THE GOODS THIS MONTH'S WHO, WHAT, AND WEAR
Consider the domed and turreted palaces that took 22 generations to complete, their walls inlaid with rubies, jade, jasper, onyx, and cornelian. Or the thrones hewn from single blocks of serpentine, the porcelain tiles studded with diamonds, and the lifesize white-marble elephants standing sentry in jasmine-scented gardens. Few monarchies have ever matched the opulence of Rajasthan's royal courts at their peak.
For more than a millennium,. Both destinations are still considered among the world's best, with $1,000-pernight rooms luxurious enough to stupefy even the wealthiest, but little of note had happened in the world of Rajasthan hospitality since the British secret agent slithered through the Lake Palace's back door some four decades ago.
