A day in Jaiour, India

Started out our third day in Jaipur with a visit to the Galta temple (also known as the monkey temple). Entering into the temple we were surrounded by lots of sacred cows. Walking in, I was surprised to see the condition of the beautiful temple. The architecture was amazing. As we have seen in other temples in Jaipur. But no part of the temple grounds or the buildings looked like they had been cared for. I guess this temple has been abandoned by the governments for some reason. I was also surprised to see a lot more locals at this temple than tourists. The local come here to take a bath in what they consider holy water coming from a mountain said to have been dated back to it's initial time of the god Shiva. In a co-ed hammam like setting with a pool of standing water. The water may be considered holy but it was definitely not fresh running water. As we walked up the stairs of the temple, there were people sitting with their snakes cobras for show and photograph. Most of the cobras were handled by very young children. Showing off their cobras in exchange for money. After many amazing photo opportunities of the cobra handlers, we managed to reach the holy water bath and watch the locals as they seemed to really enjoy their time together taking their ritual bath and cleansing each other in groups with women wearing their traditional colorful Rajestani costumes. A little further up the stairs as what looked to be the end of the temple, was another pool of water being enjoyed by families of monkeys. Watching the monkeys socialize and go about daily routines was delightful. Seeing how the animals move, interact and taking photographs of them was my favorite part of the visit to that temple.