Hello. Since our last post we have gone to Agra and seen the Taj Mahal, shopped in Delhi and are now chilling in Varanasi.
Agra was one of those places that you just can't wait to get out of. The pressure from the touts is heavy. The menu is the same for every restaurant, although most have stunning views of the Taj. The Taj Mahal is worth it. The day we went happened to be a free day (National Heritage Day, thank you very much). That was great because it would have cost us 1500 rupees ($38 dollars total) to see it. That's enough to eat or sleep for three days. The building is stunning and it is really difficult to tell that it is over 400 years old. It's timeless. I won't bore you with the details. On the day we went there was also a Tamil movie being filmed there and we got to watch some of the acting take place. It seemed more like a soap opera than Bollywood. Other than the magnificence of the Taj the town didn't offer much. Liza did however get threading (the best way to get your eyebrows done, in her opinion) and now wants to learn how to do it.
When we arrived in Delhi it was 10:30 am. Our train to Varanasi wasn't until 8:30pm. We took advantage of the day by eating at a great cafe that had excellent pasta, real coffee (not Nescafe), and homemade ice cream. We also went shopping at FabIndia. It's India's answer to IKEA. The stuff was nice, but didn't strike us as particularly Indian. We spent the rest of the day shopping in the market and then headed back to the train station.
We arrived in Varanasi the following morning. We got a prepaid rickshaw to the hotel. The area where we are staying has a bunch of thin laneways closed to traffic. We were lead by our rickshaw driver to the hotel but it took a long time to get there. Walking with our sixty pound suit case (all souviners .... with another waiting for us in Bangkok) down these narrow cobblestone alleys was trying, to say the least. When we got to our hotel (Hotel Alka) we were pleasantly surprised by the incredible restaurant views of the Ganges, and the very helpful Leslie. We have two weeks to spend here but I don't think we'll get bored. All you have to do is walk out to the riverside and find a shady spot to sit. Let the magic of Varanasi do the rest. I call this Ghatvision. People are bathing and washing their clothes in the ganges. They are cooling there buffalo in the water, and of course cremating their relatives. I have sat and watched some children doing a swimming class in the river, while watching others play Cricket on the walkway. The river is incredibly polluted, but the faith of the people does not let that bother them. Varanasi is an incredible place to be. There is always something to see. As long as you are willing to sit and let life happen you are guaranteed to see things that will awe you, or perhaps just entertain you.
Liza and I have also been feeding the local goats. We really do love goats and if we can find the right country residential place to live, we might just buy one. Probably a pipe dream but it's nice to have dreams all the same. Until next time keep dreaming.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Desert Shopping: A How To Guide.
Hello. Well here we are back in Delhi. Sitting in a hotel lobby passing time before our train to Agra (home of the Taj Mahal). We arrived at 5:30 am, and we are very tired and grumpy. At least our impatience has been united against the touts. Man are they getting on my nerves. Just because we stop on the side of the street to look around does not mean we need ten people running up to us to offer their rickshaw services or hotel, and we shouldn't have to say 'no' more than once. Oh it's going to be one of those days.
Well Jaisalmer was great, hot(40+), but great. We definitely didn't need six days there though. We spent most days relaxing, but ventured out a few times to shop see the sights and ride a camel to the Samm sand dunes. One day while we were walking towards a restaurant, we were summonded to a man's textile store. This happens about 50 times a day(wherever we are at least). We politely declined but the man was friendly and insisted that he had 'fixed prices' (meaning they were fair, no haggling and the prices were listed). We said we would look. Well needless to say, after 2 HOURS there, and his lessons on good quality and bad quality and his verbalizations on his hatred towards people who cheated tourists, we decided to buy some good quality items. We loaded up on loads of stuff and had to return the next day for some stuff that needed to be repaired or altered. The next day we went back and the stuff was not ready. We returned an hour later and the stuff was not repaired properly - it was sewn together half assed, and the quality was simply crappy. The guy we bought it off of was not there, and we had to get back for our camel safari. We told the boy running the shop that we would return later. When we returned to our hotel Liza approached the Hotel manager and asked him what he would pay for the items we had bought. He was shocked at what we paid (six times the normal rate)and laughed at the quality. He told us that the man was selling crap and that the stuff we bought would be thrown out by the women who made it. He told us that that man was a liar, and that he always cheated tourists. Liza was angry and the man told her to return the stuff and he would take us to a government run shop. He said that she needed to make noise to get her money back. For continuity I will talk about the camel safari after. After the camel trip we returned at 8:30 that night and I began asking the man for our money back as we where not happy with the work he had done or the fact that we now knew he had ripped us off terribly. Liza did not want to speak as she was shaking with anger. The man made the terrible mistake of insisting that she rather than me explain why we were returning the items. I was cheering for Liza and yet at the same time couldn't help feel a little sorry for the greedy salesman. Liza let him have it. She vented anger that had been building against scammers from seven countries. I think he was shocked that this sweet, witty funny woman from the night before was capable of standing up for herself, so strongly. We got our money back. He had no other option. I hope that teaches the greedy bugger. The following day the hotel manager took us to a government funded shop (apparently) and we paid way more but for much better quality. They took us through all the varying qualities of work and showed us how to tell the difference. It was obvious the stuff the other guy was selling was not even 1/2 the quality of the the stuff there.
The camel Safari was incredible. Most places including our hotel were charging about 1000 Rupees each for a sunset tour. This means you take a jeep out to the desert and then ride a camel for 30 minutes to the Sam sand dunes. You then watch the sunset and return. We went through the Tourism department and did it for 500 Rupees in total. Yay. Our driver seemed to be the biggest nerd in India. He stopped at several places to show us various plants and rocks in the desert. He even had fossilized shells in his pocket to show us that the region had once been an ocean. Lucky for us there was a Hindi tourist with us, because understanding geology and paleontology in Hindi is quite difficult. We were taken to a tent were we had chai and hopped on our camel. We were supposed to get one each but ended up having to share one. It was better this way as riding a camel is less comfortable than it looks. We rode it out to the sand dunes and watched one of the most amazing sunsets ever. The only downside was watching a middle aged man on a camel chug back a beer and then throw the empty bottle on the ground, adding it to the rest of the garbage every where.
We spent a couple more days touring the city and the fort. The fort is really quite amazing. It's about 850 years old, and as there are still cows everywhere it still feels like the middle ages, as you walk through the narrow lanes. We were going to check out the Maharajahs Palace but it seemed quite over priced. I think the most interesting aspect of it is the hand prints around the doorway. After the Maharajah's Death his wives placed there hand prints on the door way and jumped into his funeral Pyre. Rather morbid, and creepy to look at.
The next day we went to Johpur. On the train we shared a berth with an Indian man named Samjay. He was a military man and told us of his family. We had a lovely conversation that encompassed a lot about the differences in our cultures and the pros and cons of each. The next day we tried to get spices, but everyone was charging what the Indians call the white skin tax (we get charged this everywhere). That's no joke. It's expected that we pay more than locals. Fine. We don't mind paying more but not 7-10 times more. We got loads of spices (paid more but know it's the real thing) and a big suitcase (that broke) and then returned to our guesthouse. We then asked the guest house staff what we could expect to pay for stainless steel dinnerware. They told us and then went further by sending their mother with us to ensure that we were not ripped off. This was her first time as a tour guide and although she couldn't speak a word of English we could tell that she was beaming with pride to be able to do us this favour. We bought loads of stuff and then offered to get her a gift to thank her. She declined but we insisted. Her eyes went wide and she immediately grabbed a spice box (which turned out to be the most expensive thing on our list [$5]). We put our stuff aside and Liza was given some really nice glass bangles from the mother and we were invited for lunch. Liza had a glass of chai with them while I did an online job interview. They were really welcoming people and had two pet calves that stayed in their foyer.
We then hopped on a train to Delhi, and here we are. Off to Agra and then Varanessi. Only 2 minutes left at this internet cafe, so bye for now!!
Well Jaisalmer was great, hot(40+), but great. We definitely didn't need six days there though. We spent most days relaxing, but ventured out a few times to shop see the sights and ride a camel to the Samm sand dunes. One day while we were walking towards a restaurant, we were summonded to a man's textile store. This happens about 50 times a day(wherever we are at least). We politely declined but the man was friendly and insisted that he had 'fixed prices' (meaning they were fair, no haggling and the prices were listed). We said we would look. Well needless to say, after 2 HOURS there, and his lessons on good quality and bad quality and his verbalizations on his hatred towards people who cheated tourists, we decided to buy some good quality items. We loaded up on loads of stuff and had to return the next day for some stuff that needed to be repaired or altered. The next day we went back and the stuff was not ready. We returned an hour later and the stuff was not repaired properly - it was sewn together half assed, and the quality was simply crappy. The guy we bought it off of was not there, and we had to get back for our camel safari. We told the boy running the shop that we would return later. When we returned to our hotel Liza approached the Hotel manager and asked him what he would pay for the items we had bought. He was shocked at what we paid (six times the normal rate)and laughed at the quality. He told us that the man was selling crap and that the stuff we bought would be thrown out by the women who made it. He told us that that man was a liar, and that he always cheated tourists. Liza was angry and the man told her to return the stuff and he would take us to a government run shop. He said that she needed to make noise to get her money back. For continuity I will talk about the camel safari after. After the camel trip we returned at 8:30 that night and I began asking the man for our money back as we where not happy with the work he had done or the fact that we now knew he had ripped us off terribly. Liza did not want to speak as she was shaking with anger. The man made the terrible mistake of insisting that she rather than me explain why we were returning the items. I was cheering for Liza and yet at the same time couldn't help feel a little sorry for the greedy salesman. Liza let him have it. She vented anger that had been building against scammers from seven countries. I think he was shocked that this sweet, witty funny woman from the night before was capable of standing up for herself, so strongly. We got our money back. He had no other option. I hope that teaches the greedy bugger. The following day the hotel manager took us to a government funded shop (apparently) and we paid way more but for much better quality. They took us through all the varying qualities of work and showed us how to tell the difference. It was obvious the stuff the other guy was selling was not even 1/2 the quality of the the stuff there.
The camel Safari was incredible. Most places including our hotel were charging about 1000 Rupees each for a sunset tour. This means you take a jeep out to the desert and then ride a camel for 30 minutes to the Sam sand dunes. You then watch the sunset and return. We went through the Tourism department and did it for 500 Rupees in total. Yay. Our driver seemed to be the biggest nerd in India. He stopped at several places to show us various plants and rocks in the desert. He even had fossilized shells in his pocket to show us that the region had once been an ocean. Lucky for us there was a Hindi tourist with us, because understanding geology and paleontology in Hindi is quite difficult. We were taken to a tent were we had chai and hopped on our camel. We were supposed to get one each but ended up having to share one. It was better this way as riding a camel is less comfortable than it looks. We rode it out to the sand dunes and watched one of the most amazing sunsets ever. The only downside was watching a middle aged man on a camel chug back a beer and then throw the empty bottle on the ground, adding it to the rest of the garbage every where.
We spent a couple more days touring the city and the fort. The fort is really quite amazing. It's about 850 years old, and as there are still cows everywhere it still feels like the middle ages, as you walk through the narrow lanes. We were going to check out the Maharajahs Palace but it seemed quite over priced. I think the most interesting aspect of it is the hand prints around the doorway. After the Maharajah's Death his wives placed there hand prints on the door way and jumped into his funeral Pyre. Rather morbid, and creepy to look at.
The next day we went to Johpur. On the train we shared a berth with an Indian man named Samjay. He was a military man and told us of his family. We had a lovely conversation that encompassed a lot about the differences in our cultures and the pros and cons of each. The next day we tried to get spices, but everyone was charging what the Indians call the white skin tax (we get charged this everywhere). That's no joke. It's expected that we pay more than locals. Fine. We don't mind paying more but not 7-10 times more. We got loads of spices (paid more but know it's the real thing) and a big suitcase (that broke) and then returned to our guesthouse. We then asked the guest house staff what we could expect to pay for stainless steel dinnerware. They told us and then went further by sending their mother with us to ensure that we were not ripped off. This was her first time as a tour guide and although she couldn't speak a word of English we could tell that she was beaming with pride to be able to do us this favour. We bought loads of stuff and then offered to get her a gift to thank her. She declined but we insisted. Her eyes went wide and she immediately grabbed a spice box (which turned out to be the most expensive thing on our list [$5]). We put our stuff aside and Liza was given some really nice glass bangles from the mother and we were invited for lunch. Liza had a glass of chai with them while I did an online job interview. They were really welcoming people and had two pet calves that stayed in their foyer.
We then hopped on a train to Delhi, and here we are. Off to Agra and then Varanessi. Only 2 minutes left at this internet cafe, so bye for now!!
Friday, April 10, 2009
All You Need Is Love
Hello and welcome to another post. Since last time, we've been to see the wonder of the Golden Temple in Amritsar, gotten our Chakras straight in Rishikesh, visited the father of the Nation in Dehli and have arrived in the ancient town of Jaisalmer.
Amritser is a fairly unattractive town, but the Golden Temple is amazing. You walk in to this complex (after washing your feet, of course) and are immediately greeted with a view of this gleaming golden structure in the middle of a large man made pond. It is amazing to watch all the throngs of people with their multi coloured sari's and turbans. They are there on a pilgrimage, but they all look like they are on a picnic. It's religion without taking it's self too seriously. Really wonderful and relaxed place to be. After visiting the temple, we stopped by a music store where I bought a set of tablas (Indian drums). They have been a bitch to carry around but I am so excited to get home and play them. The day before we had gone to a Hindu temple (Matta Temple) where women go to pray for a baby (yes we said our own prayers:). The temple is like walking through an old fun house with mirrors, and streams, and tunnels. The colours were vibrant as usual, and we were welcomed to sit in the main prayer room where people chanted and prayed to the woman who founded the temple. We politely declined, and enjoyed the experience as observers. After this we treated ourselves to a box (!!!) of Indian sweets - a different way for BOTH of us to look pregnant.
On our last day we went to the Pakistan/India border town of Attari, and watched the border closing ceremony. It was extremely hot, and security was intense. The bleachers are surrounded by sand bags. Liza got fully frisked and patted down in a screened area twice. The second time she had to explain what her SheWee was (www.shewee.com). The security lady was confused but let it slide. Each side has bleachers where the spectators sit and watch as the border guards march around and face each other off. Our side easily had 5 times more spectators than the Pakistani, but we seemed to be quieter. Hearing hundreds of Muslims chanting "Allah who Akbar" (God is Great) in unison is very eerie and not something you want to hear when travelling by air. It sent shivers up my spine.
So then we took a train to Hardiwar, and a bus to Rishikesh. This is the town made famous by The Beatles. They came in the sixties for an ashram stay and apparently wrote most of the White Album there. Needless to say this is a HIPPIE town and there are yoga and meditation classes everywhere. I went to the Maharishi Yogi Ashram, where The Beatles had stayed. It is now abandoned and overgrown by forest. It is fenced off by the Indian Forestry Department. I had to pay a security guard 50 Rps. to see it. He told me that I had to be quiet about it as he could lose his job. I think he is quite an entrepreneurial man. Inside I came upon an older hippie couple laying on a bench. The guy looked like Jerry Garcia. They were smoking a joint and appeared to be enjoying the calm and tranquility of the place. The huts that the ashramites stayed in looked like the Ewok village on ground. It was a pretty neat place. Wandering around looking at old toilets I couldn't help but wonder if one of the Fab Four had used it. I took pictures just in case. As interesting as an abandoned bunch of buildings is I never got the sense of The White album. In other words I never saw a Strawberry field. Maybe I should have asked Jerry for a toke.
On the next night I went to a rooftop classical Indian music concert. It was amazing to see the music being played live and for the first time ever I saw a man play a nose sitar. Basically he hummed out his nose and it sounded like a sitar if you closed your eyes. For the finale we were treated to Indian dance. The lady moved beautifullly through the stories while a man sang them over tablas and a harmonium. The walk home was a little nerve racking as it was pitch black and cows monkeys and stray dogs were every where. I made it home safe enough. The worst thing that happened was I stepped in a cow pattie. Shitty.
On the next day we headed across this huge suspension bridge. On the bridge Liza was attacked by a bull. Actually it just moved it's head, but it bruised her abdomen with it's horn. It could have been much worse. I never trusted those things anyways, but now we give them an extra wide berth. We went for coffee and breakfast and then spent the day shopping. We also booked a yoga class for the next day our last. The class was really quite enjoyable. I have been to several, but they all seem to be about the poses. Yoga is much more and Mootrie (our teacher) was able to share some of the philosophy involved, as well as the stretches and breathing exercises. With our body and souls aligned we headed to the bus station. Our Rickshaw had 12 people and a baby in it. People were sitting on one another and Liza and I practically had to stick our heads out the window to make room. From there we took an equally crowded bus were a lady sat on the floor and slept against Liza's leg. When we got to the train station we waited five hours for our train to Delhi. During the wait I was attacked by a monkey. Actually it was a baby monkey who grabbed on to my leg. I was concerned at first (rabies) but there was no wound it had just startled me. Maybe it thought I was it's daddy.
With only eight hours to spend in Delhi we stored our bags and took a rickshaw to the Gandhi Memorial. It is in the place where he was assassinated. The path to his memorial is supposed to retrace his final steps, at the end of which there is a flame burning and what looks like a tomb. We then went to the Gandhi Museum where you can see his blood stained clothes that he was shot in and all his worldly possessions. There were also many pictures, showing his life. It was quite morbid, but it also showed how simple a life he lived. He was a true leader who sacrificed everything he could for his people. Made me think a lot of our leaders who travel in super premium class and eat thousand dollar a plate dinners, all on our dime and in our name.
We then took a train to Jaisalmer. This is a desert town. Camels are everywhere and we plan to ride them tomorrow to the sand dunes. All the buildings are sand coloured and it feels more like we are in the Mid East than in India. As we were arriving on the train there was a gentleman who used our berth to charge his phone. He appeared to be a government engineer, or something. There was an earthquake about 30 kms. from Jaisalmer and he was calling people for damage reports. When he got off the train he was saluted by a soldier and his bags carried for him. I was just shown a newspaper report from the man beside me showing that a little damage was reported and a person was injured from rocks falling from a crumbling building. Nothing too severe but apparently there may be an aftershock in the next twenty four hours. We'll keep our fingers crossed.
Well that's it for now look forward to hearing from you all and talk to ya soon.
MArk and Liza
Amritser is a fairly unattractive town, but the Golden Temple is amazing. You walk in to this complex (after washing your feet, of course) and are immediately greeted with a view of this gleaming golden structure in the middle of a large man made pond. It is amazing to watch all the throngs of people with their multi coloured sari's and turbans. They are there on a pilgrimage, but they all look like they are on a picnic. It's religion without taking it's self too seriously. Really wonderful and relaxed place to be. After visiting the temple, we stopped by a music store where I bought a set of tablas (Indian drums). They have been a bitch to carry around but I am so excited to get home and play them. The day before we had gone to a Hindu temple (Matta Temple) where women go to pray for a baby (yes we said our own prayers:). The temple is like walking through an old fun house with mirrors, and streams, and tunnels. The colours were vibrant as usual, and we were welcomed to sit in the main prayer room where people chanted and prayed to the woman who founded the temple. We politely declined, and enjoyed the experience as observers. After this we treated ourselves to a box (!!!) of Indian sweets - a different way for BOTH of us to look pregnant.
On our last day we went to the Pakistan/India border town of Attari, and watched the border closing ceremony. It was extremely hot, and security was intense. The bleachers are surrounded by sand bags. Liza got fully frisked and patted down in a screened area twice. The second time she had to explain what her SheWee was (www.shewee.com). The security lady was confused but let it slide. Each side has bleachers where the spectators sit and watch as the border guards march around and face each other off. Our side easily had 5 times more spectators than the Pakistani, but we seemed to be quieter. Hearing hundreds of Muslims chanting "Allah who Akbar" (God is Great) in unison is very eerie and not something you want to hear when travelling by air. It sent shivers up my spine.
So then we took a train to Hardiwar, and a bus to Rishikesh. This is the town made famous by The Beatles. They came in the sixties for an ashram stay and apparently wrote most of the White Album there. Needless to say this is a HIPPIE town and there are yoga and meditation classes everywhere. I went to the Maharishi Yogi Ashram, where The Beatles had stayed. It is now abandoned and overgrown by forest. It is fenced off by the Indian Forestry Department. I had to pay a security guard 50 Rps. to see it. He told me that I had to be quiet about it as he could lose his job. I think he is quite an entrepreneurial man. Inside I came upon an older hippie couple laying on a bench. The guy looked like Jerry Garcia. They were smoking a joint and appeared to be enjoying the calm and tranquility of the place. The huts that the ashramites stayed in looked like the Ewok village on ground. It was a pretty neat place. Wandering around looking at old toilets I couldn't help but wonder if one of the Fab Four had used it. I took pictures just in case. As interesting as an abandoned bunch of buildings is I never got the sense of The White album. In other words I never saw a Strawberry field. Maybe I should have asked Jerry for a toke.
On the next night I went to a rooftop classical Indian music concert. It was amazing to see the music being played live and for the first time ever I saw a man play a nose sitar. Basically he hummed out his nose and it sounded like a sitar if you closed your eyes. For the finale we were treated to Indian dance. The lady moved beautifullly through the stories while a man sang them over tablas and a harmonium. The walk home was a little nerve racking as it was pitch black and cows monkeys and stray dogs were every where. I made it home safe enough. The worst thing that happened was I stepped in a cow pattie. Shitty.
On the next day we headed across this huge suspension bridge. On the bridge Liza was attacked by a bull. Actually it just moved it's head, but it bruised her abdomen with it's horn. It could have been much worse. I never trusted those things anyways, but now we give them an extra wide berth. We went for coffee and breakfast and then spent the day shopping. We also booked a yoga class for the next day our last. The class was really quite enjoyable. I have been to several, but they all seem to be about the poses. Yoga is much more and Mootrie (our teacher) was able to share some of the philosophy involved, as well as the stretches and breathing exercises. With our body and souls aligned we headed to the bus station. Our Rickshaw had 12 people and a baby in it. People were sitting on one another and Liza and I practically had to stick our heads out the window to make room. From there we took an equally crowded bus were a lady sat on the floor and slept against Liza's leg. When we got to the train station we waited five hours for our train to Delhi. During the wait I was attacked by a monkey. Actually it was a baby monkey who grabbed on to my leg. I was concerned at first (rabies) but there was no wound it had just startled me. Maybe it thought I was it's daddy.
With only eight hours to spend in Delhi we stored our bags and took a rickshaw to the Gandhi Memorial. It is in the place where he was assassinated. The path to his memorial is supposed to retrace his final steps, at the end of which there is a flame burning and what looks like a tomb. We then went to the Gandhi Museum where you can see his blood stained clothes that he was shot in and all his worldly possessions. There were also many pictures, showing his life. It was quite morbid, but it also showed how simple a life he lived. He was a true leader who sacrificed everything he could for his people. Made me think a lot of our leaders who travel in super premium class and eat thousand dollar a plate dinners, all on our dime and in our name.
We then took a train to Jaisalmer. This is a desert town. Camels are everywhere and we plan to ride them tomorrow to the sand dunes. All the buildings are sand coloured and it feels more like we are in the Mid East than in India. As we were arriving on the train there was a gentleman who used our berth to charge his phone. He appeared to be a government engineer, or something. There was an earthquake about 30 kms. from Jaisalmer and he was calling people for damage reports. When he got off the train he was saluted by a soldier and his bags carried for him. I was just shown a newspaper report from the man beside me showing that a little damage was reported and a person was injured from rocks falling from a crumbling building. Nothing too severe but apparently there may be an aftershock in the next twenty four hours. We'll keep our fingers crossed.
Well that's it for now look forward to hearing from you all and talk to ya soon.
MArk and Liza
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