AM(B)ER WAVES OF BEAUTY IN JAIPUR

Rajasthan, India's largest state, "the Land of the Rajas," has been home over the centuries to a varied series and number of locally powerful states governed by members of what come to be termed the Rajput royal military caste (second only to the Brahmin in terms of caste ranking). As a result, the state is crowded with ancient forts, palaces and walled cities.

Yesterday (Saturday, December 6th) we toured the Amber (the "b" is silent) Fort Complex much of the morning. Located on the steep slopes of a protective valley just to the north of Jaipur, the fort sprawls over the mountainside surrounded by crenelated walls marching up and down the nearby landscape -- a stunning sight when lit by the morning sun.

The interior surfaces of the palace living quarters are equally stunning in their detailed complexity and lavish use of materials. The engineering involved in creating "natural air conditioning" throughout the vast complex is quite impressive as well.

One way of getting to the fort entrance is by elephant. Usually the wait involved to "catch" an elephant, however, is much too long to make that a feasible alternative for tour groups, so we clambered aboard jeeps to make the trip. On the way back, we stopped off to visit an elephant stable, though, which gave us an opportunity to get "up close and personal" with these magnificent beasts of burden (which we also encountered on the streets of Jaipur itself with some regularity).

After a shared family-style lunch on the broad veranda of Spice Court, we retreated to our hotel room for a couple of hours. Then, that evening, we enjoyed our second hosted dinner with an Indian family, in this case a joint family housed in a haveli (mansion) dating back to 1724 and owned for most of that time by successive generations of this same family.

Three courts open up the mansion's interiors to lovely gardens. Each of the four brothers currently inhabiting the complex with their families (and under the headship of their mother) occupies their own apartment; each family unit eats separately but shares a common kitchen. The rooms are filled with all kinds of historic memorabilia, including lots of tiger skins and heads!

The daughter of the family was engaged just this past June, so we spent lots of time talking about the intricacies of arranged marriages and wedding ceremonies. The family continues to administer farms in the nearby country and to serve in various administrative posts advising the same local royal family that originally built Jaipur in the early eighteenth century.

The meal was delicious, too!