#I finally drew someone other than a macaque | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

callmemrskenway · 2 years

Note

Hello! If you are taking requests at this time, would you be able to do a prompt? The characters would be Macaque, MK, Sun Wukong, and the Scorpion Queen (separate) x reader (gn)

The prompt is that the reader is a traveling bard, wondering from place to place playing songs. The reader has made friends with them, often seeing each other. The reader doesn't play that many romance-related songs, but recently they have been playing more of them. These songs turn out to be about them! But the reader made the lyrics vague enough to where they could have plausible deniability that it isn't (they are nervous that their crush doesn't the same way about them). Then one day, they sorta figure it out.

I really loved this prompt but I only really did Macaque and The Scorpion Demoness but still, I hope you enjoy!

Macaque:

- Honestly meets you after the events of S3 so he's just doing his own thing and minding his own business. Not exactly sure what about you drew him to you, maybe it was your skillful playing or maybe his heart felt drawn to you but either way, you two become close.

- Close enough that he opens up his old shadow puppet theater again but this time, you play music accompaniment to his stories. Becoming co-workers and friends, Macaque knew a lot about you from your quirks to your habits.

- One thing he knew is that you weren't really the type to make love songs. Usually it was songs of heroes, of great tragedies, or other things like that. At first, he didn't notice it but it appears that everytime you play and sing to warm up, the songs have become...more romantic than usual.

- First, he believes that you're just expanding genres, that's something that musicians do, right? However, he notices the emotion in your voice, the passion in your fingertips as you play, and the only conclusion is that you might be in love...and that bothers him for some reason.

- He knows it shouldn't but the idea of you singing such songs about someone else makes him...a little jealous. Plus, how hasn't he noticed it earlier? You guys literally never hang out with anyone much other than each other.

- He starts being more observant of you when crowds come to your shows, seeing if maybe your crush is a member of the audience but your eyes never seem to drawn to anyone other than him. Your eyes, that seem to be glued to him...that seem to look at him like he was your whole world, that light up everytime you see him.

- He wonders why you look at him like that if you like someone else. When common sense finally starts to work and he pieces together your behavior, he decides to express his feelings for you through his art like how you've been doing.

- So he proposes the idea of a romance story for the shadow puppet theater tonight, and you're surprised but happy to play along. He doesn't tell you what the story is about, though, but you were good at improvising.

- Later that night, you sit in your spot where everyone can hear your music as you watch excitedly to see your beloved Macaque do his thing.

- The story was about a shadow, a shadow who was lonely and left behind. Your fingers played a sad tune as your heart internally wept, you knew this story all too well when it came to Macaque. The shadow is bitter and angry, but then it hears a beautiful song and discovers it's coming from an even more beautiful/handsome musician. A musician whose silhouette is strikingly similar to your own.

- You're in shock for a bit, feeling flustered when Macaque's voice narrates how the shadow had loved the musician but had overhead the musician playing love songs. At first, the shadow is angry and jealous at the thought of someone else having the musician's love. However, and this was the part that you made realize this story probably had a lot more truth to it than you realized, it turned out that the musician was singing about the shadow.

- The show then comes to an abrupt end and everyone is curious as to what happens next, you meet with him backstage and you ask him: "So, uh, what happened to the musician and the shadow after, you know, the shadow found out about...the musician...you know...crushing on them?"

- He smirks at you before leaning his face close to yours taunting, your lips close enough to kiss one another: "Who knows? I just told the story. You get to chose how it ends, my musician."

Scorpion Demoness:

- You meet her after she saves you from being attacked by a group of thugs when you were traveling through her territory. She helped make sure you recovered and she was really curious about your instrument.

- Absolutely loves your voice and your singing and is delighted when you do either. She likes hearing songs of your travels, hearing songs of stories that have already been told or you made up on the spot. You even try to teach her how to play on some occasions and she does her best to make sure she doesn't damage your instrument.

- Love songs are her favorite, you find out. Whether its simply about love or telling a tale of love, she longs and wishes for a day when someone writes a love song about her but she knows you don't really sing them all that often so she doesn't push.

- However, when she overhears you warming up and singing a song of your own in the fly and its a love song, her heart swoons. Not just out of excitement but also because she imagines that you wrote it for her.

- Yeah, no, she's whipped for you instantly and that's just a fact. She asks if you can sing your love songs around her more and you just get really shy and nervous, because, well, what if she finds out it actually is about her?

- However, you can't deny her hopeful face as she looks up at you with her beautiful eyes. She's so gorgeous and entrancing and you just figure that all you have to do is just try your best to keep the lyrics vague.

- I'm sorry but she would be so oblivious to your crush on her and you only get the confidence when her crush on you becomes, like, REALLY obvious.

- She just doesn't seem like the subtle type so like, the more and more you sing love songs, she seems to day dream and stare at you in a way you've never her seen her stare at anyone before and you ask if she's okay and she's absolutely flustered because UM, YEAH, OF COURSE SHE'S OKAY, HAHA, WHY WOULDN'T SHE BE OKAY!? Man, is it just her or did it suddenly get hot in here-

- Since she is now friends with Jin and Yin, they're just kinda...witnessing this stuff go down. Jin obviously is gonna help and Yin wants to let you guys figure things out because who knows what Jin is gonna fucking do.

- Eventually, he just...shouts out that you both like each other and that the songs you sing are meant for the Scorpion Demoness and that the Scorpion Demoness likes you back and the both of you are shocked.

- She just looks at you and asks if that's true and your first instinct is to deny it but then you see the hopeful smile on your face and your heart melts and you just shyly admit that, yeah, your love songs where kinda meant for her.

- AND SHE JUST IS SO HAPPY SHE DOESN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO OTHER THAN JUST PULL YOU INTO HER ARMS AND, LIKE, JUDT CRIES FROM HAPPINESS.

- She gets embarrassed for reacting in such a way but then she just kinda fidgets with her hands and is all: "So, um, are we...you know...dating now?"

- Man, you honestly don't understand how someone can be SO ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE.

#HOPEFULLY YOU LIKE THESE BUT ALSO FKWJGISJGJEBGJRJ THANK YOU FOR REQUESTING SCORPION DEMONESS.#GJEJFJR SHE MAKES ME FEEL THINGS.#Also the way I got so self-indulgent with Macaque's tho.#lmk scorpion demoness #lmk scorpion demoness x reader #lmk macaque x reader #macaque x reader #lmk x reader #lego monkie kid

324 notes · View notes

mythologyfolklore · 7 months

Text

Liù'ěr Míhóu joins the jttw gang, or: How to redeem an all-hearing celestial monkey with a superiority complex and a seriously bad attitude

(A/N: Trigger warning: Misgendering, verbal abuse, emotional breakdown)

Chapter 4: Wukong needs pats (and he gets them!)

Sūn Wùkōng had found a small clearing in the forest beside a lake and decided to rest there.

Though rest wasn't really the word; he curled up under a big shrub, closed his eyes and tried to calm himself down.

He couldn't calm down.

It was pathetic.

He was the Monkey King, he had wrought havoc in heaven, overwhelmingly powerful, indestructible and seven times immortal.

He shouldn't be this affected by mere words.

But …

“I don't want you anymore! Leave! … Lawless ape! Why are you bothering me again?”

I don't want you anymore.

I don't want you anymore …

He sniffled and hid his face in his arms.

Wùkōng didn't know how long he had been curled up underneath the bush, when he heard someone approach his hiding place.

Long, soft steps … clearly their owner was tall, but doing their best to be careful.

“Eldest Brother?”, a voice called out.

Ah. It was Shā Wùjìng.

“I'm here”, he called back and in response the footsteps drew nearer. The hem of a sand yellow robe and finally the river spirit's freckled face, as he crouched down to check under the bush.

Shā's face lightened up with relief. “There you are, Eldest Brother!” He shifted and laid on his stomach to be in a more comfortable position. “The others and I have been so worried about you. Are you o-oh.” His expression saddened. “I suppose that answers it.”

Wùkōng blinked. “Wha-?” Only then did he notice the tears running down his face. “Oh … yeah … not doing so hot right now.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”, Shā offered.

“… The Six-Eared Macaque can hear us.”

“But we're a whole mile away …?”

“Those six ears of hers aren't just for show”, the Monkey King explained. “She can hear pretty much everything. Present, past and future.”

The river demon pulled a face. “Is that how she hijacked our mission and made that plan to impersonate us all? That's messed up … ah, whatever. Anyway, my offer still stands. But … could you come out?”

The monkey heaved a sigh, crawled out from under the shrub and settled next to his companion, as the other sat back up, and curled his tail around himself.

“… Did you hear that back there?”, Wùkōng asked. “Him confirming what the Six-Eared Macaque claimed he'd said?”

“Of course.”

“Our master said … he said, he doesn't want me.”

As response Shā placed a comforting hand on Wùkōng's back. The Monkey sighed and leaned into the large webbed hand.

“… I know, I shouldn't let it get to me like that, it's just … words.”

Shā shook his head. “No, Eldest Brother, don't say that.” He gave the other a few gentle scritches. “Words hurt. Sometimes more so than any physical wound. A sword cuts the flesh, but a cruel remark hurts the soul. Words can break someone. Especially, when you're being told, that you're unwanted. No matter how many times you hear that, it will always hurt the same. Tripitaka has been treating you unfairly lately, and then there is everything else that has happened in the last days and the fact that the perpetrator is now our new sister. You've reached your breaking point. And that's okay. Just know this; whenever you feel like you're falling apart, our brothers and I will be there to help you pick up the pieces. Okay?”

Wùkōng nodded and gave the other a watery smile. “Thanks. I needed that.”

Shā smiled back. “Always happy to help. Now”, he stood up, “how about we go back? A nice and quiet walk, just you and me? Or, if you don't like quiet, we can talk about our new sister. What do you think?”

The Monkey King wiped his eyes on his sleeves, before climbing up the river demon and settling on his shoulder.

“I would love that, Old Shā.”

#journey to the west #sun wukong #sha wujing #tw: misgendering #tw: verbal abuse mention

3 notes · View notes

skellebonez · 3 years

Note

With the prompt list, how about someone seeing MK with Monkie King with number 15?

Picking prompts back up with a nice dose of Dad Wukong! I needed some fluff! This is set in *shrug* post-season 2 because despite us only having 2 episodes so far I’m going to pretend season 2 wraps up just enough to give us a hook for a possible 3rd season but everyone is doing ok. For now. I just want everyone in the show to be safe and happy dang it!

Oh god, you’re just like your dad.

"Where to next?" MK asked, looking around the shopping district in excitement. It had taken him so long to convince Sun Wukong to actually join him on a day of just hanging out, outside of a couple short trips to the Anti-Gravity Arcade, and he wanted to cram as much into the day as humanly possible. "Video game store? Cheese tea stall? The new bakery, th-!?"

"Whoa, Bud, slow down!" Wukong eased with a smile. "We have all day. We can go wherever."

"And you’re sure you’re doing good?" Despite the Monkey King's soft tone, MK couldn't help but practically vibrate in equal parts excitement and worry. "There aren't too many people or anything?"

His concerns weren't unwarranted. Sun Wukong had been nearly completely isolated for centuries, company kept only with the monkeys of his mountain home and the odd outing into the world outside. And, of course, online correspondence with his lawyer after a time. Typically he was transformed in some way, a butterfly or bird or cat or something easy to blend in, and though he had made a couple short stops in a human disguise in the past. A quick drink here, a bun or fruit cup there. Nothing that required more than a quick transaction, however.

Now he was in the city, Wàn Qiān Chéng, in that human disguise and staying around. In jeans and a t-shirt and jacket (that MK was genuinely shocked to know he owned, until he realized that they were all branded Monkey King merchandise... including his jeans). Surrounded by people and cars and all manner of things the Monkey King would typically avoid. Despite the gradual introduction to being out and about MK was trying to ease him into, he couldn't help but worry that it would be overwhelming.

"Like I told you before, I'm doing fine!" Wukong put a hand in MK's hair, ruffling it gently with a soft smile.The sudden contact was... well, not that unusual actually. Nor was it unwelcome. The Monkey King always seemed to be a tactile person after all. "But, uh, now that I think about it I am getting kind of hungry. There was a little food stall pretty close by that I’ve been to a few times..."

“Oh, yeah!” MK exclaimed in glee, any place that his mentor frequented (however rarely) must be somewhere nice and he absolutely wanted to experience that! “Lead the way!”

Wukong laughed at MK’s exuberant response, smile softening as he indeed lead the way. “It’s, uh... actually the only place I’ve gone to for food when I’m checking in on you. So don’t be surprised, they’re going to recognize me.”

Ah, that made sense in MK’s mind. Had this been a few weeks ago MK might have been surprised to know that he was being checked in on, Heck, if this was before the Lunar New Year festival he would called anyone who told him a liar. Sun Wukong was not protective of him and he always left MK on his own because he trusted him!

And that last statement was very correct. Wukong did trust MK, more than enough. He knew he could handle just about anything that he would have gotten thrown at him. But not protective was a lie. Maybe it was Macaque, or maybe it was the Spider Queen, but after a while something in his mentor changed. He went from being aloof but helpful to being nearly non-existent (and when MK learned exactly what he had actually been doing he was not happy) and then “I’m just checking in, Bud, my dude, my student who I am not at all protective of what are you talking about” upon his return from his “vacation”.

Wukong trusted his student to handle himself. But that didn’t mean he didn’t worry about him now that the full extent of the danger he had put him in was known. And while some parts of it had been frustrating at times (he had been way too eager to stay at the Noodle Shop at first for Pigsy’s liking) it was kind of nice to have him around in just a casual way. Like when they watched the fireworks.

But beside that point, they finally arrived at the food stall. It was a street vendor, the booth decked out in bright colors and rows of food on offer, mostly...

“Baozi, should have known,” MK chuckled. The Monkey King didn’t make a lot of food at his home, but he made more than enough. Baozi was one of his favorites. “Well, they have got to be good if you keep coming back!”

“They’re not the only reason!” Wukong replied as they stepped up, the lady vendor doing a double take before smiling wide at him. “Hey!”

“Mr. Cheung!” She smiled wide, turning her full attention to the customers. “Well isn’t this a pleasant surprise, you’re a day early! Would you like your usual vegetarian order again?”

“Yes, please!” Wukong’s smile was wide, and if his tail had not been wrapped around his waist MK was certain it would have been swishing wildly. He’d clearly gained some kind of rapport with the vendor of this stall if they were on a “human disguise name” basis. “And, uh, something for my bud here too. Doesn’t have to be vegetarian for him though.”

“I’ll take whatever you think is tasty!” MK stated excitedly, nearly bouncing on his heels in the spot.

"Oh god, you’re just like your dad," the vendor laughed out with a smile as she turned away from them, and Wukong froze beside MK in response.

MK froze in response.

The Monkie Kid was almost certain he had never seen his mentor go this still. Ever.

" Oh no, he's n-"

"He is, huh!? Peach doesn't fall far from the tree!" Wukong laughed almost giddily and almost excessively loud, suddenly wrapping an arm around MK's shoulder and reaching around with his other arm to ruffle his hair once again. “He’s kind of embarrassed anytime someone points that out.”

MK could hear the vendor chuckling and responding with something else, but he couldn’t really understand it as he mulled over what Sun Wukong had just said.

“He is, huh!?”

He didn’t deny the vendor’s assumption at all. He just... went with it. Sun Wukong... just went with someone assuming MK was his son...

He barely paid attention when they were handed their food, the vendor insisting that since he was such a loyal customer that it was free of charge for finally introducing his son to her. Wukong did not deny it again, making pleasant conversation for a short while before they headed off. Wukong’s free hand was firm on his back as he led him away.

“Bud?” Wukong said once they were out of earshot, his tone oddly soft and uncertain for someone of his status. “That uh... I mean... you see... I wasn’t expecting her to just...”

“Have you been bragging about me like I’m your kid to a street vendor every time to check up on me?” MK asked softly, unable to keep the hopeful tone out of his voice.

“... maybe?”

“... you adopted me and you didn’t tell me?” MK asked with half joking offense in his tone, pointing his baozi at his mentor. He couldn’t keep the smile off his face as he said it.

And it seemed that somehow the combination of the way he said that and his exuberant expression drove the Monkey King into a fit of laughter that drew the attention of many passersby.

(The baozi were, as expected of a place that Sun Wukong would frequent, some of the best that MK had ever tasted in his life. Though, perhaps, they were made all the tastier knowing that he was eating them with someone who he had long secretly considered a father figure to him who had seemingly adopted him without meaning to.)

#i have one alias name for sun wukong and i am sticking to it #monkie kid #lego monkie kid #gen fic #mk #Qi Xiaotian #monkey king #sun wukong #dad wukong #this relies on some possible assumptions about episodes that don't exist at the time of writing #BUT I CAN DREAM #prompt fill

220 notes · View notes

tnaypi3 · 4 years

Text

Pushkar & Jaipur

Starting our day early for our 4hr drive to Pushkar.

Our driver, Hassan sent his buddy and fellow cab driver, Raeez to go with us. I’m not a fan of these kinds of surprises but it ended up being a nice change of atmosphere. He was a quieter, chill dude and unlike Hassan who sometimes tries to sway me away from my itinerary while suggesting other things that are usually very touristy. Raeez, who even though doesn’t speak much English, is my favorite because he is kind, fuss-free, doesn’t have schemes up his sleeve and is definitely quirky in his own little way ;-)

Asked why Hassan couldn’t make it, Raeez said he found a good deal with an older tourist couple and will be touring them around Jaipur for the day.

The drive was long but smooth. The farther we get, the quieter and less congested the streets are. But because of less traffic, the switching of lanes has become more dizzying as your driver is picking up speed. Surprisingly, none of us got sick (literally) of this. I had an entire collection of essential oils for all sorts of sickness and we never got to use the one for motion sickness!

I’m very captivated, almost bewitched by the sight of these holy men

First camel sighting! Soooo exciting!!!

Pushkar is unlike anywhere else in Rajasthan. This small, yet enchanting town has a unique mix of mysticism, religious fervour, and magnetism. Life here is so simple and I got the most rural feel from this place compared to all the others that we’ve been to.

The town itself encircles a holy lake, thought to have been created when Lord Brahma vanquished a demon, Vajranash, using a lotus flower. The lotus flower fell to the ground, creating Pushkar lake. To this day, the town contains one of the world’s only Brahma temples, making it a prominent Hindu pilgrimage town that devout Hindus should visit at least once in their lives.

Each year, once the month of Kartika (a popular Indian feminine given name derived from the god Kartikeya, which means "bestower of courage") arrives, 200,000 people descend on Pushkar, bringing with them 50,000 camels and horses. The city is transformed into a colourful, heaving mass of animals, tourists, mystics and musicians and traders arrive to flog their livestock.

Although business is the main order of the day, once the fair starts, a vibrant and diverse cultural program draws in the crowds; snake charmers, wedding parades, sports and competitions for ‘best moustache’ or ‘most beautifully decorated camel’ fill up the schedule.

Aside from all of the festivities, Kartik Purnima is also the time when thousands of pilgrims arrive in Pushkar to bathe in the sacred waters.

The fair takes place in November. Lucky us? We sure feel like it. I kept blurting out “Alex, how are we in Pushkar, in the middle of a camel fair right now?!”

According to the internet, there are about 400 temples in Pushkar. We saw a handful, randomly picking out colorful or enigmatic, old looking ones to enter. The town hums and vibrates to the constant sound of chanting, drumming and incense-fuelled puja (act of worship).

Pushkar is considered sacred, so many rules that apply within India’s religious sites, apply within the town as a whole.

Consumption of alcohol, meat or eggs is not allowed within 2 km of the Brahma temple. Not that this affects us since we couldn’t eat anything here anyway. Most of the food spots are stalls, kiosk, or in tents and I didn’t want to risk it. Foreigners are always reminded that when in India, only eat at places that look like they have a legitimate kitchen and absolutely not a makeshift one, where many other foreigners are going, places that look clean and that observe proper sanitation, etc.

Everything looked yummy but one can never be complacent with picking out restaurants. We never let our guards down when it came to protecting our bellies!

We spent all early afternoon getting lost and weaving our way through a maze of stalls selling all kinds of goods from pots and lamps to spices, accessories, clothing, handcrafted bags and shoes, instruments, tapestries, etc. Admittely, I have a weakness for moments like this but I kept reminding myself that we really don’t have any room in our luggage for a shopping spree. I equally hated and loved being restricted in a haven like this, surrounded by all things pretty, exotic and cheap.

We spent too much time wandering around the bazaar and temple area with the intention of finding where the camels were kept. Finally we made our way to a more open space and found the stadium.

Sadly, they had the camel shows earlier during the day so we missed it. No losses here though. We were very much satisfied with all our camel sightings and encounters.

The Pushkar camel fair is a livestock festival which happens annually and falls on the Kartik moon according to the Hindu astrological calendar.

Camels from all over Rajasthan, Punjab and beyond will be showcased here and to in an effort to make them more alluring to prospective buyers, they’re decorated in all sorts of colorful pom-poms, elegant cloths, anklets, flowers and flair!

We were offered a lot of camel safari rides but refused each time. Out of the question! Our driver couldn’t understand why. He was upset but in a funny and cute way when he later on asked if we did the infamous tourist activity. We explained to him our stance on animal cruelty, even though we are well aware that the lines on this subject may be blurred and crooked in places and cultures like India’s. But we still tried. I think he understood what we were saying but stiil... ;)

Kartik Poornima is the full moon day and the main day of the fair. This is also where one can catch hundreds of Hindus bathing in Pushkar’s holy lake. The legends say this is the day that Lord Brahma, the creator of the world in Hindu mythology, created the very lake which still stands today.

This was moments before my attention was called by the city guards to tell me that photographs are prohibited. It was only then that it dawned on me.. Of course, because people are bathing here. We people-watched and roamed around for half an hour, observing men and women of all ages and coming from all walks of life praying and doing their rituals.

Wrapping up our Camel Fair adventures in Pushkar

Back in the cab

Budha Pushkar

As per our driver’s suggestion, we stopped by this prayer stadium and sacred ponds. It was not a popular place as we did not see many tourists or locals. So, in absolute silence we walked around and maybe have taken a moment to just gaze at the jade waters and majestic hills surrounding it. A nice way to end our Pushkar adventures before heading back to the city.

Good morning! Another full day in Jaipur to explore!

First stop: City Palace

Jaipur is often referred to by one of its many nicknames; The City of Gates, The Pink City or The Paris of India. However, the present-day metropolis that is modern Jaipur has been built on centuries of history. This is the ‘Land of the Kings’, the realm of maharajas, where majestic forts and opulent palaces are more numerous than anywhere else in India. No wonder why my Disney-adoring little girl heart has been borderline obsessed over seeing this part of India. This day is one of the main reasons I voted for Jaipur to be a part of our trip.

The splendors of Rajasthan’s past are still here to explore. At the centre of Jaipur, the elegant City Palace, still housing the former royal family, is an island of tranquillity.

Here you can enter through the pink outer walls to find a maze-like complex of gardens, courtyards, halls and buildings.

Sarvato Bhadra

The Sarvato Bhadra is a unique architectural feature. The unusual name refers to the building's form: a Sarvato Bhadra is a single-storeyed, square, open hall, with enclosed rooms at the four corners. One use of the Sarvato Bhadra was as the Diwan-e-Khas, or the Hall of Private Audience, which meant the ruler could hold court with the officials and nobles of the kingdom in a more private, intimate space than the grand spaces of the Sabha Niwas in the next courtyard, which was open to more people.

Several rooms

Pritam Niwas Chowk

Here, there are four small gates known as Ridhi Sidhi Pol. These gates are adorned with themes symoblising four different seasons and Hindu gods. At the centre, above each of the gates are miniature carved reliefs in marble dedicated to the respective gods. All four gates have beautiful, embossed brass doors.

I snapped 2 of 4 having grown tired of waiting in line for the rest of our fellow tourist to finish and move on

Mubarak Mahal

There is no doubt that the grounds are an architectural masterpiece. From the pink sandstone architecture in the pavilion, the intricate design of Mubarak Mahal, and the chiselled marble stone structures, the city palace is both elegant and artistic.

Leaving the City Palace on foot, we set off to Hawa Mahal. Surprisingly, Google Maps didn’t let us down. I successfully got us there without getting lost. I didn’t tell Alex but my heart was dancing, bursting with pride and satisfaction.

Absolutely adoring the scenes here

This was a photo snapped after seeing the monkeys squabbling. As we drew closer, we realized that they were shrieking and yelping at something or someone to the opposite side of the road, where a dozen middle-aged tourists were loving and snapping the monkeys in action.

Our theory is that perhaps one of the merchants hurt them in an effort to drive them away from the food/goods that they are selling. We all know how these Macaque’s can be aggressive and are expert thieves. Still not cool to hurt them though :(

The Hawa Mahal / Palace of Winds

We made it! I am shaking and my pulse is picking up again! The marvelous honeycomb facade of the Hawa Mahal looms over a traffic-clogged thoroughfare. The city’s pink-tinted walls are punctuated with 7 imposing, decorative gates. Look further to the right and you will find sprawling hilltop fortresses, Escher-like step wells, and temples left to the care of roaming packs of monkeys.

One of Jaipur’s most iconic and distinctive landmarks, the Hawa Mahal was constructed in 1799 by Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh as a way to allow ladies of the royal household to watch life on the streets below without being seen themselves. The five-storey tall honeycomb hive facade consists of 953 latticework windows for the ladies viewing pleasure.

For once, we decided to resist yet another tourist trap so we skipped paying for the Palace entrance fee and opted for a more underrated experience. Having googled another way to appreciate the Hawa Mahal, I led Alex to the opposite side of the street and looked for the entrance that would take us to the the Wind View Cafe which have absolute prime spots for viewing the structure’s magnificence to our hearts’ content. Or more like to my heart’s content. I love this day!!!

While trying to figure our where the cafe’s entrance was in the street level, I had another encounter with a young fellow. He and some others, like clockwork, came up to us. I asked if this door leads to the cafe, pointing to the entrance where my GPS brought us. He said yes and went ahead, taking the stairs up before I could say there’s no need to accompany us. On our way up, I thought “Ugh, here we go again. He’s not gonna let us get away without any kind of scheme or something”. It was a very narrow, tight squeeze climb with several flights of winding stairs. He stopped at the second to the last level and directed us to the Tattoo Cafe. I said we were going to the Wind View Cafe. He was being pushy so I stood my ground. He saw that I refused to be swayed and meant it. This had him upset and started acting sour. He says “You come to our home and you do this to us. You are not a good person”. Sounds familiar. Right away, I realized this is a formulaic dance of intimidation and mind games that some of them pull out from their back pocket in situations like this. Again, I apologized to him saying I didn’t mean to offend, explained my side while looking him in the eye. He left without another word. But the unwanted energy sure was lingering and thick as the smog outside.

The city’s bustling streets burst with colour and chaos. Cycle rickshaws weave among clouds of exhaust and soot as they dodge camels, cars and the occasional dawdling elephant. Swarms of motorbikes honk and buzz through the city’s vibrant marketplaces and grand gateways. Not the most relaxing breakfast with a view but we’ll take it!

Heading back to the City Palace to meet with or driver. Another mini adventure because we did not exactly have the name of the spot where he said he’d wait for us. I went by my memory of the small pocket where he said was a parking lot for cabs, marking it in my mind being remotely close to the Jantar Mantar, another tourist spot we opted out. But walking around, I realized that everything started looking alike. If we weren’t pressed for time, I wouldn’t mind getting lost but OMG, I have a serious itinerary and I wanna hit all the remaining spots before the day ends please!! This is our last day in Jaipur, if I haven’t mentioned that already!!!

After about 10mins of me oficially declaring to Alex that I think we’re lost, two girls passed by. I asked, pointing to a direction we haven’t tried yet, if the Jantar Mantar is that way. Giggling they said yes, I thank them with two fruit juices from our backpack and carried on. I wonder what was so funny? Haha!

Jal Mahal

It says a lot about the sheer quantity of beautiful buildings on display in Jaipur that the Jal Mahal, or ‘Water Palace’, isn’t overrun with visitors peering across Man Sagar Lake in the hope of glimpsing it. In any other city, it would be the main tourist draw. At the moment, the palace is undergoing extensive renovations meaning that it cannot be accessed but it is worth stopping off on the road if one is headed to the famous Japur forts.

Jaigarh Fort

An opulent structure built in the early 18th century in the city of Amer and is one of the major forts in Jaipur. It is located next to the magnificent Amber Fort. The main aim for constructing this fort was to protect the Fort of Amber from Invaders.

Breathtaking views!

Wanna see every nook and cranny of this stunning place

The Jaigarh Fort is a majestic stronghold built by Sawan Jai Singh II. This almost-intact fort is surrounded by huge battlements and is connected to the Amer Fort (also called 'Amber' Fort), with subterranean passages. Sadly it’s not accessible to the public.

The fort houses the world's largest cannon on wheels, a majestic palace complex and the assembly hall of the warriors known as 'Shubhat Niwas' along with a museum and an armory. Yeah, we skipped seeing the cannon part hehehe. We have better things to do!

The Amber Fort can be seen at the center of this photo.

The one thing you can see from anywhere in Amer are the huge red sandstone walls of Jaigarh Fort. It may seem endless from certain angles but it is only a total of 3kms long.

Shot and directed by Alex. I approve :)

The watchtower that offers a magnificent view of the landscape below

The stunning Amber Fort which we skipped because it’s too touristy

So ready for our favorite part of the day - food! hahaha

I’ve noticed that the farther we are from the touristy areas, the more authentic, less fuss and not overpriced our meals were. And these are our absolute favorite moments. Don’t get me wrong, we loved and adored about 95% of all our meals on this trip. At times though, as restaurants in busier areas attempt to cater to foreigners and make it universally palatable, the local cuisine almost loses it’s magic.

This is one’s for the books though and this day just kept getting better and better.

As we were finishing up our lunch, a commotion outside drew our and the rest of the diners’ attention. Our eyes fixed at the door and windows, without warning, there came monkeys leaping off roofs and running wild in different directions. Cab drivers, restaurant workers and tourists though laughing fondly at our primate friends were shooing them away from the dining areas.

Like our last few encounters with wild monkeys, we both couldn’t contain our excitement. Alex, as always finished before me so I urged him to go and I’ll catch up with him as soon as I finish and pay our bill.

As if we needed more min-blowing moments from this day... Fam and friends, I present to you the Grey Langur monkeys of Jaigarh Fort!!! WHAAAAT?!?!?!

It took me about 10 more mins to finish my food and find Alex. This is how I found him HAHAHA

Then this happened. I almost dropped to the floor and roll laughing

“NOOOO”

The Grey Langur is a group of Old World Monkeys.

They are large, inhabiting animal and mainly found in the areas which are located in the Indian Subcontinent. These langurs are generally of grey color, with a black face. Male grey langurs are up to 75 cm long and female langurs are 65 cm long

And according to the internet, historically and up to date, these guys at the fort have not harmed any human. They were just doing their own thing, monkeying around, pretty uninterested with us boring humans.

We did witness this particular shameless one who came on to a cab driver walking by who had a bag of Lays chips on hand. Without second thought, the driver surrendered his chips. And I’m not sure if it was already opened or not but the monkey was gorging on it right away.

Old chips thief!

Couldn’t get enough of this mumma and bebeh monkeh. Too precious!!!

These two pups were trying to engage the langurs in a playtime cuddle session but went unnoticed. We saw one in a submissive stance drawing himself close to the monkeys to no avail. Too cute!

As soon as we thought we were done for the day, on our way to the exit, a guard ushered us to what looked like a passageway to a tunnel. At first I wasn’t interested but for whatever reason, we still found ourselves walking into it moments later.

More surprises in store! More halls, courtyards, secret rooms and gardens. The tunnel also led us to what seemed like a hidden room but if you keep going, inside is a puppeteer who’s just waiting to give any one a show. Too content with everything we are experiencing, we passed on that.

It’s worth mentioning though, what an eerie yet fantastical vibe it was in there. I heard females, animated voices talking as I was entering that room but came to only saw one person, a man. In that moment it definitely gave me heebeegeebees. I kept telling Alex it sounded like there were more than one person in there.

With our super lovable and dear driver, Raeez. About 30mins before this picture was taken, all three of us in his cab felt completely lost and desperate in a maze of winding and bumpy roads in the middle of a residential area, passing though the tiniest alleys and roads of our lives which of course, our driver expertly navigated through without a sweat. We were reluctantly moving to another hotel for the night because our hotel messed up our reservations. It was a last minute booking but the good thing is it was right next to Jaipur Airport which we need to be at 8am the following day.

All our GPS kept leading us to vacant lots if not dead ends instead of our newly booked hotel. We couldn’t find a phone number in their website nor in the email confirmation I got from them. We asked a passerby but he has never heard of such hotel. Alex started thinking maybe I got scammed? Oh God. Everyone was tired and this is past the time we agreed with our driver. He patiently kept trying out different formats of our address in his GPS. We asked him to just leave us and we’ll find it by foot. He refused and made a face as if we said the most absurd thing in the world.

I don’t know how but we did find our hotel, enclosed in a gated community. We thank and hug Raeez tight and off he went.

What a day. What an unforgettable chain of experiences, vibrant Jaipur.

#mrmrsbecks

0 notes