Places to visit in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India - Part 2

I'm continuing part 2 on places I've visited in Jaipur. Part 1 can be read here. =)

I didn't actually visit all sites in one day. I did it in a span of three days. Hussey, my host was very kind to bring me to these places via motorbike but he didn't actually accompany me to enter. Hehe. It was more of a pick and drop off kind which I happily obliged since it avoids the hassle of finding other means of transport.

Moving to the next place on the list would be Amber Palace which is the closest site to Hussey's house. Seen every time we come back from town.

5. Amber Palace/Fort


Do note that you don't need to pay another Rp 200 to enter here when you already bought the Composite Entry Ticket mentioned here.

The view of Amber Fort from the road heading to Hussey's house.

Amber is located at a distance of 11 kilometers from Jaipur and was the old fort of the Kachhwaha clan of Amer, which used to be the capital. The capital was then moved to Jaipur. It is built on the hilltop and is a famous tourist attraction in Jaipur. Tourists often ride on the elephant back to the Singh pole and Jaleb Chowk. I found out that most of the elephants lives in Hussey's neighborhood. During the mornings you could see elephants walking in a single line through the narrow dirt paths with paint on their faces and their owners riding on top. To them, it was just another working day. To me, it was an awe-strikingly sight to behold. =)

Various pictures taken within Amber Fort.

The construction of the Amber Fort began in the year 1592 A.D. and was started by Raja Man Singh I. It was later completed by Sawai Jai Singh in the 18th century. The exterior of the fort is not in the least similar to its interiors. I've noticed that the outside was very imposing and rugged looking whereas the inside felt comforting and warm. The interior design was influenced by both the Hindu and Muslim style of ornamentation.

The huge entrance archway overlooking the main steps.

I liked it how on the walls there were paintings depicting various hunting scenes. There was also a lot of work on walls, displaying intricate carving, mosaic and minute mirror work that makes the halls look very majestic and imperial. I could easily get lost in its wonder. The fort is built with white marble and red sandstone and looks even more attractive because of the Maota lake in the foreground.

6. Albert Hall or also known as Jaipur Museum


Somebody asked me if this place had any relations to the famous Albert Hall in London. It was named after King Edward VII (Albert Edward), during his visit to the city as the Prince of Wales. Its foundation stone was laid on 6 February 1876. (source)

Albert Hall in its splendor.

In 1868 A.D. Sawai Ram Singh II built Ram Niwas Bagh, a lush spacious garden, Albert Hall stands on a plinth in the middle of that garden. The area surrounding this building is actually a wide area of greenery with neatly cropped grass.

Just love the interior design of this building!

The Albert Hall Museum is a fine example of Indo Sarcenic style of architecture designed by Sir Swinton Jacob. It was opened later with an exquisite collection of sculptures, paintings, decorative wares, natural history specimen and the Persian carpet.

7. Nagargarh Fort

It was the remaining place stated on my composite entry ticket that I have yet to visit. I didn't realize how far up this fort was until Hussey brought me there. The road heading to this fort was a winding one. We had to honk at each overtook corner to warn vehicles coming from the opposite direction.

Failure to do so could be fatal. =P

When we finally reached there, I was flabbergasted. The view was AMAZING!

We could see the whole town of Jaipur from here!

Nahargarh was initially built by Sawai Jai Singh and further strengthened by Sawai Ram Singh. It has nine apartments of the queens which are similar in design. It is a favorable picnic spot and is flocked by tourists and locals during rainy season. The panoramic view of the sprawling city below from here is worthy of praise!

During our way down, I kinda begged Hussey to stop for awhile so that I can sink in the view of Maota lake from above. Oh boy! The lake is certainly HUGE!

I can see Jal Mahal from here!

These site visits were only made possible by none other than Hussey, my couchsurfing host and his dependable black motorbike. Thanks a million!

Hussey and his award winning grin. Haha! 

8. Raj Mandir Cinema

The next stop in my unplanned itinerary was watching a Hindi Movie at the grand Raj Mandir theater. Haha! Hussey made arrangements so that his sister, niece and cousin would be accompanying me to watch a movie there.

We chose to watch Khiladi 786 starred by Akshay Kumar. The problem; there were no subtitles. But I managed to enjoy it thoroughly due to the straightforward and hilarious story-line. ^_^

Raj Mandir, 

Situated on the Bhagwan Das Road, near M.I. Road, the meringue-shaped auditorium opened in 1976, and over the years has seen many movie premieres of Hindi films It has become a popular symbol of Jaipur and was often referred as the Pride of Asia. (source) Despite its huge size, this theater is always packed with movie-goers and from my experience, most of them were men. I'm glad I've been able to experience a Bollywood film  here. Hehe. *barulah feel ye dak?

So that ends places I've visited during my stay at Jaipur. I know that there are many, MANY more places to go but I chose to spend the time at Hussey's house and absorbing their way of living. Aisehh.. hehe.

Maybe next time I'll cover other places. Insya'Allah. =)
.
.