The Revenge of Otm Shank... Fatehpur -> Jaipur

Okay, so where was I when I left off... Ah, Fatehpur Sikri. Took a local transport from Agra to Fatehpur, which was a relatively bumpy and crowded with Indians. Bought some of the local specialty- candied pumpkin, from a street vendor, which was frankly a little odd, and so sweet I thought my teeth would immediately fall out of my head. Rather like the ubiquitous chai here- very tasty, but very very sweet. Food in general delicious. Usually taken on high-perched verandas above the fray and in the breeze, though not above the sounds of mooing cows, fighting cats and monkeys and some degree of street noise. Still, already growing weary of even the best, largest and cheapest all-you-can eat-Indian buffet. Ready for some western food, though the interpretations are usually about as well done as the spelling (sample breakfast menu choice of eggs: scrumbled, poched or freed). My other favorite misspelling was the sign advertising outside a hotel"1 Badroom." But I digress...

The road between Agra and Fatehpur was scenic enough, though again the typical developing world sights of rural poverty and unfinished cement buildings with metal rebar sticking out the top. All kinds of vehicles on the road, and an equally interesting view through the enormous hole in the bus floor as out the window. Anyway, arrived in Fatehpur in the center of the market chaos, still a town where once mughal emperor Akbar had build a semi-utopian city of all faiths, ethnicities and backgrounds. Its a thrilling piece of architecture- also combining muslim, hindu and jain architectural styles with large square pillars, delicate domes and intricately carved details all in the same red stone as the various other forts around. Sadly, the city was built too far from water, and was abandoned almost immediately following Akbar's death.


After visiting the main palace area, we stopped the the mosque- open to the public, and VERY open to the public- touts were out in full force, relentlessly calling out to offer their guide services, handicrafts (just to look! Yeah, no way Sanjay) After avoiding paying shoe-watching fees, and not avoiding knee-covering cloth offered at the gates, we made it inside. It was quite impressive, and still an operating mosque which was interesting, though mostly full of young men touting tourists and holding hands with each other in the way that only muslim men can do. I did like the smooth line of one tout- "You look like movie star!" "Which one" "Bollywood star! (insert bollywood star name here- Otm Shank perhaps?) Ha-Ha. In general, there is actually very little American pop cultural infiltration- less than almost anywhere I've been in fact. Perhaps because the still semi-centralized government and managed economy only cranks out Indian pop culture- quite refreshing in general. People are still thrilled to meet real live Americans though.

Ah well, on and back to the hotel after a jaunt through the market and a few cool pictures there, though I became violently ill upon return to the hotel. I realized too late that rinsing my mouth with indian tap water post-vomiting probably did little to help the ingestion of germs, which haunted me in a different way the following morning. Which reminds me- I've been to many places in asia, and still dont understand the how exactly one makes use of the water bucket in every bathroom.... But I digress....

A wait in the rain by a muddy roadside to catch the bus to Jaipur, and off we went to the Pink City. Long busride later we arrive in so-called pink city, which is really just a part of the city, which may in fact be dirtier than Delhi. Decided to go to India's largest and most famous bollywood cinema to take in a picture, and it was truly an unforgettable experience. The tackiest place on earth, an enormous cinema with a larger than imax screen, thousands of seats, and an amazing purple and green with lots of mirrors decorating theme. Everyone was dressed in their best and thrilled to see the horrific comedy we were endured, (link forthcoming), which did have some truly unforgettable musical numbers, broken up by some truly forgettable semi-comic plot which the audience LOVED. Back home for early sleep (still jetlagged), and up today to see the pink city.

Ah Jaipur, the Pink City. (Pink City Much filthier and less pink than appears in photoshopped guidebook photos). Saw the Jawa Mahal pictured here, a weird palace that is basically a facade, with vertiginous views of the streetscape below, made more nerve-racking by the ultra thin cement railing that look like they'd snap off if you leaned on them. The city palace was none-too-impressive, and we looked at the observatory from the outside while waiting for the rain to clear up. Still, I don't mean to be a downer, it was pretty cool place, just very different than we expected. Did see a cool actual snake charmer, and touristically broke down and got my picture taken with him. What can I say, cobras are badass. Also wandered through some interesting temples and the flower garland peddlers outside the temples made the filth and stench of the street instantly and overwhelmingly change and become beautiful. Many photo ops- which is to say, people asking us to get in their pictures, my favorite was when people asked us at the top of the minaret to not pose but "look natural" while they took a picture.
The most amusing part of the day was probably when O's flip-flop broke on the street, and a man hustled over to us gesticulating wildly. Of course, it turned out he was a street cobbler, and meticulously cut up some rubber, took new thread and sewed the strap back onto the flip flop rendering it usable again! A minor street miracle. Also enjoyed learning that the bizarre guy at the hotel is some sort of washed up Hindu rock star, who's dreams of making it big were dashed, though he enjoys telling any sympathetic ear about his plight. Well, enough for now, tomorrow is a new day, with hopefully Pushkar as mellow as its made out to be. I have to say, India lives up to its overwhelming reputation. Was thinking when our rickshaw driver got lost that I'm feeling a bit nervous about being on my own for the last three weeks of the trip- so who wants to join me on the 20th?

(As usual, pictures here are not my own, but stolen from google images)