Up bright and early to make sure we made the most of our only full day in Jaipur. First stop was the railway station where we bought a ticket from Ajmer (the nearest train station to our next destination, Pushkar) to Udaipur. We then headed to a recommended travel agent to book our bus from Jaipur to Pushkar.

Afterwards we had our first experience of a cycle rickshaw, which was more comfortable than expected, except for the bumps when riding over the potholes in the road!

Our first port of call was the City Palace, part of which is still inhabited by the royal family. It was a lovely complex with several courtyard in the centre. Sarah bought some bargain souvenirs from the indoor craft hall. We had our photos taken with some guards in traditional uniform (they offered), however when we were done they asked us for a tip! Cheek! So we continued our tour and did a runner out of another exit, so we didn't have to walk past them with the 'change' we were going to get for their tip!

Next stop - Jantar Mantar, a huge astrological observatory, which offered good views of the Hillside Fort, City Palace and Hawa Mahal.

We then walked to the Hawa Mahal to take photographs, but found it was covered in scaffolding. By this time it was only early afternoon so we walked to the city's central park for a rest in the sunshine, it was only when we were leaving that we noticed that we were being stared at by all the men in the park! - There were no other women, let alone Westerners!

After walking so far today, we decided to return to the railway station for further enquiries (forgetting it was Sunday when it closes early!), by auto rickshaw. The guys who hardly spoke English took us to the wrong station, where we were mobbed by a crowd of local Indian males! They finally got us to the right station, after charging an extra 30 Rupees! What a mare!

After this ordeal we headed back to our hotel on foot and went to a nearby rooftop restaurant for our spiciest meal yet (veg curry for Laura and veg chow mein for Sarah - yes Sarah is a wimp!)

Off to Pushkar tomorrow, hopefully a quiet retreat compared to Jaipur!