Michael says this post is too long (sorry!)

July 10-12

One of the things we haven't mentioned about India yet is likely one of the first things any Western visitor would notice--the traffic. Our guide swears that they have traffic laws in India, but we never saw any of them being followed. My first question to Michael was "why do they have lanes painted on the streets?" They completely ignore the concept of a lane. If three lanes are marked on the actual road, you're more likely to have at least 5 actual lanes of cars, with motorcycles and tuk-tuks in between. Horns are used incessantly--the noise is crazy! Motorcycles usually have at least 2 people on them, if not more. Many people have their children riding "side-saddle" and helmets are used sparingly. Tail-gating does not even begin to describe how you are supposed to drive. All cars are situated within inches of each other. Stopping short is unheard of...drivers keep their steady speed until right on another car and then slam the brakes. It's anxiety provoking at first, but after a few minutes I was used to and and it didn't bother me anymore. The only time I got worried was heading to the Delhi train station--our driver and another got out of their cars and started yelling at each other because the other guy would not let us turn. For a few seconds, Michael and I thought it was going to come to blows, but in the end, the other driver helped direct traffic so we could turn. Exciting stuff!

We spent three nights in Jaipur, which is in the Northern, desert area of India. Jaipur is known as the pink city. This is because the Maharaja of the city ordered every building to be painted pink in 1853 during a visit from the Prince of Wales. The old city is still pink today (though it's actually more of a salmon/coral color than what we would typically call pink).

During our first full day in Jaipur, we met our guide, who is called KK (sound familiar Sam??) and our driver Vinay, to explore the city and also visit the Amber Fort. The fort is located on a hilltop that overlooks the city. It was in very good condition, considering it was begun in the 1500's and completed in the 1700s. Most tourists utilize an elephant ride from the base of the hill up to the fort. We decided not to do so for two reasons. First, because we were worried about the treatment and exploitation of the elephants for a tourist attraction. Second, even though it was early in the morning, it was already very hot and humid and our car had a fantastic air conditioner, which the elephants lacked! We later learned that the government regulates the elephant's hours of operation. KK told us that the elephants are only allowed to make four round trips per day and that they were well taken care of. We toured the fort and have pictures included below. On the way out of the fort, we visited an art gallery and found some small oil canvases that we purchased by an indian artist named Sasanka Ghosh.

This afternoon, we visited a local craftsman who showed us how the precious and semi-precious stones were finished and polished before being made into jewelry. We toured his jewelry store as well. There were some truly amazing pieces. We learned that Indian women love very large, ornate jewelry, which also tends to be pricey. We also visited a shop that manufactures marble products that are inlayed with semi-precious stones. The marble is all local to the country and the process of completing the inlay work is very labor intensive. We spent the remainder of the afternoon wandering around and seeing the city with our guide and driver.

This evening, we were fortunate enough to be invited by our travel agent to his club (sort of like an indian version of a country club) for appetizers and drinks. We spent time visiting and getting to know more about India and it's culture. We cannot say enough about the travel agent we used and how wonderful he was to work with. Our entire time in India was seamless and smooth. He arranged all of our tours, drivers, guides and made wonderful recommendations for shopping and restaraunts. After leaving his company, we had reservations at a restaraunt in the hotel. The menu is divided into four sections that correspond with the cuisine of four disctint areas of the country, and even more specificially--what the royal families eat in each (Punjab, Rajasthan, Hyperbad and Awadh). We were fortunate to have a wonderful waiter who made fantastic suggestions. This was one of the best meals we have had by far and taught us that we do like Indian food!

After the meal, I (Kelley) visited the hotel's in-home palmist to have my palm read. (FYI--Indians believe heavily in astrology and palmists in this country are not like the hokey, neon-sign palm readers that you find in seedy areas of U.S. cities.) I provided the palmist with only my name, date of birth and nationality before he read my palm. He asked no questions, and it was very interesting to hear what he had to say. His first statement was that I am very independent and frank with my feelings (does that sound familiar????) He stated that I am very dedicated to family and have strong devotions to those I care about (for instance, would gladly give money to family in need but would be less likely to spend on self.) He stated that I do not like interference or criticism from others. He went on to predict what year I would have a child, made suggestions for lucky numbers, offered colors that would bring good fortune and offered medical advice. He also stated that my life line was long and I would live until at least 91. I tried to ask how he could tell all of this from looking at my hand, but he was a man of few words and completely ignored all questions. When we get back to Tennessee, I will play my lucky numbers he provided me in the lottery. We'll see how it works out! It was fun and an experience to remember.

The following morning, we visited the City Palace, whose compound houses the residence of the current Maharaja of Jaipur. The Maharajas no longer have any political power and this is a title for show only. We also visited the observatory, which was very fascinating. One of the previous Maharajas, in the 1700's, was very intelligent and was passionate about astrology and astronomy. He commissioned the building of a very large observatory, which contains multiple instruments that calculate things such as the position of the sun, where the sun is in relation to the signs of the zodiac and more. The world's largest sun dial is located there and it is accurate within 2 seconds due to it's large scale. Unfortunately, it was very cloudy on this day and we were not able to see the instruments work.

We spent the rest of the day shopping and relaxing. We visited a workshop where we learned about traditional block printing, which is a craft that is passed down through families. We also visited a local art store and purchased a painting that we both fell in love with. This picture has very vivid colors and depicts a typical indian city street full of tuk-tuks. Tuk-Tuks are small, motorized vehicles. They are everywhere in India. They are made to hold maybe four adults max, but it is not uncommon to see 7 or 8 people crammed inside. We took a picture of the canvas and you can see it below. We cannot wait to get home and get it framed!

2009 7-11