Jaipur

Jaipur is a large city in the state of Rajasthan; located south of Delhi. Our group spent two days there.
First we visited the Amber Palace which is one of the earlier examples of architecture that blended Muslim and Hindu styles. This mixed palace was the result of a marriage between a Muslim Prince and a Hindu Princess; a marriage intended to unite the two cultures and religions.
This part of India is known for items such a hand printed cloths, hand woven carpets, and miniature paintings. Craftsmen and artists demonstrated the intricate details of how each of these treasures is made from start to finish. In most cases the craft or skill has been in their family for many generations. Picture above is a man stamping colours onto a cloth that was previously hand stamped with a design.
Jaipur has an ancient astrological observatory. One of the kings who ruled in this area during the 1700’s was very fond of astronomy and had it built. There were large historic stone tools that measured everything related to the sun, including time, altitude, the position of the planets etc. There was also a tool for each zodiac sign, used to predict horoscopes. This observatory holds a world record for the largest sundial. It is still used today.