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Today began with a quick elephant ride up to the huge fort in Amber (a 400 year old fort) just outside Jaipur, along with all the other tourists (most of whom are actually Indian). I felt bad for the elephants the whole time, especially when I saw one of the elephant drivers with a sharp metal spike — it definitely seemed like some sort of torture device.

At the fort I was most intrigued by the ornately mirrored walls of one of the rooms, while Jamie was mesmerized by the advanced plumbing, cooling and air filtration techniques used throughout the compound by the Rajputs (he watches way too much Modern Marvels). We also hiked up a long steep path to the top of the fort and got a great view of the city (I felt like we earned the lunch that followed).

Now we’re back at the hotel and excited for some chill time