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 t
his 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.
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 t
his 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
