Interesting Places in Jaipur, India

Jaipur is also known as the Pink City as many of the buildings have pink walls.

The Hawa Mahal or Palace of Winds, built in 1799, is an outstanding structure in the city.

The City Palace is another building with exquisite structures and details.

        The pink areas are open to the public while the white areas are private royal apartments.

The silver pot which used to carry the water from the Ganges for the King's use when he went to London

                                                                   The Moon Palace

                                                          Note the beautiful details

                                                                   A very unique door

India certainly has a very rich cultural history magnificently depicted in its ancient buildings which are architectural gems.  It is so fortunate that many of them are still standing today that allow us to have a glimpse into their heydays.

A Monument of Love Unrivalled

The magnificent splendour of the Taj Mahal still stands today, one of the wonders of the world, a testimony of a king’s love for his late wife.

                                    We were greeted by this awesome view of the Taj Mahal

 It took Shah Jehan twenty two years to build and complete this white marble mausoleum for his wife Mumtaz. This is cleverly indicated by the 11 miniature domes on top of the gateway, outside and on the inside, making a total of 22.

                                                        Gate to the Taj Mahal Complex
Its splendour still stands intact and the four pillars have been constructed leaning away from the main building so that if there were an earthquake, the pillars would not fall on the building but away from it.

During our visit, the four pillars were encased in scaffolding to facilitate the cleaning of the marble as it was the off-peak season for visitors. Even so, there were throngs of visitors and tourists who were busy snapping photographs and choice views of the marble building were not easy to get.

 Details on the marble facade

The grounds are huge and beautifully looked after. On either side of the Taj Mahal were two identical buildings, one functioning as a royal mosque and the other, a guest house for royal visitors.

Behind flows a river, across which the Shah had hoped to build his own monument in black marble but it was not to be because his son seized power and imprisoned him in another palace.

                                                        Palace where the Shah was imprisoned

However, he could still see his beloved Taj Mahal from his prison.

 Upon his death his body was brought across this river and he was interred next to his beloved wife in the Taj Mahal.

Contrasts in India

We saw many contrasting scenery as we made our way from the rural villages to the cities.  In the rural areas, the land was parched and dry because of prolonged drought.

In the urban areas, life was bustling with traffic jams and the ceaseless honking from drivers eager to squeeze their way through.

 In contrast, the ancient ruins were sombre and tranquil, as they stood in crumbling magnificence.

Barefoot College, Tilonia, India

Ten days ago, a group of ladies from SWEPA (Sabah Women Entrepreneur and Professional Association) and friends embarked on the 27 hour journey to the Barefoot College in Tilonia.  Donning our trademark red tops and red caps, we set off on this trip, eager to see how the two illiterate grandmothers from our country were doing in the college.

They were sent there two months ago to learn how to become solar engineers, to set up solar lamps, maintain the solar panels and to make repairs if necessary.  In September this year they will return to light up their villages which still do not have electricity in this age and time.  Their villages are situated in remote rural areas which do not have proper roads and are only accessible by four wheel drives.

Last year a grandmother graduated from the college and since then she has been responsible for lighting the homes in her village. 

We found Gining and Rusni hard at work in the workshop. Only women who are poor and illiterate are accepted into Barefoot College and to date the college has trained many women from third world countries.

Currently 40 women are in training.  Hostel facilities close to the college are provided for them.

The College also runs night classes for children who do not have the opportunity to attend regular school because they have to help their parents work their farms during the day.  There are no proper classrooms and the children sit on the verandahs which are poorly lit. As you can see in the photos, they don't have books.  The lesson is very interactive and the teacher calls upon the children to participate, using chants.

Our visit was truly an eye opener.  We could only count our blessings when we saw how deprived the poor children are.