Chambers at Large in Jaipur, India
- Amelia Chambers
- Mar 27
- 3 min read
Updated: Apr 7
Thanks to Queen Victoria’s son Jaipur is known as the Pink City. The Prince of Wales, (later King Edward VII) visited in 1876 and was quite taken with the coloured buildings, which were painted pink as it is the colour of hospitality. Today the city is more a dusky, if somewhat grubby, pink, but it was easy to imagine how incredible it would have looked in the sunshine 150 years ago.
The outer areas of Jaipur are more modern and I was quite surprised to see the roadways lined with flowers, the landscaped lawns and thousands of trees lining the streets. There was a lot less litter than in other places, but I smiled when I saw a keep your city clean sign was only written in English and not in another language spoken in India!
The Amber Fort is a huge fortification set on top of a promontory overlooking Maota Lake. We all took photos that misty morning and were treated to a man charming his cobra, who obviously was not impressed having to be up early in the cool morning air.
To his credit the man was keeping his pet in a blanketed basket once it had raised its hooded head and he’d collected a few rupees from interested tourists.
Fortunately we took a buggy up the hill to the entrance, but others took an elephant ride. I was pleased to learn that the elephants only carried people up the hill, not down, and were only allowed to do five journeys per day. This restriction shows some compassion for these amazing creatures, but I’d like to see the practice banned altogether. Elephants are not hill walking beasts and it has to be wearing on their knees.
Once we walked through the entrance gate via a cobbled pathway it started to rain but I’ve learned to carry a plastic poncho with me when travelling and it was the only day I needed it. The shower soon passed and the mist cleared allowing us to appreciate the gardens, the marble interior and the sandstone walls.
This was the residence of the maharajah, his security guards, his wives and concubines. All other personnel lived in the town. To my surprise the fort is wheel chair accessible in many areas as a maharani utilised a wheelchair which is on show in a glass case. The gardens are stunning and the buildings where the maharajah held an audience or where the women sat out of the sun are marble with beautiful carved arches and decoration. It is a shame that certain areas are a little worse for wear, but the floral and geometric ornamentation is beautiful.
The fort, with its magnificent views of the city, lake and gardens, is a favourite spot for young couples to take pre-wedding photographs. Marriages are arranged in India and I learned a little about how they were managed. The population is divided into four castes, divided again into sub-castes. A couple has to marry within the same caste, BUT from a different sub-caste.
Astrological horoscopes are consulted as to whether a couple are a good match. Everyone has an individual horoscope as people are all born at a different time in a different place. These are assiduously constructed, a far cry from what we may see in a Western magazine or newspaper.
Astrology and astronomy has been an interest in many places across the world, and I was delighted to go to the Jantar Mantar, where the world’s biggest sundial resides alongside other marble and stone time keeping and astronomical instruments, one being able to predict eclipses. Dating to the 18th century these huge constructions measure with surprising accuracy time and planetary positions.
Finally, we were treated to a late lunch on a roof top restaurant where many people were celebrating a Kite Festival. Our guide kindly bought us kites to fly, but I typically chatted to a lovely young man who showed me the intricacies of preparing a kite and the technique of flying one. There’s a lot more to it than I thought.
The skies soon filled with kites and across the rooftops men and children were flying kites whilst the women prepared al fresco meals. There was a party atmosphere in the air and that night we were treated to a firework display from our hotel rooms and lanterns were sent up into the sky. It was quite a sight. I wonder what King Edward VII would have called Jaipur if he had been present that day?
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My tour of north India was a real experience. To discover more please click on the links:
