Roadtripping Rajasthan

Living it up on the Royal Tour of Rajasthan... I swear we are being spoilt rotten and I LOVE IT! So. Where to start. It's always a problem of finding out where to begin, because the days seem to melt into one another and I can't believe I've already been in India for four weeks. Nearly. But still, four weeks. Long time, man. So, where did we really begin...

Agra, aside from hosting the majestic Taj Mahal and a lovely fort (there's forts in every city around here) didn't have much more appeal, and so we quickly left after taking one hundred thousand photos of the Taj to be on our way to Bharatpur. Bharatpur, you say? Where the hell is that?! Almost nobody we've met has heard of it, but its a village in the middle of nowhere that houses a UN Heritage listed National Park and Bird Sanctuary. And now I can't believe I can't remember its name. Against my instinct we went to the Bird Sanctuary in the late afternoon (I remembered from feeding the birds in Port Douglas that the best time is in the morning... I should learn to speak up more, eh) but we managed to spot some lovely owls, mountain lizards (they're few and far between), spotted deer, turtles, antelopes and a heap of cows (but what's new, we're in india!)

The next day we made our way to Jaipur, where we spent the afternoon at the Amber Fort, exploring the many hidden corridors and openings to give way to spectacular views. It was the end of a special Hindu festival (a couple days before Disharra/Ramen) and the fort was crammed with people - women in saris of lime, magenta and saffron, kids shouting and ducking in between the adults. The heat however made it a little unbearable to stay more than an hour - by the time we reached the bottom of this spectacular fort we were wet (like we had seriously just taken a shower) with perspiration. I will put up some pics of this when I get the chance ( I know I keep saying this, but time is short around here.. when I arrive in Goa I will have all the time in the world..) That evening we met a New Yorker who had been lied to by yes, the one and only Nazir, the travel agent in Delhi. Enraged and shaken at being scammed (for New Yorkers are too smart to be scammed!:P) we bought some drinks and some takeout and had a party in our hotel room. Cheap whiskey (AUD$1.10!!) and beers aren't for the light hearted in India -the bottle shops close early and we had the make the most out of it!

The next day we explored the City Palace in the suffocating heat (which, we learn now in Jodhpur, really wasn't so bad compared to here) and this is where I learnt of my fascination with armory and weapons - who knew? Sarah is obsessed with swords. After many power shortages and moments spent in desperation standing in front of fans, we left - I would write more, but there's nothing much else. (Can you tell the heat is getting to me?)

Alright, I have to go, but there will be a more extensive update very soon. Yom Kippur in Pushkar - well, I've never hated fasting and standing up in shule more than that... but that's for another time. Keep those comments flowing - I love hearing from you too! xxxx