Dear Wanderers,
You will always be curious when you are in Jaipur. And if you are here during Holi... God bless you. The city changes its colour.. literally! I consider myself fortunate that i have had a chance to celebrate the festival of Holi in this awesome city. It's one time of the year when people take control of the city and the administration sits back and monitors the situation. While the Holi vibe was on, i still had to make sure i get through with my office work & then join in the celebrations.
Getting to a cafe
My mind started buzzing with thoughts of where must i go to get through with my daily office morning calls. I did not feel like spending it in the hostel since i had already done it once & i wanted to try out something different. Plus I also wanted to save myself from the afternoon heat. So now i wanted a cafe that has a cool vibe, doesn't fret about its patrons settling down for long hours & has wi-fi! I checked my saved Google list of "To Go" places and the hunt began! Most of the cafes i liked were closed at that moment and were scheduled to open by 10 a.m. After sifting through the "cafe near me" options, i finally found one that i was curious about.
Welcome to Pitstop cafe! This unique cafe offers an ideal backdrop for bikers. The helmets, top boxes, jackets & even an electric bike added to the vibe i was seeking. I got started with my customary cup of cappuccino & got busy setting up. The staff was really helpful in finding me a power point plug that worked. I realised the internet to be exceptionally fast.
Work, Fun & Food
Once the calls start, its hard to keep track of time. My team is almost always curious about what they are going to see next! So first i have to show them around and then the meeting starts. It's become a custom now :D Throughout my time in the cafe, the internet worked as promised & the coffee kept flowing.
Pitstop cafe had a decently designed and a well planned menu. I asked for an Egg Shukshuka, one of the breakfast options at the cafe. It turned out to be rather nice & filling.
While I was on and off calls, Ram, the one in charge of the coffee counter made it a pleasant experience for me with his polite conversations, stories of his hometown and his ambitions. Ram is studying to be a teacher at Rajasthan University. He works at the cafe in the morning shift and takes night classes in B.ED at Rajasthan Univ. Wishing him all the luck & success. I wish i could hire more people like him.
He was polite, helpful and tried his best to make my experience in the cafe an absolute pleasure.
Hitting the old Jaipur city
Once the calls were done and the sun was done being a bitch, it was time for me to explore the city again. My first priority was explore Jaipur's street food scene in the walled city. There is no disappointment when it comes to Jaipur's street food.
Pyaaj ki Kachori & Samrat
Lassi at Lassiwala - Bapu Bazaar shop no. 12
Subhash Paanwala
Holi Dahan at the City Palace gates.
I was told by locals that i must check out a cultural routine that happens outside the gates of City Palace. Since ages, It has been a culture amongst localites that the flame for Holi Dahan comes from the Royal Palace. So the locals line up with sticks and grass in their hands and wait for someone from the palace to share the flame with the locals. Once they get the flame they run, ride & rush to their respective lanes and light the Holi with that flame. Thats practically the whole of Jaipur waiting for the maharaja or someone from the Royal family to light the first flame. Quite interesting right!
Waiting for the Holi Dahan & Walking around the Pink city
The auspicious time for the event as per the hindu panchang was 9.02 pm which meant i had loads of time to wander off the streets, bazars and lanes of Jaipur.
The simplicity and elegance etched into the day to day lives of the people of the previous centuries.
Disappointed with the exploitation of the tourists by the local business owners
While this legacy is one perspective, there is another side to the present day Jaipur that some people might not find very cool. While i wanted a perfect picture of the Hawa Mahal, i tried various shots & i saw there was an open gallery on the building opposite the Mahal. While i reached on the first floor of that building, i could see the perfect view and felt I could take a picture from there. So i walked towards the gallery with my mobile camera just about ready to shoot & i heard a pretty loud, rude and an angry voice from behind. A man in his mid 60's started shouting at me for attempting to take a picture from a place that pretty much looked like a public place. A young boy (presumably working in one of these shops) blocked my camera with his hand and told me to go upstairs to a cafe. Upon enquiring with them about why they were not letting me click a picture.. they just maintained one reason "Its not allowed". When i stepped up to the cafe, i requested the guy who was assigning tables if i can click one picture of the Hawa Mahal from there. He too very blatantly refused and said you cannot take a picture if you do not order a coffee. I found that to be weird and offensive at the same time. Anyway, its no fun getting into an argument when your goal is to make memories. So i walked away.
The million dollar moment - Holi Dahan at city palace
While i spent my time taking pictures and strolling down the walled city, I observed that the main gate of the City Palace was slowly getting crowded. Families and groups of youngsters gathered near the gate hoping to get a glimpse of the maharaja. Within minutes hoards of bikers lined up in front of the gates. Once the holika flame of the palace was lighted everyone outside shouted and started cheering by the name "jai shree ram" and other religious chants. One by one people started entering the city palace gate and returned with flames on the wooden sticks they carried with themselves. What shocked me most was how aggressive the whole scene looked for the spectator. People were risking their lives to get the flames to their respective neighbourhood. Well, nothing can challenge tradition and culture.
As the day came to an end, people back at the hostel were prepping to leave for Pushkar. Most had already left. I spent the remainder of my night with lingering thoughts about the day that had just gone by. It was memorable. Checkout the video below to get a glimpse of how the day went!
Day 5 was all about colors and food! I decided to book myself to a Holi Party hosted at The Fern Ecotel. The entry fees for Rs 500 that included a cover of Rs 250. There were a lot of families that attended the event.
Hope you enjoyed the story. Come back for more tomorrow.
Stay Safe & Happy Holi!
Mitul
Comments
Post a Comment