Agra, India and the Taj Mahal

We arrived in Agra on a Thursday in the late afternoon. We checked into The Oberoi Amarvilas, a stunning Rajasthan palace only 600 yards from the Taj Mahal. Our visit though would be delayed. Travel fatigue coupled with the fact that the Taj Mahal is closed to the public on Fridays suggested a "day off" to enjoy the resort followed by an early tour on Saturday. A few relaxing moments...

What to Do?

Road Trip

During the stretch of 22^nd -28^th May we traveled between places by car. The arrangements included an experienced and reliable driver. The driver chauffeurs his guests to each destination and then waits for departure to the next destination. The car rental company (Avis in our case) provides its driver with an allowance for overnight room and board.

Bhanwar

Our driver, Bhanwar, was very professional. An excellent driver who smiled as he stated “when driving in India, you need three things: a good horn, good brakes, and good luck.” Bhanwar became a friend. We exchanged personal stories; he looked out for us in situations where being an Indian was helpful, if not essential; he was simply good company, a good man with a "warm heart . "

The route was Jaipur-Ranthambhore-Jaipur-Agra-New Delhi. The trip began a bit  inauspiciously . Within the first thirty minutes we were lashed by a sand storm.

Sand Storm Just Outside Jaipur

...Tigers, and Bear; Oh, My!

The Bengal tiger has been classified as endangered  by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A 2008 national tiger census report estimates only 1,411 adult tigers in India and fewer than 2,500 worldwide. The same census counted 31 adult tigers and 14 cubs in Ranthambhore National Park.  The tiger is the national animal of India.

We traveled to Ranthambhore specifically to view at least one tiger. We were graciously welcomed...

Namaste

Our safari experience began with settling into our “tented safari camp” at The Oberoi Vanyavilas. Joan, from her backpacking days, knows tents and these are not tents. They are huge, beautiful, and elegantly appointed. Flat screen televisions, air-conditioning, mini-bar, raised glass bowl sinks, you name it. They are more like a small apartment missing only a kitchen.

Bedroom

Bathroom

We had arranged for seats on a six person gyspy (jeep) accompanied by Yadvendra Singh, an experienced and well regarded nature guide.

Yad, a bit Gruff but
the Best Guide in the Park

The Pink City

Story has it that Jaipur's universal shade of pink came in 1876 to coincide with the visit of the Prince of Wales (King Edward VII). Almost the entire city was given a coat of pink paint, thus giving it the name "The Pink City". Rather than pink, Gus felt a bit green as he experienced a case of Delhi Belly.Taking things a bit slower we stayed in and enjoyed our hotel The Oberoi Rajvilas.

Our Hotel

Our Housekeeper,
Lhaden from Bhutan

Must Be Dreaming

We must be dreaming . . . . or did we die somewhere along the way and wake up in paradise?

(If reading from email go to Blog to view video)

We were treated like Maharanis from the moment we were ferried across Lake Pichola to The Oberoi Udaivilas. The hotel is an upscaled version of a traditional palace with white, black, and green marble; jasmine scented rotundas, pools and fountains, Mughal and traditional  domes, and gardens with peacocks roaming in them. Add to this, a view across Lake Pichola of the king's City Palace, and his Lake Palace which he used as a summer retreat.



Approaching Our Palace by Jetty, The Oberoi Udivilas

Royal Welcome

Shower of Rose Petals

Pinch Us!

Delhi: Something Old, Something New, Nothing Borrowed, Something Blue

Welcome to Delhi,
Home to the World's Largest Democracy

Once again we stayed at an Oberoi property,  The Oberoi, New Delhi, an efficient yet very comfortable,  business hotel in the heart of New Delhi with impeccable service. Our plans for the three days included touring Old Delhi, New Delhi, shopping, and learning more about the fascinating life practice of Hinduism which reaches beyond the scope of religion and to humanity as a whole. While we had chosen to go "guideless" in both Mumbai and Arangabad, we were told that Delhi requ ired a guide...

Buddha. . . Buddha!

From Mumbai, we flew to Aurangabad.The city got it's name from  Mughal royalty, Prince Aurangzeb. When Aurnagzeg became emperor he made the city his headquarters and it was an imperial city  from 1682 through 1707. Aurangabad has long since fallen into provincial neglect and it's population lives in hot, dusty, and miserable conditions.

Streets of Aurangabad

Aurangabad's glories are it's nearby Ajanta and Ellora Caves!

Some Say Bombay... We Say Mumbai

Mumbai is an unadulterated example of socio-economic contrasts. There are tall buildings with extremely lavish homes kept up by a legion of domestic help and a few yards away are people living in huts in extreme poverty, amongst piles of garbage and stray dogs and cats. However, we not only witnessed these conditions we became part of the cruel conundrum. We, once again, were enjoying the good side of life. Yet, if there was any partial balancing of inequalities we did find ourselves subject to Mumbai traffic.

Though we traveled in an air conditioned luxury car the experience took its toll on us. There are traffic lanes but most drivers do not use them very often. Speeding and aggressive driving is coupled with the sudden stop and go due to the traffic and bumps in the roads. Blowing or honking of horns “is compulsory”.

Further, all sorts of moving objects other than just cars use Indian roads; humans who never learned to look both ways before crossing a street, sacred cows and valuable goats, ox carts bringing in a cotton harvest, farm equipment traveling in the wrong direction, motor bikes carrying as many as an entire family, antique bicycles, three-wheel auto rickshaws, “goods carriers”, and buses packed not just to but beyond capacity.

Istanbul

Istanbul is a megacity of 13 million people, as well as the cultural, economic, and financial center of Turkey. Our trip from the airport to our hotel, Witt Istanbul Suites, was along the Bosphorus. While for most cities the trip from the airport to the hotel is not aesthetically noteworthy Istanbul is different. The 30 minute drive was lined by the Sea and a meridian full of tulips, tulips, and more spring tulips.

Cappadocia

We enjoyed 4 days and 3 nights in the town of Ürgüp.  Ürgüp is located in the historical region known as Cappadocia.

Cappadocia, in central Turkey, is a geological phenomenon. The unique landscapes are the result of the combination of enormous and recurring eruptions from a group ancient volcanoes millions of years ago followed by centuries of erosion from wind and rain.

Rose Valley

Ephesus? What is it? Where is it?

Ephesus was an ancient Greek city, and later a major Roman city, on the west coast of Turkey, near present-day Selcuk, Turkey. Ephesus, at its height, had a population of more than 250,000 in the 1st century BCE, which made it the second or third largest city in the world behind only Alexandria and Rome.

Ephesus was an important center for early Christianity. The Apostle Paul “hung out” between 53 and 62 AD. The Apostle John was also “in the neighborhood” until around 100 AD. The house of the Virgin Mary, about 4 miles from Selcuk, is believed to have been the last home of Mary, mother of Jesus. It is a popular place of pilgrimage which has been visited by three recent popes.

Our tour of the area was led by Hakan