Rajasthan with Dad - Jaipur, Monkey Temple

Our last stop of the day was at the monkey temple. No cost to get in as it is a temple, but a charge of 150 rupees ($2.50) for each camera. We walked around a few cows to get to the entrance and then up a large flight of stairs past two large outdoor bathing pools. One for men and one for women. Helen was here a year ago on a religious holiday and said the place and the pools were packed. Yesterday, we saw only four men splashing water on themselves.

At the top of the stairs we started to see lots of monkeys. They were much smaller than a chimp. The monkey caretaker came over and talked to us. He gave Auggie some peanuts and told him to hold one peanut at a time out to the closest monkey. The monkey reached out and took the peanut. The caretaker told Auggie to put a peanut in his hand and lightly close his fingers. The monkey pulled back his fingers and took the peanut.

Then I got in the act and fed a few. As we walked back down the stairs a group of monkeys sort of followed us, hoping for more handouts.

We got back to the hotel around 5 pm. A long but interesting day. We all cleaned up and took a short rest before having dinner in the hotel restaurant. Helen enjoys eating the Indian specialities. I have been sticking to anything mild and basic.

It is 8am on Friday and we are leaving for Agra at 9am. We plan to see the Taj Mahal at sunrise on Saturday. It is a 5 hour drive from here to Agra and then another 5 hour drive on Saturday back to Delhi. We fly on Sunday to Bangalore.

All for now. Stay tuned for the next installment.

John