Last you'll hear from me for a while

OK so in under 2 hours I am going to get into a cab and go to an ashram in the country side outside of chennai to observe complete noble silence and do nothing but meditate for the next 10 days. I am scared shitless. How fascinating that for a person who is at her core, exceptionally lazyy, the thought of doing nothing for 10 days terrifies me. I think its the understanding that I might lose my mind. Or the fear that I might lose some of who I am. I quite like who am and am less than inclined to change that. Yet Iwas drawn to this country to do this thing. I know it. I knew it from the first time i heard about it that I was going to do it, and it was going to change me. Theres a sense of destiny in me today that has my stomache churning with trepidation. Its like today is the last day of something. Like Tomorrow will be the first day of the rest of my life. And then at the same time, the practical, pragmatic me is saying 'dont be such a silly bugger its just a few days and it'll be over before you know it."


I guess I just dont know and the unknowing is both as breathtakingly terrifying as it is incredibly liberating and soul cleansing. I dont know what will happen, I dont know what will change, but something big is happening in my life and I am running at it full speed ahead.


Wish me luck. Think of me. I will think of you. I'll see you on the other side.

Physical adventure over - Spiritual Journey Begins

If you look to your right you'll see a little map called "India Phase 1" believe it or not, I have now been to all of those places and have completed phase one of my travels here. I'm in Chennai in South India. I arrived here day before yesterday after saying goodbye o the Intrepid Group and my good friend Lisa in Kolkuta/Calcutta.

i was really sick when i left Calcutta, had this horrible cold sweating going on, was unable to hold down food and was experiencing this strange tingling feeling which made me feel like I was trapped in the middle of a cold shiver. Thanks to Ikshwarku my amazing North India tour guide, I have checked into a basic yet reasonably good hotel room with aircon and a TV and slept for the last 2 days.

I'm feeling considerably better today, but still can't be bothered going exploring or adventuring. I think i'm calling a time out and am happy with waiting 2 hours for my lousy room service meals, watching Charlies Angels on tv and reading my book in the comfort of my single (slightly odd smelling) hotel bed.

Tomorrow I go on the next phase of my joruney. I am scheduled to go to an ashram called Dhamma Setu just outside of Chennai for 10 days of silent meditation.

Its a rigerous schedule whch involves more than 12 hours of meditation per day (starting at 4am) and requires you to keep complete 'noble silence; meaning I will not be able to communicate with anyone at all for the next 10 days.

From their website:
Vipassana is one of India's most ancient meditation techniques. Long lost to humanity, it was rediscovered by Gotama the Buddha more than 2500 years ago. The word Vipassana means seeing things as they really are. It is the process of self-purification by self-observation. One begins by observing the natural breath to concentrate the mind. With a sharpened awareness one proceeds to observe the changing nature of body and mind and experiences the universal truths of impermanence, suffering and egolessness. This truth-realization by direct experience is the process of purification.

For safety sake below is all the contact information for the centre. In case of emergency contact the management there and they will contact me.
The Centre
Vipassana Meditation Centre,'Dhamma Setu',533 Pazhanthandalam Road,Thirumudivakkam,(Via Thiruneermalai),Chennai - 600 044.INDIA.
Telephone (Landline): +91-44-24780953, +91-44-24783311, +91-44-64504142
Telephone (Mobile): +91-9444021622 (Mr. Vinayak)
E-mail: info@setu.dhamma.org
City Office
Meridian Apparels Limited,Meridian House, 121/3 T.T.K. Road,Manickam Avenue, Chennai - 600 018. INDIA.
Telephone (Landline): +91-44-24994646, +91-44-42111000
Fax: +91-44-24994477, +91-44-42111777

After the emditation I plan to fly to Goa for the last 10 days of my trip to meet up wth some great friends I have met along the way and perhaps do a PADI dive course or something while I'm there. I havn't booked anything because I'm not sure how I will feel after all of that meditative 'purification' but I figre after 10 days of silence I will want to speak to some people.

I also seem to have found a fan in Pushkar called Kuldeep Singh (he was the incredibly handsome owner of the hotel I stayed in) who has sent me many emails in teh last few days and is keen for me to return to visit him before I leave India. You never know...

Catching an overnight train

You wait at the train station sitting on your pack and fanning yourself with anything you have, its hot, REALLY hot and your surrounded by the entire spectrum of Indian life. There are people laying everywhere asleep on the ground. Some are homeless people and childen and some have been waiting so long for delayed trains they have fallen asleep. Theres at least one guy that you think is probably dead, but after an hour or so you see him twitch and feel some relief. There are families huddled together and business men proudly displaying their briefcases as if to say 'i am above these lowlives, I have a job that requires a briefcase". There are men walking around with enormous trays of apples and/or cucumbers balanced on their heads. (I'm talking a good 10kg's here) and every 10 seconds an anouncement comes over the PA in Hindi and then garbled Hinglish and you know no one can understand either. There are stray dogs and pidgeons wondering around and policemen (transit cops?) with big wooden sticks and rifles looking menacing in every corner. Street children pester you constantly for money and you're stuck with them because your trains going to be at least another 2 hours. Eventually you give the kids your bottle of water and bag of chips and you watch them sit down in a circle together as the oldest girl (around age 8) distributes them democratically. The youngest one (around age 2) gets to play with the chip bag afterwards like a tresured toy. You set off for a walk around the platform and stretch your legs. On the way you see a crippled man walking on all fours in a strange limping way and his legs are completely wasted. You see a mother crouched by the plaform edge in her sari, washing her naked baby boy in a bottle of water. Your artfully dodge the purtid glob of bright red bettle leaf that an old man spits in your direction. You're taking it all in until a drop of sweat drips into your right eye and you cant see anything for the next 10 minutes. You find a group of people huddled underneith a working fan and decide its worth it to get up close and personal and so you join them in fan worship the only unilateral religion in India. Inevitably a conversation starts,
"Madam wheruu frrrrom?"
I'm from Australia
"how many India?"
I,ve been here for 3 weeks but will stay for 2 months total
"two months not very plenty"
I know but I've only got so much money and travel is quite expensive
"You student?"
"No I'm not a student. I'm a circus performer. What is your job?"
"huh?"
"what do you do for work?"
"huh?"
what is your occupation?"
"ohh I am student. Business management. Study English 2 years. I practice with you"

By this time a good 20 people are staring at you in amazement. 2 people are translating your highly in depth conversation to the crowd and another is fighting over what you just said with his grandmother who casually smacks him arcross the back of the head to make her point.

An announcement comes over the PA that suggests that your train will be arriving shortly, but on a totally different platform, so you pheft on your pack again, sling your handbag over your shoulder and attach your day pack to your chest, wave goodbye to your new found friend who is asking you o visit his family's store next time your in town and waddle like a turtle up what seems like an enormous staircase.

Finally your train arrives and you see with dismay your carriage was at the front of the train and you are in the middle of the platform. You waddle at jogging speed with your extra 20kgs of luggage strapped to your body towards your carriage, hoping that your thongs dont give way on the slippery and uneven surface. You heft yourself into your carriage and are immediately rewarded with the cool slap of airconditioning running at full. You made it! Your on the train!

Its a 'first class' sleeper cabin which means there are three bunks one ontop of eachother and you are required to remain in yours for the next 13 hours. You slide your pack under the seat and secure it to the wall of the train using a metal chain and a padlock. This is so, if you fall asleep, its still there when you wake up. You fart about trying to make up your bed which is about 2 foot wide by 5 foot long and heft yourself up into your bunk. Your bed is reasonable and teh sheets are cleanish, you've rationed your water out so as to avoid using the toilets as much as possible in the next 13 hours. You've worked out that the best way to stop people staring at you the giant freakish kind-of indianish creature, for the whole trip is to rig up your scarf like a privacy screen from the top bunk and you settle in with your packet of chips, chocolate cream biscuits and and book and try not to think about the cockroaches as the train rocks your gently to sleep.

Getting busy God style.

Dear me, in all that talk of myself, I forgot to tell a story!

Just before I get into it, I'd like to say thanks to everyone who has sent me emails. I havn't always had time to reply to you individualy but need you to understand that these emails are greatly appreciated treasures which I cherish. Thank you for those who are following me and thank you for those whom have helped me stay in touch with home. I love and miss you all.

Now heres that story I promised!

The great God Shiva went away to meditate for 100 years. (Shiva was a bit of a thinker who enjoyed his funky green smoke and abstract philiosophical pondering) Parvati, Shiva's wife waited patiently his him for all of the 100 years and when he returned home to her welcomed him with great love. To show his gratitude and passion for his devoted wife Shiva took Partvati in his arms and made love to her.

Afterwards Parvati was so entranced by her wonderful experiences she was desperate to share her stories with someone. She saw a Sage on earth and tried to tell him her story of passion, but she was a Godess and so could not communicate in the language of mankind. Instead a beautiful lotus flower fell from her mouth onto the Sage.

The Sage took the flower and meditated on it for many days, until eventually falling into a trance and recording the words and images of Partvati and Shivas wonderous couplings.

Thus was documented the Karma Sutra.

Decisions!

A few things have been bothering me since I decided to leave for India (and probably before as well)

1. Will I ever fall in love again?
2. Will I ever have a family of my own?
3. Should I stay in Perth?
4. What should I do with my life?
5. What are my priorities?

Interestingly I have answers for all of these questions now. How delightful.

The plan as it eists currently in my mind:
The love and family stuff is on its way but I have a few years in between (according to my fortune teller) This time of my life is finally about me and what I want which is why it has been so hard for me to figure out. I need not focus any energy on finding family and love, it will come to me in a few years, for now its time to fulfill my dreams and be the explorer I am at heart.

So I will return to Australia early (15th Oct) for Stefan and Kylie's wedding, get an easy travellers/summer job and save some money whilst applying for my Brittish Ancestory Visa. Once I have my Visa and the coldest nasty part of Euro winter is over, head to Ireland to stay with Milo in Cork. Get a job and work there for a few months, travelling to other European cities as I please.

Ta daaa! Clarity. At last!

The grandeur of eternal love and the river of a living Godess

Maharaja Shar jahan had three wives, but the one he loved most was his third wife Mumtaz Mahal who he enjoyed many years with. sadly this love story turned tragedy when she passed away at a young age. Shar Jahan was so profoundly bereft at the loss of his beloved that he set about building the greatest building known to mankind in which to house her ashes. The building would be built on the rivers edge of pure white marble and his own ashes would be stored in one across the river in pure black so they may look at eachother for all of eternity and the world might remember the meaning of true love. Thus was built the Taj mahal where Mumtaz mahal's ashes lie to this day. Sadly jahan was incarcerated by his son before work could begin on the black taj and so, mumtaz Mahal sits and stares for all eternity across the river waiting for her true love. Locked in an eternity of hopeful waiting.

The feeling when you approach this building for the first time is spellbinding. Who would think that anyone could sit and stare at a building for hours upon hours? But the Taj Mahal is enchanting and you feel a profound sense of calm and love when you are gazing at it. Its not cliche because everyone feels it. It is an experience that is unique and powerful to say the least. It is worth the trip to india for sure.

We have discovered two excellent travel schemes:

No 1. I look Inidian and so, if I dress and act appropriately I can get into tourist attractions for local prices! (this equates to ALOT of money ie at the Taj mahal entry for tourists cost 750 Rupees around $20AUD and costs 20 rupees fopr locals around 50cAUD!!)

No 2. Its best to stay at cheap hotels and then go relax and swim in the pools at posh hotels saving loads of money and giving the impression you are not a budget traveller at all!

Varanassi and the River Ganges

It is told that many years ago a King was walking through the land and stumbled across a sage. The great Sage had been meditating for many years and the King disturbed hs concentration and awoke him from his trance. So enraged was the Sage that he cast a curse upon the king. All of his family, all 60 000 relatives would turn to ash. And so it happened.

Deeply saddened by the loss of his entire family the king prayed to the Godess Ganga to cleanse the land of the ashes of his family and take them away to nirvana. But Ganga could not come down unaided for her mighty power would flood the world and destroy all mankind so the god Shiva assisted her. Ganga poured down from the heavens onto the forhead of Shiva who sent the water forth in a mighty river down the mountains. This river washed away the ashes of all the Kings family and took them to Mocksha (nirvana) where they would remain in eternal bliss.

The Ganges river is worshiped by Hindus as a living Goddess. To bathe in the water is a great honour and to drink the water is a great curative of ills. Many people make the pilgramage to the Ganges to make it the final resting place of their ashes and the fires burn day and nght on her banks.

We arrived here yesterday on overnight train from Agra and are very concious of the energy and power of this, the oldest inhabited city in the world.

We set out at 5.30am to watch the stubnning sunrise this morning:

Today we had our fortunes told by a man who knew so incredibly much about me I cannot dispute his knowledge. He sent my mind to rest about my hopes of family and chuildren and gave me the same answer as the strange man who unsolicited told me about my destiny many days ago in Udaipur.

Now Lisa and i are off to colect our sari's we chose yesterday and blouses we had made up to match.

I love India and despite my stomache ache, frequent toilet visits and constant dehydration, I am so glad I am here.

The day begins

Waking up in Pushkar at the crack of dawn. Your bed is a foot too short so your back is stiff, your hips hurt from lying on your side on a bed as soft as a brick. You blink several times before yu realise you have had the fan on full ball all night to keep you slightly cool so your eyes are stuck together and your mouth tastes like you've tounge kissed a puppy after its eaten some garbage. Your roomie is up and about fumbling through her pack and you kow you have 25 minutes before you need to be at the bus station. You head into the bathroom and splash your face in tepid water doing your best to remember not to rinse out your foul tasting mouth with the local water. After some fumbling you find your toothbrush (which now tastes like shampoo from being in the bottom of your toiletries bag) and a bottle of water to clean your teeth. You have a quick "shower" - which means you turn the cold tap on full ball to recieve a pitiful trickle of water down your back and decide to fill up a bucket from the tap and just pour it over your head. The entire bathroom is now flooded as the shower is just a tap on the bathroom wall and there is no recess to catch the water. You cautiously walk over to your towel (noting with frustration that you have absent mindedly soaked the toilet roll on the floor next to the loo) and attempt to dry the shower water off you. You experience a brief moment of bliss. You are clean for 2.5 seconds before it is rapidly replaced by sweat. You trundle back into the bedroom, no longer caring about modesty- the towels are too small to cover your breasts and groin at the same time and fumble through your pack to find some clean underwear enjoying the fan on your bare skin. You dress and expertly roll, fold and tuck all your belongings into your backpack and zip it up. You then realise you have forgot your toiletries and money/passport belt. Undress, put on passport belt and redress. Unlok your pack, slide around the bathroom collecting toiletries and repack and lock your bag. You pick up the two remaining one litre bottles of water in your room and drink them. Put your pack on your back and walk down 4 flights of stairs to reception to pay your bill, careful not to fall down the stairs in your slippery thongs and your heavy backpack.

After the usual rigmerol of paying your bill which is inevitably incorrect and no one ever has the right change, you trudge out to the front of the hotel and you hit it. India. Its hot. It smells like incense fresh cow shit, garbage, flowers and sand. You can simultaniously hear 2 bus horns, 6 auto horns, 3 men selling chai, cars, cows, people starting their day. Your fellow travellers are chatting about which bus to catch and how its inhuman to be awake before 9am. three rickshaw drivers come at your offering to carry your bags for a price, take you to anywhere for a price, and ask you 'madame wheru frrrom? You lokk liddle beet india I give you good price"

Your tour leader arrives and before you know it your being jammed into a rickshaw with your luggage and 2 other people. Your thighs are squeazed in tight next to eachothers and you dont know whos sweat that is on your legs. Your being thrown around corners at speed, dodging busses and cows, over bumps - when your head hits the roof "ohhh soreee madame very bump" - youve got dust in your mouth and eyes and your thirsty again. But it feels nice to havethe wind on your face and its now quite fun watching as your vehicle stops less than a centremetre from the truck crossing infront of you with 800 cartons of ciggarettes mking a muffin top over the top of the tray. You watch india wizz by in a flurry of dark skins and blight saris, fresh produce and sleeping cows. You smell burning wood, see a thousand deep fried delicious somethings being lifted from a wok and grimmage as a child and dog disagree over a piece of edable garbage.

As soon as you pull into the bus station 3 children run at you, they are dirty and their clothes are rags but their eyes are huge and they beg of you for money to buy bread. You ignore them and keep walking, cringing on the inside at this practiced indifference. You think about children back home with their baby wipes, nappies, fresh clothes, baby food, nutritional requirements, lactose intolerances, special activity regimes and snuggle blankets and your heart screams at the injustice as you tell them "NO" when they tug at your clothes and signify their hunger by putting their hands in their mouths. A man runs at you with an arm full of puppets and yells prices at you in ever more desperate and decreasing amounts. Hes pushing them in your face and walking you backwards into a corner but you push through him with your head down "No thank you NO thank you NO THANKYOU!"

"AGRA AGRA AGRAAAAAAAAAA" shouts a man next to you as you dodge out of the way of his bus only to step into the path of a motorbike with 2 men on it who swerve around you at the last second with not a care in the world for your safety or their own. You push your way through the corwds of gawking locals staring at your spectacle of abnormal dress, movement, skin and luggage. No matter how much you cover up you still feel naked and obscene under their gaze. You manage to agree to paying 25 rupees for a bottle of water even though you know the locals pay less than 10 and grab a bag of chips for breakfast before your bag is grabbed and hefted into the back of a bus and you jump on desperate to find a seat that isnt brocken or crammed between undesirable travelling locals.

You're filthy already, your seat is uncomfotable and your stressed because you accidently bought super spicy curry flavoured chips for breakfast and your book is in the wrong bag and you have nothing to read for the next two hours. But you're on your way to Agra to see the Taj Mahal and you feel incredibly alive.

Seranaded for bread

After my very relaxing and calming experience in Pushkar city I decided to go for a walk to see the sunset. I walked around the edge of the lake and smiled at people as I went. No one bothered me because the could see on my arms and forhead that I had done a pooja that morning so I was free to enjoy the sights without hassle.

I had intended to make it to the Brahma temple but spent too long around the lake and before I knew it the sun was setting. I found a step to sit on and sat cross legged drinking in the marvelos view. Two locals approached me for a chat. Kali and Papu. They were lovely and as usualy were selling me something. I explained that i did not want to buy anything but would sit and chat with the as the sun set.

Kali soon left in search of the almighty tourist buck, but Papu remained and talked to me about his life in the desert, his wife and children. Papu was a musician who made his bread by singing and playing his instruent (something like a violin).

After a while we parted and I found a few people using twirling sticks and flags and dancing n the light of the sunset but to no music. i found Papu and asked him to pla so that we would all have some lovely tunes together.

Papu played and sang beautiful music until the sunset, truely a magical serenade to a beautiful day. But when I went to pay him he pushed my money back at me.

"I am not take money from you Nadia" he said. "I am good man who works for his family. I want you to buy flour for me to make chipatti for my children. You not give money."

So together we went and for 100Rupees (around $2.50) I bought Papu 10kg of flour. He told me this would feed his family for a week, hugged me and took off on his walk home to the desert.

I have no photos of Papu or the amazing sunset, but the memory will stay forever.

The Holy City of Pushkar.

In Hindu Religion there are three main gods named the holy trinity. Brahma the creator, Vishnu the operator and Shiva the destroyer. It is said that Brahma had no home to call his own or for people to worship to him so he cast out a lotus blossum and where it fell he would call his home. Thus was born the holy Lake Pushkar as from the lotus blossum flowed a great body of water. The city around it is called Pushkar and is renowned as the most holy city in India.

Today I went to Lake Pushkar and sat with a holy man called Ganesh who did Pooja with me. Together we prayed to Brahma and envoked the power of the great lake to bring health, happiness and good fortune to my family, to my friends and to myself.

Together we cast vermillion, rice, sugar, flower, salt, coconut and rose petals into the water and he asked me to say goodbye to the loved one I have lost by asking Brahma to send him forth to a good reincarnation.

As we sat thousands of pidgeons passed over our heads and a cow came and sat by us. This was truely a magical experience for me and I took my time afterwards strolling through town in the soft daze of peaceful reflection.

I have just had a massage and a shower and sit here writing this so I will never forget this wonderful feeling of complete harmony.

This is a very special place and I feel as if I was meant to come here.

Yeah I know this is a cheesy photo but its the best I have !

Drifting

I find myself feeling quite lost and down the last 2 days. My brain keeps asking me questions like "What are you doing here?" and "Will running away like this ever actually change anything?" "What would be the point in going home?" and interestingly i find myself sitting quietly and having a cry. Tears for Clinton mostly but sometimes for my family, Simon and for leaving my job which restrospectivly was the only structured thing I had. Its not regret, just sadness that I think I can look in on now from a different angle and let myself be sad about. I guess this is all part and parcel of travelling and I'm sure it will pass. Its also hard to focus on the present when your future is so uncertain. But I guess that the point...

Lisa is an excellent travel buddy, shes controlling in a lots of ways and needs to know more about stuff than me all the time, but I quite like it about her. It allows me to be super casual and not think about anything or be too concerned. We have a healthy balance of time together, going off to do our own thing regularly so we dont get too much in each others space. I'm really happy we are together, I don't think I would be having such a good time if she wasnt here.

I am having a bloody good time too! Every day is more and more exciting, the culture shock seems to have worn off now so its just about which palace to explore, which temple to energise in or which amazing food to sample.

One thing that does bother me about this experience is the box westerners seem to put themselves in when they get here. Its like "i'm in india now i can become a hippy" and everyione goes around wearing baggy dishevelled clothes, singlet tops and unwashed hair. I dont know where this mentality comes from, because you will never see an Indian behaving like this. Even your homeless street sleepers have the decency to cover their shoulders up and no self respecting Indian woman would care so little about her appearance. Its strikes me as totally odd that in a country so focused on status, image and propriety we westerners come in and behave like a bunch of beggars. I percieve it as somehwat insuting like "Look at me i'm super richer than you and I dont even have to try" that just my opinion anyway, I feel like I'm missing the 'hippy gene' or something.

We are in Pushkar today, its a very sacred place in India, the only place devoted completely to the worship of Brahma, the creator. I can feel this is a good place, it almost buzzes with an unearthly energy and I feel more vibrant and calm after a rest here than i have felt in days.

Big Belly is good, round is prosperity just like Ganesha!

When you have a festival a huge crowd gathers in the town so many people that you cannot move your arms. Somehow when the Maharaja comes the crowd still manages to part and make way for the carriage. Just as this is possible, so is it possible to make way in your full belly for Gulab Jamun, for it is truelly the king of all the Indian sweets - told to me by Shakti cooking instructer in Udiapur as he loaded more and more gulub jamun sweets onto my place after an enormous lunch.

Opium, Immodium, Carpets, castles and cooking

Outer Jodhpur Bishoi tribesman after adjusting his Moustace for his photo to be taken
wading by the side of the road
Dhari Carpet maker just outside Jodhpur famous for selling carpets to celebrities including Prince Charles and Richard Gere.
Gorgeous Joseba trying his hand at pottery.
My new bedspread and its happy salesman
Joseba again getting his gear off for the locals' entertainment
Lisa getting friendly with the locals too (Road stop 2 hours out of Jodhpur)
Jain Temple 2 hours before Udiapur - amazing marble architecture
One tree hill
Monkeys Outside Jain temple
Udiapur water Gardens
and again - I do love lotus flowers. I had a few tranquil minutes of meditation here before an ant bit me on the bum!
The crew on our sunset palace cruise
Susan and Gemma cooking up a storm
Ello!
More opium making - weeee! (yes I had a try- just a little one though)
Bishnoi tribeswoman preparing maize.
Lisa getting her san for DVT at Goyle hospital in Jodhpur (she got the all clear yay!)
Guard in window of City Palace Udiapur
This man is the one who randomly told my fortune before sucking on his Opium Pipe... reliable source don't you think?

Hospitals, hire cars and holy places.

"My hopes and dreams lie beneith your feet. Friends, I invite you to remove your shoes and walk them with me." Dhari carpet weaver of Jodhpur

So far the following things can be ticked off my travel to-do list:

Visit to non-english speaking Indian hospital (its ok I'm not dead) TICK
Experience a flash onset sand storm TICK
Ride on a local bus with locals staring at me like a sideshow for over 6 hours TICK
Dine wth Royalty TICK
Be rescued from a mob of teenage boys by a gentlemanly Spaniard TICK
Buy a carpet TICK
Sleep in the desert TICK
Meditate in a Maharaja's water garden. TICK
Drink freshly prepared opium water in remote Tribal village. TICK
Have convincing fortune telling experience from unknown holy man who refused payment. TICK
Watch two Indian boys have a dance-off in a nightclub to a Michael Jackson medly. TICK
Now that only leaves: Obtain spititual enlightement, Throw object into the ganges, prank call a telemarketing centre and fall in love. Not too bad really...

The last few days have been simply amazing! Lisa had been having a slight medical problem and when we ran into a delighfully handsome (No he wasn't gay Joseba you are just jealous) Frenchman who was a pharmacist on a rooftop in Jodhpur he told us to go check it out in hospital. So we did and boy I have to say, India has medical care sorted. We westerners could certainly learn a thing or two about India's coordinated chaos because we were seen by a GP referred to a secialist, saw a radiographer and were out of there with a diagosis and prescribed prescription in a matter of only a few hours and all in all enjoyed the experience. (Except me panicking and fretting like a mother for all those hours)

Then straight from hospital into a auto rickshaw to dinner, cocktails and a swish Indian nightclub to shake our booties into the wee hours. (yes this is where we saw the dance off and yes it was AWSOME!!)

the next saw us leave Jodhpur for Udaipur a journey which I will tell to you tomorrow in more detail. Apologies for no pictures in this post, but I left my camera cable in my hire car yesterday, its being returnedto me tomorrow and I will add some to this post then. Now I'm off to watch the sunset (yes again I know!) This time in a boat on the famous Udiapur lake overlooking the great Monsoon palace before a private culturaldance show and to watch Octopussy over dinner as this is the city in which the famous James Bond movie was filmed.

Thar Desert Safari

Everyone meet Papu:

Papu is a 9 year old male camel who lives with the people of the Thar Desert.

Also meet Tiger, escorting Lisa and Michael escorting Jo our handsome Spaniard companion:

These new found friends were gallant enough to carry usraciously across the desert to last nights camp site. (a few mad dashes in between as Tiger and Papu seemed rather competative and Lisa and I turned out to be rather well skilled in camel riding - go figure) Naturally Papu won.... Of course ...

We arrived in time to settle our sore behinds into the soft sand, crack a local bevvie, and watch an amazing sunset.

Never to be upstaged, the lady moon rose in her full glory over the dunes, making the event a truelly magical moment.

We had arranged some local musicians to play for us into the night and they arrived in full garb and played in the light of the full moon as we danced to local tunes and they even managed a tune or two that we knew! I wasn't able to capture the lightning show that we witnessed as well. Truelly mother nature put on her best dress for us!

After the food, music, dancing and games we all fell asleep under the watchful eye of moon and stars and awoke to a clear blue morning.

I even managed to watch the sun rise again with a local dog who had been guarding our campsite.

Back aboard Papu I returned to Jaisalmer for a very much appreciated shower (argh the sand it was everywhere!) We set off on a local bus (ee gads!) for Jodhpur in 1 hour.

Dinner with a Prince

Muamal crouched by the side of the lake filling her water vases when she saw him approach. A handsome man whos eyes were deep and soft. They spoke breifly and knew in that instant they had a deep love for one another. But alas, he already had 3 wives from arranged marriages and could not marry her as she was a great woman and he a lowly merchant. Muamal confessed her love to him none-the-less and he returned the next day to feast on her beauty. Every week he would take the long cart ride to the lakes edge to meet with her and the shared stories and and spoke of their hearts desires. His wives however, grew suspicious of his absences and so one night sabotaged the wheel on his cart. Stuck by the side of the road he was unable to come to his love. Muamal waited till the sun set and returned distraught to her home. Shocked by Muamals sadness her sister dressed up in a merchants clothes and laughed with her till she finally, exhausted fell asleep. When he arrived late into the night he saw her, in bed with another merchant and left, never to return. Muamal sent him many letters begging him to return, unsure of what she had done to turn him away, but his wives destroyed them before he could see them. Muamal, devastated by the loss of her love, walked to the lake where she had met him and drowned herself. When he heard of her death, he came to the lake where the sister explained the truth to him and he, racked with sorrow threw himself into the lake. For a life without love, is no life worth living.

-The great love tragedy of Muamal sang to us by palace musicians in Jaisalmer.


We are still in Jaisalmer and I wasn't expecting to update again so soon, but last night was so magical I simply MUST put it down here in words. After updating I met a lady on the street called Samgiita who took me to her salon for an Ayurvedic massage, facial, threading and once I was completely relaxed her beautiful daughter painted my arm and hand with henna.
After a quick shower it was off to the sari shop to be fitted up with an evenings dining at the Palace restaurant.



When we arrived however we were not expecting to be greated by the Prince of Rajastan himself!! who was residing at the palance that night. What an honour it was to watch the sunset over the beautiful Jaisalmer Fort standing by the Prince of this great land himself!!


The food was AMAZING the best I have ever eaten (despite Lisa, Susan and Gemma munching into the 'green beans' only to find they were infact, green chillis!) Musch to the shock of our lovely guide Ikshwarku, we ordered almost everything on the menu so we could feast like royalty on the local specailities.

No more than 10 minutes after we had feasted did the palace musicians come out to play for us. They sang and played with a variety of instruments entertaining us with a fabulous show of puppets and we all got up to dance on the roof and marvel at the pleasures of India. It was such an incredible joy and honour and we celebrated well into the night.
Holy Cow what and adventure!!!

The Fortress City of Jaisalmer

Many centuries ago a great King took a hunting trip in the desert of Tar. His mind was abuz with the troubles of his people and the suffering of his lands due to the invasion of the Muslims from the north. As he walked over a dune he saw hidden away a Lion toying with its prey, a young goat. He watched with shock as the mother goat came towards the great lion and attacked, doing what she could to defend her innocent kid. The great King saw that the Lion was frightened by the passion of the goat mother to protect its young and set the kid free. From the distance appeared an old Sage who spoke to the King. "As mother protected kid so shall this land protect your people." and so was built the great Fortress city of Jaisalmer.

We arrived here yesterday from Delhi on a 19 hour overnight train journey. The contrast of the beautiful carved city filled with gentle people, cows and cool breezes is mind blowing from the heat, noise and suffocating population of the the streets of the capital.

Our flights were quite stressful as we had some problems with our tickets and visas not scanning in which saw us running across airports and diving through doorways for 3 flights. Our first day in Delhi we managed to make it as far as the hotel lobby for breakfast before unequivocably deciding to return to the room, keep our swollen feet raised and sleep for another 12 hours.

We bravely ventured out after catching up on rest and shopped on the streets of both Old and New Delhi, took a ride through town on a rickshaw with a pleasantly tame monkey and visited spice markets in the sweltering heat.

We are travellling with a lovelly group of 7 other people from England Australia and Spain who, although all quite different manage to be getting along incredibly well.

Last night after an afternoon exploring Jain temples and palaces we dined together on the balcony of one of the forts turrets on plush carpet and cushions in the cool gentle breeze of the night air. This city is stunningly beautiful and we were all filled with joy and celebration as we ate some of the best food we have ever tasted, drank cool beer and sang songs together into the night.

Above is the sunset from our rooftop private dinning area and below a holy man grinding stone in the great jain Temple inside the fort of Jaisalmer.