|
About
Rajasthan Tours
 Rajasthan is one of the most colourful and exotic states in
India. Much of it is desert. There are beautiful palaces and
huge stone forts all over the state built by the Rajputs who
held power here for a thousand years. Rajput means "son of a
prince", and the Rajputs were fierce and brave warrior clans
who had a sense of honour and chivalry like that of the
Knights of Old England. This led to many feuds and battles
over the centuries, and because the Rajputs would rather die
than surrender, many many lost their lives this way. Later the
Rajput rulers became very friendly with the British and began
going to Europe, often with the entire family, spending huge
amounts of money shopping and staying in the fanciest hotels.
In the meantime, they lost control of a lot of their lands in
Rajasthan to the British.
When India became independant in
1947 the Rajputs one by one were convinced to become part of
the new India and signed away their lands and their
lifestyles. Many families converted their palaces to museums
or hotels in order to continue to have an income.There are
many colourful events and festivals in Rajasthan. Every year
in November a huge camel fair is held in the desert when
traders of camels, buffaloes and oxen come together to buy and
sell their animals.
There is singing, dancing and
camel races and the traders and visitors stay in tents set up
in the sand specially for this event. In March, in Jaipur,
there is the Elephant Festival, when hundreds of elephants are
decorated with beautiful fabrics and jewels and paraded
through the streets. Rajasthan is a land of colourful
festivals, history and traditions, and in some parts of the
state you can almost imagine that not much has changed in
hundreds of years.
|
