Gems From India

Gems from India

• Words of a local: In India we have a big problem--that is there is no problem.


• Indian room service: open door and shout "Hello"--someone will come running


• Views from the car window: Indian man dressed in "Ghandi" pants and a T-shirt with a big yellow smiling face


• Indian woman wearing a beautiful pink sari working with a chisel breaking cement at a construction site


• Thoughts on living in such crowded conditions from a local: I would be lonely without so many others close.


• Did you know the Japanese are building the toll roads here and collecting the $$?


• There is a Global Management University in India??


• Girls who complete about 9 years of school get $$ from government because they will be more desirable wives?

Finally, treat of the day: Talk about service, you don't even have to get your own towels wet!! They come wet already!!
Enjoy USA,
Jane and Roger

*** Our first set of photos have been uploaded onto our photo website:

http://rogerandjane.shutterfly.com/ (look in the India #1 Album)

Greetings from Pushkar, India--home of many camels!!

We pulled up to our hotel and parked next to two camels who seemed to like the company. Can't wait till tomorrow when we hop on one of them. As we waited for our room, we sat in a garden and watched several peacocks roost for the night in nearby trees. We are in India. Today we toured the palace where the present Hindi Maharaja of Rajathstan state lives and the palaces & grave sites of several past kings. Marble carvings, golden paintings, mirrored walls, chandeliers, pillars, domes, Persian carpets and ornately painted gates everywhere. One built a palace for his wife that had 365 doors so she could always watch from her hidden window whatever was going on and from a spot with a breeze. Another built his wife a glass palace with thousands & thousands of tiny mirrors. Another built an observatory in the 1600's that included a sundial that showed time accurate within two seconds. It was about as big as our house. He also built a constellation finder, astrolabe, zodiac locator, etc., etc. just proved this Maharaja had a thing about knowing what time it was!! They sure didn't skimp on themselves. Of course, we sure don't feel like we are skimping on ourselves as we take in site after site of a most intriguing culture and tour their amazingly old and well preserved buildings. We've been enjoying talking to our guides at each site who are very willing to tell about their life and other Indians. Did you realize that about 80% of marriages are still arranged and the divorce rate is less than 3%?? I asked if they were happy with their spouses and he smiled and said, oh yes. He hoped he could be married as long as we've been. More later as we must rest up for more tomorrow.

Enjoy!

Jane and Roger

We've arrived in India!

Day 1 that lasted until Day 3

India--we came looking for adventure...and quickly found it. We missed our New York connection due to fog in D.C.. Air India officials were at a loss what to do with us and ten others. One Indian man (a D.C./Delhi business man), San Jeev stepped forward and clearly took control for the whole group telling us that if we stuck together, we'd have better chance with Air India. He negotiated an acceptable scenerio to get us to Delhi ASAP. He did it in a quiet and polite yet demanding manner. We were given new tickets to Mumbai and then Delhi along with meal and hotel vouchers. From then on, we were close to San Jeev's heels as we moved a a pack from ticket counters, through security checks, in taxis for the next 24 hours. We became the "Dirty Dozen." At one security point, Rog & 2 other got separated. San Jeev spoke to authorities and offered to search for them. Another young man in our group doubled back and proudly returned with all three...relief. Our unplanned night in Mumbai gave us a glimpse of that busy of that busy business center and almost 4 hours sleep in a bed.

We are about to land in Delhi. We feel lost in a time bubble. It's Wed, 11:30 AM here --so that's Tues 1:30 AM USA time. Since we left Detroit at 6 AM on Monday--we just know we've been in planes and airports for a looong time.

Day 4 and 5
Taj Mahal - open sewers
Marble - dirt
flashy tour buses - ox carts
gold carvings - tinsel
domes - dung
gorgeous sari's - bare butts
Mercedes - ricksaws
friendly smiles - honking horns
Hindu - Muslum
rich - poor

The contrast is what smacks me in the face. We have spent the last few days with our driver, Noor who placed a ring of flowers around our necks when he met us at the airport and we were off! We've already been to Gandi's grave & museum, Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, Sikandra (fort), Fateh Pur Sikri (palace) and a few more palaces and forts. At each, Noor has arranged a guide who is loaded with info and takes our picture!! We've traveled about 500 kilometers on muddy alleys and new toll road, through huge cities & tiny villages, past fields of crops & bricks and past ricksaws, motorcyles (with 4 people on them), trucks totally decorated with USE HORN PLEASE painted on their tailgate, three wheeled taxis with 20+ people, bicycles galore, ox/camel/donkey/horse carts, tour & local buses and small cars. All these shared the road with cows, pigs, sheep, goats and people walking. It only worked because of the cooperation and respect everyone seemed to have for each other...and their horns which they used as a courtesy to warn others as they approached. It seemed like an amazing maze where people had a sixth sense of what others were going to do. All the while, we soak in the sights like a cow walking out of marble doorway, palace built in a lake, sari's blowing in the air as they travel on motorcycles or in backs of trucks, technical university next to dung pile farm, monkeys playing in ancient palace, women in vivid sari's washing clothes in the river and hanging them in dead trees to dry. children in smart uniforms going to school by crowded ricksaws, and so much more.

When we had to cross a road while walking, we would have never moved if Noor or our guide had not led the way stopping traffic. They told us--if you worry, you can't walk. Just walk.



We're in Jaipur-the city they painted pink for the Queen's visit--so we'll see more palaces and forts tomorrow. The history here is amazingly ancient and ornate!

Hope all is well with you!
Roger and Jane


For more videos and photos of New Delhi, go to our photo/video page :
http://www.rogerandjane.shutterfly.com/