May 16, 2009

Adventurous to say the least…
After finding out I have a new job starting in July, I decided to treat myself to a trip to India, both to travel and to see my good friend and former roommate Jaeda! So after having a nice 3 days in each of London and France, I made it to India! I have been here about 5 days and already in about 4 cities. Jaeda and I made our way up (if you are interested in following on a map) from Mumbai (Bombay) to Delhi, then onto Dehra Dun and we are now in Mussoorie.

In general India is so amazing and crazy and definitely overstimulating. I actually don't mind the very loud traffic, the crazy drivers and the funny techniques one must use in risking their life in crossing the street. Fortunately I think my NYC training pays off there so as others find that intimidating, not so bad for me. I will say though that getting places is truly an endeavor, and I mean anywhere. There are so many logistics to work out and most people's English is very broken and hard to understand them, and them me.

The food, very spicy! I like spice but I will say that Indian food in the U.S. is for sure dumbed down. A lot of the food is very good and I'm trying tons of stuff (with Jaeda's guidance) and learning a few Hindi words in the process. Jaeda has some basic Hindi which is helpful at least most times. I do like listening to the rhythm of the language and people in general are very nice and helpful when they understand what you're asking.

Distances are far. We took an 18hr train, first time I ever slept in a train, from Mumbai to Delhi and it was actually really comfortable, food included. Transportation is cheap, as is food, as are hotels. We've stayed mostly in budget places but have been more than fine, even hot water up here in the mountains where we are now. Trust me, in Mumbai and Dehli you sooooo don't want hot water. Delhi was really brutal and Mumbai is no slouch right now in the heat dept either. I think 5 days at the end of my trip to the more touristy areas like the Taj Mahal where it's in the 110s degrees will be a challenge! Lots of water is key. But we're doing well.

In Delhi, we just had an afternoon stopping over but went to see the Red Fort which is from the Mughal era, really beautiful architecture (pics to follow upon my return). We stayed in Dehra Dun on our way to the mountains (honestly, kind of a shitty commercial gritty place, excuse my direct impression), so we cut out earlier in the day and head off to Mussoorie.

The ride up to the mountains many of you might not have liked, tons of switchbacks and given that the guidebook said 1.5 hrs and we got here in 1 hr, Jaeda and I agree our driver was definitely overzealous with the accelerator. I got my land legs back once we got here and today we're off on a hike where we hope to see our first glimpse of the Himalayas (albeit in the distance). The town is great though, amazing views everywhere and very cute shops and more of a big town feeling than most of the cities.

Oh and one last thing to mention is that about 2 blocks from Jaeda's house are an entire group of water buffalo (and she lives in a suburb but not rural) where she gets from fresh yogurt from. If you want to follow on our trip, from here we go to Haridwar (meant to be really nice with an offering made by the Buddhists to the river at night), then to Almora and hopefully to Kausani (the ride up to these mountains is supposed to be much worse but totally worth it). Oh and fyi, if you're having trouble finding any of these on a map, its in the state of Uttarakhand which is just west of Nepal. More to come from the next cyber cafe.


May 28, 2009

Magical mountains
Well, I think Jaeda and I were overly ambitious in some of our travels since I think we ended up spending more time getting to places than being in them. The tradeoff of course is that we have so many different things and that has been great. Fortunately my two trips up to mountain towns went well (ie, no getting sick on the bus, which happened to many others, I'll spare you the details). The second trip I mentioned to a place called Kausani, which hands down has been the most magical of all. And yes, both days we were there we did get a pretty good glimpse at the awe-inspiring and majestic 367km of Himalayan Mountains. We really felt like we could have stayed there for quite some time, like forever. It was just so beautiful words do not describe and since it's a town of 250 people, needless to say the townsfolk were wonderfully nice (when they understood our English or limited Hindi). We also got to go to a Tea Factory and gardens there, also really beautiful. We are lucky (sort of) that the rains have just started. Often we get caught in them but it really cools things off.

We also spent time in a mountain town called Nainital (not quite as high) that shockingly is centered around a fairly large lake (which you really don't expect to see in the mountains). It was much more touristy than many of the other places we have been, but regardless, we have been just about the only foreign tourists as it's holiday/vacation time in India.

Although there are so many other things we've done and seen which I will elaborate on in person, Jaeda is in Delhi on her way back to Mumbai and I'm now in Agra, my hotel is about 500 yds from the Taj Mahal where I will be going in about an hour. I've seen views from a fort I visited this morning and went to a factory where they show you how they inlay the shells/stones into the marble in the style the Taj Mahal is built in (excuse the dangling participle for those of you grammarians). And yes, since I've descended from the mountains it's really hot, well over 100, not sure I want to know how much more, but I keep my head covered mostly and drink a ton. I seriously think half of the money I have spent on this trip goes to water!

Well, I think I'm going to have a rest before heading to the biggest site on my list. I am going for the sunset which is supposed to be a great time. Much love to you all and thank you for those that did drop me a note, always nice to get a quick hello when so far away. Thinking of you all and can't wait to show you all pics and what life is like here, really not something one can imagine.


June 3, 2009

Wonder of the world…
My last week in India was really different than my first couple weeks. I have since found out that its about 115 degrees here on any given day – ouch! But aside from the difference in climate, the culture in Rajasthan and the nearby areas is very different from the northern mountain towns. You hear a lot more English, more touristy, but again, Indians are always so friendly and you meet a lot of wonderful genuine souls here.

How does one sum up the Taj Mahal? Besides its rich history as a mausoleum (not a religious building), the stonework is amazing, but the part that is hardest to understand without being here is the scale and size of this building. It’s really an architectural marvel that is worth the trip. The upside of the ridiculous heat is that so I’m told the crowds are not too bad, although any place in India is extremely well populated. I hope you enjoy my pictures and that I did this wonder of the world justice.

Great story…so for those of you who are familiar with the U.S. show “The Amazing Race”, well apparently Spanish TV has a version of their own. I found this out actually in Agra, the city where the Taj Mahal is, by bumping into 2 contestants who sadly were really struggling with their English. At first I thought it was a news crew because of the camera and wanted no part but then volunteered to help them when I realized they could barely communicate. Their version gives each couple 1 Euro/day and they have to find food and housing for that. Even in India that’s kind of insane. Since I spent the day with a tour group who had kindly adopted me, we all chipped in and got them a room in our hotel. After many discussions and fun questions, I will apparently be on episode 9. Here are the details if you would like to watch or follow. The show starts in September, not sure exactly what date, and episode 9 should be in November sometime. If interested, go to www.cuatro.com, and the show is called Pekín Express (since theirs started in Peking). But yes, it will all be in Spanish so either you can laugh at me in ignorance or get someone to translate! It was a very funny experience though as I’m not big on being on camera.

After Agra, I headed on to Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan. I have to say it came with good recommendations and I wasn’t a huge fan. It was such a crowded city, yes more than others which in India is saying a lot. I did get to go to a place called the Amber Fort which was really interesting (and saw elephants on the way there). And I went to a place where they have centographs, another place where they like to really dress things up for important people who have passed away. This one was done with Italian marble and was really an amazing find. Although I did like some of the sites, and I had treated myself to a really nice hotel there, I decided to high tail it out of there and onto my last stop, Udaipur.

Udaipur, like many places in Rajasthan, was sleepy since it was not the tourist season for this state. And despite the fact that Udaipur is known for its majestic lake and palace that sits in the middle of it, there has not been water in the lake since 2006. Nevertheless, it was a really nice city, much smaller feel, and many artsy things to do and see. Food was very good there and I met some really nice people there too traveling on my own.

Last stop was Mumbai and Jaeda and her husband Seth took me Juhu beach, which really was a synthesis of everything I’d seen. Crowded didn’t do it justice but we sat at a restaurant, on the coast, and had a lovely evening of yummy treats and drinks while watching many Indians play carnival games, enjoy swimming in the water and a beautiful skyline. Wonderful memories I will have forever…

For all those that have been waiting patiently to see my photos, go to share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0AcOGzNk0ZMmLjQ and enjoy!