a bit.

The pictures posted here are of some of the shops we walked by, lunch in the Old City of Jaipur, the Jaipur McDonald's, and a busy Old City roundabout replete with vehicles speeding in every direction and cows.