Rajasthan



Indians never do it by halves



Doesn't that word conjure up millions of pictures in your mind.  We have only been here four days and have a wonderful time the only drawback being the scorching heat - often over 45 degrees.  Obviously the highlight of our trip here has been seeing the First wonder of the modern world - the Taj Mahal.  We got up at 5 in the morning on Tuesday and our driver took us to the West Gate where with surprisingly few people we entered the Taj and watched the sun rise and make those jewels sparkle.  It was an experience not to forget.  What a perfect and stunningly beautiful monument.  John is already making plans to knock the fish and chips shop down and build me a fitting tomb over the road.  Come to think of it, I think he'd rather have the fish and chips shop and maybe that will be a fitting monument to me.




The Indian government has put in place many plans to clean up pollution in Agra to keep the Taj in tip top condition but it remains a dirty conjested city so we set off to Jaipur that morning.  Stopping at Fathepur Sikri, a palace built in the 16th century and only used for a short period of time due to water shortages, was a real eyeopener and we really enjoyed looking around and taking in the striking Indian architecture.  We arrived in Jaipur about 4.  It had been so hot we just went to the hotel and chilled in the air con for a few hours.  Each night, our driver, Mohan, takes us to a local restaurant where we can have great Indian food very cheaply.  He is a real gem.  He always keeps cold water, cokes and beer in his ice box for us and never makes us go into shops or factories if we don't want to.  Absolutely no pressure and he is constantly alert to show us "special" scenes along the road. 



Yesteray we went out to the Amber Fort which we also really enjoyed and were totally surprised at.  Particularly beautiful was the mirrored palace.  Mohan drove us around to the other highlights of Jaipur and then gave us time to wander the bazaars.  We haven't bought a lot here but we did buy a beautiful carpet in Agra so figure we have a lovely reminder of our Rajasthani trip.  We said goodbye to Mohan last night when we caught the overnight train to Jodhpur.  Arrived here about 4.30 am and as we were walking along the platform a guy came up to John with his mobile phone and had my name on it.  He was there to pick us up and bring us straight to the guesthouse.  Always a nice surprise.  We have just had breakfast on the rooftop where we had an uniterrupted view of the Fort guarding this blue city.  Today we are walking into the old city and looking at the bazaar.  Hoping to book up a cooking class for tomorrow.




John at the Red Fort, Delhi





The place where Gandhi was assassinated











At the Taj Mahal

Fatephur Sikri