The Pink City

     I think Tess and I had had enough lectures for the week, so we decided to take a break and explore the city of Jaipur a little more. Bazaars spread out in all directions amidst the pink/orangish glow of the buildings as if there was a permanent sunrise hanging over the city walls. After a quick cup of coffee at Brewberry's, we caught a rickshaw, just the two of us, and headed to the City Palace. Our driver was quite sweet and acted as our tour guide as he drove us through parts of the city we had already seen. We didn't want to be rude, so we flashed our polished while smiles and nodded vigorously as if we understood everything he said. He lightly shook my hand as we got out. I smiled, said thank you (थैंक यू or Shukria), and parted ways.

Inside the City Palace. 

      We paid the expensive tourist price, र 200 versus the र 15 that the Indians were allowed to pay. The city palace is what truly portrays the "pink city". The light was beautiful. My camera clicked constantly as soft shadows were casted by various railings, lamp posts, and strangers walking by unaware of my typical crouched photographer pose. Tess and I accidentally got split up at one point. She got distracted by a sign that said horses, and I got distracted by a sign that said art. I walked into one section of the palace that housed numerous local artists. I sat down and talked to a painter who had a stunning collection of his family's artwork. He showed me how they utilize a paintbrush made from a squirrel's tail. He then showed me the various blocks of hard clay that turned into different colors of paint once they has been forcefully rubbed on a hard surface. I showed him a few of my sketches, which created this artistic bond. Therefore, we chatted for quite some time until I realized it had been around an hour since I last saw Tess.

Cobras with a cobra. 

     Luckily, she was right outside, sitting in the shade of a tree, and reading a novel recently purchased at the festival. We made our way to the entrance when we came across a snake charmer. This man was adorned in brightly colored clothes, a cherry red turban, and a greasy looking smile. He was old and his wrinkles were prominent on his face. However, he was sweet and welcoming, which of course he knows would increase his profits from the enthusiastic tourists strolling in and out. Seeing as our mascot back in the states is the cobra, we couldn't resist. Yes, I actually got to pet and hold a cobra! Charlotte, a solo traveler from California, kindly took a few photos for us. Outside, we struck up a conversation with her and learned that even though she's married she travels all over the world by herself. She loves it too!

Guards at the City Palace. 

     We said our good byes and headed to the Pearl Palace Hotel. After we got lost a couple of times by wandering down the wrong streets and getting ripped off by a rickshaw driver, we finally made it to our destination for lunch. The Rooftop Peacock Restaurant, mentioned in the wonderful guide book Mom bought me, was located at the top of the Pearl Palace Hotel. It was cool as the breeze came over the roof. Peacock statues were placed randomly all over the restaurant as one might guess. We ate slowly, chatted, read, and enjoyed some inflamed-mouth curing milkshakes for dessert.

    We went to the last debate of the festival at 5:30. The debate was titled "Has Capitalism Lost Its Way?" Being the laid back, free spirit that I am, I may have zoned out a little. Although, the rapid movements of Tess' hand shooting in the air with an eager question every five minutes, kept me alert.

      That night we joined a group of students for a jazz concert at a classy bar near our hotel. The music was enjoyable but definitely not jazz. The fun part was enjoying a drink with the chaperones (wow, I haven't used that word in a long time). They finally opened up and relaxed a little bit. Believe it or not, we are closer to the professors in age than we are the students. As the night carried on into the morning, eight of us packed into a rickshaw and grabbed some much needed dinner. It turned out to be an extremely fun night, one of the best during our entire time in India.