We left cold, organised Berlin and arrived in crazy New Delhi early in the morning. According to our guide 1:30am is one of the busiest times of the day at Indira Gandhi International (New Delhi) Airport. The fog (or more accurately smog) enveloped the city.
New Delhi's Lotus Flower shaped Bahá'í Temple
We had planned 3 days to try to acclimatise to this exotic country. Although staying in the central part of the city, the anarchic traffic, the relentless noise from horns and two stroke auto rickshaw (tuk-tuk) motors,
CNG powered auto rickshaws in New Delhi
the pollution, the rubble (the whole area where we stayed was a construction site) and the rubbish everywhere made us initially feel quite isolated and uncertain of how we would adapt quickly to this new environment.
Construction work in progress at Connaught Place, New Delhi
Our concept of what is normal was repeatedly tested over the next few days in New Delhi (even more as we toured Rajasthan). The sight of two elephants being led along the left hand lane of the main road into town was one of many double-take moments.
Elephants decorated for a wedding
Touring Rajasthan was a memorable and mind boggling experience. We had an amazing driver Ganesh who can drive through any traffic conditions, remaining calm, reading cows minds and pre-empting crazy bike and tuk-tuk drivers. India has only two road rules,
there are no rules (that we could identify) and
try to survive.
Overloading and driving on the wrong side of the road seem to be standard procedure. We were never sure what we would encounter around the next corner.
Raika camel nomads on the move
Just ahead of camel train
Land transport has a different look in India. Yes, there were trucks but they mostly 30-40% overloaded with cargo extending way beyond the tray and/or above the sides. Consequently we saw a number trucks crashed along the side of the road where axles had given way or drivers had lost control.
Just another day on India's highways
Driving in the Indian countryside
Every mode of transport imaginable seems to be in constant use. There are carts pulled by camels, horses, bullocks, mules, donkeys, tractors and people. Record numbers of passengers are carried by motor bikes, tuk-tuks, tractors, buses and utes.
On the way home from work
Motor bikes regularly carry up to 4 adults and we often saw the whole family (dad, mum and three kids) aboard. As you can imagine there are arms and legs everywhere!
Let's go shopping
The camel powered carts are generally fitted with old aeroplane tyres so they can support incredibly heavy loads.
Recycling takes on a whole new meaning in India. Old bicycle wheels are particularly useful on the countless trolleys used by street vendors. These hand carts are just one more form of transportation that chokes the busy streets and main roads. When they move, owner and driver (pushing) just merge into the traffic and join the throng.
Street vendors trolleys
The insanity of the road transport network seemed to intensify at each village along the way to our destination. Nobody uses the lanes, just their horns as they weave around everything slower than them. Local bus and lorry drivers seemed to believe that the vehicle with the loudest horn has the ultimate right of way. After the first few occasions when disbelief was the involuntary response, our coping strategies included sleeping (Roger) or just closing the eyes (Helen).
Village marketplace traffic
There were plenty of cows just standing or moving along the roads very confident (ignoring loud music and air horns) they were not going to be disturbed.
Our last long drive, the relatively short trip from Agra back to New Delhi, lived up to it's reputation of being incredibly congested and slow. About half way back we encountered a Hindu festival where tens of thousands of pilgrims were occupying every available space (including the median strip) to set up their temporary accommodation.
Hindu Festival
Impressive forts and palaces dominated the landscape of many towns and villages in Rajasthan. Our local guides were keen to deliver the sometimes complicated history which we struggled to absorb. We learnt how important inflections of tone are to how a word sounds. We thoroughly enjoyed the variety of architectural styles and the rich diversity of decorative fashion adored by the Mughal and Hindu emperors, and the Jat and Muslim kings.
Amber Fort transportation
Rajput Maharajah and Maharani at Amber Fort
We visited a number of Hindu temples with a diverse range of sizes, decor and ornamentation. In the Bhandasar temple we observed people coming with their offerings of food, money and flowers. In this temple it was considered good karma to feed the resident population of rats. It was the last thing we expected to find in a temple.
Rats being fed at the Bhandasar Jain Temple
The Ranakpur Jain temple is labelled as the most spectacular of the Jain temples. Inside, the restored white marble created a great sense of purity. Jainism emphasizes the equality of all life, advocating harmlessness towards all, whether great or small.
Ranakpur Jain temple
Udaipur City Palace holds a commanding place on the edge of Lake Pichola. Our cruise on the lake just on sunset included a closeup look at Udaipur City Palace as well as the famous Lake Palace and a quick stop on Jag Mandir (Lake Garden Palace).
City Palace, Udaipur
To say our trip to India was a culture shock is an understatement. We had fantastic experiences, saw amazing sights you see nowhere else.We stayed in palatial buildings, and ate like kings. The food while delicious was very spicy (our bodies took quite a while to adjust).
Mandawa Fort - our hotel
Finally no trip to India would be complete without a visit to the Taj Mahal.
Symbol of love fit for a queen
Sunrise at the Taj was spectacular, watching the jewells glisten as the sun rose above the city skyline. Our guide was keen to make this a memorable experience for us directing us to the best photo sites and giving us plenty of free time. This truly is one of seven wonders of the world.. We were also privileged to witness the beauty of the Taj Mahal without the usual crowds of local and foreign visitors.
