Jaipur, also known as the Pink City, is the capital of the Indian state of Rajasthan. It is the home of the Amber Fort, City Palace and the Hawa Mahal. I travelled by coach from New Delhi to Jaipur today.
Raj Ghat.
Raj Ghat is a memorial complex in Delhi. The first memorial was dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi. A black marble platform was raised to mark the spot of his cremation on 31 January 1948 and has an eternal flame at one end. The memorial complex was later expanded to include memorials for other prominent Indian leaders. I visited Raj Ghat in New Delhi before leaving to travel to Jaipur.
I liked the gardens at Raj Ghat, and the memorial for Mahatma Gandhi was plain but pleasant. It seemed to fit with the picture I had of it in my mind. It was not extravagant like so many memorials are and was done in good taste. Our guide, Digamber, told us some of the history of the Raj Ghat and also made us aware that the Indian ex-prime minister, Indira Gandhi, was not related to Mahatma Gandhi. He told us that Gandhi was her married name and that the name Gandhi was a common one in India and meant Grocer.
Drama restaurant.
As we left Delhi, we stopped at a restaurant called Drama for lunch. The service was very slow, and despite ordering before anyone else, I was still waiting for my meal as everybody else had finished or was finishing their meal. Most of the other guests had ordered curried meals or vegetable meals. I had something like chicken nuggets with a mayonnaise dip. It tasted pretty nice, but I later wished it hadn't arrived at all.
I was also disappointed to find that the waiter did not return with my change from the meal, preferring to hang out at the bar pretending to be busy whilst the coach party left, and I had to follow without my change to make sure I got on the coach.
Jaipur.
On our way to Jaipur, about an hour out of the city, we took a break from travelling when the coach stopped at a service station along the motorway. We all got off the coach, stretched our legs, and got coffee or other drinks. I stopped at a coffee shop called Nothing Before Coffee. The coffee was quite good and a lot cheaper than similar places in the UK or Spain.
The traffic going into Jaipur was crazy, but something that I soon got used to travelling through India. It seemed at times that there was a concerted effort to see how many people could travel on one motorbike at a time. Seeing four or more people at once on a motorbike soon became standard.
Ramada by Wyndham, Jaipur.
The hotel for my stay in Jaipur tonight was the Ramada Jaipur. I went downstairs to the hotel restaurant for dinner but couldn't eat much as my stomach had started to rumble, and I was beginning to feel sick. I stayed long enough to see some of the ladies on the trip present my dinner companion, Michael, a piece of cake with a candle in it to celebrate his birthday.
After everybody had sung Happy Birthday to Michael, I went back to my room to try to sleep.
Address: Govind Marg, Raja Park, Jaipur, Rajasthan 302004.