Trumpism even here!

Yesterday was a somewhat more civilised start at 9.30am and we headed for The Albert Hall Museum, built in 1887 again to commemorate the visit of the Prince of Wales. We were surprised that this did not refer to his father, but then remembered that King Edward was in fact named after his father, but took the name Edward on ascending to the throne. The museum is a magnificent structure on approach, a fanciful mix of marble and sandstone, with cupolas, minarets and arches, layered like a wedding cake. Sadly, it was not possible to enter as had been planned by the company two years ago, as the building was unexpectedly closed, in case President Trump or his delegation happened to drop by! So trumped in more ways than one!! This caused some consternation amongst the guides, as you can imagine and we waited whilst alternative arrangements were made. Eventually it was decided to move on to our second port of call Sisodia Rani Ka Bagh, which basically means the orchard or gardens of Queen Sisodia. She was the wife of the First Maharajah of Jaipur, who built the original city and whilst he was at it created a summer palace and paradise garden for his favourite wife, in the hills outside the city, for her relaxation and contemplation. Some wives have all the luck! It is a beautiful setting, again incongruously surrounded by rubble and rubbish and at its peak must have been spectacular with its lawns and rills and fountains. As is the custom with a Paradise Garden, it is divided into four sections divided by the waterways and plated with palms, roses and frangipani. Gardeners were working, weeding and mowing the lawns. It is clearly irrigated, as it is surprisingly green, however sadly the attempts to restore the water system have not been successful, as the palace itself would have to be dug up to achieve it. Lunch followed at a polo club. India of course introduced polo to the British in the time of the Raj.
After lunch we visited ‘The Jantar Mantar’ a nineteenth century astrological park also built by The First Maharajah, Jai Singh 11. He had a ferocious interest in astronomy and the park is quite something in its scientific detail, particularly bearing in mind how early it was constructed. It is now a world heritage site and quite unique.
The day finished with a visit to a local ‘bazaar’. This is basically the high street of shopping. The roads are rutted and crammed; crossing them means taking your life in your hands. The advice of our guide is that you step off and keep going and the traffic will stop. It’s a concept that requires a degree of faith and a lot of courage. We are getting used to it. The shops are little shacks selling everything from shoes to jewellery to household goods to clothing. You never pay the price asked. The plan is to suggest below half and negotiate from there. It was hilarious. We were looking for some fabric for Lesley’s daughter and in truth could not really see what she needed. You are enticed into the shop and all sorts of cloths are brought out and then the bargaining begins. As we did not find the ideal piece, we were not bothered and shopkeepers chased us down the street reducing the price as we went. Harrods it isn’t, but I think we have the hang of it fo another time!
Today has been our quiet day (yes, it was certainly needed). We had a walk up the road to the nearest ATM, which I had been to the other day and I took a couple of others on this occasion. It is hard to explain what it is like around our very grand Haveli. The street it is on is manic and a mecca for all things auto; tyres, mechanical parts, lubes, and exhausts to name but a few. It’s rather a shame it could not be clothing from our point of view! What pavement there is is strewn with men sitting, sorting out cars and generally going about their business - very slowly from what we could see. We were of intense interest to them and are in general it seems. I have lost count of the number of times we have been stopped and asked for a photograph with a local. Yes, us, two old girls of dubious attraction these days. Wonders will never cease.
The sides of the road are dusty and covered in piles of rubble, motor bikes, cars, trucks, discarded
motor parts and general detritus. The traffic streams past, horns ever honking, in a seemingly never ending stream. You walk on the edge of the road because there is nowhere else to go and keep your wits about you believe me. We made it to the ATM and back in one piece and in the middle of all this chaos if a simple arch with a small sign stating Alsisar Haveli. It is not an auspicious entrance and you could have no idea of the grandeur that lies through that arch.
We managed to have a relaxing massage in the spa this afternoon and visited an enormous Hindu temple this evening at sunset for its end of day service, which was an interesting experience, surrounded by the faithful and it seemed a suitable finish to a peaceful day.Read more