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DESTINATION GUIDE INDIA - JAIPUR

ABOUT JAIPUR CITY

JAIPUR -The City of Victory - was originally Sawai Jaipur, named after its founder Sawai Jai Singh II (1700-1743). It epitomises the dreams of the visionary Kachhwaha ruler, who wanted to build a new and planned capital city; and the creative ideas of his talented designer-builder Vidyadhar .

TOURIST ATTRACTIONS - JAIPUR CITY

» Amer Fort

The Kachchawahas ruled from Amber, 11 km from Jaipur, for seven centuries. With a history so old, it is not unexpected that there is a lot of the past that can be traced in its archaeological history. While many of the early structures have either disappeared or ruined, those dating from the16th century on are in a remarkable state of preservation. Amber as it exists now is the handiwork of three of the kingdom's rulers that include Man Singh, and Jai Singh I and II. Approached from a steep ramp, visitors ride up on elephant back, entering through the grand Singh Pol gateway and continuing to Jaleb Chowk, the courtyard where they disembark from the pachyderm. From here, they are faced wit two flights of steps, one leading to Shila Mata complex with its enshrined image of the goddess, and the other to the main palace complex.

Within the complex, Ganesh Pol, an imposing gateway painted with images of the elephant-headed god, Ganesh, takes pride of the place. Also a part of the complex is the Diwan-i-Am or hall of the public audience with its spectacular display of pillars. The typical merging of Rajput and Mughal architectural styles is captured in the Sukh Nivas and Jas Mandir apartments, and the Charbagh garden with its perfectly proportioned landscaping. A highlight is the pierced screen windows which offer views form points of vantage, as well as the shimmering mirrors encrusting the walls of the Sheesh Mahal. Several other gardens and pavilions within the sprawling spread of ramparts offer enough scope for investigating medieval lifestyles at leisure.

Beyond the ramparts, the old city, once the abode of the aristocracy, has a wonderfully medieval flavor, though it has few buildings of majestic proportion that are still extant. However, a walk through the rambling lanes will reap rich rewards for the curious besides a large number of temples there are also step-wells, memorials and town houses.
 

» City Palace

Sawai Jai Singh's seven-storey high Chandra Mahal -Moon Palace -has come to be known as City Palace to differentiate it from the ancient Amer Palace and the neo-modern Rambagh Palace, the hub of activity of the last ruler. The former ruling family still lives in the Chandra Mahal, while the outer courtyards with Mubarak Mahal, Sarvatobhadra and Diwan Khana and the ground floor halls of Pritam Niwas and the inner courtyard have been converted into a public museum - the Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II Museum.

It houses an extensive collection of rare manuscripts, Mughal and Rajasthani miniatures, Mughal carpets, costumes and textiles, arms and weapons, objets d' art and royal paraphernalia. The pair of giant silver Gangajalis displayed in the open Sarvatobhadra building were fabricated in the court workshops for Sawai Madho Singh II to carry holy water of Ganges to England. These find mention in the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest silver objects in the world.

» Hawa Mahal -  Palace of Winds

Built by the orders of poet-king Sawai Pratap Singh, the Hawa Mahal is the most strikingly designed monument in Jaipur. What is seen from the Sireh Deorhi Bazar is the multi-niched five-storey high back-side of the complex. It was conceived to provide adequate vantage position behind delicate stone-carved Jali screens to the palace women for watching the royal processions passing through the bazar below.

» Ram Niwas Bagh

To provide open space and greenery to the citizens, this large garden with a zoo, an aviary, a greenhouse, a herbarium, a museum and several sports grounds was built during the reign of Sawai Ram Singh II in 1868 as a famine relief project. The beautiful Indo-Saracenic structure of the Albert Hall designed by Sir Swinton Jacob was opened in 1887 as a public museum. It contains a fine collection of sculptures, paintings, decorative art objects, natural history specimens, an Egyptian mummy and the celebrated Persian Garden Carpet. Recently the Rabindra Manch with an auditorium, a modem art gallery and an open-air theatre has been added to promote cultural activities.

» Jantar Mantar -  Observatory

Just outside the gateway of the City Palace is Jantar Mantar, the Yantralaya of Sawai Jai Singh II, the last great classical astronomer in India. The modernistic structures known as Yantras are the unique creations of this astronomer-king designed by him and built by experts to observe the movements of sun, moon, planets and the stars. This is the largest of five observatories founded by him in various parts of the country.

» Govind Devji Temple

In the central pavilion of the sprawling Jai Niwas Garden to the north of the Chandra Mahal is the spireless temple of Lord Krishna. The image in the form of Govinda Deva, originally installed in a temple of Vrindavan, was reinstalled here by Sawai Jai Singh II as his family deity. This is the most famous and popular temple in the Pink City attracting devotees from allover the country.

HOW TO REACH

» Air : There are flight connections to Delhi, Kota, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Aurangabad, Bombay and Ahmedabad.

» Rail : An excellent connection from Delhi is Shatabdi Express which provides a fast, air-conditioned of vestibuled, rail service. Other connections to Jaipur are from Bikaner, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Ahmedabad, Secunderabad, Agra, Lucknow, Bombay and Calcutta. There is also a special luxury train, the Palace on Wheels, which starts from Delhi on a round trip of Rajasthan, firt stop being of Jaipur

» Road : A convenient mode of travel of Jaipur is by road, Some distances of note are : Delhi 261 km, Udaipur 405 km, Jodhpur 336 km, Ahmedabad 657 km.