First Impressions

I have long held the ambition to visit India and in particular Rajasthan and have to keep pinching myself to believe that Lesley and I are actually here. It’s quite difficult to know where to begin after our first day, so I guess the beginning is the place to start! We arrived here in Jaipur late last night after a long and tiring journey. Our hotel, Alsisar Haveli, is a converted Maharaja’s palace and as exotic and ornate as you might imagine. There are some 35 such establishments in Jaipur as the old ruling families find ways to diversify and keep their ancestral homes alive.
Despite only a few hours sleep, we were up and out by 7.30 am to catch the flower market at its peak. On the way, we stopped to view the Palace of the Winds, a world famous pink sandstone edifice, which to my surprise is beside a busy road. Sadly, it is only a facade for a more mundane building and has some 350 screened windows, for the ladies of the family to look out on the the scene below in privacy! The flower market is held within the walls of the old city and we entered through one of the main gates, the East or Sun Gate. There is a west gate known as the Moon gate and many other smaller entrances beside. The flower market was a complete assault on the senses; perfume, colour, people, monkeys, noise and surrounding ramshackle buildings, all in one glorious kaleidoscope. The flowers are mainly in head form, for making into garlands as offerings at the many temples. We watched both ladies and men making them up deftly and with a great eye for colour. It was almost more than our tired brains could assimilate, but what a beginning.
We wandered on to the fruit and vegetable market, which was equally fantastic. The produce, both fruit, vegetables and flowers are gathered in the early hours of the morning 365 days a year and brought in daily for the public to buy. The selection and quality is astonishing. Ladies wander by with enormous bundles balanced on their heads (great posture), men are chattering incessantly (well they would), handcarts full of wares push past and a barber is wet shaving a client on the side of the path and so it goes on. Everything you could imagine and more.
From there we walked the streets to meet our coach. You are accosted by a jumble of smart buildings, temples, telephone wires, ruins, sacred cows and the odd pig. Scooters whip past you with whole families piled on top. Chaotic would not be too extreme, but it is also lively, friendly and not at all intimidating.
Our next stop was the Citi Palace, home of the last ruling Maharaja of Jaipur. The first Maharajah built the old city as his new capital between 1727-48. The family still live in the adjoining Moon Palace, but the head of the family can no longer call himself Maharaja according to modern Indian law. The palace is out of this world architecturally and decoratively. Like all of the old city it is painted saffron pink, hence the moniker ‘Pink City’. This came about due to the visit in 1867 of the then Prince of Wales, the future Edward V11. A ‘Durbar’ (Council meeting) was held to decide how best to welcome the Prince with suitable aplomb and the decision taken to paint the whole of the city pink. It certainly created the desired impression and it has been this way ever since. When Edward ascended to the throne, the Maharaja was invited to the coronation and set off to attend with his large retinue and two huge silver flagons of Ganges water. These were specially transported, for the Maharaja’s drinking water as he flatly refused to contemplate drinking ‘Thames water’! These are the largest silver vessels in the world made from one single sheet of metal, with no joins. They are on display in glass cases and the thought of moving them anywhere is quite mindboggling.
We wandered around this huge exalted complex and found ourselves in the Peacock courtyard.
It is very beautiful and has four superb peacock doorways to depict the four seasons and has to be seen to be believed. Having admired the textile museum, which was crammed full of glorious costumes and locally made fabric, we went to met our coach and were driven through teeming ever narrower streets until arriving quite unexpectedly at Samode Haveli for lunch. This is an oasis of calm and tranquility hidden, in plain sight, in the middle of the hustle and bustle of the old city. Here are beautiful gardens full of flowers and plants. There is a luxurious swimming pool and outdoor lounging courtyards full of running water, fountains and greenery. This is another Maharajas palace full of heavily decorated rooms and now operating as a hotel.
Lunch was really good and my preconceived notions of Indian cuisine are changing rapidly!
After lunch we were taken by tuk tuk across town to the site of the filming of the Exotic Marigold Hotel Series. We careered down backstreets with all of life being lived out in the street. It was a barmy, white knuckle, but exhilarating ride. The traffic is utterly mad. They come from all directions, weaving in and out like lunatics, horns blaring and how there are not constant collisions I’ll never know. I suspect viewed from above it would like a intricately choreographed group dance! As a driver you certainly need incredible reflexes. The owner of the Haveli used in the filming is a very tall, retired, distinguished Indian Army Brigadier. He and his wife were charming and very hospitable, conversing all the time in perfect English with little accent and it brought our first day in India to a lively and modern close. A slice of India both ancient and modern has been offered up and absorbed with fascination. We headed back to the tuk tuks to retrace ours steps back to the coach and ultimately our hotel. It has been a mind blowing day and my mind is reeling, but in a thoroughly good way. Roll on tomorrow!Read more