Make Sexy Pose. Kiss Me.

Hasina and I visited Amber Fort in the mountainside north of Jaipur and roamed through the maze like structure for a few hours. The views from the fort onto the surrounding town and mountains are stunning. There are some steep drops and in places you find yourself standing on one of the many roofs with no guardrail to save you from tripping over the edge.

On our way out of the fort we stopped one last time on the pillard terrace for a view over the entrance to the fort when a Indian man with a broad smile approached us. "Can you take photo with my wife?" Slowly but surely I have come to the realisation that to Indian tourists we western tourists are part of the tourist attraction. His young, orange sari clad wife manouvered between Hasina and I. She had not even sat down when he called out "Make sexy pose." I burst out laughing. "Kiss me." He meant kiss her, his mortified wife who had her face burried in her hands. He kept repeating "kiss me. Kiss me." Hasina told him we wouldn't and he took the picture. We were about the get up but by now a line had formed behind him. Two other guys with cameras were waiting their turn to pose with us. Again we were surrounded by a group of women, elbows resting on our shoulders, smiling big for the camera. This is probably the closest I'll ever come to feeling famous.

A view of the fort from the gardens below.
A hallway inside Amber Fort.

This wall is part of the Hall of Mirrors. Small mirrors are part of the frescoes and at nights the Maharaja would entertain here by placing lamps in the hall, lighting it up like a disco ball.




Porters (coolies) at the Jaipur train station waiting for the next load of travellers.