Day 142, Bundi, Rajasthan [Tuesday 22nd April 2008]
Previous day: Day 141, Bundi [Monday 21st April 2008]
Next day: Day 143, Chittaurgarh, Rajasthan [Wednesday 23rd April 2008]
A hot night last night, and we could barely sleep. We change rooms, moving from the top floor to the ground floor, where thankfully it's much cooler.
We visit the Suk Mahal, a small, crumbling palace overlooking the Nawal Sagar lake, where Kipling wrote part of 'Kim'. We stop for a while in a nearby garden, under a tree, sucking on frozen cold drinks from a stall.
The people of Bundi are really friendly. It's out of season now, as the incredible heat descends on Rajasthan, but the rows of CD burning shops and stalls selling batteries and camera memory cards is testament to its tourist popularity. Still, everyone says hello or smiles as we walk the alleyways. Some people laugh at the monkey deterring stick which I'm brandishing.
The women's clothing here burns brighter than anywhere else in India. It's a cliche about Rajasthan but it's true, there's colour everywhere. A group of about two dozen women pass us on the road, and it's like walking through a rainbow.
We visit the remarkable Ranij-ki-Baori (Queen's Well). It's a man made reservoir, carved deep into the ground, and is the largest of its kind. It must be 30 metres deep. You descend huge steps into the heart of it — it's empty now.
Near the palace, as the sun sets behind the battlements of the fort, we find a friendly painter who sells miniature paintings from his drink stall. He says he dropped out of school aged 10 to make a living painting. The quality is excellent. We buy 4 paintings, which he rolls up in newspaper for us.
We sit on the roof of our hotel drinking beer, watching the monkeys leap around and listening to the raucous wedding processions taking place in the town, their fuzzy speakers crackling and blaring.
Next day: Day 143, Chittaurgarh, Rajasthan [Wednesday 23rd April 2008] Previous day: Day 141, Bundi [Monday 21st April 2008]