Indiahhhhhh

We've been in India for a week now and we have definitely catapulted ourselves into a totally new world from the sea, sand, outdoor activities we experienced in Oz and NZ. I'm sure that when those of you experienced in Indian trips read this it won't be news - but wow this place is both exhilarating and exhausting, weird and wonderful and it stinks! A spot of Delhi Belly has given me a bit of time to write this huge blog posting...
We arrived at Delhi airport and knew exactly what we had to do and avoid to get a cab to our destination, but yet we still went off with a stranger and only a tussle with Tony on the luggage trolley handlebars managed to shake our friend off. In Delhi we stayed and Narinder and Shan's - thanks guys for giving us a great introduction to Delhi life and saving us from what would have been an overwhelming experience. Delhi is under major reconstruction for the Commonwealth Games in October 2010 and makes our Olympic constructions look positively ahead of schedule. We were showed the main stadium - well half a side. Delhi has fantastic monuments and temples, India gate and the presidential palace are wonderful but it also has slums and tent dwellers and children selling a somersault for a rupee or a pen on the crazy roads. It takes time to get into it and work out how it works. We went to see the Presidential gardens only opened 2 weeks a year to experience an English country garden Indian stylee and had a great meal in a groovy place called Haus Frau (I think). Next stop Agra but before that a little experience of someone 'evacuating' in front of us on the platform onto the tracks - nice. Arrival in Aggro is slightly unnerving as a policeman beats at touts with a stick as they literally home in on you in a shoving session. In fact Aggro (our name for it) is hard work - really smelly, crazy streets, mad rickshaw drivers, stinky and extremely hassly. However, the Taj Mahal makes it all worthwhile - it is breathtaking and captivating. Our first night away from the comfort of Narinder and Shan's home led to a meltdown - why did we come here, the hotel was a s***hole, food crap, rickshaw driver sullen when he didn't get his way, how could we cope for a month "I want to go home....", "How will we cope for 3 months in Nepal...." Then we ran the gauntlet and went out for dinner and as we sat on the rooftop taking in the Taj as the sunset and sipped a beer then looked down at the activity in the street we sighed and thought - ahhh maybe it will be all right.

A five hour train delay at Agra for our 4 hour trip to Ranthambore National Park was endured with slight frustration but mainly patience. Had to wait at the station as they kept delaying it by 20mins. But once on the train we shared an AC two tier with 2 lovebirds and as the sun set through window and the ac cooled us down, and the train chugged a lullaby the girl sang sweet Indian songs to her loved one and we thought here we are in Indian on a train making our way to a new adventure - the romanticism pf India had captured us.

Then we had another crap meal at our new hotel. Sawai Madhopur - tiger country. Ranthambore National Park has 26 tigers in 1334 sq km (it was 27 but Queen Elizabeth had one killed in honour of her visit in 1962 - nice). So needle in a haystack comes to mind. To see a tiger you go in what is basically an open topped bus with no grill bars and nothing to save you from the big cats. Our first 'safari' was in the afternoon with the wind blowing like a hairdryer, the Indians along for the trip driving us crazy with their mobile phones and nothing but scrubby trees to look at. We did see a paw print - not sure if that was a potato mould. Went home disappointed and thought this is ridiculous. Then we got the knowledge from a local - the park is split into 6 zones and the zones are allocated on a daily basis, only zones 3 and 4 have the tigers (we were in zone 1). To guarantee a zone bribe a hotelier or join the scrum with the hotel lackeys who get sent to the national park office to scramble for the best spot. Obviously the latter sounded more fun and so next morning we jostled for position along with 20 other experienced jostlers to get Zone 3 - it involved hand shoving, foot stamping and arm yanking but we got in! And hoped the bloody tigers appreciated it. Success - saw a tiger at a distance - incredible and loads of birds. But even better was the leopard drinking from a river as we left the park and we then followed it as it clambered across the rocks - truly magical.

Next stop an overnight train - I was dreading it. But as with the trains, they are always late but your name is always on the door and your bed spared of an interloper - only problem we had was the carriage door was locked and each carriage separate, so friendly locals helped us bang onthe door to wake up the porter.

Ahhh Udaipur in southern Rajasthan. It's where they made Octopussy, which seems to be on every night in every restaurant. But it is a magical if not tiring place. Nowhere near as hassly as Agro and has a almost venetian charm as beautiful white buildings are reflected on the lake which was dry four months ago apparently. So... India at street level. From our great hotel overlooking the old city we make our way to the old part of town. This involves passing numerous rabid dogs, dodging monkey tails, namastaying numerous shop keepers trying to get you in to sell some old hippy s**t, walking around or over the 'sacred cows' lying across your only pathway on a bridge after just munching grass scythed by wonderful looking women cutting in the baking sun, trying to avoid the dust, the piss, the shit and the smell of urine. Then just when you think I can't take this - a brass band comes marching out of nowhere with women marching behind carrying offering on their heads towards the Ganesh temple or you hear the call to prayer or the bells as the hindus start their singing in the temples and you think - 'This place is fantastic.' So it can get you down at times, but then something wonderful will pick you up, make you laugh at the ridiculous ways they get you to shop or cry at the devotion people have to their religion. You'll also marvel at the fact you can get a shirt made for 3 quid, haircut for 2 quid, a massage for a tenner that is divine and a great meal (yes we have had some) for a fiver for two. Ahhh Indiahhhh