Memories of India

Old Delhi We viewed a lot of the monuments and parks from the coach. Our rickshaw experience was pretty exciting. We'd thought Delhi was noisy (well in fact all the towns we visited in the North were the same) with constant barrage of hooting and shouting, and the kamikaze traffic system but once out of the coach and in the thick of it the noise was ear-splitting. The only rule of the road seems to be that the largest vehicles get priority and that filters down through cars, motorbikes, auto-rickshaws, bicyles and manual rickshaws and pedestrians coming last. Sorry, the main rule of the road is to avoid wandering cows who seem to go where they please. The rickshaw ride took us through the narrow streets which were jammed full of shops making one huge bazaar area. One street specialised in Sari and Wedding Wear, another books and educational items, another jewellery etc. People milling around everywhere and heaven only knows how our 'driver' managed to avoid catch...

Firstly apologies for not responding to your comments along the way.  Internet time is so restricted I can only do the basics just now More from me (Sue) … about time David got his finger out and posted something methinks! When we left the village (by tractor cart again) We rejoined our coach for the drive to Agra where we stopped for lunch al fresco at a converted manor house (actually it was the most mediocre meal of the trip so far). I have eaten curry for every meal (including breakfast) since we arrived and I'm not tired of it yet ! Strangely, the food is all pretty mild and I'm not sure if that's the regional 'norm' or whether the hotels and lodges were 'dumbing it down' for the tourists. Our guide spotted me adding a couple of chillis to my plate and thereafter I got special meals from the chef … wonderfully spicy (but not OTT hot) This morning we visited the Glass Palace. It was foggy in Delhi so the first glimpse we had from the Palace of...

Today we travelled by coach to Abhaneri and visited the Chand Baoli step well. Quite magnificent and you have to wonder 'why' its incredibly ornate for a simple well?? Some photos: Then on to Geejgarh where we stayed in simple lodges in a really beautiful rural setting. Rustic is an understatement – hot water on for 2 hours each morning and each evening so showers had to be carefully timed, then the electric supply kept cutting out – but it was a lovely place and probably the high point of our visit so far. The lodges/hotel was along a track that our coach couldn't travel on so we were taken by tractor carts in small groups! Our Lodge: Rustic - note the tented ceiling: On arrival, just as David was unlocking our door a peacock flew out of the neighbouring tree and over our lodge. I managed to get a 'quick and nasty' photo – hopefully I can improve this slightly with Photoshop back home but I was chuffed to catch it in flight. Such a beautiful setti...

Our second day at Ranthambhore started early … an alarm call at 6am and then we were split into two groups. Each group followed a different trail through the Park in search of the elusive Tigers. It was VERY cold that time in the morning – the vehicles (canters) are open topped, open sided basic carriers and the suspension isn't great. We were given one blanket between two people but the seats were so wet with dew/mist that we had to use the blankets to cover the seats. Thanks to Jenni for the tip off – we had hats, gloves and scarves with us so coped better than some of our fellow travellers. David was very impressed with our guide's ability to turn one scarf into a variety of turbans, hats, neckwarmers etc – he made several valient attempts and these are two of his better ones!: It was very foggy and cold to start with, but it was a great experience and we saw lots of animals and birds. After lunch we had a second trip out into the park. This time we followed a different...