TravelStream™ news feed for member goska1 on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/goska1 en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sat, 28 May 2005 17:49:14 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/goska1/ukraine/1117304460/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/goska1/ukraine/1117304460/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/goska1/ukraine/1117304460/tpod.html Sat, 28 May 2005 17:49:14 -0400 Two Years in Ukraine. Life as a PCV.

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Omaha, Nebraska, United States

So here's that promised entry that I wrote about in an email about a month ago. Coming home I thought that I would have a lot of time to update this travel blog, and honestly, I probably did, but I was enjoying the niceness of being home and relaxing with family to concern myself too much about writing this entry.

I COSed (COS = Close of Service) on April 27th, 2005. That date was exactly 26 months after I first arrived in Ukraine. I chose (as many volunteers do) to move up my official COS date from May 27th to April because I felt that my service as a volunteer had been fulfilled and that I was ready to return to life as a "civilian".

The last few days I was in Kyiv, still as PCV, were very difficult emotionally and psychologically. I knew I was facing the inevitability of belonging to myself and no one else. Never again would I have to fill out an "absence from site" form informing Peace Corps where I was going on the weekend and contact phone numbers. I would no longer need permission to do anything... I could ride a bicycle without a helmet if I so chose and I would not be fired from my job. (Yes, if a PCV is caught without a helmet while on a bike they are immediately sent home) At the same time I found myself feeling that I no longer belonged anywhere. For over two years I'd identified with being a Peace Corps Volunteer, what the hell was I going to say now? "Oh, well, I'm a RPCV..." I felt that I could only identify with those few people that I served in Ukraine with - they would understand. And once I talked to my friends about my feelings, I realized that I was not the only one feeling this way.

Of course I was ecstatic to be done with Peace Corps and all the bureaucracy associated with it. I feel so happy and confident about the things that I achieved as a volunteer, and will feel so for the rest of my life. In the month that I've been home my service has come up on many, many occasions and often I hear the same thing "Gee, I really wish I had done the Peace Corps". Or "You know I almost applied one time". Contrary to all those people that hoped and wished to be a volunteer, I was. I realized in the last month that RPCVs (Returned Peace Corps Volunteers) truly are outstanding Americans among my peers. These are people that gave up everything and did it - they didn't just think about it or hope for it - they actually pulled up their bootstraps and got into the mud. Was it the "toughest job I ever loved" as the Peace Corps website touts it? Well, that I don't know. What I do know is that through the last two years I have experienced feelings of hopelessness, loneliness, elation, surprise, fear, and pride like I have never in my entire life. There were a lot of tough days and there were definitely a lot of really fabulous ones, but what I remember the most is the friends and acquaintances I made along the way.

I will say that the last month I've spent in the United States has made me appreciate what a beautiful country we live in. Of course I noticed things like obesity (even the squirrels are fat!), but what struck me most was the incredible diversity, not just in cultures, but biologically and within our surroundings. I had a chance to drive from Spokane, WA south through Oregon, California, through Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado with my sister on her way to Omaha from law school. The Columbia River Gorge, the Oregon Coast, California Red Woods, the Painted Desert, the Rockies, rivers, streams, mountains, ocean, elk, deer, cougar, bear, hummingbirds, falcons... I could go on and on. We are so lucky to live in a country so plentiful with natural wonders. I appreciated these things so much more after my return from Ukraine - they have not ceased to amaze me, and I look forward to returning to the United States at some point to spend more time in our parks, preserves, and wild places. (In fact, it made me even angrier about the apathetic stand we've taken on drilling in the Alaskan National Reserve... in a country with so much space we're infringing upon some of the last wild lands on the entire continent - is that huge Escalade really worth it? I don't think so. Sorry about the little rant - but it is important.


And, today I'm packing - tomorrow I'm returning to Ukraine. Yup, I guess I just couldn't get enough. The last six months I was in Kyiv I did a lot of very deep soul-searching. I wanted to figure out what I wanted to do with the rest of my life and where I wanted to go. I applied to graduate school, but I also started applying for jobs. I applied for jobs all over the world - Ukraine, Thailand, Sudan, Tajikistan - you name it - I just knew I didn't want to be back in the United States anytime soon. While I was applying for jobs I also got notice that I'd been accepted to graduate school - so now what you may wonder??

I'm returning to Ukraine for a job. It's a little complicated so I'm not going to get into it right now - but what I'll say is that the organization I'll be working for is vying for a grant from USAID (The United States Agency for International Development) and once they receive it I'll have a job. When that happens, I'll let you all know. As for graduate school, well, the job is fabulous and will allow me to save enough money in one year to avoid loans - to me, that's a no-brainer. In the meantime, I'm going back to Kyiv to hangout and travel - and as an incredible added bonus my sister, Claudia, is coming with me. Watch out Kyiv, the Koziol sisters are close at hand!!! ;-) As for where we're planning on travelling... well, we're currently exploring options ranging from St. Petersburg for the White Nights to Turkmenistan to the Caucuses and who knows, perhaps even Africa... you never know with us.

So, that's all folks. I'll be posting one more travel blog soon with my trip to Chernobyl. I wasn't able to post it earlier because as a Peace Corps Volunteer I was not permitted to go there - and I didn't really want to get kicked out... yeah, very bad, but very cool trip. I'll probably post the pictures first because the Internet connections is significantly better here than it is in Ukraine.

As soon as I have a new mailing address and interesting things to tell about I'll write again, but it will no longer be under the Peace Corps heading... it's time for new adventures, and I can hardly wait!
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Kyiv, Ukraine

I just wanted to post a picture of me and the Chornobyl Recovery and Development Programme team. We've had a lot of turnover in the last year with lots and lots of new people coming and going, but for the most part the people I work with are great and have been so since the first day. I reminded them this morning that I only have a few weeks left here, and I think that it's really beginning to hit all of us that soon I'll be leaving my Peace Corps Volunteer life and moving on to something else. How time quickly flies by!!
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Amsterdam, Netherlands

I had the fantastic opportunity a couple weeks ago to meet one of my best friends from high school, Dan, in Amsterdam. Dan has been doing some work in Mannheim, Germany for the past month and called me up to see if I could potentially meet him up somewhere in Europe. We'd played around with the idea a few months ago during his first trip to Mannheim, but unfortunately things didn't work out.

So, with some much-needed financial support from Dan I bought my plane ticket on a Wednesday, sent one of our project drivers to pick it up on Thursday (yes, I know, it's pretty embarrassing that I sent a driver - but I honestly didn't have time because we were having a really important meeting in the office that day), and on early Friday morning I boarded the Ukraine International Airlines direct flight to Amsterdam.

Three hours later I landed in this very clean, very western country and set about to make my way from the airport to the Central train station and meet Dan whose train was arriving around 11am. One of the first things that I noticed in Holland is that everyone is really nice and smiley, not to mention that everyone seems to speak English. I bought my ticket to the Central train station without a hitch and the woman behind the counter actually wished me a pleasant stay in Amsterdam.

I arrived at the Central train station about 45 minutes before Dan's train was scheduled to arrive. I took a little walk around the neighborhood and made my way back to the station when I thought he would be walking out. Unfortunately, the announcements at the train station are done only in Dutch so I didn't hear that his train would be arriving 15 minutes late. As I stood there watching the throngs of tourists disembark I started to get worried that I wouldn't be able to find Dan and vice versa. I thought, "crap, this was not a good time to cut your hair, Maggie, he's not going to recognize you since all the pictures on your travelpod you have long hair." Thank goodness Dan did finally find me and we set about finding a place to stay in Amsterdam.

The weekend was very busy (as I would assume most weekends are in Amsterdam) and we finally settled on a hotel on the periphery of the center of the city. It was about 5 tram stops away from the train station and pretty easy to find. The staff at the hotel were very gracious, and all over the hotel were signs posted that there was no marijuana or hash smoking on the hotel premises. Ironically, we found rolling papers in our room the next day, and of course they could have been left by someone who rolls their own cigarettes, but I'm pretty sure we know better than that. :-)

We spent the weekend walking around Amsterdam, exploring all the little side streets, bars, cafes and museums. We went to the Van Gogh Museum which I was really excited about because the last time I'd been in Amsterdam the museum was under renovation. The Van Gogh works were great, but my favorite part was their Art Nouveau exhibit. They had three whole stories of Art Nouveau works ranging from tapestries, to posters, and even furniture. It was a really good show and presented in a very aesthetically pleasing manner. From the Van Gogh we went to the Rijks Museum which is just down the street. Unfortunately, the Rijks is currently being renovated, so the enormous museum only has a small portion of its works on display. Thankfully they're still showing "The Nightwatch" their most famous piece by Rembrandt. The prices for the museums seemed totally outrageous to me ranging from 7.50 Euros to 10 Euros, and when you think that you're really only spending between one and three hours at a place it really tends to add up. And then you have to remember that the dollar is so weak right now - I mean I exchanged $100 and got something like 69 Euros in return. God, did I feel poor in Europe.

One of the highlights of the weekend was going to the Ann Frank House. I think Dan was originally a little skeptical about going there, but I convinced him that it would be worthwhile. We spent quite a long time wandering around the old house where Ann Frank living with her sister and parents for two years in hiding before being discovered, sent to Bergen-Belsen concentration camp and eventually losing her life there just one month before the camp was liberated. The entire house is a museum now and really a must-see if you're ever in Amsterdam. And one things for sure, if you're going to partake in the party culture I would not go to the Ann Frank house under the influence of either drugs or alcohol. The first time I went there I saw some really stoned young people wandering around giggling - it was totally disrespectful and wrong. Thankfully, this time we didn't see any of that.

Of course, in Amsterdam one can't miss a trip to the red light district. Dan and I took a stroll through the red light district several times during the day and at night. It was a really interesting experience to listen to Dan expound on the prostitution. We had a lot of fun watching men walk out of the different doors and windows after paying for, well, you know what. It was still shocking for me, however, to see men peeing in the middle of the street. I mean they have these very clever little public urinals, and these jerks are literally relieving themselves three inches from the sidewalk. Totally gross.

We spent a lot of time in different bars - usually ones that were serving yummy dark beer. We had the most yummy pints of Murphy's. I can't even begin to express my huge thanks to Dan for feeding me beer all weekend. ;-) One of the last bars we walked into (also serving Murphy's) was this pub near the redlight district. As Dan enjoyed his beer and I my cider Dan overheard a guy sitting at the bar say that he was flying to Kyiv the next day (as was I). I couldn't see his face and assumed that there was a tiny chance that I would actually know him. However, low and behold, as he stood up I recognized him as a friend of a friend that I'd met several months ago in Kyiv. So, Dan, Alex, and I ended up sharing some good times over beers and a delicious Argentinian dinner that night. It really puts the small world in perspective. I still can't believe that we ran into Alex in Amsterdam... it was one of those once in a lifetime happenings.

I arrived back in Kyiv on Monday, totally relaxed, slightly hung over, but happy as can be. I am the luckiest person in the world to have friends like Dan and the opportunity to meet them in places all over the world. It really puts into perspective how small the planet is on which we all reside. I think we had a great time in Amsterdam and a few little adventures that we'll probably not soon forget. Thanks Dan, you're the greatest!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/goska1/ukraine/1110411240/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/goska1/ukraine/1110411240/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/goska1/ukraine/1110411240/tpod.html Wed, 09 Mar 2005 11:39:51 -0500 Two Years in Ukraine. Life as a PCV.

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Kyiv, Ukraine

Just wanted to post a picture of my group from our COS (close of service) conference in Slavske. We had just over 60 volunteers show up and had a fabulous time hanging out in the Carpathians for four days. It's hard to believe that my Peace Corps service is almost over!
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Kyiv, Ukraine

Happy New Year - Old and New for that matter. It's a little difficult for me to fathom that it's 2005 already. I left for Ukraine in 2003 and as of today have less than four months left in my service. February 3-6 is my COS (Close of Service) conference in the Carpathians when Peace Corps will bring all of group 24 together for one last hurrah!

Time certainly has flown by and now is when everyone starts asking, "So, what are your plans for after Peace Corps?" Frankly, I have a couple ideas in mind. 1) Graduate School - Sounds great, but what are the odds of someone actually letting me in to a reputable establishment for another two years? 2) Find a job - Also sounds plausible and tempting after working for $200/month for over two years. It would be nice to be able to afford an expensive, fancy cup of coffee when I get back to the States. And then again, will I ever be satisfied with a mediocre job again? And furthermore in this super economy what are my chances of finding something decent? 3) Forget it all and just keep moving - And what I mean by this is just to go (somewhere). Regardless of the final outcome I will be travelling for a while after I finish this gig. I was thinking Turkey or maybe Kenya and Tanzania. Once that damn bug grabs hold of you, you can kiss your idea of the world goodbye. It's so huge, and your life is so short... you better see as much as you can!

But I digress. Things have settled down here since Yushchenko won the second second round of elections. Sunday was the long-anticipated inauguration. That morning a few of us Kyiv volunteers were invited to the American Ambassador's residence to have a morning meeting/reception with Colin Powell who was in town for the big event. That meeting was slightly dissapointing for several reasons - first, how can you invite people to your home at 8:30 in the morning and not provide tea or coffee?? second, hearing Colin Powell speak for five minutes and then shaking his hand left a bit to be desired. third, as a few of us were leaving we were stopped by the Ambassador's wife's secretary who yelled at us for not knowing protocol regarding honored guests. I guess that no one is supposed to leave before they do. Funny. But it gets better, the Ambassador's wife, just audibly enough for all to hear, commented on our "lack of morals and manners". I guess that the wives of diplomats aren't given training on being diplomatic. Frankly, what the hell did she expect from a bunch of Peace Corps volunteers. I mean we all know that we're just a bunch of animals!! ;)

After the "breakfast" meeting, I met my friend Olena to go to Maidan. Unlike the revolution, this time security was very apparent and all over the square. A few of the major buildings around the square were draped in orange and there were two stages set up. Several TV screens were scattered around Maidan on which the inauguration ceremony at the Parliament was shown live. I don't know how many people were on Maidan on Sunday, but I do know that I was smushed in the center of the crowd near the stage, and although it was -2 Celsius, the body heat all around me kept me toasty warm. The festivities carried on all day with concerts in the afternoon and a spectacular fireworks display in the evening. I'm still of the mind that Ukraine's budget must have a major line in there about fireworks because I've never seen such elaborate displays anywhere.

As for the "Orange Revolution", it has taken on a life of its own. Capitalists are standing all over the center of the city selling various t-shirts, scarves, hats, and other memorbilia commeorating the revolution. I've even see several advertising campaigns (commercials and bill boards) using pictures from Maidan and the revolution to sell their product. I have to give them credit though, I don't know one person that hasn't bought a t-shirt or hat. I bought t-shirts for my cousin's boys in Poland for Christmas, and I myself sometimes sport a flourecent orange cap (ideal for hunting, I'm sure). There is a rumor that one of the history museums in town is going to open a permanent exhibit about the Orange Revolution. Funny how quickly things like that become a historical focal point. Regardless, throughout the course of this whole things - the last two months - have been some of the most interesting and exciting in my whole life. It's going to be difficult to leave this country, my friends and my life here. If I thought this Orange commercialism is bad, what the heck am I going to do back in the States? Perhaps I'll finally understand the meaning of reverse culture shock.

Work is fine. The world of development is quite interesting. But one thing I've learned for sure is that every development organization is different and that some are better than others. I'm not going to comment on the org I currently work with, but I will say that there are two types of people that decide to devote their lives to development work. One type gets into it for the benefit of the people that they're serving. The other type may start out like the first type, but eventually, if not from the very beginning, they're in it for themselves, and don't remember that development happens at the grassroots level, not in some cushy office and high profile meetings. I'm not sure what this means for myself, but at the very least I recognize these differences and am glad that I don't fall into the second category of people. It's just hard to believe that it's time to start wrapping up my projects here. April 27th (my COS date) is just around the corner.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/goska1/ukraine/1102330200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/goska1/ukraine/1102330200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/goska1/ukraine/1102330200/tpod.html Tue, 07 Dec 2004 08:28:32 -0500 Two Years in Ukraine. Life as a PCV.

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Kyiv, Ukraine

At first I wasn't going to post pictures of the revolution online, but I decided that I can show you the pictures as long as I don't voice my opinion about the actual dealings in this part of the world. So, check out your local and international news sources, or that email that I sent out last week, about what's going on here. It's currently slowed down a bit, but even today there are people still standing on Maidan in freezing, wet weather waiting for their demands to be met.

Regardless of anything else, it's a good time to be, and I am one lucky Peace Corps volunteer to be witness to something this historical.... and two years ago I thought I'd be sunning myself on a beach in South America. Man, I wouldn't have missed this for the world. :)
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/goska1/ukraine/1101120540/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/goska1/ukraine/1101120540/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/goska1/ukraine/1101120540/tpod.html Tue, 07 Dec 2004 08:22:39 -0500 Two Years in Ukraine. Life as a PCV.

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Delhi, India

The flight from Udaipur to Delhi went off without a hitch. However, the only flight we could get put us in Delhi very early for our flight to Ukraine which left at 5 a.m. The international airport has strict rules about passengers coming into the terminal early, so our only options were either to hang out in the Visitors' Lounge or check out the Airport Dormitory to catch a couple z's before flying out in the morning. We decided that we'd take the nap and be more awake for the trip home. A nice man showed us the way to the dormitory and we met up with a very friendly Indian man and his wife. They arranged for a room with 8 beds where we all slept. We walked in and it was fine until we saw the sheets. I swear I think 100 people must have slept on the sheets without them being changed. I mean I know that it's just a nap area for people in-transit, but it was the grossest thing ever. Kelly asked them for new sheets and those they provided for us, but we all still had to use our towels on the disgusting pillows.

We woke up at 3 took the bus to the airport, made our flight, which was full of Poles going back to Warsaw, and flew home to Ukraine without a hitch where we were greeted with a revolution.

I owe a huge amount of thanks go Himmat and Amit who made this trip unforgettable for all those involved. I also am thankful that we didn't all kill each other and that India is something I'll be able to share with so many great people. I know that through all these travel blogs I haven't done justice to my experience, I blame this on me being rushed to post pictures, catching a cold on Maidan, and being preoccupied with things happening outside my windows here. I hope at the very least that they've given a glimpse of the experience and more importantly have enticed you all to go to India. You will never understand until you see it with your own eyes.
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Udaipur, India

By the time we got to Udaipur we were all totally exhausted. All of us had been suffering from various gastrointestinal problems, and frankly we had been going at such a pace that all we wanted to do was relax. We got to our hotel in the evening and did have a chance to catch up on a little news because in addition to be tired, we were all very curious what was happening in Ukraine on November 21st, as the second round of elections were held on that day. At midnight that night I went to bed after hearing the Yushchenko was leading in the exit polls. I woke up to something quite different... with Yanukovych being declared the winner. Of course, since then, a little Orange Revolution has been taking place here in Ukraine. :)

Udaipur is known as the romantic city. It's located in the southern part of Rajathan on Lake Pichola. Udaipur's City Palace is found on the eastern shore of the lake and is an incredible complex of buildings. The palace is actually a series of palaces that were built by 22 different maharajas starting in the 16th century and stretching all the way into the 20th. We took a walk through the City Palace, but frankly I wasn't feeling very well and so I missed out on the museum which I later heard was very impressive. Although I'm sorry I didn't go inside, I think had I done the tour it may have killed me. :)

That evening we had our fanciest meal of the entire trip. Located in the middle of Lake Pichola is the Lake Palace, now a five star hotel. (Not the first time you've heard that one). We made reservations and took the water taxi over to the hotel. The staff were amazing and actually took us on a tour of the different terraces and look out points at the hotel. And a little trivia for you, the James Bond movie "Octopussy" was filmed at the Lake Palace. In honor of that I had a martini at dinner (but dirty with extra olives:)), something that I haven't enjoyed since I've been in Ukraine.

The dinner was fabulous and we all left very satisfied and surprised and although exhausted, quite sad that our trip was really coming to an end. The following day we flew to Delhi on a domestic flight and on the 23rd, very early in the morning we made our way home.
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Kumbhalgarh, India

From Jodhpur we drove south the Ranakpur, the home of one of the main Jain Temples in Rajasthan. We stayed at a great hotel in a beautiful, lush valley surrounded by mountains. In the morning the owner of the hotel, who also happened to be the game warden of the animal sanctuary took us on a jeep tour of the sanctuary. We didn't see any jaguars as we were promised, but we did see a jackal, and who knew the little rascals were so cute. I could have taken one home, they looked a lot healthier than any of the stray dogs that we saw.

The safari was originally supposed to take three hours, but the game warden wanted to show us the Kumbhalgarh fort where we would be going later in the day. We ended up driving up a very steep, and very dangerous road to get an incredible view of the fort, less than a kilometer and a half away (straight up!). Later that evening when we were at Kumbhalgarh we tried to spot where we had been in the jungle, but it was impossible as the trees and underbrush were so thick!

Once we got back to the hotel we moved out to visit the Jain temple. Jains are a sect of Hindus who are very peaceful and strictly vegetarian. The Jain religion was founded on a doctrine of non-violence toward all living things. The strictest Jains even wear a white cloth over their mouths in order to avoid inhaling bugs. Amit is a Jain, however, he's not as extreme as the people with their mouths covered.

In order to enter the temple not only did we have to remove our shoes, but we had to ensure we had no animal products, such as leather wallets, on us. Most interesting was the sign outside the temple that warned menstruating women not to enter and ruin the sanctity of the temple.

The Jains believe in the insignificance of outward forms and value the importance of a rich inner life, so the temple although very plain on the outside was fantastically decorating inside. I could have wandered around for hours inside the temple, and my fascination was compounded because I had actually studied this particular temple in art history during college. To see something with one's own eyes changes everything. It suddenly becomes tangible and totally, absolutely perfect. The pictures don't do justice to the temple itself. To me, it was even more beautiful than the Taj Mahal.

From Ranakpur we drove, the long way, to Kumbhalgarh. This drive was the most interesting and colorful from any that we did during out two weeks in India. We drove through lush valleys where we saw fields of sugar cane, and people using oxen to irrigate their fields. We approached the fort just as the sun was going down, climbed to the top and gazed out onto the plains, jungles, and deserts of Rajasthan. They say that on a clear day you can see Jodhpur across the desert. Although I couldn't see it, I had a very difficult time pulling myself away from the view.

After a VERY busy day, we drove to our last stop, Udaipur: the city of romance.
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Jodhpur, India

Jodhpur is famous for several reasons. It's known as the blue city because of the blue wash that's used on many of the buildings. The blue is helpful for a couple reasons. First of all it's used to cool off the homes of people as it reflects a lot of the hot sun, and second the indigo color wards off bugs and more importantly mosquitos. Unfortunately, our hotel didn't have the blue wash on its walls and so the mosquitos had free reign over me. In fact, I think throughout of the course of the trip I was the only one that suffered from the wrath of the mosquitos. Thankfully, Peace Corps provided all of us with malaria pills, so I'm pretty sure that since I haven't gotten sick yet I'm not going to get sick. :) It's also famous for the beautiful Mehrangarh fort, as well as the invention of jodhpurs, or horse riding pants.

The first night we were in Jodhpur we visited the Umaid Bhavan Palace which is placed on a hill overlooking the entire city. It was built at the beginning of the 20th century and took 15 years to complete. It's now a five star hotel and part of the complex is still used as the royal residence. We wandered around the hotel for a few minutes and were constantly followed by staff reminding us that the hotel was for guests only. I guess they could tell that we weren't wealthy enough to actually be staying there. There was also a movie being filmed at the hotel while we were there. Something call "One Night with the King" with Omar Sharif. I doubt it's a movie I'd usually like to see, but I may have to suck it up and watch it since I was there and saw the set.

The following day we visited the Mehrangarh Fort which also towers over the city, but opposite from the palace. Mehrangarh was the greatest fort we visited. The views of the city were spectacular, but what was really impressive was that infrastructure at the fort itself. Included in the price of admission was an audio tour. The audio tour provided us with information ranging from the history of the city and fort, to architectural insights, and current cultural happenings. The audio tour not only provided us with general information about Mehrangarh, but also helped us understand a lot about the other forts we had already visited, as well as prepared us for the rest of the forts during our trip.

I wish we had had a little more time in Jodhpur. Our driver was from there and it really seemed like a peaceful, clean, nice city. Although large in size very unintimidating... but instead we proceeded on to Kumbalgarh, the Jain temples, and yet another wildlife safari.
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