Hotel Haveli Braj Bhushanjee Bundi

... in the former French colony of Gabon. Before we met them, I didn't even know where the country was. Now I know that it is a sparsely populated, resource rich country country in west central Africa. We had many long and funny discussions with them, usually over breakfast and sometimes over dinner as well at the Shivam Guesthouse rooftop restaurant. Who knows - maybe I'll visit them in Gabon someday - and do a blog from there.

I also ...

Its been a while since the last entry and it seems like its been weeks since i arrived in Pushkar. After about 6 days i decided to get a move on and go somewhere different as i didnt extend my trip 2 weeks to stay in the same place for that time. I was planning on going to Bundi then working my way back to Mumbai overland, however things completely changed when i met a kiwi brother and sister who were heading down to goa ...

... on the first day of this trip.

After a few hours in bed trying to sleep off my throbbing headache, we had a delicious dinner at the Shivam Guest House just behind our hotel. The restaurant at this guest house was one of the few good recommendations from my guidebook. The owners are very lovely, cheerful and charming.

16 November - Bundi

After a nice breakfast of omelets and fruit and yogurt muesli, Gregory and I walked around for ...

... in 13th century and has only recently been maintained but its not in a fit state, the paintings are decaying and the floors crumbling but its so amazing to be in there the pictures dont really show it but you can get the idea.

At the back of the palace about 1/2 mile up on the hill is the abandoned fort which looked out on the small town, up here live about 400 monkeys who arent afraid of you but you should be of them.. little buggers.. but they didnt do us any harm apart ...

... see an authentic village. However, I was too timid. Was afraid that I would be considered to be trespassing. Finally, the paved road came to an end. In fact, it transformed into a bumpy dirt road. A group of local men called out to me. I had to stop. A handful of villagers wearing traditional pants/shorts, turban and large earrings were sipping chai under the shade. They didn't speak a word of English. As soon as I sat down, a flock of students surrounded the ...

... my freshly shaven head. Did check out the hill-top fort whislt I was there, got a great view of the town from its ramparts, the towns 'Haveli's' which I believe is a conatation of 'Homes' are mostly painted blue..... Mostly. A sky blue, that stretches into the middle distance like the lake that the old city circles. In the hazey air was the standard sound of Indian city bustle, and music, and prayer, along with a hundred kites ...

... back on the tourist trail with its vigilant demands. Apart from the filthy city of Agra, the Taj Mahal lived upto expectations and was stunning in design, intricacy and symmetry. We went along at sunrise with the throngs of tourists anxious to take that perfect photograph (digital photography has made this an endless task!). After trying to take a picture of the shy(!) Fiona as Lady Diana in front we left.

Our hotel was pretty grotty. It's never a good ...

On adore! C'est tt petit, c'est tt calme, les gens sont adorables. Nous y avons fait de jolies rencontres, une fois n'est pas coutume avec des gens parlant un bon anglais. Car il faut savoir que depuis notre arrivee nous parlons un anglais digne du sud ...

... určitě 60 sekund nemá. Větsinou pět minut tu znamená 15 nebo 20 - takze vlastně něco jako ta italská. Jestli tedy nechcete, aby odjel bez vás, doporučuji se zdrzovat v jeho blízkosti a sledovat řidiče. Ten, jakmile vleze do autobusu, tak se odjízdí. Sedět hned v první řadě za řidičem je bezvadné k pozorování předjízděcích manévrů. Řidiči tu nemají ani předtuchu o nebezpeč ...

... elementi orientali nelle nostre mode. Intanto, Lenka ha comprato un sari, tanto per essere pronti. Oppure forse i valori di ricchezza e profitto, che hanno senz'altro attecchito solidamente in India, scalzeranno gli altri piů antichi come č accaduto anche da noi in Europa? Forse, come della mia generazione in chiesa non va quasi piů nessuno dopo che i nostri genitori hanno generato il boom economico degli anni '60, anche i templi indiani saranno abbandonati tra venti ...