Last day

My best cuppa in India.

View from the bridge

Liked the inscription and the view. Not so sure about the last statement though

Rama hugging a Shiva Linga...a penis. Weird concept!

Me in a 12 story temple which reminded me of something from Barry Island Butlins.

Lovely flowers...I will miss you

My last sunset in India from the ashram ghat. (Steps near the water)

Devottees with lit candles from the holy fire.

The female sanscrit students praying to the holy river.

Shiva statue in the light, behind is Mother Ganges.

An hour of prayer, singing chanting and clapping. The yellow clad guys are young sanscrit students.

Wow, what a great place to end my holiday. I can imagine when it is high season here in the summer all of the ashrams and holy places have a Butlins Holiday camp feel about them but at the moment things are pretty quiet and chilled out because there is still snow on the mountains and the temple and hole hangs out on the mountain side are not open yet, hence gurus and pilgrims are not using this town as a base.

I had a guide all day today and he was great. Vikram was an old guy and I think old is the way to go in India they are more trustworthy and not so money grabbing. He took me around 20 odd temples all on different themes and because I asked loads of questions he gave me a blow by blow account of the whole realm of god and goddesses and incarnations and vehicles and bodyguards. I'm telling you..this Hindu stuff is amazing and so ridiculous...but taken so seriously. Parvati sacrificed herself for some reason and 51 body parts of hers fell to Earth(well in this region of the Himalayas) so there are 51 temples of hers related to the relevant body part. In Shirikesh there is the tears temple, and the tongue temple. Further up the mountainside is a temple devoted to her nipple which fell to Earth. So cool!!!

This afternoon I chilled at the hotel. It's lovely here and the food is the best yet. I have totally gone to town today because it's my last day. Even the tea tastes better here and I took a photo of my favourite tasting cuppa this morning!!

Met Vikram again at 5pm and he took me off to the hour long service by the waters edge. Without him I would never have found the place. He was worth his weight in gold and very helpful. We went to the oldest temple here first...from the 5th centuryAD. Was good to see it because everything here seems really new.

The prayer time was great and had a kinda evangelical feeling about it...but more fun. Lots of clapping and swaying and singing. My god the music is loud but it really was emotional seeing loads of different people there and the beautiful river ganges flowing by. At sunset it goes a light blue colour and roars by. Also there are loads of fish in it...so itcan't be that polluted here.

gonna go back to hotel soon and get packed and showered ready for my 4am departure tomorrow morning. I've had to buy another bag to check in. I really hope I don't have to pay more and that the man in London was right about the 40 kilo weight allowance!

I've totally enjoyed this trip...I've been ripped off and hassled but the service and adventures that I have had have been unbelievable and i have done and seen soooooooo much. Can't believe I have gone from desert to mountain in one week!!

I'm ready to leave though...3 weeks alone is more than enough and looking forward to getting back to my house and seeing friends and family. Right that's it. Namaste.

Jaipur

More holy rats, drinking holy milk this time!
at the Amber Fort, Jaipur. The Mother on the right was very forceful and wanted her children to be photographed with a 'white person'.
Beautiful silver inlay. Was outstanding.
My favourite trees of India. I made Sanju stop on the highway and go back for this photo! I love it. Am going to miss these trees.
designs of the fort in Bikener...wish I could have had longer there.
My room tonight. I want to nick the bedspread.
Even has one of these but it doesn't work.
Water palace of Jaipur
Indians are masters of colour and design. This is over 700 years old in the Amber Fort.
Amber Fort







Well here I am back in the golden triangle; the Pink City of Rajasthan. I am staying in another palace tonight and I hope to upload some photos of my Maharaja Palace room. Last night I had a very hot curry and it was so delicious but I was up at 5am having pay back. Oh well, at least I feel fine now!

Long drive today, but I'm getting into Hindi music now and my book is great. Lots of camels on the road, they can carry so much and seem so placid. I want one. The roads here are fantastic but everyone drives like a complete nutter.

Megan, thank you for your comment. the rats were fine because they are not real rats but reincarnations (ask your Dad what that means!) as for the camel I was lucky coz he was quite small but my legs do ache today not only because of the camel, but also because of walking up sand dunes early in the morning to see the sunrise. Now that was tough because I kept sinking and slipping.

Arrived in Jaipur about 3pm and had a whistle stop tour because everything closes at 5.30. Tomorrow is the elephant festival. Looking forward to it. Still no accommodation in Delhi but Sanju says he will help me find something...hope so.

Warning Mum...next part not suitable for Megan or any other reading nephew/neice I might have! (or Dad, come to that!)
Sanju took me to a jewellery shop this evening and the guy was mad as a hat. He told me he'd read my palm to tell me which gem stone would suit me best. (It was blue saphire by the way)
he then told me about my life, I'm a home owner, got a brother and a sister and that I like foreign men (All things Sanju could have quite easily told him...yes, I'm so cynical.) But then he told me that I liked group sex. I said, what? He said yes, it's here on your palm..you love group sex. I said oh my god, no one has ever said that when reading my palm. (or at any other time!) He said it's here on your palm...all readers know it, they just haven't told you about it. Bloody hell. You learn so many new things about yourself when you travel around India!!!! I bought a cheap ring of him just to remember him and his 'knowledgable insights'.

Right time for dinner. Internet is good here and for the first time I have learnt how to turn my photos. I hope you enjoy looking at them without cricking your neck!

Bikener

Holy rats!!! can you believe I was there!! I'm so proud of myself!!! Look at the colony in the distance.
Holy rats drinking holy water
Holy sleeping rats
Fort at Bikener. My favourite fort so far!!

the Thar desert...about 30 miles from Pakistan.
Dishpak the guide and Bishken the camel.
At the watering hole.

ME!!!
Well, I'm back in a city now. What an adventurous few days. Drove from Jodhpur to Jaiselmer and went round the fort...which is still inhabited and looks amazing and then in a jeep out to the desert and ended up sleeping out under the stars in the desert after a four hour ride on a camel! Unfortunatly the sunset was hazy but sunrise was good. I didn't sleep alone had an old English couple with me so that was a bit of security! but a What an adventure. I had a small camel so it wasn't too uncomfortable at all! In fact I quite liked it!!!


Then today I did the most crazy thing in the WORLD FOR ME. I went to the only Rat Temple in India. there are 100000000s of them and I thought if anything could cure me of a phobia that would and to be honest it wasn't too bad. Just kinda strange and they were kinda cute..but GOD it was weird being around so many rats...but I didn't pass out or scream and just thought of them as what they are: holy reincarnations of the local Royal Family!!!

I'm hungry, tired and been chatting on Skype and just realised I don't have any accommodation sorted out for when I am back in Delhi...which could be a problem bcause it is Holi. Big festival. Whoops...oh well. Hopefully I'll sort something tomorrow. Night. Off for some well deserved FOOD

Jodphur

My bedroom tonight! It's massive and this is only a third of the size!
Hindu temple in Ranakpur
Inside the fort of Jodphur
On my mountain trip yesterday evening
the beautiful view. There are crocodiles on the nearest island but the are hard to see.
Outside the Jain temple in Ranakpur
carvings inside the temple
In a Hindu temple up another mountain...three hundred 90 steps up. This guy was really strange and way too fat for a priest!
Miniture Artists at work in a studio in Udaipur
me in the royal palce in Udaipur
The beautiful peacock of love.
Ceiling in the royal palace. Loved it!
Typical rajastani man. well actually he isn't...this is the curliest I have seen!

Bloody hell i am in Paradise. Never have I stayed in such a lovely room as i will be tonight. It's like a palace. Hopefully I will be able to upload some photos becauseIhave found a better internet cafe and I really want to write down what I have done.

Yesterday i was staying out in the countryside and I went for a walk up a mountain to watch the sunset. It was beautiful and reminded me of New Zealand. It was in a small place called Ranakpur and it had one of the most beautiful Jain temples I have ever seen. It was so exquisite and i was there for ages.

Today I have arrived in Jodhpur and went to yet another royal palace (which since 1973 has been a hotel) this was Ok but the fort was amazing. I had an audio guide and learnt all about the Rajput dynasty of Marwar...bloody loaded they were and always fighting someone...apart from the British!!

Then to another peaceful temple and finally into Jodphur. The hotel is stunning and I have just eaten on the terrace over looking the city and earlier I bought loads of spices, coz this city is famous for them. I have bought so much I don't know how I am going to carry it all home!! Oh well. It's all inthe boot of the car at the moment. I'm going for a typical Jodphur breakfast tomorrow of deep fried chillis...sounds interesting!! Now Sanju knows I love spicy food he keeps on wanting to test how spicy I can go. I think a deep fried chilli breakfast may be my limit!!
Right I'm off to my palace now and gonna sleep like a Princess!!! Night

udaipur

wall in the village from yesterday

my lovely room in udaipur

what about that for a see-saw!! It was such an incline.
can't be bothered to upload any pictrues from today on this crap machine. it will take hours

very tired this evening. have had busy day around the city. Went to miniture shop and also to a tailor and had a skirt and two pairs of trousers made. They are lovely. I picked everything up at 7pm. BEEN AROUND THE Lake on a boat. up a mountain (600 steps) TO a temple, beeen inside the royal palace for about 2 hours and that was amazing. THE KING had such colourful taste...some of the rooms resemble 80s discos. I can't believe they are over 400 years old. THE building was amazing and i paid for a guide. he was a good guide and afterwards he took me to this amazing restaurant and i had aubergine curry with chapatis. the best indian food here so far. he wante d me to go out this evening and drink whiskey with him..."and maybe i can show you my room?"..i politely refused and said thanks for recommending such a good restaurant.

Went to the temple at 6.30 and saw all the local people praying and then back to shop to pick up purchases...sanju must have got a good commision because he was off to buy whiskey for his driver friends at his hotel and to celebrate indias cricket win over new zealand. men have have had small radios stuck to their ears all day so they could follow the game.

Udaipur

sanju(proud barcelona fan) AND THE CAR

the princess gardens...so beautiful and well kept.

the pink blossom reminds me of the bright colours of new zealand

my god, what a fantastic day and what a fantastic place. Its amazing but the internet is rubbish and i have the tea boy over my shouLDER askiNG me QUESTIONS and looking at my mobile phone....'how much madam?' ' can i check functions? thank god my phone isn't top of the range that would send them all into fits of hysteria.

JUST WANT to post some photos and go to bed i have been up since 6am. saw sunrise with some indian toursits from mumbai. read book till 10. sanju and i left at 11 and it was a beautiful ride here and we stopped to look at temples and had lunch in a great garden.

the trees in rajastan are amazing as are all the flowering bushes. its just so bright with the flowers the wonderful saris and the bright turbans. I'm in heaven.

We arrived about 5pm in UDAIPUR AND went straight to one of the lakes. I then went to the princess of the palaces garden. THis was probably the most beautiful garden i have ver seen in india. I hope i can post some pictures. WE THEN went to a typical rajastani village>>recreated by the government but still well done and well preserved

. sanju listened to a hindi guide with a group and then translated into english for me> so i learnt alot> this computer is too crap for picturestoo crap for blogging> i"ll
hav to do more in anther place>

i bought a miniture picture today in the updaipur school of art> it is tiny and exquisite and cost forty five pounds> i"m getting it framed> i was talking to the artist about the history of miniture painting in istanbul, ISFAHAN and udaipur. coz of living in isatnbul i knew alot and i also saw a big mahabarata miniture painting exhibition in the britisih library last year. it was great and i love the picture i bougght. yeah, it's not cheap...but sod it I"M ON HOLIDAY>

I"M tired that is why my typing is so shite..not just the computer.

MY HOTEL IS amazing. full of character. I'm just so happy that i decided to do this tour and that i got such a good guide. one of my better decisions. not being on a smelly bus or train makes this a completely different type of holiday and as you can see the car is pretty new!

this computer driving me crazy...night night

Pushkar

sunset this evening

A mad cow who was next to me during the sunset.
I think this should be brass, but they were brash as well.

My young guide from yesterday

Still here and all good. Today has been a lazy today but still fun. Reading on my veranda till about 3pm and then once the heat and gone a bit I ventured back into town. I firstly went into a notebook store and fell madly in love with loads of booksand photo albums. The guy in there was really great and he could see my crazy passion for his books so he took me to his work station to show me how he made them. It was really interesting to see how they were binded and the colour and design stamps.WELL as you can guess I have bought loads! Why am I so in love with notebooks? Strange, ehh?

I thenwent into a silver shop and looked at rings and necklaces. The owner was asleep behind the counter and I was browsing for a good 10 minutes before he woke up. I could have nicked no end of stuff. Of course I bought a lovely necklace and I didn't haggle with him too much becuse I jsut knew he was giving me a good price. We got chatting about Indian politics and life in Pushkar...hindu and Islamic fundamentalism and bollywood movies...(plus that old chestnut of... can I look at your mobile phone and how much were your sunglasses?) His mate wandered in. He was a Brahmin priest and did ceremonies at the lake. He was pretty cool and he told me about his typical day of taking tourists from all over India down to the lake. His mate, the jewellery seller can't be a priest because he isn't of the right caste.

Then I wndered off into a clothes shop and found a lovely top and of course I bought that too. Again another long chat and tea followed. So after more than 3 hours I hadn't really walked very far in Pushkar at all!

Watched the sunset. Not may people but that cow came over and joined me and then wandered off as soon as the sun had set. the status of the cow in India is just totally bizarre. Sanju says it's because Krishna lives in every cow, so they are all gods.

No time to write more. I am off for pizza. Good place up the road and I am a bit sick of holy indian dhal, it s a bit bland. I forget to tell them I like it spicy.