Chaos, Cows, Cockroaches & Cold Showers: India Thus Far

While I dislike passing judgement on a city after a mere few days in its clutch, and therefore realize my assessment is both premature and potentially incorrect, (and I also fear offending those who may be reading this blog who live in this city or appreciate it otherwise), I could not get out of Delhi fast enough. While yes, the city has some bright spots - friendly people, plenty of trees & parks, attractive sights - it simply was not my cup of herbal tea.

On the plus side, the pollution in India has not been nearly as bad as in China. The sky is always blue - which means the sun roasts us like chestnuts on an open fire - but at least deep breaths are possible! In most cases, at least. Warned of the 'smells in India' we anticipated the worst. Yes, the scent of raw sewage and cow dung is pretty rampant, but China still tops my list of places where a clothespin on the nose would be a handy little device.

The child begging (and 'entertaining' by dislocating both shoulders and weaving their body through clasped hands) is disturbing; the car/motorcycle/truck/moped/bus/auto rickshaw horns DO NOT EVER stop, the streets are overflowing with people, vehicles and cows; everyone wants one of three things:

1. Rupees ($)
2. For you to buy something from them
3. Simply to welcome you to the city or country.

With our skepticism we're never certain who falls into the latter category.

We hired a driver for a day and a half, saw many of the sights and learned about Delhi's history and culture. The food was decent, and we booked a trip to Darjeeling, in the Himalayas, once we arrive in Kolkata.

There are 12 of us on this tour, and we're quite pleased we didn't have a go at India ourselves as I think we are having a much richer experience with Intrepid.

We are now in Jaisalmer, a small city in the province of Rajasthan, near the Pakistani border. It is beautiful. We're staying inside the Fort, in a gorgeous guesthouse, and Marc and I were given the 'Honeymoon Suite', which is lovely, with windows on three sides - providing a view of the city and a gentle breeze in the desert heat! I've thoroughly enjoyed the food here. Both nights we've had dinner on a rooftop terrace, lit by candle-, star- and moonlight, overlooking the city. Last night we were all decked out in traditional Rajasthani Indian gear... saris for the women, tunics, ali baba pants and turbans for the men! We sweat loads. I don't know how the Indians manage it!

The people in this city are very friendly, and the atmosphere is peaceful & inviting. Still can't escape the honking though! As we walk along the extremely narrow streets in the fort we are constantly shifting left or right to avoid motorcycles or cow droppings. It's an unexpected surprise when you feel something brush your elbow and you turn to find yourself looking directly into the eyes of a cow! They roam freely in Jaisalmer. I have never before seen such skinny cows! This morning I was actually headbutted by an impatient cow... Suppose it was in a hurry!

In a few minutes we are off to ride camels in the desert, then sleep under the stars.

I neglected to mention our train ride, which was meant to be 17 hours but stretched to 24 hours! And while we initially thought the trains in China were of sub-par quality... Whew, we were mistaken. Dingy, dirty, dusty... with cockroaches of varying sizes crawling all over the floor and on our beds. This prompted me to question why we fear them so in Canada... Is it simply their means of proliferation? Do they carry disease? We accepted their presence as we really had little choice in the matter!

Must run... Alice awaits!