Rajasthan Part 1
Trip Start
Oct 20, 2005
1
9
31
Trip End
Nov 04, 2006
Jaipur,
India
Monday, January 9, 2006
We were in the 3-AC compartment. That means, 3-tier, air-conditioned or 6 people to one compartment where the seats transform into 3 bunks on each side of the compartment for bedtime. That doesn't count the two other beds along the long side of the train. Our train left at 7pm and around an hour later, the "bed roll attendant," as noted on his uniform, came through to issue us our clean sheets, blanket, towel and pillows for the night. We settled in and met our neighbors - all businessmen returning to their homes in Jaipur and as well as couple of MBA students. Through out the evening, men came through the car selling chai, tomato soup and dinner
01 Jamie on the Train
. Around 10pm, the bunks came down, the beds were made and people started to go to sleep. It was a comfortable night (ear plugs were key) and we slept quite well. The best part about the trip was the chai sellers coming through around 7am and then the breakfast men started strolling through. We had breakfast in bed! We arrived in Jaipur mid-day to a rash of touts wanting to take us to a better hotel and sell us lots of "good things." We headed straight for the pre-paid taxi stand and got a rickshaw to our hotel that we had already booked. Jaipur is not the most enchanting city, but it is great to see a different place than Mumbai. It is a bit more organized, in a way that can't really be put to words. Like Mumbai though, there are discarded shoes on the streets. It is also much colder and there are camels all around. The neat thing about this city is that along with the new and modern buildings, you have the contrast of the forts and castles of the Rajput and Mughal's. We have had a mix of being hassled and meeting some very friendly and happy people who have been kind to us.
The next day, we left Jaipur for Sawai Modhpur to visit Ranthambore National Park to see some tigers. We were told it was a matter of luck seeing tigers, as only 25 remain within the park. We stayed at the government hotel where all bookings for safaris are made. A safari is a 3-hour drive in the park either on a jeep (expensive) or a 21-person "Canter." A Canter is an open truck type vehicle with lots of seats. As they only allow 15 Canters in the park per safari session, there is a bit of competition to get a seat on a vehicle -and you can only book the day of the safari. So, for a morning safari, we were told to be at the ticket office at 5am to get in line to buy tickets for the 6:30am safari
02 Visiting a Bangle Shop
. Jamie, being the valiant one, offered to let Stacie and Justin sleep in a bit and get up and get the tickets. So, at 5am, she got up and bundled in layers and layers of clothes to keep warm. She walked downstairs with visions of orderly tourists standing in line patiently waiting to get their seat on the canter (the prospect of being first in the ticket line was the main reason to stay at this otherwise crummy guesthouse). As the cold air hit her, so did the realization that duh, she was in India! She walked to the ticket window amid a mass of Indian men all fighting their way to the office window to buy tickets for the tourists that were probably still sleeping, warm in bed. Mind you - this service did come with a markup of 20-500%. All eyes were on her, being the only foreigner and a lone female down there at 5am - that was something new to stare at. Feeling very uncomfortable, she ran back upstairs and woke up Justin to go back down with her. When she got back to the room, she remembered one thing that might have exacerbated the situation: she was wearing her new (and very warm) hat that Stacie bought her the day before - it had "LOVER" embroidered on the front.
After about 1-hour and witnessing two fistfights, Justin managed to get the tickets (only have to pay someone $2 over the true price of the tickets)
03 Rajasthani Countryside from the Train
. What an experience! The first two safaris (morning and afternoon), we saw many beautiful animals, but no cats. Justin went alone one the third one and saw three adult tigers hunting near a pond! Apparently, seeing three together is exceptionally rare. They were magnificent (see pictures). While Justin was on the safari where he saw the tigers, Jamie and Stacie went for a long walk up to an old Rajput hunting lodge and then towards town. They struck up a conversation with a local man and were invited to join a party of a local family at their newly opened guesthouse. They danced with the women to Bollywood tunes and then Justin joined in for a fabulous Rajasthani meal, which included lots of sugar and ghee. The owner is a Hindi teacher and when he found out Stacie studied the language, he lurched into teacher mode. We spent the rest of the evening talking about how he could integrate mini-Hindi lessons into his guesthouse business. At the end of this fabulous meal, we asked how much we should pay (no menu - he just brought great food), he said, "Whatever you wish to pay." So we did.
