Jaipur

During our two-week-long trip to India, we spent two nights in Jaipur. Since we arrived in the evening, we only had one full day to explore the city. It became evident quite swiftly that a single day is insufficient to uncover all that this beautiful city has to offer. Jaipur, to me, embodies the India I always envisioned—a fairy-tale-like destination and one of the country’s architectural wonders.

Umaid Bhawan: A heritage style hotel

We chose to stay at a Heritage hotel called Umaid Bhawan. Despite not being the grand luxury hotel in Jodhpur with the same name, it held its own charm. This “small” palace, designed in Rajasthani style, was a feast for the eyes. Merely wandering through the hotel felt like an experience in itself, with hidden gems waiting to be discovered on every floor. Staying in such places is a must when visiting Jaipur or other destinations in Rajasthan, given the region’s renown for its palaces and castles. It’s similar to the recommendation for Marrakesh, where opting for a Riad over a large resort enhances the overall experience.

We opted to dine at our hotel for dinner on two occasions. The restaurant, situated on the rooftop, offered a breathtaking setting. Picture a beautiful evening with live Rajasthani music and a dancer, adding an extra special touch to the ambiance. The delicious food added to the overall experience. In summary, we had an incredible time at this historic hotel, and I highly recommend it!

Sari stitching

On the first evening, my main goal was to find a place to get my sari blouse stitched. This sari held sentimental value as I had it since my trip to Mauritius many years ago, and I wanted to wear it to the Taj Mahal. However, in every clothing store we visited, we were told they couldn’t handle the stitching due to the unique handmaid embroideries on the sari.

While searching for a solution, we were approached by a rickshaw driver who claimed he knew a place that could fix it. Initially skeptical, we decided to follow him, and indeed, he took us to a spot where they could stich the blouse. They even offered to make the sari “ready-made,” making it much easier to put on. Everything seemed fine, except they were quite persistent in trying to sell us many other items. Somehow, we managed to leave without making additional purchases.

Our rickshaw driver, whom we grew fond of, waited for us outside and drove us back to the hotel. Impressed by his helpfulness, we decided to book him for the entire next day to show us around Jaipur!

Sightseeing

On the second day, we embarked on a day-trip with the rickshaw driver we had from the previous day. This young and friendly guy turned out to be quite knowledgeable about Jaipur and its history. If you’re in need of a reliable rickshaw driver in the Jaipur area, feel free to contact me, and I’ll provide you with his phone number. He guided us through all the main neighborhoods, showcasing the most beautiful landmarks and interesting sights for sightseeing.

Given the limited time, we couldn’t cover everything, but I’m pleased with what we managed to explore in such a short span. We began with the essential sights in the Pink City, an area enclosed by walls on all sides. While Jaipur is often referred to as the Pink City, it’s specifically this historic part with buildings colored in shades of pink, or more accurately, beige. The Pink City has a captivating charm, and upon entering through its walls, it feels like stepping into a tale from 1001 Arabian Nights. It is also home to the famous Hawa Mahal, where we took a quick pause for some photos. As we explored, we drove past numerous other beautiful landmarks; the Pink City is truly adorned with them.

Leaving the Pink City, our next stop was the Albert Hall Museum—a truly beautiful place. I’m not typically a museum person, but this one is worth a visit, if only for its remarkable architecture.

Following the museum visit, we headed to a place known as the Monkey Temple, and true to its name, it was a temple filled with a lot of monkeys! The ascent up the hill was quite a walk, and along the way, many monkeys approached us, attempting to grab items like water and food. Despite the temple being relatively small, it provided a unique and cool experience, and the view over Jaipur from the top was truly beautiful!

After the Monkey Temple, our driver guided us to an elephant sanctuary, promising an opportunity to pet and feed the elephants. However, we soon realized they were attempting to scam us, prompting us to cut our visit short. They engaged us in a lengthy conversation about the supposed good work they did for the elephants, claiming they had many elephants freely roaming somewhere. Oddly, only two were visible and available for interaction. What struck us as peculiar was that these elephants remained motionless the entire time.

After about 30 minutes, the person talking to us pulled out a pen and paper and started noting down some figures. It became clear that he was calculating the extremely high fees he expected us to pay. The proposed fees for petting and feeding the elephants were ridiculously high. We promptly decided to leave, and even our rickshaw driver seemed embarrassed when he heard the prices—prices that were three to four times higher than what he charged for the entire day of driving us around.

Our final destination was the Amer Fort. It’s unquestionably a must-visit in Jaipur—a truly stunning fort and palace! While it demands a climb up a considerable number of steps, the experience is undeniably worthwhile. Once again, ascending to the fort creates a magical and indescribable atmosphere, reminiscent of being in an Aladdin movie. Naturally, there were plenty of people, both children and adults, asking for selfies with me! How cute is that?!

Upon returning to the hotel, we were incredibly tired. Today’s sightseeing proved to be exceptionally exhausting, and I couldn’t help but wish for more days to fully appreciate all that we did. With additional time, the experience might have been even more enjoyable. On our way back to the hotel, I collected my ready-made sari, which I wore for dinner. I might need to make a few adjustments to the blouse myself as it doesn’t look as nice as I hoped, but I’m thrilled that my sari is now ready-made, making it easy to put on.

After dinner, we were so tired and exhausted that we fell asleep instantly. This experience reinforced my belief that one day in Jaipur is undoubtedly too short. I hope to return to this beautiful city someday, but next time, I’ll make sure to allocate at least three days to explore it more thoroughly.