This past weekend was my last in Jaipur, and it was a great weekend to go out on. Saturday I went on a day a trip with Greta and Sophie, two girls from the house (from Germany and California, respectively). We took the train two hours to a nearby town called Sambhar. The train itself was an experience, and not an unpleasant one. We went sleeper class, which is the second lowest class but you have a guaranteed seat. I was glad to have travelled by train with Sophie and Greta (who had both taken the train several times before) because I decided that next weekend, when I make my move to Delhi, I will go by train rather than hiring a car.
After an uneventful journey, we disembarked and began walking through the town. There was not a tourist in sight: we were off the beaten track. Greta chose this location because there is a 230 km long salt lake, though we had to wander around quite a bit before we found it. Wandering, however, was my favorite part of the day. It was a small town with winding streets and colorful houses, and it was enjoyable just to explore this new place we had found. People were fascinated by us, and children would frequently run up to us, wave, and then run away giggling. At one point, a woman approached us and by communicating with her in my broken Hindi I learned she was teacher, and she asked us to go into her school. We walked into the building that was FILLED with boys and girls in uniforms, all incredibly amused to see us.
We finally found the lake, and it was an interesting change of scenery to see a body of water in the desert setting. There wasn't very much water in it as it is the dry season (although it had rained the night before so there was more water than usual). It stretched far beyond where we could see.
After finding the lake, we walked around a bit more. We ate some street food and sipped some chai and were approached by more giggling children. At 6:30 we boarded our train home and made it back in an hour. It was a lovely day in the country.
Sunday morning I slept in and then spent a good deal of time trying to figure out how to pack my suitcase with my new acquisitions. (After much pushing and squeezing, I was able to make it work.) That afternoon, Greta, Sophie and I went to the cinema. I had so much fun. We saw the movie Special 26, with a bollywood actor named Akshay Kumar whom I like. It was a heist movie (almost like an Indian Ocean's 11), and even though it was in Hindi with no subtitles we were still able to enjoy it. The movie theater itself was gorgeous. It is the Raj Mandir, and one of the moviegoers informed us it was the first cinema in Asia (that fact has not been verified). It is a cotton candy pink building and the inside looks like a movie theater from the 30s or 40s. They only show one movie, 4 times a day, and tickets are 100 rupees (less than 2 USD). Popcorn is 35 rupees.
I thoroughly enjoyed my last weekend in Jaipur, and am spending my last week preparing for my trip to Delhi and saying my goodbyes.
After an uneventful journey, we disembarked and began walking through the town. There was not a tourist in sight: we were off the beaten track. Greta chose this location because there is a 230 km long salt lake, though we had to wander around quite a bit before we found it. Wandering, however, was my favorite part of the day. It was a small town with winding streets and colorful houses, and it was enjoyable just to explore this new place we had found. People were fascinated by us, and children would frequently run up to us, wave, and then run away giggling. At one point, a woman approached us and by communicating with her in my broken Hindi I learned she was teacher, and she asked us to go into her school. We walked into the building that was FILLED with boys and girls in uniforms, all incredibly amused to see us.
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| Inside the school |
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| Me and the head of school (center) and one of the teachers (right) |
After finding the lake, we walked around a bit more. We ate some street food and sipped some chai and were approached by more giggling children. At 6:30 we boarded our train home and made it back in an hour. It was a lovely day in the country.
Sunday morning I slept in and then spent a good deal of time trying to figure out how to pack my suitcase with my new acquisitions. (After much pushing and squeezing, I was able to make it work.) That afternoon, Greta, Sophie and I went to the cinema. I had so much fun. We saw the movie Special 26, with a bollywood actor named Akshay Kumar whom I like. It was a heist movie (almost like an Indian Ocean's 11), and even though it was in Hindi with no subtitles we were still able to enjoy it. The movie theater itself was gorgeous. It is the Raj Mandir, and one of the moviegoers informed us it was the first cinema in Asia (that fact has not been verified). It is a cotton candy pink building and the inside looks like a movie theater from the 30s or 40s. They only show one movie, 4 times a day, and tickets are 100 rupees (less than 2 USD). Popcorn is 35 rupees.
I thoroughly enjoyed my last weekend in Jaipur, and am spending my last week preparing for my trip to Delhi and saying my goodbyes.
Noel, this is weird and I swear I'm not a stalker but I was looking up pictures of Ninder and ran across yours. I realized I recognized the girls in the pictures, found your blog, and put together that you're volunteering for Sankalp, doing the women's empowerment program in Ninder! My name is Becca and I was there last February-April with Sankalp working with the same girls. You can ask Purni, Pranay, or Amita, to verify! All your pictures made me so nostalgic I almost started crying, I miss India, and especially the girls and Purni so much! I would LOVE to talk with you more if you get the chance. You can email me at rebconley@gmail.com. If not just PLEASE send my love to all the girls, Vipra, Ridhisma, Khusboo, Pinky, Manesha, etc. And also tell Purni I miss her and love her very much! Hope to hear from you, and hope you're having an AMAZING time there!
ReplyDeleteSorry to keep posting, but for clarification, there were two Rebecca's but I went by Becca, have blonde hair, and the girls sometimes called me "Bugs" or "Bugsy" as in Bugs Bunny. And if Amita, Pranay or Purni are confused, I'm the Becca that got really really sick and had to leave early!
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