The Palace of Winds

Jaipur quickly became our favorite city in India. It has an incredible history, and an abundance immaculately preserved/restored sites and artifacts. Jaipur is known as the Pink City because of the distinctive pink color of many of its buildings, painted in the 19th century in honor of a visit from Prince Edward of Wales.

We were fortunate to spend 3 days in Jaipur, during which we saw many incredible things. Below are just a few:

Jal Mahal: a water palace constructed in the middle of a man-made lake, built in the 18th century by a Maharaja as a vacation palace to cool off during the hot summer months.

Hawa Mahal: a five-story monument built in 1799 to allow royal ladies to observe everyday life in the street below without being seen, since they had to obey strict "purdah" (face cover).

Amer Palace: a walled city and ancient palace in the hills above Jaipur. We encountered elephants both on the drive there as well as the trek up to the top of the palace.

One tower of Amer Palace was the queen's dedicated yoga room. The screened walls were cut from single blocks of marble, and allowed the queen to see out of the tower without being seen.

In addition to the fascinating historical sites, Jaipur is a major hub for arts and crafts. This originates from efforts of prior Maharajas to invite skilled artisans and craftsmen to Jaipur from India and abroad. Ashley and I shopped for textiles including block-printed cloths and silk Punjabis (below).