May 12, 2014 Pushkar

After a sweltering day yesterday, today broke with a cool breeze; chilly even. The monkeys have taken their perchs on the railings and edges of the hotel rooftop, grooming, stretching, babies nursing, while others try to get their mothers to pay attention to them. Now they nap in the early morning sun, except for the acrobatic babies.

The town clusters around Pushkar lake with the main street lined with shops, restaurants, and hotels. My hotel faces the lake and I have a lovely view. There's even a small temple on the rooftop, right outside my window.

As the epics say, Brahma dropped a lotus on the earth and Pushkar floated to the surface. It's a holy town with one of the worlds few Brahma temples. Fifty two bathing ghats surround the small sacred lake and you are allowed to wander on them if you remove your shoes and do not take photos.

May 5, 2014 New Delhi

View from The Vivek Rooftop

I arrived yesterday in a country that seemingly never changes. Pahar Ganj, the backpacker area of Delhi, is definitely the same as it was a year ago, dusty, crowded, and containing anything you may have have forgotten to bring. 

I have a love/hate relationship with Pahar Ganj. On the one hand I love the familiarity, the hustle bustle of the area, the golden eagle with its distinctive cry perched across from the rooftop restaurant, the smell of curry in the streets, the vendors selling fruit, the women in saris shopping, the cows meandering down the street. On the other hand, the rickshaws will run over you if you are not careful, the dust swirls in the air settling in your hair, on your clothes; add in the crowds of people, and it is an assault on the senses.

I'm still getting used to the time change and will stay 3 days to rest and recuperate; my body clock is upside down. Then it's off to Jaipur and my favorite dentist to replace the crown I broke before I left the states...fun times!

May 13, 2013 Kathmandu to Pokhara

Room with a View

I opted for the tourist bus with AC since the trip to Pokhara starts at 7am and arrives mid-afternoon.  We made a breakfast & lunch stop and still arrived on time!  As promised by my last hotel, a man was there to greet me, carry my bag, and transport me to the Hotel Miracle.  It is located in the lakeside area although the lake in not to be seen from here.  I don't think there is a view of the lake from any hotel save the one across the lake right on the shoreline...must be an expensive one.  Since I am staying a week, I got a 100 NRS (Nepal Rupee) discount per day...YEA! They have WiFi here, but it is better accessed from the terrace in front of my room where they have a table and chairs.   I have a nice room on the top floor corner with windows on both sides.  The hotel is kept immaculate without even so much as a leaf on the ground.  The area is quiet and I sleep like a log.

Annapurna Range, Himalayas

The mountains surround us on 3 sides with a view of the Annapurna range visible from my back window.  Talk about a room with a view!  I still can't believe I am standing here at the base of the tallest mountains in the world!  Words or even photos cannot describe the feeling one gets being here on the rooftop of the world.  It brought tears to my eyes the first time I walked outside and just stood there looking at the grandeur of these snow covered peaks.

Phewa Lake

There are a lot of power cuts here that last for hours, so one cannot forget to plug in to charge your computer or there is a lot of down time.  I walked around the lake, took some photos and have been reading my book, "The Space Between Us" by an Indian author that explores two women's lives - one rich and the other her servant. Excellent book!

May 12 Stupas of Kathmandu

Temple at Boudanath

 Today I wanted to see the 2 large stupas on either side of Kathmandu: Boudaath and Swayambhunath.  These are the very large ones with Buddha eyes on the upper part.  As we drove along not only were the jacaranda trees blooming a brilliant orange/red, but there was another tree that blooms bright purple that I had never seen.  They ringed the park and proliferated the streets with their beauty.

Bodhnath Stupa

The taxis here use woolen rugs to save the seats from wear & tear.  There are a few bicycle rickshaws in the main part of the tourist district, Thamel, but mostly regular taxis.  The streets outside that area are a combination of patches of pavement, gravel & mostly dirt.  At least the gutters are for rain water run-off rather than grey water.  It is a much cleaner country than India, that's for sure.  I have seen very few cows loose, hence there is very little, if any, poop on the streets.

I've seen enough of this huge city and I am booked on a bus to Pokhara tomorrow.  The pollution here is awful as the cars, motorcycles, etc. have no emission control and the belch out clouds of black smoke.  At least half of the people here wear masks similar to surgical masks, but decorative, in different colors, and some very imaginative.

May 11 Durbar Square, Patan, Nepal

Birthday Girl

Durbar Square is probably the most popular of the sites here as it is the oldest part of the city.  Vendors lined the side of the square and had no doubt they could sell you something whether you intended to buy or not!  I bought a bracelet, knife, and a pair of stunning earrings. But, hey, I needed them didn't I? What I really needed, and bought, was an umbrella to keep the sun at bay!

Directly in front of the museum, in the center of the square, they had constructed a movie set, nothing elaborate, but apparently had been filming for some 4 days.  They drew quite a crowd of on-lookers. I again took a lot of photos of the surrounding structures.  Most of them could be entered to explore.

It was the Living Goddess, the Kumari Devi's birthday and there was a celebration taking place under a tent.  SheThe birthday girl celebrating on this day was so precious, as you can see by the above photo. 

I took a slow walk around Patan, the town in which it is located, to explore and
got abetter feel for the regular life of the

Guarded Entry

inhabitants of this grand city.  When I finally decided I was lost, I don't know where I was...some residential area, I found a taxi to take me back to the hotel.

On the way back, as when crossed the river in the taxi, I smelled what I thought was a sewage processing plant, but turned out to be the river itself.  It was actually black and had the smell of sewer water.  In a city of this size, I expected a better system. I guess I remain a bit naive.

May 10 Basantapur Square, Kathmandhu, Nepal

Basantapur Square

I walked today to Basantapur Square, in the a part of the old city. The typical Nepalese architecture is both unique and detailed.  Carvings on all the struts and elsewhere makes one wonder how the wood can be so old and still so well preserved. Brilliant!  The vendors were set up along-side and I found a necklace and 2 rings - woo-hoo for shopping!

What stunning architecture! I have to say I have
never seen anything quite like it -ancient, beautiful.  The mix of Buddhist and Hindu, both influencing the other is interesting. I am not sure of the ratio, but it is a gentle population...laid back.  I must have taken 100 photos, some to be deleted, of course.  I will post more photos on Facebook and send a link to anyone who needs it. Email Me!

Kathmandu is the capital of Nepal, a country situated between China to the north and India in the south, east, and west, with 25.8 million people.  It is clean and peaceful...at least what I have seen of it.

April 25 Hanuman's Birthday

Decorated Elephant

Balancing Act

Well Trained Horses!

Hanuman's Birthday was celebrated in grand style with a parade and gathering in the main chowk at Jagdish Temple downtown.  Along the parade route there were tables set up to give cups of water to the revelers to counteract the effects of the heat.  Women balanced jugs of water with a coconut on top, camels pulled carts, decorated elephants marched by, and white stallions performed steps for the crowd.


There are so many religious holidays, I should have known my tailor would not be open for this one.  I guess I will pick up my new pants tomorrow.  Even the government offices were closed, which kept me from getting my letter to leave the country. 


I am really looking forward to leaving this heat behind for the cooler days and chilly nights of Nepal.  The summers in Udaipur and in fact, most of India are extremely hot...shades of Texas at over 100 degrees!   I have 2 weeks in Nepal, then back to Delhi for the flight home to Cape Coral, FL.
 

April 24th Day at the Pool

My friend, Nicola, and I went to the upscale hotel down the street from me to relax at their pool.  For the reasonable fee of Rs 200 (under $4) they furnish towels, lounges, and a bathroom with shower. You can order food from the kitchen, which they deliver poolside.  Yes, a bit of luxury is great once in awhile!



On the grounds live 3 Sulcatta tortoises with the most interesting design on their back.  It actually looks like small pyramids!  Late afternoon they feed them cucumbers and tomatoes.  They are ready to eat as soon as dinner is served!

March 30, 2013 Cooking Class

Hyderbadi Biryani Rice

I finally got around to taking a formal cooking class.  I already can make several dishes as well as chapati (flat unleavened bread), but felt the need to learn curry and masala dishes. 

The class lasted 2 hours and covered 5 dishes - Spinach Potato Soup with coconut milk, Hyderbadi Biryani Rice, Cholla Masala (chick peas), Eggplant Curry, and Paranthas (flat bread filled with a potato mixture and served with curd).  It was a great combination of dishes served here and I felt with this variety I could cook most of the Indian dishes.  Curry and masala are the mainstays of most dishes.

I joined 2 French tourist and a German girl joined us at the last moment. 

Class Participants

The four of us ate ourselves into oblivion as we cooked one dish after another - how fun and tasty at the same time!  I can't wait to return to the states and try out my new cooking skills on anyone who is adventurous enough to try my dishes!  Curry anyone?

March 27, 2013 Happy Holi!

Gaines in Color

The celebration of Holi takes place over 2 days, the first being a religious ceremony and low key, while the second day is referred to as Color Day.  Color Day is one of many colors as the title implies - fuscia, green, blue, red, and yellow powders are thrown, rubbed on, and sprinkled on top of your head by hand.  Bags of color are sold at the stores lining the streets in plastic bags, which are hung on your belt, dipped into, and dispersed.  If you are on the streets, you are liable to be colored in many shades as well as water balloons thrown from motorcycles and and buckets of water from rooftops.  If that's not enough the small children get you with water pistols!

I went to a party in the chowk (open area) next to Little Prince Guesthouse. 

Holi Dancing!

Music played full blast as the dancing began.  Colored powder filled the air as we gyrated to the music...well, the guys did most of the gyrating.  Children gathered along with women in saris; everyone covered in color!  What a great celebration!  As the day wore on, I decided to make my way back across the foot bridge and home.  Needless to say in the 20 minutes it took me to walk home, I had 2 buckets of water thrown on me, 3 water balloons thrown from bikes, and many people wishing me a Happy Holi as they rubbed color on my face and hair.  I looked like a colorful, drowned rat by the time I got home!  Too fun!