I would say that in general me and Ben are good at waiting patiently; in Paris we waited patiently for 2 hours in a queue to enter the catacombs and more recently we waited 3 hours in the blazing Indian sun to enter the Red fort at Delhi. For the first 2 hours at Jaipur train station we waited patiently also, the next two hours we waited ironically, for the two hours after that we waited in anger and for the hours after that it was a resigned and defeated wait. It wouldn't have been quite so painful it they hadn't kept on pushing the time back right as the new "arrival" time approached.
One positive from the experience is that Jaipur definitely keeps it's station clean, for the first few hours we couldn't understand why the floor cleaning machine drove up the platform relentlessly. Then we learned. We learned that in India it's normal for a man to push a mushroom shape object up his nose, so he could violently shoot snot all over the floor. We learned that after your child has a poo on the platform the next logical step would be to hold then over the tracks to finish - despite sitting next to a working toilet. We learned that if Ben wanders off to buy snacks by the time he returns there would be no less then 10 Indian men standing in a group to stare at me, and by the time he returns from finding the phone he misplaced on the previous trip there would be more (although moved slightly to the left). There was a lot of learning that day... and waiting.
Thirteen and a half hours after we left our hotel in Jaipur we finally arrived in Jodhpur. At first glance I wasn't impressed, the streets were lined with rubbish and the tuk-tuk took us to our less that nice hostel where we had a less than nice dinner. It wasn't Jodhpurs fault, but after such a horrid journey I wanted something better.
The next morning, although still not in the best of moods we decided to make the most of it. We got up early and headed to Mehrangarh Fort intending to get breakfast along the way. Finding no where to sit and eat along the way, we gave up and climbed up the hill to the fort. Mehrangarh fort is one of the largest forts in India and was built in 1459. It is a imposing sight, with its 100 ft high red sandstone walls looming 410ft over the city of Jodhpur, built on a plateau it seemed to grow straight out of the top of the cliff itself. As we were early we had time waiting by the entrance, looking over the city and doing some people watching. Then just as the fort was opening and the clock struck 9, a group of fifty Indian tourists arrived from seemingly nowhere and we had to rush to the gate so we wouldn't be stuck in another queue.
The entry fee set us back 600 Rs each but this included an hour long audio guide. The tour took us past the 16th-century "Dodh Kangra Pol" external gate, a gate which still bears marks from cannon fire from a 16th century battle with Jaipur. Next were two collections of small hand-prints set into the walls. These hand-prints were left by widows of the Maharaja's before they committed ritual suicide on their husbands funeral pyres. It was sad to see how small and numerous these marks were. After passing a gate bearing iron spikes - to deter elephants from charging - we entered the main area of the fort.
The museum is placed throughout the amazingly well kept Palace that the fort encompasses. There was an extraordinary amount of well preserved exhibitions on show. The Palanquin gallery showed us how the royals travelled in style, including an over-the-top golden domed palanquin which was won in battle. The elephant Howda gallery showed ornate examples of the seat which people used to ride on elephants. There were galleries showing collections of royal cradles, textiles, arms and armour and of course paintings.
What was more impressive than all that was the rooms themselves. So many have been so well preserved and although beautiful, covered in ornate decorations some of the rooms almost came across as gaudy (especially the one with a Christmas bauble covered ceiling). The open areas of the fort are not as large as in the Amer fort, however with Mehrangarh you really got a glimpse into how lives would have been lived in the palace. Some rooms that were left completely furnished look as if the residents may be back at any moment, if you ignore all the other visitors of course.
From the palace we looked down on the blue quarter from which Jodhpur gets it's moniker as the "blue city". Although there is debate why houses were painted blue; one popular theory is that is was to show the residents were of Brahmin caste (India's Priestly caste). Anyone can paint their house blue today and these houses are dotted all over the city, making the city look vibrant especially when seen from the fort above.
From the fort we followed the winding streets down to the blue quarter in search of breakfast. We found a lovely restaurant which is set at the base of a temple, inside a highly decorated room we had a thali and decided what we wanted to see next.
Wandering along busy market lined streets and small alleyways bordered with houses, we found our way to the Ghanta Ghar (Clock tower). Built in the late 19th century the clock tower now sits in the middle of a bustling market. Not in the mood for shopping - especially after a helpful man told us the prices are higher at this market due to it being a tourist site - we had a quick look and continued on.
After some searching we found Toorji's Step Well. Step wells were often built in India's desert cities as a way to keep a water source all year round. This step well was built in 1740 by the Maharaja Abhai Singh’s wife. It takes the shape of an inverted pyramid with each level descending lower into the earth until it hits the water table. In recent renovations 200 ft of intricate and beautiful hand crafted stonework was uncovered. It was easy to see how step wells were a place to relax as well as collect water, we spent a while sitting in the shade, cooling down from being in the sun and watching some kids play in the water... that was until some local teenagers arrived shouting, clambering all over areas that were cordoned off and one boy even went and peed onto the stonework. Tranquillity ruined we headed off.
The next hours consisted of a frustrating and eventually fruitless search for a travel agent. Every travel agent we found in the old town seemed to be closed down, so we headed into the more modern area of the city. Although google maps assured us there was tens of travel agents to be found, every time we arrived to our destination on the map there was nothing there. Luckily, if you try (and get rejected) enough times on the redbus (bus travel) app, they ring you up. The phone call wasn't the smoothest, with over-eager waiters (4 of them) all shouting above each other to ask our thoughts on the meal, Ben struggling to hear and understand had to hide in the toilets to finish getting the tickets booked.
With our early morning travel booked we gave up on the day and headed back to the hostel.
Next stop Udaipur
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