India Oct. 2009

[RusherRacing]

I thought it is time I document my wild crazy trip to India. A coworker that I hired on as an Intern (Sahil) was getting married in Jammu, India. So my wife and I decided to make a trip of it and end it at his wedding. It wasn't an overland trip, it wasn't completely backpacking, but it was very interesting, and I learned a lot about myself and the world. We are from a rural area in South Dakota. We had never even at Indian food before this trip. The trip took place in Oct. 2009 for 17 days. We only traveled throughout the state of Rajasthan but even then we probably bit off to much. Also for reference ~50r (rupees) = 1 us dollar.
Day 1
I am a large guy and the 15hr flight from Chicago to New Dehli was a little rough, but the excitement of a new world lay ahead. We left around 7pm and arrived in Dehli late in the evening.

Delhi Day 1 223 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
Arriving at the New Dehli Airport is hard to explain. Instant sensory overload! I had read a ton before we left on what to do when and where. Also, talking with Sahil he explained how a lot of the differences etc. So I thought I knew what I was doing. I was wrong. I went first to a window to exchange money, which was fairly normal. Then I went to another of the inside offices to arrange cab fare. I honestly don't even remember what I was charged probably a couple bucks. Then we walked outside and that's when we were swarmed with people offering to help etc.. We had tons of people trying to “help” us and asking for tips. I think I gave away like $5 bucks in US dollars to random people just trying to get out of there. On our way to the hotel all I could remember is ****** did we just get ourselves into! As we blast down dark streets with no idea where we were going.
We were staying at a little boutique hotel the Apple Velvet. It was a very nice place, didn't have a lot of rooms, and by US standards didn't have anything for amenities like a pool or hot tub etc. But that's not what we wanted. We wanted a clean quite place to crash! And that we did!
Day 2
We woke up refreshed – sampled a little breakfast in the hotels little breakfast area. Didn't find much we liked but had some fruit and called it good. We hired a cab driver through the hotel. It was 900r for all day and we set out to see the sites of New Dehli, with the lonely planet travel book in hand. Our cab driver did not speak English so we had some struggles communicating but we worked through it. I wrote down all the destinations we wanted to see on a piece of paper, then at our first stop he had another cabby translate it for him. We would go into the site and when we walked out he was always there waiting for us.
Red Fort – New Delhi (there is another Red Fort in Agra that we also visited)
Gov. Palace of Delhi – Massive grounds with tons of buildings etc to visit and see. Each with its own story and history.

Delhi Day 1 010 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi Day 1 046 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi Day 1 230 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi Day 1 239 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
Jantar Mantar – Delhi – Historic Time and Space measurement instruments

Delhi Day 1 069 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi Day 1 072 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
Humayun's Tomb – I think this was almost as impressive as the more famous Taj Mahal! It was almost empty with people, and very park like. This was our favorite stop this day!

Delhi Day 1 152 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi Day 1 114 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi Day 1 113 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
Qutub Minar – busy but very interesting!

Delhi Day 1 162 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi Day 1 181 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi Day 1 163 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
They started to build another tower but it was never finished. If this would have been finished it would have been far and away the tallest structure in the ancient world
And my Favorite the Street Photos!

Delhi Day 1 057 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi Day 1 063 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi Day 1 066 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi Day 1 043 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi Day 1 097 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr




We ate once that day at McDonalds (yea we were those people)…. And had some bagged snacks and crackers etc from the vendors at the historical sites. I also had my first bottle of many of Limeade – I loved that stuff and Lay's Magic Masala potato chips. I am more adventures about food than my wife – she works in a medical lab and bacteria etc freak her out. She is also a meat and potatoes farm girl.

More to continue as time allows

 

[RusherRacing]

Delhi to Agra Day 3
We woke up early this morning. We wanted to see the Lotus Temple before we left town. It is the one major site we did not see on Day 1. The lotus temple was really cool! The serenity of the relaxed atmosphere with the amazing architecture made for a great morning.

Delhi-Agra Day 2 009 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Delhi-Agra Day 2 013 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
After the great relaxing morning we were off to the train station. Our cab driver was great - although we did get pulled over for crossing the center line and I paid a 100r ticket for the driver. (he had the paper work/receipt etc from the cop so it was legit). After putting up with us for the day and a half I gave him a 500r tip. He was shocked and refused it but I thought it was only fair. He went out of his way to make sure we were safe and I could tell the money would be put to good use. When we were all said and done we spent $35 dollars for the cab fare for two days.
I had booked tickets ahead of time and we just had to get to the right train etc. We had two porters offer to help and I had read previously standard rate is 50r per piece of luggage. We told them the train we needed to catch and off we went, almost running at times through the station. When we reached or destination, they demanded like 500r and were very vocal about it. That was crazy, I wasn’t going to give these two guys $10 dollars to carry our bags. In the end I gave them 250r. Part of me thinks they must have seen the tip we gave the cab driver or the cab driver said something to them. At the time I was pissed because I felt kind of scammed but at the same time, they got us where we needed to go – without them we would have been lost and confused. The train station was crazy but also great for people watching. From that time on I tried to avoid porters as much as possible from the sour taste left in my mouth from this time and at the airport.

Delhi-Agra Day 2 018 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
This is when I consider our Real Trip to India Began. We started learning and watching others. We didn’t like to overpay for services as that can make traveling worse for people in the future. But at times paying someone a fair price, or giving them a tip is a polite gesture. I tip absolute minimum if asked for a tip as I feel it is rude.

Delhi-Agra Day 2 021 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
Luxury Train Travel in India!
We arrived in Agra and got a cab from the station. It was two guys – both spoke English which was nice. One would talk to us while the other drove us to our destination. We checked into our hotel. The Grand Imperial Agra – a heritage hotel. It was a wonderful palace! Huge rooms, quiet - as it could be with the loud speaker music being played throughout the day. (Common among Muslim communities). Then we were off to see the Red Fort, which is across the river from the Taj Mahal.
Red Fort – Agra
The fort and the one in Delhi were actually linked together by a network of underground tunnels and roadways.

Delhi-Agra Day 2 042 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr


Delhi-Agra Day 2 063 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

We enjoyed the visit of the Red Fort that evening but headed back to the hotel early for some room service and a good night sleep. I wanted to be at the Taj Mahal as soon as it opened for that morning light. I was just getting into photography at that time and everything I read said it was best in the morning light!


Also, if you want more info or history on the locations I have talked about - Wiki and wikitravel are some of the best sources I have found. both were instrumental in helping me plan this trip.

 

[roverrocks]

Awesome pictures!! Wow!

 

[RusherRacing]

Day 4 - Agra – Fatehpur Sikri - Bharatpur
What a day this was!
Started out at sun up and was in the Taj Mahal bright and early. Also, Tripods are not allowed in the Taj Mahal along with a bunch of other stuff. You are best off leaving your purse etc at the hotel. To enter the Taj Mahal you have to go through security much like at a US airport today with the included pat down. It is a truly amazing place. The condition and care of this historical site is leaps and bound above any other place we visited while in India. It is busy but not any worse than some other places we visited. It probably helped we were there when it first opened.

Taj Mahal Day 3 021 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Taj Mahal Day 3 049 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Taj Mahal Day 3 107 oversize by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
The gold, and precious stones imbedded into the sides of the Taj Mahal make it flicker. Unfortunately I wasn’t a good enough photographer to truly capture how amazing the work and craftsmanship was on this building.
After we had finished with the Taj Mahal we went back to our hotel for a little breakfast, and nap. We had the same two cab drivers from the day before. The one that spoke to us kept trying to get us to go shopping. My wife and I had decided early on in the trip we would save buying any souvenirs until the end, so we didn’t have to carry them with us throughout the trip. I had also heard that Agra is one of the worst places to buy gifts as the whole town is basically a tourist trap. He would not lay off that fact but finally he figured out he wasn’t going to convince us and jumped out at a stop light leaving us with the quite old guy for our cab driver – ultimately dropping us of at our hotel in Bharatpur that evening. Made it back to the hotel for a good breakfast, and took an hour cat nap before heading to Fatehpur Sikri. The drive to Fatehpur Sikri made for interesting site seeing. We went through rural areas where people were farming and hauling grains. It was nice to finally be out of the crazy cities and into the country side.

Fatehpur Sikri Day 3 074 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
While on the way to Fatehpur Sikri our cab suggested we get a guide for a tour. Fatehpur Sikri is an abandoned ancient city. Its water supply had dried up and it was abandoned. The remains are in amazing condition and I don’t think significant reconstruction has taken place at this historic site as it wasn’t needed. It has a lot of interesting history but also the signage isn’t as good as other historical sites. I had read that previously so I was ok with getting a guide even though I knew I would overpay and the cabby would profit from this. In the end the guide was good. He did know the history and did a good job explaining everything to us. He did try and hurry us along but we quickly put a stop to it and said we will go at our own pace. He also tried to convince us to buy stuff we didn’t want or need. In the end we did buy some things from his families little shop, little stone egg carvings. My wife collects egg shaped knicknacks and fabbrage style eggs so it was something we wanted to get anyway
The pressure of trying to be sold stuff was getting to much for me. This place is crazy packed with all types of people swarming you to buy stuff. I finally had enough and looked forward to a peaceful night in the hotel. This was my point during the trip that I really questioned why we are doing this. It was almost too much to handle. The heat – the crazy people – constantly trying to be scammed…
One thing to note – at the end our tour guide gave our cab driver a pen. From previous reading I had done on indianmike that is how they pay each other. Inside the pen is bills rolled up for the cab drivers commission.
We stayed that night at The Bagh. It was again an amazing hotel, in a park like setting. We ate dinner at a fine restaurant on the grounds and strolled in down the paths.
Day 5
The next day we slept in and went swimming. We had an evening train to catch but we were enjoying some R&R behind tall wall from the outside world. It was what I needed to keep going on this trip. We had planned on visiting the bird sanctuary because we were in the area but chose not to. I guess I don’t regret it because I don’t know what we missed but I did know we need some time to relax within the solitude of our hotel.
Brataphur used to be a major tourist attraction. It was the center for many exotic birds. However in the last few years the bird population is decreasing. The wetlands in the area are drying up and the birds are leaving.
That late afternoon we took a cab to the train station. Our train was running late and we had to wait and wait some more. It was 100+ degrees outside, people stared at us constantly, and we were just not comfortable. This is when my wife broke down. The people couldn’t keep their eyes off of her. At one point I had to run to the restroom, and when I came back she was surrounded by younger guys trying to talk with her. They were not trying to do any harm they were just curious. We talked with them for a awhile but eventually asked them to leave us alone since they wouldn’t stop starring. Starring is part of the Indian culture, but it isn’t something that makes an outsider feel comfortable.

Fatehpur Sikri Day 3 119 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Fatehpur Sikri Day 3 132 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Fatehpur Sikri Day 3 114 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr Yes that is a cow in the train station.

Fatehpur Sikri Day 3 116 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr Beautiful gal outside the train station.
Also, this is a good time to talk about bathrooms! Yes those dirty things you need to use everyonce in awhile. While traveling public ones are sometimes your only option. Well in most parts of India squat toilets are the norm. My wife refused to use a squat toilet as she has never been able to squat in the woods (unless she has drank a lot!!  ) So she would limit her liquid intake afraid that she may need to use the restrooms while on the trains or in the train stations. With her limited eating, and being part dehydrated she never did feel good throughout the trip.

We finally arrived in Jaipur after a nice train ride in. We were in a cabin that was more like an airplane seating configuration. It was a very nice ride but I don’t have any pictures to share. Once in Jaipur we had the cab driver bring us right to our hotel the Taj Jai Mahal. It is a restored palace managed by the Taj Group. I hadn’t planned on needing this amazing oasis but was glad to have it. We finished the day with a great meal in the hotel restaurant.

 

[RusherRacing]

Day 6 – Jaipur
Taj group does know how to make guest feel comfortable. A dip in the swimming pool the night before and then waking up and having breakfast on the patio overlooking the gardens is a great way to recharge.


Taj Jai Mahal Day 4 030 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
Our plan for the Day is to visit the Amber Fort and ride the elephants up to the fort, and then check out the historical center of Jaipur.

The Amber Fort
This is an amazing Fort/Palace! You are allowed to see the majority of the fort and it will take a couple solid hrs. The again the craftsmanship in the buildings, and the designs are amazing. So are some of the story boards that you read along as you explore the fort. The Amber Fort was more of a Palace than a fort. The Military fort was actually up the hill further – it had one of the world’s largest cannons but I don’t have a photo online.

Amber Fort Day 5 005 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Amber Fort Day 5 012 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Amber Fort Day 5 020 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Amber Fort Day 5 023 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
My wife was freaked out by the elephant ride. The sway from side to side was significant in that little basket. It felt like it was just going to go sliding off the elephants back. But once one firm soil she wanted to pet the “beast”. Once we were done, I think she is glad she did it but at the time not so much!


Amber Fort Day 5 062 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
Mirrors inlayed into the plaster covering the walls.

Amber Fort Day 5 103 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

After we finished with the Amber Fort we went up to the Military Fort closeby – here is what the Amber fort looks like looking down from above.

Jaipur Day 5 098 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

After looking at those two forts we headed back into town.

A kid playing on the sidewalk

Jaipur Day 5 008 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
And yes Elephants wondering down the street – and looking like they were being used for working purposes rather than for joy riding or tourists.

Jaipur Day 5 002 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

We went to the City Palace, which honestly after seen the Amber Palace this didn’t seem like much. It was where the current government of Jaipur resides and does have some neat antiques, and history. But from an architectural side it is kind of boring.
However in this city center they do have another Jantar Mantar. Only this one has been restored and is in much better shape than the one in Delhi. However it is a little smaller. While walking over to the Jantar Mantar a snake jumped out and spooked us!


Jaipur Day 5 031 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Jaipur Day 5 038 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Jaipur Day 5 057 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
The 20minutes time difference is because the time on the “clock” is real time for that area. Whereas the time on my watch was for the government time (aka timezones etc).


After a busy day we headed back to the hotel for another nice evening relaxing and preparing for a long day of travel ahead.

 

[all_things_rare]

Very interesting read!

 

[shortbus4x4]

Looks like fun. How do you like Indian food?

 

[RusherRacing]

Honestly at first I really did not like it, but now I do like some of it. It took us until almost the end of the trip to figure out what we liked and what we didn't. We are not vegetarians at all!! So the lack of meat products was a challenge the entire trip. For the most part we lived on room service or the hotel resteraunts. We found these to be more catered towards tourists. However towards the end we did eat out at a couple resteraunts but even those were in other hotels.
This is very unusual for us. One of my favorite things is to eat and try new places and styles of food but we had a hard time taking that risk because we found so much we did not like! Eating was a necesity more than an enjoyment during most of this trip.


We were lucky with hotel choices as they all had good food. The Taj Group had the best but the most $$ - the Taj we stayed at in Jodphur had an amazing buffet!! As nice/good as any in the US.


Chicken Tandoor (most places) and Garlic Naan Bread became my favorite.


I will try and make a post later regarding Food because it was such a challenge and also another Post Regarding Hotels/Palaces we stayed. Most of the places we stayed were amazing historic palaces! The hotels were probably one of the coolest parts about our trip! Trust me when I say - we didn't stay at the holiday inn express last night. But we also didn't spend an arm and a leg either - probably about $100-$120 a night average.

 

[RusherRacing]

Day 7
Welcome to the Wild. We spent most of this day on the train. When we arrived at the train Station in Sawai Modhpur the cab terminals were closed, and there wasn’t a line of cabs in front. A couple rickashaws, and 1 large Gypsy (this one was larger more like a knock off of a Defender 110). The driver for the Gypsy came up to us and offered transportation. It took a while to negotiate, but honestly we weren’t in position to negotiate to much as he was about the only transportation available. It was expensive, and I thought I was really getting taken at ~$15 dollars US. However the distance was much further than I expected. The driver struggled to find it and had to stop and ask a few people and make a coupel calls. We learned later in the trip that the rickashaws weren’t bad but Sahil suggested we avoid them and take ac cabs as it would be safer and more comfortable…..
We arrived late and when we did it caused quite a commotion at the Tiger Machan Resort. It has luxury tent style accommodations to give you the feeling you’re a wealthy outdoorsman on a hunting expedition. Ok not really but it was something different and we wanted to try it out. We found out that night that we were the first ever guests! And they weren’t quite sure what to do. But for the most part this was a day of traveling.

Ranthambhore Day 7 005 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr
Day 8
Finally Ranthambore National Park/Tiger Reserve! We had arranged ahead of time through the hotel to go on two Safari’s in Gypsy’s(Suzuki Samurai LWB) and Cantar’s are also available but they have more people, cheaper etc.. Gypsy’s are the preferred method. We also allowed time the following day (9) to go on 1 additional Safari in the morning if we wanted to. The park opened up 2 days before we arrived, and so far no tigers had been sited.
They have two Safari’s trips a day. One in the early morning – From like 7:00am – 10:30 am then again in the evening 4pm – 7pm the drivers/scouts pick you up directly from your hotel.. The only way into the park is by hiring a gypsy/cantar. They do not have any selfdrive type options available. The Gypsy’s hold a total of 8 people built. It was a little tight but actually not as bad as I thought when it pulled up. They have three routes that they take through the park. 2 and 3 are better known for tiger sightings and you have about a 30% chance in seeing a tiger.
We were the first to see a tiger and we had the perfect viewing spot as it strolled right past us! When the tour was finished we headed back to the tent for lunch and a nap.
This is when we had an issue with the power situation! The AC kept stopping and it got HOT. It was a miserable afternoon- I really regret not getting a place with a pool!!

Ranthambhore Day 6 010 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 5 012 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 5 016 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 5 020 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 5 022 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr – Giant King Fisher

Ranthambhore Day 5 068 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 5 078 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 6 057 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 6 068 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 6 077 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 6 104 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 6 119 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 6 124 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 6 149 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr – This photo reminds me of home specifically sylvan lake area of the black hills.

Ranthambhore Day 6 151 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr – Normal King Fisher
That Night the owner was having kind of a family Reunion and we were invited to the festivities. I do not have any pictures. But it was a fun evening. A huge Buffet – this was the first time we found true Indian food we liked! They had a roaring camp fire, the kids danced and sang, beer was being drank and it was a festive evening. Made up for the miserable afternoon that is for sure!

 

[RusherRacing]

Day 8 - continued
I did take a video clip from the night's festivities.


Here is also a couple more pictures from the day.

Day 9
We woke up after a relaxing evening and had the hotel arrange to have a cab pick us up and instead of going into the park we only went part way and went to Ranthambore Fort. Ranthambore fort was really cool. It is for the most part unrestored and you can wander the area, after you make the long hike up to the top. To give you an idea of the history this fort was built in 944AD, and is still in good condition. There was a ton of monkeys in this area, also a lot of natives going about business. I am not sure if some still live up in the fort or what. Donkeys were caring supplies up and down etc.

Ranthambhore Day 7 078 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

Ranthambhore Day 7 045 by Rusher Racing, on Flickr

After the Day up at the Fort we headed back to the Train Station for a long trip to Jodhpur.
A train pulled up to the terminal with our number on it. However it was at the wrong pad. We ran across to it got on and talked to a few people as were confused as people were in our spot etc. We started talking and found out it was heading the opposite direction!! We were able to get off the train in time before it left the station but barely! What an un easy feeling!! We did end up catching the train we were supposed to and headed to Jodhpur.
When we arrived at the station, we must have had a VIP on our train.. Soldiers had machine guns and lots and lots of people singing and placing flowers around an older guy's neck. Drums were being played etc.
But again no cabs were at the station, we ended up taking a Rickasaw at 11:00pm at night! We were nervous but we didn't have any other choices. We crammed in and blasted down the street, within a few minutes we arrived at our hotel for the night! It was a cheap efficient means of transportation!
That night we checked into the Ratan Villa , another historic hotel. They even made us a late night meal as we were starving!


Here is a Link to all the Ranthambore NP Photos:
http://s39.photobucket.com/albums/e191/RusherRacing/India/Ranthambhore/

 

[RusherRacing]

I was digging through my trip planning info to help write the next section and I came across my itenary all typed out before the trip. Thought I would share it!

1 9/25/2009

4:40 PM Depart Omaha flight 4144
7:20 PM Depart Chicago for Delhi flight 292​

2 9/26/2009

8:30 PM Arrive in Delhi
Hotel- The Velvet Apple​

3 9/27/2009

Tour Delhi
Hotel- The Velvet Apple​

4 9/28/2009

11:30 AM Depart for Agra Train 2626
2:30 PM Arrive in Agra
Evening Tour Red Fort
Hotel- The Grand Imperial - Suite
​

5 9/29/2009

Tour Early AM Taj Mahal
Travel to Fatehpur Sikri
Travel to Bharatpur
Bird Sancurary
Tour Lohagarh Fort
Hotel - The Bagh
​

6 9/30/2009

7:15 AM Depart Bharatpur (BTE) Train 4863
11:30 AM Arrive Jaipur (JP)
Tour Hawa Mahal
Tour Jantar Mantar
Hotel- Taj Jai Mahal

​

7 10/1/2009

Tour Amber Fort Elphanant Ride and others
5:25 PM Depart Jaipur (JP) Train 2182
7:20 PM Arrive in Sawai Madhopur (SWM)
Hotel- Tiger Machan​

8 10/2/2009

Tour Ranthambhor Morning
Tour Ranthambhor Evening
Hotel- Tiger Machan​

9 10/3/2009

Tour Fort Ranthambhor
2:35 PM Depart Sawai Madhopur (SWM) Train 2465
10:30 PM Arrive Jodhpur (JU)
Hotel- Ratan Vilas​

10 10/4/2009

Tour Jodhpur
Hotel Jodhpur - Taj Hari Mahal​

11 10/5/2009

Fly To Udaipur
Hotel- Jagat Niwas Palace -Suite​

12 10/6/2009

Tour Udaipur
Hotel- Jagat Niwas Palace-Suite
​

13 10/7/2009

Travel to Jammu Flight 9W2013 connecting 9W7006​

14 10/8/2009

Jammu
2:00 PM Wedding​

15 10/9/2009

Tour Jammu​

16 10/10/2009

11:00 AM Reception
15:50 Depart for Delhi Flight IC#822​

17 10/11/2009

12:15 AM Depart for Chicago Flight 293
7:30 AM Depart for Omaha Flight 4024
8:55 AM Drive Home​

 

[RusherRacing]

Day 10 – Jodhpur
After arriving late the night before we decided to sleep in and grab some breakfast at the hotel. We had a great breakfast in the courtyard and then hit the town for site seeing. We had the hotel rent us an AC cab for the day.
We spent the day checking out the Mehrangarh Fort in Jodhpur – one of the best to see in India, and also the Jaswant Thada a mausoleum. We also were checking around to find a Cab or Bus from Jodhpur to Udaipur. We hadn’t previously booked this leg of the trip as Buses and Cabs between them are common and all the readings and recommendations said to negotiate the pricing. Everything we found was 7000rs. (little over $120 US), I decided to check the internet for a flight. I am glad I did, found a flight for 7500rs, and we get to travel in style instead of a hot cab on bad roads for 8hr drive.

Mehrangarh Fort

Jaswant Theda

That night we stayed at Taj Hari Mahal – but I can’t remember why I chose to stay at two different places.

 

[RusherRacing]

Day 11 – Headed for Udaipur
We slept in a little, ate some breakfast, and took a dip in the beautiful pool. Then it was time to pack up and head to the airport. We got a cab from the hotel, it was more expensive but we were tired of trying to save a few bucks. It was top notch service in a brand new Alfa ($20). Most of the time our cabs were beat and broken down tata models. We arrived at the airport, and the service was top notch, everyone spoke perfect English. The security was high and they went through your bags a couple times etc. But by this time personal privacy we have accepted just won't happen. The flight was empty, the stewardess's were HOT and helpful! Reminds me what the TVshows flying in the US in the 50's and 60's was like. We arrived in Udaipur and took a Cab to our Hotel ($10) but it was a long road into town..
The hotel we chose was the 3rd rated (trip advisor) hotel in Udaipur – Jagat Niwas. The other two are typically on the top 10 hotels in the world. We had one of the large Suites with a sitting area overlooking the lake.
We spent the evening shopping, we were in the old part streets were wide enough for most cars and they were lined with small shops selling all sorts of goods. We had a lot of fun talking with the shop keepers and walking through this old city. We weren't high pressured into buying things, and we really enjoyed ourselves. We would both go back to Udaipur in a heart beat. It didn't have the coolest historical sites or architecture. The city palace was neat but others were better. What we enjoyed was how safe we felt walking the streets, people weren't hassling or haggling with us. They just let us do our own thing. We were treated as we are used to being treated here in the US. The whole atmosphere of this town was different than the rest of the places we had visited previously.

This is a photo of the Taj Lake Palace Hotel – taken from our hotel. You take a boat across to it, and it is one of if not the top hotel in the world. I really wanted to stay but the cheapest rooms were almost $400 a night, meals are $30-$50 per person… We just don't have that much money .

The whiter building in the center of the photo was our hotel. We had a room that contained one of the large window seating areas (bump outs from the building).
We didn't buy anything but we had some ideas what we wanted to pickup before we left.
The hotel restaurant was on the top floor and overlooked the entire lake, they had really good food. This is where we introduced to Garlic Naan Bread. Yummy stuff!!

 

[RusherRacing]

Day 12 – Udaipur

Woke up and had a great breakfast in the open air restaurant on the roof overlooking the lake. It was kind of strange, you were so close to all the noise of the city but they way the buildings are laid out you don't noticed it as much as other places we visited. After breakfast we walked to the City Palace and went through the tour. It was a neat place. On the way we seen an elephant all painted just hanging out in the street.

Those are Elephant Parking Spots – there was a sign saying that…

The City Palace was a huge sprawling complex that is still in use today. We could only see a small portion of it. It contains two hotels, a couple restaurants, and government offices.

After we hit the City Palace we decided to hire an AutoRickshaw for the day. We hit up some city gardens, including the zoo, and a couple other shops. We even went to a few of “his friends” shops. I would say by this time in the trip we finally became comfortable. The city and the atmosphere helped!
The City Zoo was kind of a sad place. The animals in captivity did not look very well cared for and would probably have animal rights activists here in the US all worked up. It did have this little kids train around the park that we took with a bunch of locals. It was kind of fun.

That evening we took a boat tour of the lake and went over to Jag Mandir. It is another lake palace built in the 1500-1600's. It has some public space and some private areas. It had a restaurant and beautiful gardens. I would bet a lot of wealthy or political powerful people get married on this island. It was a beautiful island and we enjoyed watching the sunset over the lake. We then headed back and had dinner in the City Palace Complex, it was a great open air restaurant with cold King Fisher beer. We could tell that we were adapting to the customs of India as we were eating at 10:00pm (which is very common)

City Palace

 

[RusherRacing]

Day 13

We left for Jammu this morning. It was sad to leave Udaipur – we just really enjoyed our time and could have enjoyed another couple days before moving on. We had booked domestic flights to Jammu.
Like before the security was tight boarding the flight, we are checked through security similar to the US, then right before boarding they do it again. We flew from Udaipur to Jaipur (picked up a few additional people) then into Delhi. When we arrived in Delhi we were running late and they were not letting people off the plane. But the plane wasn't crowded and hot like here in the US – not sure what they were doing differently. We spoke with the stewardess that we were really close on our connection to Jammu. Within a few minutes someone came and got us and drove us on the tarmac to our next flight with our bags. Again the service was first class. They do a great job making you feel like a VIP when you fly in India. The next flight was to Jammu in Jammu/Kashmir. Like 30miles from the Pakistan border. This area is under constant conflict. To say the security was tight upon arrival was an understatement. But the issue we had was Sahil was supposed to meet as at the airport and we could not reach him and did not know where to meet him. After about 30 minutes a young man walked up and said your friend called me and you are supposed to follow me. He grabs a bag and starts heading through the parking lot, we didn't have a choice but to follow. After a near jog we exit the airport facility and Sahil is parked in the middle of the street holding up traffic talking away on his cell phone yelling at people. It was a sight to see. We had run out of cash at this point but Sahil tipped the guy that came and got us. Sahil comes from a well todo family and the class of people started becoming more apparent when with Sahil.
Before this we couldn't tell the differences between the class system in India as we were always treated similarly. However when we were with Sahil everyone was yes ser no ser… He could basically do what he wanted; it was kind of strange to see him in this setting. Here in the US he works as an engineer, is quiet and humble. There it was his way and he was accustomed to getting it.
We relaxed in our hotel for awhile and Sahil said he would send his friend Sunny to pick us up later for dinner. Sonny picked us up and Sahil insisted that Cheryl have some bracelets as that is one of the sign you are married in India, while doing errands with Sonny he backed into a motorcycle. Picked it up and we then left. After a little bit of errands for Sahil we met up with all his friends for dinner. He is the only married one out of the group he ran around with in India. It was fun we hand food and cocktails. His friends helped us pick out items from the menu and we had an enjoyable evening.

Day 14

We slept in then tried to get ahold of Sahil. He was busy with wedding stuff but said we could go to his house to hang out. Some of my other coworkers who also went over for his wedding had just arrived from a short trip up to Shangri-La and were staying at his folks' place. So we catch a Rickashaw and head to his house. When we arrived we were greeted by his family. They were embarrassed that we took a Rickashaw but that was the most efficient form of transportation we found getting around in Indian traffic. We preferred them over a cab if going short distances.
We ******** chatted and what not. You would never know his little sister (13yrs) was from India if she was running down the street here in the US playing. She spoke perfect English, loved everything American, and dressed like Miley Cyrus…

My wife and another gal on the trip wanted to get some Henna done. Sahil's sister and Cousin did an awesome job!

We did do some shopping later that day, since we were in Jammu Kashmir we were hoping to score a rug or two. We tried a couple local rug shops but they all had generic polyester mass produced stuff made in China. The gov store did have some they just were not priced really well. The friends that went to Shangri-La brought back a couple awesome rugs but we didn't go that way so we missed out on the real bargains. But we did get a pure white silk rug from the gov store but at almost $100 us it wasn't a bargain the following day. Sonny slapped mirrors with another car knocking out the mirror lens.
Later that night was the “wedding” – I still don't really get Indian weddings. The portions of this one that I went to had no dancing. We gathered at a reception hall following the groom from his parents house. When he was leaving his parents home he was covered in money. Large necklaces covered with bills. He left these on for most of the night. Once at the reception we waited and waited to see Anu, eventually everyone started eating. They had a huge buffet. Each side of the courtyard had the same food but each “station” had something different. From grilled chicken, to noodles, fresh fruit and even icecream – American style ice cream! Cheryl really wasn't feeling good so she wasn't able to enjoy the food but it was really good. At some time during this feast the bride arrived without fan fare or large entrance. We thought this was really strange considering the amount of commotion/music/singing that was made when Sahil entered.

A few of us left the women to talk and headed to the parking lot to have a drink. We were happily drinking whiskey cokes (drink of choice). When the wedding party left and headed to the brides home to have the fire ceremony.

I missed this portion, I was with Sahil's friends and they were not in any hurry to leave.

No drinking was involved the evening of this picture.

My wife and the other gal from the US got a ride from Sahil's cousin. This went on till the yea hrs in the morning. I was finally able to reconnect with my wife and we headed to bed. I think the rest continued to party throughout the night.

Day 15

Brides Family Reception was this evening. Today Sahil had arranged for Sonny to drive us around and show us the city. There wasn't much to see of historical interest so we hit some shops for awhile. Sonny backed into a car. I also found out this car that he was driving wasn't his but a friends or something. I know of 2 dings and a broken mirror that happened while I was with him. I would have been worried sick about getting it fixed but to them it is normal. Cars are cheap in India do not last that long, it is also cheap to have dings and dents repaired. After a little time with Sonny we went our own way to wander the streets ourselves. It was fun at the shops but after awhile we headed back to the hotel for a nap and to read.

The bride's family reception was a smaller gathering. But still nice, and again a few of us sat outside and had a couple drinks, only this time Cheryl stuck with us.
The next day we were flying back so we wanted to get a good night sleep so we headed to bed early.

Day 16

Our Last Day in India – we are ready to head home and eat real food  This morning we headed over to yet another reception with food. This time it was for the community. This is the third time that Sahil and Anu sit up front with chairs facing the people visiting and not really saying much. People gather then there is a large buffet, people eat and mingle. We had to leave early to catch a flight, so it was really and eat and run event for us.

When we arrived at the airport to fly out of Jammu it felt like we were entering on a military base. The security was super high! But we caught our Flight to Delhi and this is where the fun began. We had a layover in Delhi and we had to switch from the domestic to international terminals. This required getting our bags, loading a bus, driving across the tarmac, walking and walking with our bags in tow, with no directions on where we were heading… When we finally reached the International terminal we were not allowed in. So we had to sit and wait… They had a little area across the street to wait that had a cafeteria and some tv's in but it was packed with people doing the same thing waiting until you were allowed into the airport. Once we were finally allowed to get into the main terminal it was line after line. It took forever! We had to transfer stuff between bags to meet weight requirements etc. This was all very similar to how things work here in the US.

Day 17

Then we had a long overnight flight direct to Chicago! We headed back up over the north pole and down to Chicago. We even arrived early! Like 45minutes early. Which would have been awesome except the TSA hadn't arrived for work yet and we were not allowed of the plane until they arrived. So after a 15hr flight we were stuck on the tarmac in Chicago waiting!
Grabbed some McD's breakfast in the airport and got on our connection home. When we finally arrived home late that morning we slept and slept and slept. Man did it feel good to be home!!