00:00 Jaipur, known as the Pink City of India, is the largest city in the state of Rajasthan.
00:07 Under the rule of Sawai Ram Singh, Jaipur was painted pink,
00:12 traditionally a colour associated with hospitality, for the grand welcome of Edward, Prince of Wales.
00:21 The pink colour is retained even today and residents have to preserve it.
00:27 After visiting Delhi, we left for Jaipur.
00:32 The traffic was very busy, a lot of honking and everything is mixed up.
00:40 In some parts the cars even come our way as wrong-way drivers.
00:46 We stopped halfway and a large herd of sacred cows passed by,
00:50 accompanied by a man with a stick and a big beautiful turban.
00:56 The Rajasthani women are performing Bhavai, a traditional dance carrying six water jugs on their head.
01:06 In the evening we saw a Rajasthani woman performing Bhavai,
01:11 a traditional dance carrying six water jugs on her head.
01:31 With our guide Jeet we visited the spice and vegetable market.
01:39 See the colourful chaotic streets of the city, ebb and flow with an intoxicating concoction of old and new.
02:01 Step aside for buses and motorcycles, avoid pedestrians and ignore bicycle rickshaws looking for tourists.
02:12 Step aside for buses and motorcycles, avoid pedestrians and ignore bicycle rickshaws looking for tourists.
02:35 Men and women sat on the street selling fruit and vegetables.
02:43 Havelis in Jaipur are one of the most dominant aspects of its heritage.
03:03 These are also known as traditional courtyard mansions used as residential units.
03:12 Most old havelis can be found in the walled city area.
03:18 These buildings are a reflection of the grandeur of yesteryear.
03:26 Many such buildings have now been converted into hotels.
03:34 Rhesus macaque monkeys are easy to spot in the walled city area of Jaipur,
03:43 since they tend to live around human settlements.
03:49 We saw some real Indian manual labour.
03:59 Jeet had arranged for a cycle rickshaw and we rode through the Sankarneri Gate in the city wall and back.
04:11 We Westerners don't really think it's appropriate for someone to pedal so hard for our fun,
04:38 but the bicycle rickshaw industry provides immediate employment for unskilled migrants.
05:03 The seats are quite small, but the view of the city and the experience of the heavy traffic
05:09 will make up for the inconvenience.
05:15 [Music]
05:35 [Cup clinking]
05:39 [Music]
05:57 After the bazaar we went to a company where everything was handmade;
06:04 printed fabric, woven carpets, clothing and wooden objects for the home.
06:14 Master block
06:16 Second block
06:29 [Music]
06:44 After printing, oxidized the colors under the sunlight takes 48 hours.
06:59 And how he put the knots you can see slowly.
07:03 You see the slowly here. First trench, second behind, third cross, put it down and cut.
07:13 Various techniques were shown to us.
07:19 [Music]
07:35 [Music]
07:57 And eventually carpets that we could buy. Credit cards no problem.
08:04 890,000 knots. 26 colors in this carpet here which he is going to show you now.
08:14 [Music]
08:31 The Amber Fort is close to Jaipur city.
08:36 There are two ways to get to the top of the fort; by elephant or by jeep.
08:43 We took a jeep because we had heard about how badly the elephants are treated and abused.
08:49 Some elephants still had paint drawings on their trunks from the Jaipur Elephant Festival.
08:58 On the way up we stopped at a Hindu temple Sri Jagat Siromaniji
09:04 that had very beautiful stonework, elephants, horses and many representations of goddesses.
09:15 We're in a jeep, we're going to the Amber Fort.
09:20 We stopped just before the fort and walked through the moon gate.
09:25 At the top of the moon gate two musicians played a large drum and a kind of trumpet.
09:33 The elephants take the winding path leading up to the sun gate; so named because it faces the east.
09:49 Jalep Chok
09:51 This was the place where armies would hold victory parades with their war bounty on their return from battles.
10:03 Shiladevi Temple
10:06 Diwan-i-Am or Hall of Public Audiences
10:13 Here the Raja would conduct the businesses of court.
10:18 The Ganesh Pole, the most striking gateway, is dedicated to the Hindu elephant-headed god Ganesh.
10:26 The gate is covered with delicate frescoes and mosaics and set with finely carved lattice screens.
10:34 From behind the privacy of these screens, the royal ladies could watch the ceremonial functions in the courtyard below.
10:44 Satais Kacheri, colonnade of 27 pillars
10:50 The Shishmahal has walls and ceilings entirely covered with inlay works of mirrors and coloured glass.
11:10 The flame of a single candle, reflected in the tiny mirrors embedded in the Shishmahal ceilings,
11:17 transforms it into a starlit sky.
11:23 The Amber Fort is a remarkable blend of different cultures into one magnificent architectural style
11:36 with contributions from the Raiputs (Hindu) and the Mughals (Muslim)
11:43 Arambagh or Pleasure Gardens
11:57 Jaigarh Fort
12:06 The Baradari is a colonnaded pavilion where the king would mingle with the ladies of court.
12:15 Behind this were the twelve rooms of the twelve wives of the Maharaja.
12:25 There are many secret passages here so that the Maharaja could go to a favourite woman
12:33 without making another jealous.
12:39 Another snake charmer was on the way down. The cobra barely moved.
12:47 Jal Mahal, also called the Water Palace, appears to float in the middle of Mansagar Lake.
12:55 It is closed to visitors, so you can only admire it from the shore.
13:04 Luckily today was the International Kite Festival, Jaipur,
13:09 so the whole cave was full of Indians with kites.
13:17 You are supposed to fly them against each other and whoever keeps flying wins.
13:29 On the podium was a very old man that could fly 100 kites in a line.
13:36 Babu Gha, eminent kite flyer with some of our foreign tourists here on the stage.
13:43 Old tourists were placed on the podium and he made an attempt to fly with one kite, but failed.
13:57 There were cultural performances such as dance groups, orchestras,
14:08 a marionette player
14:14 and a dance group with peacock feathers.
14:19 The full recording can be seen in the YouTube special "Jaipur Cultural Dances".
14:31 The beautiful honeycombed facade of the Hawa Mahal is probably the most photographed building in Jaipur.
14:45 It served the purpose of letting the royal ladies observe everyday life
14:51 in the street below without being seen.
15:10 The Jantar Mantar Observatory is a collection of 19 stone astronomical instruments
15:17 for measuring time, predicting eclipses
15:23 and tracking location of major stars and the sun and the moon.
15:34 The world's largest sundial
15:39 and the largest star in the universe.
15:41 Large stone steps and pointer indicate exactly what time it is or what day.
15:52 An oblique slope indicates where the North Star is.
16:01 At the city's heart, the city palace continues to house the Jaipur royal family.
16:11 Ganesh
16:19 Gangajalis - the Ganges water urns
16:39 Chandramoul
16:58 Pritham Niwas Chowk is the inner courtyard with four small gates,
17:25 representing the four seasons and Hindu gods.
17:35 They are decorated with peacock motifs and even some 3D versions.
17:50 Here a guard showed us how a turban was put together. It was eight meters long.
18:02 The Ganges is the largest river in India. It is the largest river in the world.
18:15 We've been to the crafts demonstration area.
18:37 Dermukes showed how he made very small detailed paintings.
18:59 If you put a little water on the stone, you can colour.
19:15 After the grind mix gum arabic from Acacia tree.
19:19 For the miniature work I used this single hairbrush made of stural tail.
19:36 Next week we'll show you more of the Emperor fort.
