India: A Royal Past

 

India's history is rich with stories of maharajahs (kings) and maharanas (queens). As I've travelled through Rajasthan, I've stopped in many cities and visited their impressive forts and palaces. They are each built in their own unique way, showcasing the time they were built and the influences the builder had from other styles of architecture.

The Royal Gardens at Amber Fort

First was Amber, outside the city Jaipur. The fort was started in 1592 by Maharajah Man Singh. The royal family there reigned for over 800 years! The fort is set on a high hill looking over the beautiful Lake Maota. It has four main sections, which each have their own courtyard. The first, Jaleb Chowk, is the main courtyard where soldiers would show off their loot when they returned from battle. Carved marble screens above the courtyard let women see the action because they weren't allowed in that area (only men were).

The Jai Mandir (Hall of Victory) was the most impressive because of its mirrored walls and ceiling.

After Jaipur, I visited Pushkar and saw its market and ghats (see my previous post), then it was on to Jodhpur. Jodhpur is called the Blue City because many of the buildings in the old, and new, part of town are painted blue because of religious significance. The blue paint is also supposed to repel insects. But when entering the city, I assure you that your eyes won't be noticing the colour of the walls... Your gaze will instead be drawn upwards.... and upwards... to the towering fort above you, Mehrangarh.

Despite the fact that the royal family no longer governs India, this fort is still run by the Jodhpur royals. It houses many royal artifacts, like a collection of elephant howdahs (chairs that sit on top of an elephant for royal family members to travel in style). You can see the rooms decked out as they were hundreds of years ago with stained glass windows and mirrors. The fort was first built in the year 1808.

An Elephant Howdah

The Maharajah's chair in the Royal Entertainment Room

Udaipur was next, a beautiful city built around a lake with buildings that seem to rise up out of the water. The fort, Kumbhalgarh, is found two hours outside of Udaipur in the hills. It's known for having the second longest wall in the world, after the Great Wall of China. Unlike Mehrangarh, it is empty of artifacts, so we visited it to see its impressive views over the hills and a sand-duned desert. It was also great exercise to walk up the windy pathway and through the four gates that helped keep this royal family safe.

The wall is wide enough that eight horses can ride side-by-side!

We unfortunately didn't have enough time to visit the city Jaisalmer, which has its own interesting design. Look it up online; it looks like a giant sandcastle!

As I'm learning more about India's history as I go, I can see how it's steeped with pride and honour. The buildings help you realize what life would have been like hundreds of years ago, and little details teach about the culture.

For example, I noticed beautiful peacock designs used in many of the palaces and learned this noble creature is India's National Bird.

Elephants are a symbol of royally and were used by the royal families in celebrations, as well as during war. Many of the buildings have scenes with elephants fighting or dancing carved into pillars.

Over the last couple of hundred years, the Royal Families have lost all but their ceremonial powers as India has transitioned into becoming the world's largest democratic country. 

India: The Great Bazaar

A Snake Charmer!

I've enjoyed wandering through the markets in India with all their food stands of sizzling deep fried snacks and saris and bangle bracelets.

One of the things I love most about India is the clothing. Women usually wear saris or a salwar kameez. Saris are long pieces of fabric, usually silk, between 5 m and 9 m long, and 1 m wide. They are folded, wrapped and tucked around the woman without the need for pins or buttons. They come in every possible colour and make the streets of India alive with brightness.

A salwar kameez is another common choice for women, which is a dress-like tunic (or long shirt) worn over pants. Some men still wear the traditional dhoti, which is like a loincloth, pulled up loosely between the legs, but it's more common to see men in cities wearing dress pants or jeans with a button-up dress shirt.

I noticed that in Delhi, more women wore pants and long-sleeved shirts like women do in Canada, but in the smaller towns, saris seen to be the norm. You'll notice in my pictures that I've tried to dress conservatively to respect the Indian culture, either by wearing long skirts or pants with loose-fitting tops. I also generally carry a shawl with me, which is common.

               

Pushkar, where these photos were taken, is a city between the larger cities Jodhpur and Jaipur. It is most known for its ghats, or holy bathing areas. Hindus will visit Pushkar to bathe in the lake that they believe cleanses the body. You can see wet saris spread out to dry in the sun after people have washed in the sacred water. One of the ghats is famous for being a place where Gandhi's ashes were spread.

Pushkar's Ghats

India: The Land of Spice

Throughout India, much like the huge variety of languages people speak, different regions are known for different specialities. Curries, Dahl, Tandoori, and Naan, India is know for its food, and fulfils its reputation of being the 'Land of Spice.' Here are a few basics to help you figure out a menu at an Indian restaurant.

Rice: the base for most Indian dishes, particularly those from the South. It comes in a wide variety, from Assam's sticky rice to Kerala's red grains. The most popular, though, is basmati, a long-grained rice exported to many other countries.

Roti: thin flatbreads, also called chapati that accompany many Northern Indian dishes. You can use it to scoop up the food or put vegetables inside and roll it, kind of like a crepe.

Dahl: all throughout India (and Nepal), this is a staple. It's made from cooked lentils of all colours, split peas, or beans, like kidney or black-eyed peas. It can be eaten on its own or scooped onto rice with curried vegetables.

Vegetables: are found in almost every dish! Many Indians are vegetarian, so vegetables are prepared in many ways to provide variety. They can be cooked sukhi (dry) or tari (in a sauce) with spices, and can be fried, curried, baked, roasted, mashed... you name it! Common ones I've seen are potatoes, cauliflower, onions, carrots and peas.

Tandoori: despite the many vegetarians, there are several popular meat dishes called 'Non-Veg,' mainly made from chicken, lamb, and goat. Tandoori is my favourite, cooked in a tandoor, or clay oven, that's from areas in Northern India.

Spices: dishes can come from mild to hot, but you'll notice that they all have a lot of flavour! Common spices are chilli, curry, cumin, turmeric, pepper, and various masalas.

In India, it's common to eat with your hands, or more specifically, your right hand only. You can use the bread as a kind of shovel to help get the food into your mouth.

There's no better way to learn something than by doing it, so not only have I dove in to all kinds of new food, but I also tried my hand at a cooking course. It was a ton of fun, and I'll arrive back home with the new recipes to add to my cookbook! Here's a look at my new cooking skills in action!

Dahl: We cooked mixed lentils, made a garlic-onion-ginger-chilli paste and fried it together with a few spices like cumin, fennel, and turmeric.

The Dahl simmering away!

The Channa Masala simmering.

Channa Masala: We sauteed onions, pureed tomatoes, garlic, a cinnamon stick, bay leaf, and spices, then added chick peas. We let it cook for about a half hour on low. In the meantime, we cooked basmati rice for the base of the Briyani.

Next, we cut chunks of onion, cauliflower, potato, ginger, and tomato to heat for the Briyani sauce.

Then all there was left to do was enjoy it!

Briyani

The meal we made!

At the end, we gave a huge thank you to our teachers, Deepa and Hemat for giving us the gift of food. We can't wait to try the recipes out at home for our friends and family! I hope I've inspired you to go out to an Indian restaurant and try something new, or to eat again one of your favourite Indian dishes!