Jaipur is known as the "Pink City" because the emperor ordered the people to paint their homes pink for the arrival of the Prince of Wales. Upon arrival, the Prince said "What a beautiful pink city!"
Amber Fort
This was the highlight of our sightseeing whirlwind through Jaipur. We took an elephant ride up the hill and explored one of our favorite palaces we've seen. The fort is enormous and was built in 1592.
Jaipur Royal Family
The royal family survived because it supported the British during the 1857 "mutiny." The royal families in Agra and Delhi were wiped out by the British during the war in 1857. Today, some view this conflict as the first war of independence. Although the British formally ruled from 1857 through 1947, the East India Trading Company effectively ruled India for many years prior to that.
Mahesh, Our Impromptu 12-year-old Market Tour Guide
We built some confidence after exploring Delhi’s markets, but thankfully, Jaipur’s felt more relaxed. When we got out of the car, we immediately met a young boy named Mahesh. He seemed to know everyone and brought us around to all different stops. He said very little to us, but he stayed close by. He had an enormous smile though and an even bigger one after we tipped him $2 for taking us around at the end. We were weirded out when one person warned us that he is trouble and we should stay away from him. We still don’t know why. He seemed nice to us… and was trying to earn a buck like everyone else.
Block Printing
This is a local method of carving teakwood, dipping in paint, and sequentially pressing the pattern on cloth. In our first gift purchase for all our travels, we bought 6 for the family.
