My father used to remind us time and again that nothing in life was for free but he also said that the streets were paved with money and one only had to pick it up. His implication was that a little work would see to it that our pocket were full of money. He was right naturally but don’t we move mountains to get some thing for free or relatively for free.
This is such a list!
A list of things one can enjoy for free or relatively for free in Jaipur.
This list assumes that you have your own transport to get around the city and a little money.
If you can wake up before day break get your digital camera out and go for a walk. You can photograph Jaipur in all its moods. You can make a photo feature on a day well spent. Some examples of where to go for a walk would be, the Central Park of Jaipur or lake shore of the Man Sagar Lake or the quite streets of the city.
If you are into Yoga & laughter therapy there is a session in the Central Park you can join.
Read the local newspaper. Around 5.30 am to 6.30 am you will see the newspaper boys on their way to delivering the morning papers to different houses of Jaipur. You should get one and find a quite place to read it.
Drink a cup of tea at the Sahu tea stall in walled city.
If you do not mind a snack early in the morning you can get a Kachori near the panch batti circle or at the Rawat Misthan Bhandar.
Or in summers you can have a lassi at the Lassiwala on the M.I.Road.
Time to head home for a shower a change of clothes and some breakfast.
At 10 a.m you can go for birding & a nature walk in the Simriti Ban on J.L.N.Marg. They also have a museum here where they have displayed the photos of the birds and plants and flowers found in the area.
If the local handicrafts are your thing, you can head for the Jawahar Kala Kendra for a look. There might be a mela on .While there you can visit the museums and the art galleries too. More often than not there are painting exhibitions and plays being put up during the course of the day. These fixtures are not to be missed. Another such venue is the Ravindra Manch and the open air theater there.These two places are the hot bed of cultural activity in Jaipur.
Time for lunch. You can have Dosa & Coffee in the canteen of JKK managed by the India Coffee House & head home for a siesta.
At 4.30 pm you can go for birding in the central park.
Once a month weather permitting there is a classical recital in the Central Park by a famous artist.
Every year from 21 to 25 January a literature featival is held where you can hear the writers talk about their books and even get their autographs.
Two book fairs are held in the second half of the year for the book lovers of Jaipur by the two local papers.
Jaipur was also known as Choti Kashi in the days of lore because of the huge number of temples here.You can visit Galtaji or Birla Mandir or Ganesh Mandir at Moti Doongri or the Kala Hanuman Mandir for divine blessings.
On Diwali you can go around the walled city markets to see the hustle and the bustle and the city dolled up with colorful lights and ‘jhankis’ and decorative gates.
On Holi Chaugan stadium is the place to be where, every year, an Elephant festival is held by RTDC.
On 14th January, Sankrat, watch the city go crazy over some kites and string.
Watch Teej maata’s Savari on Teej Festival.
Get photographed in front of the magnificent Hawamahal or the Sculptures in The Central Park or The Amber Fort.
You can climb to the top of the Isar Lat for the view.
This Jaipur! 