We started our trip in Delhi, India. After 25 hours of travel, we arrived in India, and our driver greeted us with marigold garland. These two exhausted travelers were delighted to receive them.

DAY 1

 We were excited that we would be in a five star hotel. Upon arrival, I remembered that in China I had learned that five star didn’t always mean the same thing there as in the US. Our hotel is fine but in the US it would probably be a 3 1/2. All the staff is incredibly helpful and accommodating. Our hotel is located in New Delhi. We learned that this is the section that was built by the British. It has wide boulevards , huge mansions, and lovely greenery all around the roads. But for our first day, we hired a guide, who took us to old Delhi, a vibrant , crowded bustling place.

Notice the jumble of electrical wires hanging over the lanes. 

This man couldn’t explain where he got the sweatshirt but this Ohio girl had to take the photo. He is an assistant in this gold shop. He works with the gold

Then we passed a small Hindu temple. Next door there was a shop to buy all of your worship essentials. 

We traveled from one part of the food heritage tour area to the spice center. To get there, we rode in bicycle rickshaws. 

The bicycle rickshaws weave in and out of traffic along with auto rickshaws, motorcycles, and cars. And all along there is nonstop honking. The sounds can be overwhelming and deafening. Short video below is typical of the interaction of all these vehicles driving across intersections whether in old Delhi or elegant New Delhi

Want to hire a tradesman? You can choose a carpenter, plumber or painter right from the street. 

Spice Market

Then we went to Qutub Complex, a World Heritage site. It was built in the 13th century by the Mughal rulers. Our guide told us detailed history but our brains had gone to major jet lag by then. 

DAY 2

We passed lovely greenery on the way to the impressive movingGandhi museum. 

And then we went to Lodhi Garden, beautiful park with 15th century buildings. A peaceful spot in the hubbub. 

Unlike Morocco where cats are everywhere, the streets are filled with dogs. They aren’t skinny because it’s a good deed to feed animals so people always feed them. 

Finally we met with our guide and group and took a tour of the neighborhood. We stopped in a local tea shop for Chai. 

And tonight Kate and I dined at Veda, a wonderful restaurant. 

THE INTERNET IS EXCRUCIATINGLY SLOOOOW. IT IS TAKING FOREVER TO DOWNLOAD 1 Photo and sometimes it just gets disconnected from the server, so not sure how often I can post!

OFFICIAL DAY 1

  First, a few comments from yesterday’s experience. Tourists are always taking photos of Indians. An Indian woman approached Kate and asked to take a picture. We assumed she wanted Kate to take a photograph of her and her friend. Instead, she handed her phone to our guide and then lined us up between her and her friend so she could have a photo of us weird foreigners!

When we were stopped at a light, suddenly there was a highly made up woman knocking on our window. She wanted money. Then she spoke, and when I heard her deep voice, I realized that she was a man. We saw many more what they call Hijra. They are referred to as the third sex, neither male nor female. I remember first reading about them in the novel The Ministry of Utmost Happiness. They are outcasts who make their living by begging and sexual favor because no one will hire them. It made us sad to see them reduced to begging and living on the streets, though their aggressive begging was a bit off putting. 

Today we visited the Sikh Temple. We were not allowed to take photos inside. To visit the temple, we all needed to cover our hair and take off our shoes and socks. Then we had to step in water to clean our feet and then walk outside on the freezing marble floors

The Sikh religion believes in giving back to the community. People volunteer to help prepare food and serve and clean up. During the week they serve 40,000 people a day. On the weekend, 70,000. We were allowed to take photos in the kitchen and dining area. 

We drove back and toured our neighborhood. We couldn’t really photograph the upscale shops as we drove by, but you can see it’s a very popular area. 

OFFICIAL DAY 2 - last day in Delhi

Today we had a full initiation into Delhi’s January fog and smog. We visited the stunning Humayan’s Tomb - well I think it might be stunning- that’s what they told us!

It was the first garden tomb in the Indian subcontinent. It was built by Humayan’s widow, and it said to have inspired the building of the Taj Mahal. He was the great grandfather of the man who built the Taj Mahal. It was built in the late 1500s. Since the Muslims came from desert culture, their idea of paradise was green and lush so they planted many trees, bushes and flowers. When the British took over their idea was lots of light and they cut down all the trees, but eventually when India regained independence, they began rebuilding the gardens. The fog lifted a bit and we did get a few photos 

From there we visited the memorial to Mahatma Gandhi. This is where he was cremated . In order to walk up close to the memorial, we had to take our shoes off.

There is an eternal flame that burns in the glass box. Some of Gandhi’s favorite hymns were played on a recording throughout the day

Our guide paid for us to leave our shoes with a man who would watch them. Some people, however, chose to live more dangerously, and may or may not get back the shoes they brought in.

On our first day, you may recall that our guide took us to old Delhi. This was the Hindu section of old Delhi. today we went to the Muslim section. We thought we had experienced the crowdedness, the intensity, the sensory overload of India, and the traffic, but we had no idea-today, well, another initiation. 

This is a famous auto parts store. You may wonder why it’s famous. Apparently when there was a rash of car thefts, it was said that if your car was stolen,an hour later, you could find your car parts at the store!

After walking through these crowded streets, we went into tiny, narrow lanes, a very rundown, looking set of alleys, to the home of a lovely Muslim couple who talked to us about Hindu - Muslim relations 

I hoped the photo of the alleys would be before the photo of the couple. And if I were at home on my home Internet, I would rearrange them. But it took soooo long to upload a photo, it’s just going to stay that way. 

We learned that on an individual basis, the relations can be good. When her father was attacked, his Hindu friend came to visit him every day in the hospital. And she has a Hindu friend. But beyond the personal, dealing with the political and social situation, it is not good. She and her husband will not be voting for Prime Minister Modi in the next election. Much to our surprise she said it would be OK if her daughter married a Hindu. But then she said, of course, he would have to convert! And it would be OK if she married a Christian or Jew , but it is not OK for her to marry a Shia! 

To get back to the bus, we were to ride back in an E-rickshaw. 

Kate is smiling because the ride hadn’t begun yet. Even the non-religious among us were praying through the entire ride! We were zooming in and out of traffic, there were cars inches from our rickshaw, one actually hit the back of mine, people  on foot were dodging in and out we were told to keep our elbows in and not have our phones hanging out. Exciting times! 

We drove back to New Delhi. I wish I could’ve photographed these incredibly elegant mansions, built by the British, and now inhabited by government officials. Most of them were behind high gates, surrounded by trees, but we could still picture the elegance as the bus zoomed by. Finally, as we returned to our hotel, after a busy day, we drove by the temple, dedicated to the monkey God. 

DAY 3 JOURNEY TO JAIPUR 

We had an early breakfast at our hotel. One of buffet items was listed as smiley potatoes. Of course, I had to check that out.

As we headed out of Delhi, we passed this sculpture of Gandhi leading his famous salt march.

We had to leave this morning by 7:30 to avoid the traffic. Can you tell from this photo that we avoided traffic? We were told that 30 minutes later, the traffic wouldn’t move. 

This was our view for several hours. We assume we were on a very straight road because this was also our driver’s view and we are still alive!  We learned that silicon valley of India was in the many high rise buildings that stretch for miles. So, next time you have a technical problem, you can imagine you are talking to someone in one of these high rise buildings just as we will have to imagine it - since we couldn’t see a thing.

Finally the fog lifted and we stopped at this festive rest stop.

Some people might think that our second rest stop will improve when this Starbucks is completed.

But we were all happy with our  joyful snacks

We haven’t seen much of the city yet, but driving in, we could see why it’s called the pink city.

Tonight we had our home hosted dinner with this delightful family. This complex is divided into 3 separate units. The 3 families living there are all related so it is a big extended family home. We shared stories of our cultural similarities and differences.

DAY 4 JAIPUR 

Today we drove into the world heritage site part of Jaipur.

So after we drove past the lovely buildings, we walked to where the milk vendors were. it used to be that this was how everybody bought their milk though now most families get it in stores. The reason Dev has milk on his finger as he was explaining how people would check the milk to see how thick it was, to make sure that it hadn’t been watered down. He said it was best to be there first in the morning before a lot of people stuck their fingers in the milk!

One rule in India is to always look down when you walk. Even in the nice part of town. Besides being uneven, well, remember all those roaming dogs?

Cow with traffic. 

Then we went to another World Heritage Site, the Amber Fort Palace. Visiting a fort didn’t sound enticing but we were actually quite impressed.

The section of the fort called the mirror palace is actually polished quartz. 

If you look at the mountain you can see a wall meandering up the mountain that looks like China’s Great Wall. It surrounds this fort.

Elephants are native to northern and southern India, but not this part so this strictly a tourist gimmick. Our tour company won’t do this because they think the elephants are not treated well.

Camels are native to this state but not this part. Another tourist gimmick but still fun to see them.

We had lunch at a restaurant owned by our tour guide’s wife. This is their photo. Apparently a number of people have told him he looks like George Clooney!       

       Tomorrow we head to Rathembore National Park. Not sure if we will have internet. We will miss our doorman in Jaipur. 

JAIPUR TO RANTHAMBORE NATIONAL PARK

Leaving Jaipur to Ranthambore National Park.  Driving from the city we saw New Gate, unskilled laborers hoping for work, a bit of local color at our pit stop, and miles and miles of mustard seed plants.

Dorothy, we are not in Kansas anymore—or the Radisson Hotel — the Nahargarh Hotel. Not surprisingly, there are weddings here. This is wedding season, determined by astrologers whom Indians often consult.

We drove into the park, a semi dry deciduous forest. We had been warned repeatedly that we would see wildlife but don’t count on seeing any Bengal tigers. We immediately saw monkeys, deer, banyan trees and a bit of park bathroom door humor. 

Do you remember those crowded traffic scenes from the cities and the way the drivers seem to play chicken? Now imagine that same scene with Jeeps, motorbikes, and a one lane highway in the forest. Once again it was a little too exciting. We actually ran into a traffic jam and couldn’t get through. That turned out to be a good thing. No one had seen any tigers in zone three – – and then we were reassigned zone one. We were unbelievably lucky!

And one final piece of luck— a crocodile!

VISIT TO KHAWA VILLAGE, AND SCHOOL. 

Now here’s something that will boggle your mind: you know all those millions and millions of people that we see in the cities in India? It’s a little startling to realize that 60% of the Indian population does not live in these big cities, but lives in small rural villages like the one we visited today.

Before visiting the village, we stopped to buy some produce. You can see that this was a very basic roadside stand, but if you look, you can see, there’s a QR code hanging above the vegetables. The government of India has instituted these and we can just pay by phone We heard a ding when the vendor got his money. 

KHAWA village

We cook pasta and vegetables for the kids.

And they cooked lunch for us. 

One of the things we love about our tour group, Overseas Adventure Travel or O.A.T, is that they give back to the community. They installed a water filtration system for the village, built several toilets for the homes, and help repair the Hindu temple that was damaged 

Our hosts decided we should dance with them and I gave it a try

Then we visited a government school. O.A.T helps support this school. See the nice tile flooring? It used to be all mud until O.A.T paid for flooring. They also put in toilets   Members of our group interacted with the kids. Kate brought a map of India and helped the kids to find things.

They also helped buy school uniforms and warm sweatshirts. Grand Circle is the parent company of O.A.T.

Then we visited the Donk women’s cooperative. When Tiger hunting became illegal. suddenly, men who were heroes and highly skilled became criminals. This cooperative was formed to help the women so that they could gain skills and help support. The families since their husbands could no longer earn a living poaching animals. They taught them embroidery and other fabric skills. O.A.T. Bought them an electric generator, and some electric sewing machines. Because young girls get married so early, they are now bringing teenagers in to teach them these skills as well.

Tomorrow we had to a yoga camp in a remote location and will not have Internet for a day or two.  stay tuned in a few more days

NO LIONS, NO TIGERS, BUT WEDDINGS, OH MY!

 to paraphrase the wizard of Oz. As I mentioned, it’s an auspicious time for weddings—a big one at our last hotel and another here in Agra. People go into debt over these 3 day over the top affairs. We want to re-watch the movie Monsoon Wedding when we get home.

Speaking of tigers, several of us were crazy enough to take an early morning safari.  They provided blankets but we were still freezing. We saw several types of owls, a wild boar and a male tiger footprint.

We arrived at yoga camp where we slept in tents and despite having an electric heater, wore our coats to bed

In the evening a group of villagers came to dance and sing. They kept trying to get us to join them so finally, I joined in. 

We visited a step well that was over 1,000 years old. This was how they would try to reserve water in this arid land where water is still scarce. The statue is one of many defaced by the Muslims who don’t believe in religious images. Muslim-Hindu tensions have a long history.

There is an ancient Hindu temple that had been destroyed by the Muslims that is being revived and will reopen January 20. It’s a huge deal and today we passed a crowd of people who are celebrating in advance. We stopped the bus and our guide encouraged us to join them, Kate sent me a text and said it was nice knowing you I turned around and didn’t see the bus. It had moved up. Meanwhile, I may appear on some social media, because countless people were taking selfies with me!

Several of us visited Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity Home. We were not allowed to take photos. They take care of orphans with severe disabilities. It was a difficult place to visit.

If you’re wondering if your life will be complete without seeing the Mohabbat E Taj show, it will be. But if you happen to be in Agra and like Bollywood, schmaltz, and an over the to performance- check it out!

YET ANOTHER FORT, ACID ATTACKS, TAJ MAHAL 

First, I must report that our group gets along many have traveled extensively, but today we were feeling a bit like ugly Americans. It’s cold here. Think 39°, intense fog, damp, and no heat. Indians have air-conditioning on their buses, inthe restaurants, and their homes and their hotels. But for the few months of cold, it’s not worth it to them to put in heat. So there was a bit of grumbling among us today on our freezing bus, but of course we made the best of it.

Another thing I like about O.A.T Is that they’re willing to adapt the schedule. we were supposed to go to the Taj Mahal this morning, but as you can see, it would not be a good time to go. Instead, we went to Fort Agra.

Fortunately, the fog started to lift. This fort is four times bigger than the red fort that we saw in Jaipur. It was used by four generations of Mughal emperors. When you think of forts that you’ve seen in the western world, they are totally utilitarian. It’s amazing to look at the artistry and design that goes into these forts.

These are not painted tiles. All of this work is inlay. It’s hard to imagine all the work that went into building this fort. One thing that we couldn’t really capture with photos is that the entrances to the fort are not backed up in a straight line but  curve around in different angles. The reason for that is that most forts were attacked by elephants and elephants can’t exactly turn on a dime! So if they have to do all of this turning, they can’t charge the way they normally would.

After the fort, we went to Sheros Café. It is run by survivors of acid attacks. We met with several of the women,. Normally there are more there, but the others had gone to the hospital for more surgeries. We watched a movie about the attacks and spoke with some of the survivors. They do not want to be thought of his victims but heroes or sheroes. Since this organization began, they have made great progress. It used to be that someone who got caught if they were prosecuted at all,,would be out of jail in three months. They’ve changed the law so many of them will go to prison for life. They’ve also made it illegal to have this acid. You have to get special permits to use the acid so it’s not as easily available.  If the women survive, they are often in the hospital for eight months, and many of them have had a minimum of 10 surgeries. Many of them have lost their sight.

This woman survived an acid attack but one of her daughters did not. The other was blinded. Statistics show that acid attacks are on the rise but it’s hard to know if that’s true. Previously, people wouldn’t report it because they were afraid of the man or his family and nothing was done by the courts. It may be that people are just more willing to report it now. Also, if they report it, they are eligible for assistance for medical expenses.

The woman in the last picture was not attacked by acid, but her sister was. Her sister wasn’t there today, but this woman is working there to help out the family financially.

O.A.T. Was the first group to include a visit to this café as part of their tours. Since then other groups have started coming and helped to support these women. While the situation is horrible and depressing, our visit was not depressing because these women are really full of positive energy, and fight to end the situation with attacks.

In case you’d like a photo with Hindu Nationalist Prime Minister Modi who is running for re-election, you can find that opportunity at many historical sites. The two of us posed at the entrance to the Taj Mahal.

By American standards, we would think that the Taj Mahal was very crowded today. But we learned that sometimes it can be 10 times more crowded and can take an hour just to get through the entrance. One reason is that  there are fewer tourists because western tourists generally don’t start coming until February because it’s too close to the Christmas holidays in January. The majority of the thousands of tourists here are Indian. 

These shops are lined up outside the Taj Mahal. There are also countless peddlers trying to sell you something. I’m not sure if Indians are more aggressive or it’s just that there are so many of them, it feels more intense. Notice the orange flags. These are the same ones that the marchers were carrying yesterday. This temple dedication is a HUGE deal. The government has declared that tomorrow restaurants can’t serve meat, eggs, or alcohol. We haven’t watched the TV but a few in our group say it’s all over the news.

WITNESS TO HISTORY—HINDU NATIONALISM, JOURNEY TO LUCKNOW,KATHAK DANCE SCHOOL. 

Our day started at our hotel in Agra with this sign displayed. 

Our tour, book promised, scenic views, but alas, this was our view again and also our bus driver’s. This meant our very long ride to Lucknow would be even longer.

Finally, the fog lifted. We stopped at a roadside rest. The cup filled with chai, Indian tea, is made of clay and is an original ancient recycling technique. You smash it when you are done and it doesn’t take up landfill like plastic.

We also got this useful advice. I saw these signs all over Southeast Asia but this was the first time in India. 

Much to our surprise, we actually gained a lot of time on our journey. This happened because the normally traffic packed expressway was almost empty. This was because many people were already on their way to the temple dedication. Others were just staying home to enjoy the day off, and others were watching 

the events on TV. It’s the only thing on TV.

But then police stopped us and would not let us on the main highway to Lucknow because it was also the main highway to Ayodhya where Hindu event was taking place. If we didn’t have a permit to travel to the temple inauguration,we had to take the local dirt road. Through the bus window I tried to photograph the hoards of people celebrating the dedication of this temple.

Finally, we arrived at our lovely hotel, and found a replica of the temple in the entrance

We were immediately sent to the restaurant where they’ve been waiting for us, and we are pleased to report that it actually had heat and really good food. It also had the TV on with Prime Minister. Modi inaugurating the statue of Ram.

What was actually happening was the Prime Minister Modi after 11 days of fasting was revealing and inaugurating a statue of the god Ram. this is supposed to be the birthplace of Ram and a huge coming home.

To be clear, the temple itself has not been completed. You may wonder why then do this now? Why not wait till the temple is completed. The Indian national Congress, Modi’s opposition party is quite clear. The party boycotted the event, and claim that Modi is politicizing religion. He is using it to ramp up enthusiasm of the Hindu nationalist, so that he can win an unprecedented third term

Many are claiming that Ram is a unifier, not a divider. That said Muslims had been advised to stay off public buses and subways. I probably should’ve explained earlier that this temple is supposedly on the site of an ancient temple that had been replaced by a Muslim mosque built in the 16th century. 30 years ago, Hindu  nationalists destroyed the mosque and led to some of the worst violence against Muslims since the country gain independence from Britain. the Indian Supreme Court has declared that a new mosque will be built on a different site, but that has not begun.

On our walk to the dance studio, we passed many people lighting oil lamps and shouting Jai Shree Ram. 

The performance at the dance studio was done by senior students   Kathak dancing is a long tradition which tells stories through rhythmic footwork, hand, gestures, and facial expressions. 

I was not able to capture this in the videos, but the dancers wear bells on their ankles and slap their feet down with an incredibly loud sound coming from bare feet. It’s done rhythmically. One of our group said it reminded her of flamenco dancing without the shoes.  A Dancer explained that flamenco was created by gypsies who were set to be people who came from India. He said they use the exact same counting for flamenco that these dancers do.

Then we went to a traditional Indian vegetarian restaurant that was set up as a village

 The plate pictured above is made from Banyan leaves. Our guide.Dev, Spent his first six years in a mountain village, and they use these Banyan leaves for plates.

It’s all vegetarian food. After the restaurant, we returned to our hotel where we hoped we’d be able to sleep, because there was constant explosions of the loudest firecrackers we’ve ever heard, fireworks, and bright lights all over the city. Oh, forgot to mention that the whole city was lit up with special lights, which normally only happens during the holiday of Diwali. Again this was for the dedication of Ram returning to his birthplace.

LUCKNOW, BARA IMAMBARA, VISIT WITH A SHIA MUSLIM

FAMILY

First, a few photos of modern Lucknow. We didn’t get good photos but we drove by some very high end shops. What made them feel different is that little grungy shops were mixed among them.

These pink buildings are police stations just for women. There’s a direct phone line a woman can call if she is in trouble and needs a ride.

Although most Muslims in India are Sunni, the Muslims in the Lucknow area are Shia. We visited old Lucknow. This area was ruled by Nawabs, semi-autonomous rulers of the Mughal empire. Bara Imambara was built in 1784 for the practice of mourning Imam Husayan In Ali’s death. The building with the domes and turrets is a mosque. 

We had a separate guide for the day and he told us it was fine to take photos inside. Then another person came up and told us we could not take photos. Apparently they change the rules. I was not able to get a photo of the inside, which is believed to have the largest vaulted chamber in the world. Use your imagination!

The official gate of old Lucknow. 

These bricks are made of sugar, wheat, limestone, and lentils. They are Eco-Friendly. The previous structures used these techniques as well.

The bricks are small because they are made by hand and patted together.   

We stopped in a little grungy tea shop for pink chai or pink masala tea. It is Kashmiri tea.  It was very good even though everyone joked that it looked like Peptobismal.

You may recall our visit with the Sunni Muslim family whose home was off a very grungy alley. Our visit with the Shia family was totally different.  Our host, Nawab Masood Abdullah was a gracious host who lived in an elegant home. The title Nawab means one is descended from the Mughal rulers. He is a professor of Commerce, a fashion designer, a jewelry designer and an actor who has been in several Bollywood movies. We were supposed to have dinner with them the previous night but because of traffic we had lunch instead.

Our host displayed some of his garments he designed. He’s had a show in NYC. He kept talking about this embroidery technique, chicken curry. We also learned we were having chicken curry for lunch. We were all a bit confused and joking. Finally, we learned that the technique is called Chikan Kari -there was a group— oh and some giggles when we understood our confusion.

This is our host’s wife wearing clothes he designed in a fashion magazine. 

A few words about him security. The  security , not surprisingly, was most intense at the Taj Mahal. We were told to bring almost nothing but our phones with us. Men and women went in separately, because not only did we walk through metal detectors, but we were frisked. Around the area, we saw soldiers with guns. These were the only men with guns we’ve seen. Actually, they may not have been soldiers,  they may have just been security. Our leader, Dev, every country has their nut cases, so they are protecting it.

Also, at each hotel, there was tight security. You may remember years ago when rebels attacked the hotel in Mumbai and many people were killed. When we drove into the hotels in a car, someone checked under the hood and in the trunk and use some kind of a device around the entire car to make sure there were no explosives. Our hotels we had to put our bags through a scanner, we had to walk through a security gate. These always puzzled us because they always ding ding ding, but no one stopped us, so we wondered how they knew if there was a problem. A different sound?

Lucknow is very proud of its subway. It is quite nice. And before we could board a train, we also had to walk through security and get frisked, so they had women and men’s lines.

Tomorrow we’ll have our longest bus ride. 

FINAL POST: VARANASI AND BUDDHIST LEARNING CENTER

Varanasi is one of the oldest cities in the world. Hindus consider it one of the holiest places in the world. Many desire  to be cremated there and have their ashes tossed into the Ganges River. We boarded a small boat and rode out to the point where we could watch the creamations. Many go on at the same time. The man who looks bald is a mourner who must have his head and facial hair shaved. The men in white are mourners.

Then we witnessed the daily thanksgiving ceremony or aarti ceremony which gives thanks to the river - every day.

Although the Buddha lived in India and was enlightened in India, Buddhism flourished in China, Japan, Korea and southeast Asia but virtually vanished from India. The British began excavations and found wonderful statues of Buddha and evidence that Buddhism once flourished here. They built the Buddhist learning center of Sarnath. Unfortunately, we couldn’t take our phones inside so only an outside photo. Although we were told we’d feel the cosmic energy at the Ganges, none of us did. But several of us felt a lovely energy in the museum and the deer park across the street.

The large structure or stupa is the site where the Buddha gave his first sermon. We saw groups from Korea and Taiwan who’d come to the site and many other Buddhists who’d come to pray and pay their respects.

The deer of deer park are behind a fence. 

We were treated to a concert before our farewell dinner. 

And did we mention that we dressed for dinner??

And tomorrow we fly to Delhi and begin our loooong journey home.