Nomads for a Year

10 – 13 November 2010, India

We arrived in Udaipur with no plan and a very limited idea of what the city has to offer. Dubbed India’s Most Romantic City, other travelers had simply told us that it was a beautiful place worth including on our itinerary. Eager to put the bus journey behind us, we checked into our guesthouse, threw our bags down and headed straight for the rooftop restaurant. While the cook prepared our curries, we sipped chai and enjoyed unobstructed views of Lake Pichola.

Surrounded by lakes our whole lives, it takes a pretty impressive body of fresh water to impress us. This particular one was nothing special but the Lake Palace that rises out of the middle and seemingly floats on top of the water is what makes it truly memorable. Built in the 1740’s, this marble palace was once the summer home of Indian royalty. More recently it was seen on the James Bond film, “Octopussy” and is now a luxury hotel. Many of the scenes from Octopussy were shot in Udaipur and the city’s businesses are still trying to capitalize on the movie’s popularity. It’s been more than twenty five years since the movie was released and some restaurants continue to have nightly showings of the film.

After dinner, we briefly ventured out into the city’s narrow alleyways. Less than 10 minutes into our noisy stroll, we hightailed it back to the serenity of our room. The next day was all about sightseeing and we needed to refuel. Refreshed from a good night’s sleep, our first stop in Udaipur was the City Palace. Nearing the ticket office, we should have suspected that our experience was not going to end well. Hordes of tourists were clogging the entrance to the Palace. Reluctantly, we headed inside telling each other that we could always leave if the large crowds detracted too much from the experience.

The palace was laid out like a one way street, meaning that every visitor has to go through each room in order to get to the next. On a typical day, this system probably works just fine. However, we were there at the tail end of Diwali and the palace could simply not handle the immense crowds. Each room was filled to capacity and catching a glimpse of anything meant elbowing your way through a group of hot, sweaty people. As the rooms narrowed and we walked up and down stairs, visitors were forced to form a line and slowly inch their way through the palace. Guards situated every couple hundred feet ensured that no one got out of line and prevented anyone from jumping ahead.  We could only move as fast as the slowest tourist. In many ways, this place embodied everything we had come to dread about the world’s most visited tourist sites. While I have no doubt that the City Palace is a stunning place filled with exquisite architectural details, we saw very little during our visit and couldn’t help but feel trapped as we slowly inched our way through the palace’s many rooms.

Recovering over yet another delicious meal, we brainstormed a plan for the next day. We had read that the countryside outside of Udaipur was beautiful and that there were worthwhile sites just a couple of hours away. Excited to get off the beaten path, we headed back to our hotel and arranged a driver for the next day. Leaving early the next morning, our plan was to visit Kumbhalgarh Fort. Built on a hilltop 3,500 feet high, the fort’s perimeter walls are fifteen feet thick, extend over 36 kilometers and form the world’s second largest continuous wall after the Great Wall of China. Within the fort are 360 temples. An ambitious visitor could explore for days but we had already visited a few forts in India and were content to just spend a couple of hours wandering around and peeking our heads inside some of the temples. We had arrived early so we ran into relatively few people as we climbed up and down the walls of the fort. The highlight of our stop at Kumbhalgarh was the views of the surrounding countryside. Forested hills stretch as far as the eye can see, emphasizing the fort’s ideal defensive location.

Leaving the fort behind we headed for Ranakpur, an elaborate Jain temple carved out of white marble. Jainism is one of the oldest religions in India and stresses nonviolence in all aspects of life. Its followers believe that all living things are sacred. The most devout Jain followers sweep the ground in front of them as they walk so that they don’t squash any insects. Some even wear masks over their mouths so they won’t accidentally swallow any bugs. Ranakpur is one of the most unique temples we have ever visited. It is supported by over 1444 marble pillars, each exquisitely carved and different than the rest. The ceiling of the temple is just as intricately carved and in the very center is a living tree that the roof was built around. After seeing the temple’s incredible details, we weren’t surprised to learn that the building of this temple was a 64 year endeavor.

We decided to call it a day when our necks grew sore from looking up at the carvings. As we drove back to Udaipur through the Rajasthani countryside, we continued to make a number of unscheduled stops. Although we enjoyed our visits to Kumbhalgarh Fort and Ranakpur, the most interesting parts of our day were these random stops where we observed people going through the motions of their daily lives. We saw young men crammed onto the roofs of buses and farmers walking down dirt roads with cattle sporting brightly painted horns. Jason even spotted a cow powered water wheel still in use to lift water for irrigation. At each of these stops we pulled out the camera and asked for permission to take photos. In response, we were met with warm smiles and friendly waves. Moments like this are the ones that make up for the motion sickness inducing bus rides and the crowded temples and palaces. Time and time again we learned on this trip that it almost always pays to spend the time and money to get a little bit further off the beaten path and do some exploring in places where other travelers rarely venture. Months later, on days when I’m stuck in my cubicle, eyes blurry from staring at Excel spreadsheets, these unexpected little moments are the ones I remember most fondly.

8 – 10 November 2010, India

Our time in Jaisalmer was well spent but we grew weary of dodging Diwali fireworks and scooters racing through the narrow alleyways. Thankful to escape with all of our limbs intact, we boarded the train bound for Jodhpur. For this second Indian train journey we’d paid a few dollars more and upgraded to air conditioned second class, which was money well spent given all the desert sand that flew in through the open windows on our first trip. The seven hour journey passed quickly as I read and Jason chatted with a friendly local who had been in Jaisalmer for work. Like many of the Indians we encountered, he was eager to chat and offered interesting insight into Indian life and culture. We rolled into Jodhpur’s train station just before midnight and were a bit surprised to find that it was jam packed with people. Stepping over the sea of sleeping bodies, we felt grateful to have a hotel room waiting for us.

Like Jaisalmer, Jodhpur is located in the state of Rajasthan. Known as the Land of Kings, practically every city is home to a medieval fort or Maharaja’s palace. Jodhpur’s Meherangarh Fort is known for being one of India’s best so we set aside one day to visit this scenic fort perched on a cliff 400 feet above the city. Reached by a steep, winding road, the fort is filled with multiple palaces known for their intricate carvings and expansive courtyards. Knowing that we tend to enjoy historic sites more when we actually learn something, we armed ourselves with the optional audio guide and began our journey through the fort. The quality of audio guides tends to vary greatly but we found this particular one to be both informative and entertaining. As we meandered through the massive fort listening to stories about the palace’s former inhabitants, we admired beautiful architecture and a treasure trove of paintings, portraits, weapons, textiles and palanquins. Setting aside time on our whirlwind tour of Rajasthan to visit this historical site was more than worth it.

After leaving the Fort, we set off in search of food. Drawn to a restaurant packed with locals, we refueled with an Indian thali (a selection of different dishes served in small dishes on a round tray) and proceeded to spend the rest of the day getting lost in the city’s winding streets. Known as India’s blue city, Jodhpur has a large number of buildings painted light blue to deter insects and keep them cooler during the hot summer months. I don’t know if there is any scientific evidence to back this up but the blue buildings do contrast nicely with the brightly colored saris worn by many Indian women. At one point when we felt we might go crazy from the incessant honking and constant stream of vehicles, cows and pedestrians, we took refuge in a quiet courtyard. In India especially, these little re-fueling breaks are often what got us through the long days of sightseeing in excessively crowded, noisy places.

After Jodhpur, the next stop on our itinerary was Udaipur, known by many as India’s most romantic city.  Having heard so many good things about this Rajasthani gem, we included it on our itinerary despite the fact that it is not connected to Jodhpur by rail. Other travelers had warned us about bus travel in India and as much as we were hoping to avoid a long, bumpy, crowded and uncomfortable trip, we had no choice. We briefly considered hiring a private driver but couldn’t justify paying nearly ten times as much for a six to eight hour trip. Foolishly we assumed that the bus trip couldn’t possibly be that bad. The morning of our departure, I spoke naively of “experiencing the real India,” while Jason stared at me skeptically.

Cautiously optimistic, we headed for the bus station and climbed aboard the bus. Fortunately our assigned seats actually existed and were not located in the upper level cramped sleeping compartments. Like many bus rides taken throughout our trip, this one quickly went from uncomfortable to miserable. Every time the bus picked up speed and it felt like we had the potential to make progress, it would come to a screeching halt and multiple people would climb aboard. Once the seats filled up, people began to wedge themselves into the aisle and the sleeping compartments. Adding insult to injury was the sight of vomit streaming down the sides of the windows as people in the upper level compartments battled with motion sickness. While we certainly felt bad for them, Jason and I were dealing with issues of our own. That morning, in preparation for the long bus ride, we had limited our water consumption. Despite drinking next to nothing, we both had to use the bathroom and we grimaced every time the overflowing bus hit one of the many bumps in the dirt road.

After nearly four hours of being tossed around, the bus finally made a pit stop and we took turns elbowing our way down the aisle and relieving ourselves behind a bush. Our bladders empty, we threw on our headphones and spent the last four hours of the bus trip trying to escape to the “happy place” in our heads. No matter how annoyed we felt by the bus trip, I couldn’t help but feel even more annoyed with ourselves. The cramped aisle was bursting with young children and older women who were a lot more uncomfortable than us. Despite their situation, no one was complaining; in fact they seemed relaxed and patient. Clearly they were able to look beyond their discomfort and realize that things could be much worse. We had been reminded of this nearly every day on our around the world journey, but we obviously still had a lot to learn.

31 October – 7 November 2010, India

Nearly three and a half months after wrapping up the Asian leg of our journey, we boarded a plane in Amman, Jordan bound for New Delhi, India. Given that we were eventually flying to South America, one might question why we chose to backtrack over 2,000 miles. While searching for plane tickets from the Middle East to Argentina, we discovered that flights were incredibly expensive. A desire to visit the Indian subcontinent caused us to research additional options. It turns out that the combination of flights from Jordan to India and then onward to Argentina would cost us less than a one way ticket from Jordan to Argentina. Eager to explore this country that enchants so many travelers, we excitedly made our way to the land of rickshaws, sacred cows and spicy cuisine.

Our Indian itinerary was determined one whole month before stepping foot in New Delhi. This was a necessity given that we were visiting during Diwali, one of the country’s most important festivals. Historically, Indians celebrated Diwali in their hometown surrounded by family and close friends. While still the case for a lot of Indians, we discovered that many now hit the road during this five day holiday. Between Indian tourists and people traveling to and from their hometowns, train seats are in high demand during Diwali and sometimes sell out months in advance. Although we disliked the idea of having to plan ahead and commit to a schedule dictated by plane and train tickets, it ended up being for the best given India’s massive size and our three week timeframe.

Our instincts told us that New Delhi was not a place we wanted to spend a lot of time…and they were right. Our two days in India’s capital city were spent recovering from our red eye flight, eating ridiculously delicious food and easing into the chaos that seems to define life in India. Once acclimated, we headed  to Jaisalmer, India’s Golden City set amidst the dunes of the Thar Desert. Unable to find available train seats that would take us all the way from Delhi to Jaisalmer, we flew to Jodhpur and then finished the remainder of the journey in a third class train berth. This was our first experience with train travel in India and we were pleasantly surprised by its quality and efficiency. The berths were simple and the train cars showed their age but there was plenty of space and we departed and arrived exactly as scheduled. Our berth and those surrounding it were filled with Indian families. One couple and their adult son had traveled all the way from Kolkata, nearly 60 hours by train from Jaisalmer. The berth next door was filled with a large family that passed the time easily with games, song and laughter. The atmosphere on the train was festive and the excitement was contagious. By the time we arrived in Jaisalmer, Jason and I were itching to do some exploring.

Many visitors spend their time in Jaisalmer atop a camel slogging its way through the sand. Given that our last camel ride in Mongolia was about as enjoyable as ­­­a Filipino bus journey, we opted to forego the heavily advertised camel tours. Instead we spent our four days in Jaisalmer wandering the narrow streets of the old town, exploring ornately decorated ancient mansions known as havelis, visiting the city’s massive fort and soaking up the atmosphere of Diwali. I have no doubt that Jaisalmer is always a colorful, magical place but being fortunate enough to visit during Diwali enabled us to see the city at its finest. Known as the Festival of Lights, many Indians celebrate with family gatherings, glittering clay lamps, fireworks, strings of electric lights, bonfires, flowers and sweets. Houses throughout the city were lit up like Christmas trees, the streets were filled with vendors selling strings of flowers, and candles lined the ledges and stairs in front of people’s homes.

One day while heading from our hotel to the nearby fort, we heard the distant sound of beating drums. As the sound of the music grew closer and more intense, we realized we had stumbled upon a Diwali parade. Fighting our way through the crowded alleyways, we encountered dancing, music, floats, camels, confetti and an endless sea of people in brightly colored clothing. It was like we stepped onto the set of a Bollywood movie and I couldn’t help but feel blown away by the energy and excitement of the Indian people. For many Indian businesses, Diwali marks the beginning of a new financial year and money earned is considered a good omen for a prosperous year ahead. At least that is what we were told repeatedly by shop owners encouraging us to make purchases. Despite their eagerness to make a sale, they often seemed more focused on celebrating and thus weren’t too pushy. In general, spirits were high and we actually enjoyed walking past shops and being constantly greeted with smiles and shouts of “Diwali specials!”

We were initially frustrated when we found out we were visiting India during Diwali. Sitting in our hotel room in Egypt, four weeks before arriving in India, we started doing research and were shocked to find that most train tickets were no longer available. Mapping out our itinerary for India was time-consuming and we questioned whether or not we had made the right decision. One month later, standing in the shadow of Jaisalmer’s golden colored fort surrounded by music, laughter, candles and lights, that stressful night back in Egypt was a distant memory. As travelers we always dream of being able to experience something real or authentic while visiting a country and so far India was making it very easy for us to do just that.