To arrive in Jaipur, we took a train but had made a reservation in a 3A coach, that means a triple bunken bed with AC. In the summer, it's a very popular class, as the sleeper class (same bed organization but without AC) is now turned into a giant toaster because of the heat. We spent almost all the journey in our upper bed and felt really relieved when we arrived in the pink city to be able to extend our legs and our backs out of the cramped space. 

Riya was dutifully waiting for us and Chloé ran into her arms as soon as she saw us for a hug. It must have been a bit awkward to watch : one tired girl, struggling with her dupatta (indian scarf) running with her huge bagpack, handbag and camera on her side, jumping on one brown girl... it could have been a tentative murder :) 

We then arrived at Riya's house, where we relaxed for a while before going shopping. This step was a compulsory one because we wanted our saree stitched, which means we had to get them as soon as possible. The shop is actually quite similar to the kurta's one : walls of clothes that don't seem to obey to any logics and mattresses on the floor. You have to told the seller approximately what you want (colors, designs, fabrics) and he will unfold the 5m long piece of the saree, then opens even more according to the face you make (of disgust or happiness). We put aside three saree out of the fifteenish that have been unfolded, then we tried them on. You just stay dressed while someone wrap it around you, to see how the design will fit. We didn't find all the saree we wanted so we went to a second shop were the seller wrapped the saree so well it was a treat in itself. Happy with our purchases, we went back home and stopped in the way to have our blouses stitched. Unfortunately, the shop was already closed so we had to come the next day. 

The 12th was a day for sightseeing because the weather was actually really nice. In the morning, there was no rain at all but the wind was blowing slowly. At that time, we went to Sisodia Rani ka Bagh, a garden built for a queen who didn't want to live in Amber (the old capital of Jaipur). The place was not mentioned in any guide we carried with us, and this fact may be the reason why there was literally nobody else for the visit, even if the garden surely is worth the visit. In the upper part stand the queen's palace, with walls beautifully painted but we were not allowed to enter as some restoration works were conducted. 

Not far away is the Monkey temple, which is not the real name of the temple but who is called like this because of the impressive number of monkeys that lives here. But the first sight we saw was not at all a monkey. It was a cow, lazily chewing grass, with some strange form going out from her back. Actually, some veal was being born but the cow didn't seem to care. After that encounter, we entered the sacred area itself, before climbing the stairs to the temple. A network bring the water from the top to two consecutive pools where people bathed in holy water. The lower pool is dedicated to the women while only the men are authorized in the upper one. 

We were followed by a kid who explained us we could go even upper to see the city of Jaipur, so we decided to go on. One of the things that decided us was the weather. It's was actually raining but really not that much. It was more small refreshing droplets that a heavy rain that would have soaked us. The way was a bit slippery but led to another temple, this time dedicated to Shuriya (the sun God), the best part of it being a terrace dominating the city. We could only enjoy, with such a view and the fresh air. 

Our stomach made us understand it was time to go have lunch so we travelled the way down then went back to the city to eat in a dabha, a restaurant originally dedicated to truck drivers but which became very popular so you can now find them easily inside the cities. They provide good food for affordable price but we were glad to have Riya and her mum along as the menu was all written in Hindi. The restaurant was great and, moreover, was near another stop of our sightseeing day : the birla mandir. It's just a huge marble temple with representation of many gods and saints, not only from Hindu religion but also from other beliefs. On the same set, you can therefore find Jesus and Confucius, not that far from Socrates. 

Finally, Riya brought us to a war memorial. Little scenes depicting the life of the Indian army are organized around a semi-circle. Some represent the different battleground while others praised the nation's victories. It's actually well displayed even with the lack of information for some of the same. By example, one if the scene just shows the important battles of modern India, each of them symbolized by a date but with no other explanation. 

After the sightseeing arrived the time to pay their due respect to Chloe's teachers. We so decided to arrive in the morning at MGD (long form Maharani Gayatri Devi girl school) then to come back with Miss Handoo and spend the day with her. It's wau a bit strange to step in the school after so much, with the only people to recognize you being the teacher but it was great to be back there. Joelle was amazed by how big the school was and how it's was a good place to learn how to be an adult. Chloe was amazed how the teachers remember her that well and felt a bit disturbed by the quietness of the place, forgetting exams were going on. Still, we managed to sneak in a Bharathanatiyam dance class and even finished teaching a child song to some French class. 

When school went over, we headed with Miss Handoo and Ananya to their place. After a marvellous meal (the mutton was awesome) Chloe played the game ''life'' with Ananya and one of her cousin, allowing the women to rest before getting ready for Choki Dhani. This is a famous resort that try to show the typical culture of the place they are implemented in. So, as far as concerned, the one in Jaipur recreate typical rajasthani scenes, with dances, puppet shows, camel rides and even a full display depicting the sacred place of Pushkar, around which you can roam as much as you want. At night, they serve typical rajasthani food which was less spicy than expected. The resort is famous for its restaurant itself. The guideline is ''hospitality'' and nobody can deny it's true. Before entering the room, you have to remove your shoes, then you sat crossed legs on the ground while waiters keep on refilling your plates. Even when you have enough, they continue as part of fun around. Definitely, Choki Dhani is a place where you can't get bored !

It was soon the time to come back home and, after a last offering for tea, we reached Riya's home.

The next day was also a day without Riya, as we were meeting Chloe's best friend : Shivangi. She's also a museum freak so we started with the Albert Hall Museum, which displays all kind of manscraft, from terracotta pots to jewels, clothes and paintings. The descriptions are sometimes pointless when others lack of information. By example, some weapons were described as ''asa'' without further details and we couldn't find information on the Internet. Anyway, the museum is fine and some band was playing Indian music throughout the visit.

On our way to Hawa Mahal, we stoped to a famous lassi shop, where the milky beverage is served in clay pot. Somehow, it was even more yummy than usual. Let's call it a magic clay. The Hawa Mahal was also a great discovery. The name in English is the palace of wind and it mau be the most famous facade of the city, with an impressive number of windows that created important air flows inside the building. At the end of the visit, we decided not to follow the usual path and found a magnificent dome lost after a series of uninteresting courtyards. The ceiling was still carrying some paintings and the absence of tourists (we were the one and only) allowed us to enjoy the place in the fullest. 

Covering a short distance we went to the city palace, the equivalent of the fort in many city, as it hosted and still partially host the Maharaja of Jaipur. For some 30 euros, you can even visit the private appartement of the actual king and have tea in his place, but we preferred to spend our money more wisely by hiring a guide. And luck on our side, he was a really great one. He was a wealth of knowledge, having even written a book on the Maharaja's history, and was keen to share all his stories with us. At one time, we went to a handicraft shop that sells essences and Chloe and Shivangi tried them on. When we got out, we were smelling rose, mint, patchouli, lavender, and many others we didn't get the names well. 

It was four in the afternoon and we still haven't had lunch. After some Zomato researches, we found out that the restaurant with view on the Hawa Mahal was cheap and tasteful, reasons why we moved our way back to where we've been before. And the website didn't lie. We had Maggi Noodle and samosas and veggie cutlets and french fries with a lot of Ketchup sauce. If all this wasn't enough, moved further in a bazaar to have special ice cream called ''faluda'' (I'm not sure of the exact name but the paper on which the name is written is well ducked into one of the backpack), sorts of noodle filled with milk, served with ice-cream and red fruits syrup. 

It was the time to say goodbye but the timing has been perfect. As soon as we stepped into the cab, a heavy monsoon rain started to fall, a rain that stopped just before we arrived. Tired but happy with the day, we went back home, realising that the day after would be the last. Time really flies.

To fulfil an old promise, Riya took us to Amjer Fort, the old capital of Jaipur, to go on a elephant ride. This being done, and glad we didn't have to climb all the stairs to reach the fort, we bought our tickets and hired a guide. Unfortunately, he was not the best one you could hope for, not truly interested in what he was saying but at least we got to learn things about the fort itself. 

The fort being big, we went home quite late, to realize we didn't have the keys to ho in so had to wait for Riya's dad to come back from work. Hopefully the weather was kind, not too hot and with a light brisk so it was perfectly bearable in the shadow of the garden trees. When we could finally entered, we had to begin the packing to be sure everything will fit in the bag, before going to the last shopping. Here, we finally got mehendi, the sarees, the blouses, bangles and last street foods. It really sounds like the end of the journey, even if we still have a long way to Mumbai (20 hours of train) then a long wait in the city (arriving at 7 AM, we have to leave for the airport at 10 PM)

The eighth was our last day in Delhi but we didn't leave our hostel for a faraway destination, only aiming to Noida, a city which hosts the working population of Delhi. It's so more a residential area that a touristic one but we didn't expect our hotel to be so lost. There was literally nothing around, not even a street food at a foot distance. But the othet thing that wasn't there was apparently our reservation. Fortunately, we saved the confirmation on the phone so they couldn't do anything but agree with it. They gave us a room on the third floor, nearby the kitchen. 

At that point, we were ready to leave the hotel for another one because we felt no welcomed at all, but we were unsure to make ourselves understood because, last but not least, the staff roughly understands English. Joelle had already paid in cash and we decided that we would have waisted too much time to be reimbursed. Anyway, the hotel proposes nice rooms and, when we complained about the kitchen odours, we were allowed to change our room. When our minds were set, we decided to go to Pr. Handoo, the father of Miss Handoo, the second family who hosted Chloé in 2013. We spent two hours there with the grandma, Lavanya, who spent her holidays in Delhi, and her cousins Mehak and Kushi. We settled to have dinner together the next day. 

But it's not the only that has been planned. In the morning, we visited the akshardam temple, a huge complex dedicated to same saint which is just incredible but were no camera and no phone are allowed. Actually, there's a lot of restrictions and you need to queue up at the entrance to let your belongings at the cloak room. And this includes backpack, handbag, camera, food and umbrella. Fortunately, it's worthy. When we entered the sacred place, there was no extra noise from phone player, no garbage on the floor, no people stupidly stopping for selfies. We could finally completely enjoy a place. The only bad point was we didn't have a lot of time there and we had to conclude our visit earlier than we wanted to. 

We had next to go to the ''mall of India'', an apparently very famous mall in Noida, where we had rendezvous with Ishika, one of Chloé's hostel's friend. We had some delicious food at taco bell but were happy to be accompanied by a local because the system of food mall is quite different that what we're used too. So, the food stops are usually located at the highest level of the mall, with a central area where you found lots of tables and chairs, surrounded by the shops. You have first to buy a card on which you put the money you will use in the restaurants. Then, you can head to then one you want to place your order and pay it. Next thing to do it's quite a challenge : find a table. The best advices we can give are to stick at one place and spot people that are soon to leave to jump onto the table as soon as they're going to get up. Don't be afraid of putting your bags in the seat even if they have not completely left the place because it's what Indian do, so being polite and self-aware of private space will never give you a seat.

 After some shopping with Ishika, we headed back to the hotel to fresh ourselves before going to Pr. Handoo place for the dinner. We spent most of the time chatting in the living room before having a late dinner for Belgian standards because, in India, they usually eat around 10 PM. Unfortunately, despite the super delicious food that made us want to go to Delhi for the sole reason of eating it, Chloe got terrible stomach crampes and we made a quick escape back to the hotel after the dinner. 

Next day, we just wanted some rest so we got lazy in our room but had to meet Kunal, another friend of Chloé she met during her Roundsquare social project. It surely gave us some excuse to go out and stop to watch america got talent. As Chloé chilled with her friend, Joelle enjoyed some cafe while reading book. So, not a busy day but we spent a really-too-short night to do more because we also had to pack our stuff. Next stop ? Jaipur, Chloé's hometown ! Can't wait for that.

Mosques, tombs and gardens. This surely surmised at the perfection our day. We got a fresh start in the morning made, as usual, of kellogs, toast, fruits, yogurts and tea, something we got too easily accustomed to. Stomach full, camera charged and plan in bag, we decided to take our first attempt at the metro. For that, we needed first to walk, from the hotel to the train station, then took some stairs with male public, open washroom at the starting point. Smell beautifully. The stairs took us to a bypass bridge you just have to follow and, when you crossed another smelling public washroom, you just have to turn right where, except for the sweat of the body, nothing smelt bad. One good point for the metro. 

As we were in a busy station, we had to queue to buy tickets, developing skills to ensure your place because, one, there's no foreigners special, and two, some Indians have problem for standing in a line, gently waiting for one's turn. Anyway, we arrived more or less fast to the counter where we realised the price given at the entrance for tourist ticket (that you can use one or three days long) was actually twice the price asked. Anyway, we got used to pay more than what we expect so, let it go !

Proud owner of brand new tourist ticket for three days, we queued once again to pass the security check, and a third time to enter the metro train itself. This is actually pretty smart : you have marks on the ground that tell you where the doors will be so you don't crowd before it and let people go out more easily. So another good point for the metro. We were out of the peak hours but it was still a bit crowded but people just got up to let Joelle take their seat. For once, being a gauri girl (a white girl) has an advantage. 

The station we had to go out was qutub minar, sort of an archaeological park with old buildings inside we can visit all you want as there's no indication plan or safety barrier that stop you on your way. Don't get us wrong, we really like the fact you can freely roam around the place, climbed on abandoned buildings and go out of the usual path. 

The mehrauli park presents the same organization with old buildings in a park but it's free and maybe bigger. And we got any now and then direction stones to situate ourselves between all the trees and ruins. We had the chance to visit unknown but beautiful sites like a huge tank water on three levels, or tombs which conserved their ceramic tiles decoration. We even got lost once, going more and more deep in what looked like untouched nature in which lay ruins of a residential area. This is what happens when you follow strange animals, a mix between a deer and a cow. 

We were already late into the day when we decided to move to our third stop : the Lodi gardens, where, unsurprisingly, you find tombs and mosques, but there's many more people inside, walking, jogging or just resting. Even if it was things that we've seen all day long, we still enjoyed the quietness of the place. And we may have enjoyed it a bit too much as we went out passed 8 PM, when it was dark, so it became a bit creepy because there was nobody on the street. If something would have happened, there wouldn't have been anybody to help.

Finally, a rickshaw stopped near us as a savior but, having seen our despair (we didn't exactly know where we were) he charged us way too much, apparently because we were two. Somehow, it did change something on the price. Back to the metro, we had only to go back to the hotel. We tried to go out by the railway station exit but didn't realise it was at the other side of the station, something which became clear after a good 10 minutes walk. Once again, an auto must have seen our despair (it was really getting late) and proposed us for an affordable price to drop us at the station, that we crossed to find the exit we were used to.

After all the walk and bargains, we didn't have the courage to go out of the hostel to eat (it was almost 9 PM) so we stopped at one of the many restaurants that punctures the street between the station and the hostel. We chose a veg one where we already ate the day before because it served good food for a very cheap price and, the day before, the refills were absolutely free. Back in our room, we just ate fast and dropped of exhaustion. It's really time to get fit again but what a amazing day it was.

We started this day with some kind of a routine while we headed directly after waking up to the cafe next door to eat, or devour, our breakfast. We had slept so much better in the new room we got after complaining about the non-windows fact that we had no problem not to be lazy and get a fresh start. In the cafe, there was a taxi rental agency which offered us to book a taxi for the entire day to visit the major sites of the city. It's obviously more expensive than if you go all by yourself but it spares you the stress of bargaining with a crowd of men who definitely think we are fools, while struggling with the noise and the heat. 

The first stop of our journey was the Red Fort, with the same idea of construction as in Agra or Fatehpur Sikri. We met a charming guide who accept to make us a visit for 45 minutes, and he must took his time very seriously because he left us in the last garden, quickly explaining some of the buildings before going somewhere else. He did still soften when he learned Chloe has been studying in MGD, but, even if he was good, it was definitely not the same great experience of Fatehpur Sikri. For the fort itself, we have to say that the one in Agra is more marvelous, but Delhi would have been very amazing when all the water plays were on. The all palace part is actually a maze of water strains that runs from place to place, crossing different buildings and falling down like waterfalls in huge basins. Where the water falls down, some spaces had been excavated to hold candles. It would surely have been fairy when the system was working, but in today's time, you only got the empty strains and our imagination to fill them up.

While going out, we made some shopping at the entrance, in a place built in the same time that the fort to allow the princesses and concubine who couldn't go out to shop. Actually, Joelle had forgotten her dupatta and needed a scarf for our next visit : the Jama Masjid. It's in the same quarter than the red fort but our driver couldn't drop us there because it's made a very little and buzzing streets, with lots of shops along the way. So, if you don't need jeans, or shirts, or sunglasses, or fruits with flies, you will have to say no more than a couple of time but we must confess that the sellers were not of the insistent type, which made the ballad quite good. The first hard time happened when we arrived at the mosque. We climbed the stairs then set to take off our shoes when a man stopped us because we were not Muslim, so we weren't allowed during prayer time. You could enter at 2 o'clock only, approximately after a one hour wait. It's particularly irritating because the only people pushed away were only the white or yellow ones. We're sure a great deal of Hindu did enter the mosque while we were sunbathing.

As we were seating on the stairs, a little girl of 10 years came for a little chat but her English was as vague as our Hindi so we just ended clicking pictures. We had a bad time trying to understand that she wanted the pictures printed then Chloe tried even harder to make her understand that we couldn't as we didn't have the proper cable and that it would be more easy to send them on facebook. Finally, lost in disappear, she just asked random people if they understand English and meet a very nice young man who translated the discussion and then offered us lunch. We declined his offer because we were still waiting for the entry but it had been a nice encounter. 

Eventually, the entrance guy came to say prayer time was over and, after waving the we-can-come-in sign to the other foreigners, we walked inside... to be stopped as shortly by the entrance guy who asked us 300 rps each as fees, a cost mentioned in and by no guide (the attraction is set as free), something that pissed us off. Well decided to make as much as she can of the unexpected fee, Joelle made a rapid tour of the mosque, where's no much is to be seen except the grandiloquence of the building itself, with information only in Hindi and in Arabic, none of languages we're soon to mastered. But the fuss was not off. When we fetched our shoes back, the guy asked 50 rps, something Joelle did not appreciate at all and, with an angry voice, did make the guy understand that we had been fooled enough, and that 20 rps was largely enough. After that, he did not bother us anymore. 

A bit disappointed by our last visit, we headed back to the red fort then to the car, to continue our discovery of the city. The next stop was the lotus temple, a huge building in the form of a lotus, which is hosted in a big garden. You need to walk a long way under the sun before arriving at the temple itself where you're welcomed by water pool you just want to jump in. The building itself is very calm and kind of fresh and you can seat in silence and enjoy the place as much as you want. Unfortunately, we couldn't stay long because it was already 3.30 PM and we still didn't have lunch so we were afraid that our hungry stomachs would break the peace of the place. 

After a break made of honey chilly potatoes and rolls chicken, we went to our last stops, where nothing were really to visit but made great pictures. In this list figures the Gate of India, the Parliament and the House of the President. Actually, for the two latter ones and for question of safety, no car can stop in the street too long so, by extension, can enter inside without proper excuse like I am a minister. Anyway, we made a fake dropping of Chloe and she clicked some pictures while waiting the car to make a u-turn. 

After this small trick, we drove back to the hostel to shower and rest, preparing for the tomorrow visits. We're definitely not in fit shape anymore and this day was a bit tiring (but not exhausting). Joelle can't wait to test the metro tomorrow so we try to make our day trip accordingly.