Jaipur’s Amber Palace

Amber Palace was eleven kilometres from the pink city. We decided to forgo the fifty rupees for an elephant ride up the hill to the thousand-year-old palace. Instead, we walked. While we had a stroller for my youngest daughter, my poor three-year-old had to plod along unaided. She trudged up the hill until eventually I carried her the final distance.

Inside the grounds of Amber Palace. Photo courtesy: Mahesh Telkar, Wikimedia Commons

Once in the palace, we found it surprisingly cool and were able to look out on the old abandoned city and Maota Lake. Inside a small room with tiny mirrors embedded in the walls and ceiling, a guide closed the door and lit a candle, and room came alive like a glittering gem. It’s my most lasting memory of the palace.

Featured image courtesy of Mohit WI, Wikimedia Commons.