Jaipur is the capital of Rajasthan. Another famous city is Udaipur. Both these are old and very lovely cities. Many tourists visit these places to see the ancient orts and palaces of the Rajputs. Some of these palaces have been converted into expensive hotels.
In Jaipur we stayed at hotel Haridwar. It is situated quite close to the central bus stand. The next morning we went to the Pink city. After crossing the Top Haridwar, we reached Triploia Bazaar.
We first saw the Jantar Mantar. This was built by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh of Jaipur. This was an observatory used to study the movements of planets and stars.
Next to the Jantar Mantar is the Hawa Mahal. The Hawa Mahal is a unique building. It is a five storied building with overhanging balconies. It has been designed to catch the cool breeze on a hot summer’s day. Our guide told us that the royal ladies sat in the balconies to look at the activity of the market place.
We had paced a picnic lunch and we sat in the lawns outside Govind Temple to have ou lunch. While we were having lunch, Kiran and Varun wandered off to the pond on the other side of the temple. Kiran saw fish in pond and as he went to have a closer view, he fell in!
After lunch we saw Iswar Lat, also called Swarg Suil or the tower that reaches heaven. By now we were tried so we decided to return to our hotel. We got ready early the next morning as we wanted to go to Jal Mahal places. The palace which has now been converted into a hotel is in the center of a lake, the Jal Mahal Talab. We spent the morning exploring the ruins of Amer Fort. We also rode an elephant at Amer.
The next morning we set out Bhartpur to see the Keoladeo Bird sanctuary.
Many Rajasthanis also keep animals. Half of India’s wool comes from the sheep of Rajasthan. Cattle, camels and goats are also kept. Fairs or meals are held in many villages. At these meals, animals are sold to farmers from other parts of Rajasthan ad nearby states ho visit these meals. One of the biggest mela is the Pushkar Mela held near Ajmer.
Many minerals are found in Rajasthan. The most important are lead, Zinc, copper, silver and mica. There is also a big salt water lake called `Sambhar lake’’ Rajasthan marble is also very famous. It was used in building the beautiful Tajmahal.
The Aravalli Hills run through the state. To the west of these hills is a largest desert. It is called the Thar or the Great Indian Desert. In the desert the summers are hot and the winters cold. There is very little rain and so few plants can grow. The most common free is the date-palm. A part of the state gets water from the Ganga Canal and the Indira Gandhi Canal. When complete, this canal will turn the desert into a fertile land. It will be the largest canal in the world. To the east of the Aravalli hills, there is more rainfall and the summers are less hot. The Chambal is the most important river of the region.
The people of Rajasthan are poor but their state is one of the most colorful in India. In the villages the men wear dhotis, Kurtas and turbans.
The women wear lehangas, blouses and cover themselves with a cloth called an ``orni’’ these clothes are brightly colored. Often they have a bandhini design or are printed by hand. The women also love heavy silver jeweler and colorful bangles.