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India Travel Forum 
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Indian States Rajasthan Travel Guide Architectural Heritage
Palaces of Jaipur
Travel Angel Says: In Jaipur, you are never too far from its rich tapestry of history. Not only is the architecture a delightful medley of the ancient and the medieval, there are also stunning reminders throughout the city. The bustling bazaars of Badi Chaupar, for example, with their tiny shops, and their endless meandering lanes, recreate vignettes of life as it must have been centuries ago. No wonder it's so exciting to just walk around, as traders pick up fistfuls of semi-precious stones and offer them to you for a few rupees, or as you watch a silversmith at work on a particularly ornate piece of jewellery.
Not many visitors will have the opportunity to visit private homes where lifestyles encapsule the past and link it with the coming millennium with an elegance and grace that is rare outside this state. Fortunately, several of the palaces and townhouses of Jaipur have been converted into palace and heritage hotels, and these allow you a peep into the way the families of Rajputana once lived amid all this splendour. Some of the palaces a guest can stay in, or visit, would include the following:
Not many visitors will have the opportunity to visit private homes where lifestyles encapsule the past and link it with the coming millennium with an elegance and grace that is rare outside this state. Fortunately, several of the palaces and townhouses of Jaipur have been converted into palace and heritage hotels, and these allow you a peep into the way the families of Rajputana once lived amid all this splendour. Some of the palaces a guest can stay in, or visit, would include the following:
RAMBAGH PALACE
The sprawling residence of the governess of Maharaja Ram Singh, it became his favourite retreat and later, a hunting lodge Designed by British architects as a formal palace, Rambagh came embody princely chic when it was occupied by Maharaja Man Singl and Maharani Gayatri Devi. Bui] in the Indo-Saracenic style, the sprawling palace embodies good taste, and is one of the country's premier palace hotels.
RAJMAHAL PALACE
A small palace, when compared with Rambagh, Rajmahal was established in 1729 for one of the Sisodia princesses so she could distance herself from the intrigues of the Kachchawaha zenana. It later became the Residency, occupied by various British Residents. In that status, it also played host to visiting dignitaries from around the world, whether Queen Elizabeth II or Jacqueline Kennedy, as private guests of the Jaipur royals. It too is now run as a palace hotel.
JAI MAHAL PALACE
First developed in the mid-18th century and used as a residence for various British officials, Jai Mahal is Jaipur's first palace hotel, though it was considerably smaller before rooms were added to it in the 1980s. The new construction is in amazing harmony with the old structure, and the garden that fronts it is a faithful recreation of Babur's first Mughal garden in Dholpur.
SAMODE PALACE
The Nathawat family of Samode served as prime ministers in Jaipur's court, and their four-century-old fortified residence some 40 km from J aipur is able to exhibit the good taste learned at the royal palaces in a more restrained space. The Durbar Hall at Samode Palace is one of the most beautifully painted chambers in Rajasthan. Close by is Samode Bagh, the garden pavilion with charming water channels and ancient trees. In Jaipur itself, the family built itself a townhouse, Samode Haveli, which typifies the style of architecture then in prevalence, including accessible public spaces and restricted private spaces, especially for the women of the family. The paintings at the Haveli are every bit as excellent as at the Palace, if a little less profuse. All three properties are hotels.
BISSAU PALACE
The Thakurs of Bissau were a bristling, prickly lot, and were often at daggers drawn with other feudal chiefs. While their fort in the Shekhawati region was sold a few decades ago, the townhouse in Jaipur, called Bissau Palace, now functions as a hotel. Set in a garden, the rambling building has a quaint colonial air about it, somewhat ruined by the souvenir shops. The building inside recreates turn-of-the-century architecture combining English formality with the Rajput need for open courtyards and separate wings.
NARAIN NIWAS
A garden house set in a mango orchard and built by Thakur Narain Singh of Kanota into a personal residence, Narain Niwas is not particularly impressive as far as its architecture goes, though it has a restful ambience characterised most obviously by the deep verandah where guests now lounge. Its fortified family home, at Kanota, a 40-minute drive from Jaipur, has more definitive architecture, and visitors can call ahead if they wish to visit, or even stay there.
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