On Tuesday morning, Rani, Molly and I set out to Jantar Mantar, the observatory in the center of the old city. Raj Jai Singh II was a huge fan of astronomy, and had this observatory constructed in 1728. It is filled with all these otherworldly instruments that look like something out of Alice in Wonderland. Each instrument had a purpose, from telling time to determining the position of celestial objects. Understanding how each one worked was way over my head, so I was content just to observe and ogle at them.
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| There was a series of 12 instruments that all somehow determined the Zodiac -- here's capricorn! |
The main attraction was the Samrat Yantra ("supreme instrument): an enormous sundial that is over 90 feet tall and tells time with an accuracy within 2 seconds.
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| Molly in front of the Samrat Yantra |
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| Molly, Rani and Me |
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| Jantar Mantar selfie |
While we were at Jantar Mantar, I was struck by a very interesting juxtaposition. Some men were repainting the walls, and they were using
bamboo ladders. While there may be some properties of bamboo that make it a very good ladder which I don't know about, I found it so interesting and thought provoking. Here we were, amongst instruments that could determine the precise position of the sun built in 1728 and in 2013 men were using bamboo ladders. It almost seems as if time were stuck since the 18th century. It is the puzzle of India, that a land once so technologically advanced is now so behind the developed world. It makes you think.
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| 2013 |
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| 2013 |
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| 1728 |
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| 1728 |
On the way out we saw some snake charmers on the street, complete with cobras in baskets. They offered us to pet them, but we said noooo thank you.
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