No tigers, just notes

Our jeep safari this morning was a bust except for some exotic birds and peacocks so here are some notes on India

Food- yes, it is typical Indian food, better than we have had at home, moderately spiced, some really good roti and naan.  Obviously no beef - it's illegal here, even McDonalds doesn't have hamburgers.  We haven't been in one but were told they have chicken and fish.  We haven't seen any fish on the menus, but then we are far from the ocean here.  Chicken and mutton are the only meats we have seen on menus, and after you see all the crates with live chickens in the food markets it really doesn't seem that appealing sweets are awful - sticky sweet balls of dough or cheese served in sugar syrup: no thanks. Most of the people in the hotel now are Indian and many eat with just their right hand (left hand is used for toilet related tasks, not for eating) using the roti or naan to pick up their food.  As much of a skill as using chop sticks.

Hotels - Bloomrooms in Delhi was obviously owned by a Dutch ex-pat and was totally European in feel and decor.  We tried a home stay in Agra to see how it compared to S.A. or Ireland and didn't find it that great.  Our driver had trouble finding it in a residential neighborhood and then was confused about why we wanted to stay there.  When I explained he asked whether we got to chat with the owners I had to say no, it wasn't a great experience.  The notel here at ranthambore has duplexes within a large compound with a pool, a small cricket pitch (national game here) and an entertainment area where we had tea and watched a family of Rajistan dancers and musicians perform.  It's been over 90 degrees and occasionally the power goes out and the AC goes off.  

Signs and Rules -They don't have ANY signs around the pool saying "use at your own risk", etc.  In fact there isn't even a fence.  I guess Indian lawyers have the same income base of liability lawsuits that American lawyers have.  When we were in the spice bazar in Delhi the owner explained all the strict rules that they have about the production and grading of quality teas in India.  Other rules are not so strict.  I mentioned the crazy driving.  When something really egregious happens on the road our driver says with a sense of humor  "Ah, Incredible India" , making fun of their tourism moniker.  The sign at the entrance to the Taj Mahal forbid taking toiletries, combs, electronics and a long list of other things

Crafts and industries - There are many skilled handicrafts here, among them fabric , weaving, mirror work (tiny mirrors embroidered onto fabric), stone inlay, hand woven carpets, stone and marble carving, hand made silver jewelry (you pick the gem stones, they make the jewelry to your request), and many more.  Along the highway we saw fifteen or twenty small businesses all carving monuments out of the same red sandstone that is used for the forts and palaces.  Then there was a section that had shops fabricating monuments and decorations out of white marble.  In the gazars the jewelry shops all tend to congregate.  It seems strange to se numerous vendors next to each other with virtually the same things, but that's the way they do it here.  

Lost in Translation - Yes, English is the national language but sometimes things get mixed up.  We think they mean "wine and beer" but who knows?

Ranthanborn National Park

After another 5 hour, bone jarring ride we made it to Ranthanborn National Park, the third marker on the linked Google map.

This is a arid, kind of like foothill areas in the southwest.  The park is huge and is divided into seven areas for the jeeps and open trucks that visitors ride in for the safaris.  Our guide explained that we had Zone 6 but that a tiger had been spotted in Zone 7 so we tore out a full speed on the jeep tracks.  A wild ride to find the wild tigers.  We came across at least 15 other jeeps looking for the tiger.  Since no one could see it we drove back to our zone only to get a call that it had come out in the open.  So we turned around and tore back to the original site.  When they say "hold on, we are going fast now" they mean it.

The tiger was in the grass and eventually go up to go get a drink at a small water hole.  There were so many jeeps that it was hard to get a picture.  What a magnificent cat.  It was identified as "T34" by it's territory.  The guide said it is a large male and is unusual to see, maby once in 10 days so we were really lucky.  Of course, nothing is done here without some cash being exchanged.  The guide explained that we would be paying the main ranger and the extra guide who came on our jeep for the privilege of going out of our zone to see the tiger.

The rest of the safari was pretty calm.  Unlike Kruger in South Africa, there isn't a lot of diversity in the animals.  We saw somme antelope, very large size with short horns and some spotted deer.

On the way back we passed through another small village that was home to a large Hindu temple to the god Ganesh - the elephant god who gives good fortune and prosperity.

Teh center of the village was clogged with the usual caotic mix of dogs, pigs, cows, buses and camel carts.  The camel carts are especially hard to pass as their loads of bags containing straw take up muchof the road.

This afternoon we have some rest time which we need, then we go on another safari in the morning.

As proof of what a small world this is, when we were in the small shop here the owner asked where we were from.  When we said Massachusetts he said he had a good customer who was from MA and did art restoration.  Turns out the customer is Tom Blachick, the head of the Williamstown Art Concervation Center at the Clark!

Happy Easter Sunday to everyone.  I guess you could say that we got up at 5:30 this morning to see the Easter Tiger instead of the Easter Bunny.

Delhi to Agra

After about 12 hours recovery rest we met our new driver (who will be with us for the rest of the trip) and started out of Delhi towards Agra.  He said he would take the regular road instead of the express way so that we could see more things..and did we.

The animals and people on the roads in South Africa don't come close to the chaos on the roads in India.  I would never think of driving here.  Lanes don't exist. They pass wherever they can: right, left or squeeze through any gap that appears.  Slow trucks tend to stay in the "fast" lane forcing others to pass on the left.  The horn is used as a signal more than the actual turn signals are.  In fact, on the back of many trucks it says "Blow Horn", in other words let me know you are passing.

Another main rule not enforced is passenger limits. A family of four or even five if the kids are small fits on a motor bike.

A tiny van can hold twelve...with one standing on the rear bumper. This is standard procedure.

And then there's the occasional camel cart in the road.  The driver of this one seemed to be asleep on the cart while his camel strolled along the highway.

We finally got to our first monument: the tomb of Akbar, one of the first Mughal kings, ruling from 1556 to 1609.  The picture is of the main gate to the tomb area.

Next stop was the Red Fort, a huge red sandstone enclosure that was the home of at least three kings, the most famous of whom was Shah Jehan who had a palace in the fort and also created the Taj Mahal (pronounced "ma hel").  After his most loved wife died (he had two other main wives and hundreds of informal wives (a harem) he started to go a bit overboard on the monuments and his son had him committed and held in a beautiful white marble pavilion that projects from the side of the fort.

The pavilion overlooked the fort's two moats.  The outside one was filled with water, crocodiles, water snakes, etc. and the inside one was filled with lions, tigers and other beasts meant to deter intruders.

The ex-king still had access to his other wives with whom he played live size game of Parchese on the patio outside his pavilion. He also had a direct view downriver to the Taj Mahal.

And finally, the Taj Mahal.  Yes, it is as beautiful as we expected.  As a fan of symmetry, I was wowed by the fact that it is symmetrical on all four sides and has two side buildings that mirror each other (even though one is a mosque and one was a visitors' residence).  Our tour was made even more special by our guide, an ex-banker who has an MBA and degrees in both English literature and German.  A very nice guy and very knowledgeable.

The inlay work on the white marble is done in semi-precious stones and is also amazing.

On to Ranthanbone National Park to look for Bengal Tigers!

Delhi - Day One

The flights went well: six hours to London, a 3 hour layover and seven-and-a-half hours to Delhi.
When we arrived at 1:30 am we couldn't find our tour host.  When we finally reached him by phone he said that he had been at the airport the previous night!  Oh well.  It took two more hours to get out of the airport and to the hotel.

In the morning all was well, we got on the road with our driver and picked up our guide.  Driving here is insane; there is a wild mix of buses, cars, tuc-tucs (motor rickshaws), bicycles and bicycle rickshaws and virtually no one pays attention to lanes. They do honk a lot.

New Delhi is defined by the British colonial architecture: monumental buildings, very wide streets and a mix of Indian and British ornamentation, for example the monument in front of the President's Residence has both elephants and cherubs.

A more modern piece of architecture in New Delhi is the Baha'i House of Worship.  Baha'i is a sect that promotes peace.  The building is in the shape of a lotus blossom.

Old Delhi is made up of More Mougal style buildings dating from the 16th and 17th centuries. Many of the streets are very narrow as we found on our bicycle rickshaw trip throug the Bazar at Chandi Chowk.  Each part of the bazar sells something different: shoes, clothes, jewelry, even wedding invitations.

The Jami Masjid is the largest mosque in india.  Built by Shah Jahan in 1656 it is huge, taking 5,000 workers nearly 5 years to build.  Eva had to don this delightful smock and we had to remove our shoes to walk across the scorching stone courtyard.



















The tour guide wass obliged to take us into various shops where they try to sell things.  This one was an education.  The term cashmere refers to the back and belly wool from certain goats that live in the mountains in Kashmir (a region in northwest India).  Pashmina is wool from the same goats but from the throat.  It is not shorn but is collected from the bushes where the goats roam and is a finer, softer texture. Nice models!!

Our Route

Tonight we fly to London and on to Delhi.  I'm trying to get the Google Map to show our journey but have not quite mastered the finer points.  So we start with a map of India showing the approximate area where we will travel in Rajasthan called the "Golden Triangle".

We start in Delhi, go down to Agra to see the Taj Mahal, then meander through several other cities and a national park (hopefully with Bengal Tigers) and finish after two weeks in Udaipur.

The Google Map shows the route in closer detail.  Here is the URL.

https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=213373056866098782952.0004d8374aa516574af6d&msa=0