It was HOT. 44 degrees Celsius, roughly 115 Fahrenheit hot. But lucky for us, we were more or less prepared for our two week trip, and I can happily say that despite threats of volcanic ash, strikes, and protests, we made it through our trip with only a few near catastrophes.
The first was when our flight from London to Athens was cancelled because of the British Airways strike. Although we called and were told we were being rebooked on a later flight that same day, when we didn’t get a confirmation email we had to call from India and get rebooked for reals. The second was when we first left from London Heathrow for Delhi. My teeny nail scissors were a security concern apparently, and they had to search my backpack. When they found them in their pink case, the guy going through my bag turned to his supervisor to see if they were okay. His response? “They’re pink! They’re fine.” Future terrorists, please take note of this logic. Oy.
Despite having to totally unpack and repack my backpack (which was all I took along with a purse for my two week trip), the flight to India was actually quite nice. Mark and Jody Shine met us at the airport and drove us to their home in New Delhi, which is beautiful. The Shines are friends with Laura’s aunt, who Laura is super close with, and moved to Delhi two and half years ago when Mark became president of AT&T India. Their home is gorgeous. They have a pool, gardens, a tennis court…need I go on? Laura and I each had our own room/bathroom, even though we actually only wound up staying there for one night. When we arrived, we got a tour and the most intense discussion about how to use a shower I’ve ever had (actually, the talk at Cornerstone for the outdoor showers was even more intense). This was India, after all, where the cold is hot and the hot is cold, and the power goes out at least twice a day.
After swimming in the pool, showering, and eating lunch, we set off for Jaipur. Thank goodness for air-conditioned cars. I was exhausted and hoped to sleep most of the way, despite my conflicting hopes to see the Indian countryside go by. I didn’t really nap much, since in India whenever you drive by a truck you have to very loudly/prolongedly honk, as they request on the back of their vehicle “honk please” or “blow horn” so they won’t try to switch lanes and kill you.
The whole time I was really surprised by the similarities to parts of Morocco. Bougainvillea hang over the sides of walls just like they did in Morocco, and certain parts of the country just had a very similar feel in terms of mood and atmosphere. Other little things surprised me—the cows that roamed the streets and sides of roads looked different than American cows, and we counted many a camel en route to Jaipur and Agra. As we drove (and in fact, over the entire trip), we talked to Mark and Jody a lot about the culture, customs, and language of India. Much like in Russian, the language says a lot about a culture. Apparently in Hindi there is no word for “please” really, you just phrase a sentence with different grammar to indicate that. Hindi sounds incredibly difficult, and I was really impressed that Mark and Jody were able to communicate and really tried. I mean, every single number has its own word! No sixty, sixty-one, sixty-two business. Each number is different.
When we arrived in Jaipur at the Oberoi Hotel there, I was in for quite the experience. The Oberoi is one of the nicest hotels in the world. After they checked our car to make sure it wasn’t rigged or something, we were greeted by what felt like the entire hotel staff. They adorned us with marigold leis, bindis, and handed out these amazing cold jasmine-scented hand towels (you got those every time you returned to the hotel). We then rode a golf cart the three-minute walk to the private ultra-deluxe villa (aka the nicest one). After walking underneath a minaret, across a little footbridge, around a couple of small fountains in a courtyard, we were greeted by Angeli, our butler. She had champagne flutes with fresh lime juice waiting for us, and we got a tour of the place. I’m attempting to post some photos to do it justice.
In the main building there was the living room/dining room area, which opened out with French doors onto our private pool…with peacocks!
Our little building had the huge room for Laura and me, and the most beautiful bathroom I’ve ever seen. Mark and Jody’s room was even more incredible.
We spent that night sipping champagne and ordered dinner from the restaurant delivered directly to our own dining room. Needless to say, it was delicious. The next morning, after drinking the best coffee I’ve ever had we met with our guide who took us to the Amber (pronounced ahm-bear) palace or fort. It’s a little outside the city, and we drove to the base and then rode elephants up to the top!
(Laura with the elephant we rode. I named him Baby Babar.)The architecture is really interesting because it’s a blend of Muslim and Hindu styles. This was because of the coalition formed at the time to keep the peace in the area. It reminded me a little bit of the Alahambra, but maybe not quite as well preserved in some places, and not as intricate throughout. The coolest part was the hall of mirrors, which hopefully you can see below.
We also saw the Jal Mahal, which looks like a floating palace on the water.
And the Palace of the Winds, which was a fake front to the palace placed on the main street so that the ladies of the court could look out onto the street.
I also really enjoyed our trip to a shop that made carpets and textiles. We got see how they put patterns on silk as well as how they make carpets and feel the difference between the different kinds (camel, silk, etc.).
On our last day in Jaipur Laura and I also went to the Observatory and the Palace and its museums. Below are some favorite photos.
After lunch we said goodbye to Angeli (who was wonderful, we chatted with her a lot), and made our way to Agra. The Taj Mahal awaited!
No comments:
Post a Comment