In March 2004 I made a business trip to India and managed to arrange a few days to see some of the key sites in new Delhi, Jaipur and Agra along with our good friends Jim and Emily.. This is now an opportunity to reprocess some of those old images shot on a Canon 10D camera and bring them into the light.
We drove from New Delhi to Jaipur and then to Agra and finally back to New Delhi completing a small triangle.
Jal Mahal
Arriving close to Jaipur we stopped initially to see the famous Jal Mahal. Jal Mahal (meaning “Water Palace”) is a palace in the middle of the Man Segar Lake in Jaipur city, the capital of the state of Rajasthan, India. The palace and the lake around it were renovated and enlarged in the 18th century by Maharaja Jai Singh II of Amber.
Amer Palace & Fort
Amer Palace & Fort is a fort located in Amer, Rajasthan, India. Amer is a town with an area of 4 square kilometres located 11 kilometres from Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan. Located high on a hill, it is the principal tourist attraction in Jaipur.
The town of Amer was originally built by Meenas and later it was ruled by Raja Man Singh I. Amer Fort is known for its artistic style elements. With its large ramparts and series of gates and cobbled paths, the fort overlooks Maota Lake, which is the main source of water for the Amer Palace.
Amber Palace, Amber Fort, Amer Palace and Amer Fort are all different names referred to the same place. Amer is from Hindi. There are various opinions about where the name comes from. Some said it’s from the Ambikeshwar Temple while others said it comes from Amba, the protector of the world.
Hawa Mahal
Hawa Mahal is a palace in Jaipur, India. Made with the red and pink sandstone, the palace sits on the edge of the City Palace, Jaipur, and extends to the Zenana, or women’s chambers. The structure was built in 1799 by Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh, the grandson of Sawai Jai Singh, who was the founder of Jaipur.
Shopping
The streets of Jaipur are full of interesting small shops selling local handicrafts, carpets, textiles, spices and jewellery. And of course there is always something to eat on the street …. if you dare!
The Oberoi Rajvilas Hotel
We were lucky enough to be staying in the luxurious Oberoi Rajvilas Hotel in Jaipur which was a palace in itself.
We had a wonderful Indian dinner in the hotel restaurant accompanied by traditional sitar music.
Our waiter also showed us the traditional way of how to tie and wear a turban.
City Palace
The City Palace, Jaipur was established at the same time as the city of Jaipur, by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, who moved his court to Jaipur from Amber, in 1727.
Jaipur is the present-day capital of the state of Rajasthan, and until 1949 the City Palace was the ceremonial and administrative seat of the Maharaja of Jaipur. The Palace was also the location of religious and cultural events, as well as a patron of arts, commerce, and industry. It now houses the Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II Museum, and continues to be the home of the Jaipur royal family. The royal family of Jaipur is said to be the descendants of Lord Rama. The palace complex has several buildings, various courtyards, galleries, restaurants, and offices of the Museum Trust. The Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II Museum Trust looks after the Museum, and the royal cenotaphs (known as chhatris).
One of the guards at the palace offered a wonderful portrait opportunity in front of the famous Peacock Gate and he was very happy to oblige.
Jantar Mantar Observatory
Jantar Mantar is located in the modern city of New Delhi. It consists of 13 architectural astronomy instruments. The site is one of five built by Maharaja Jai Singh II of Jaipur, from 1723 onwards, revising the calendar and astronomical tables.
On the Road from Jaipur to Agra
After our wonderful visit to Jaipur we drove from Jaipur to Agra. The roads were generally quite boring moving through endless rural areas and as always many people out working in the fields.
However we did have two interesting encounters on the road. The first one was a totally naked man striding along the side of the road towards us, caring not a jot! Apparently this is some kind of religious practice ….. it certainly woke up the ladies in the car. Sorry no photo!
Second encounter was a man walking along the road with 3 large bears in tow – I managed a quick photo of this from our moving car.
Passionate Photographer …. Lost in Asia
Stuart Taylor of HighlanderImages Photography has been making images for over 30 years and can offer a diverse range of photo imaging services with a focus on Asia and a documentary/photojournalistic style. These services include planning and executing a photo shoot on location but importantly all the post-processing and image preparation needed for the specific finished media format required by the customer. Stuart’s experience and knowledge in all of these aspects make HighlanderImages Photography a one-stop-shop for a comprehensive and professional image production service.
Stuart can be available for a variety individual assignments or projects and he specialises in areas such as photojournalism, commercial, architectural, real estate, industrial, interior design, corporate, urbex, adventure, wilderness, and travel photography.
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E-Mail : staylor@highlanderimages.com