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The Big Trip Report Number 15 - Namaskar from India - Sunday, July 27, 2003
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As we crossed the border from Nepal to India a friendly Nepali told us what
INDIA stands for: I'll Never Do
It Again. After 7 weeks here, never may be
too strong a word but it has been more trying than anywhere else we've been.
India is a land of extremes and contradictions. We love the food, but it has
made us sick (repeatedly). The ancient architecture is amazing but surrounded
by the modern poverty and squalor. We have met some friendly, helpful people
but overall there seem to be more jerks trying to scam us than anywhere else.
Maybe 6 months traveling around Asia has worn down our resilience as, at times
we have been close to blows with the locals. Despite this we have had some great
moments that have made the trip worthwhile.
In case you didn't know, India is the second most populous country in the world
(and if you've been reading our e-mails you should know the first). This was
made shockingly clear on our arrival at our first Indian train station in Gorkahpur.
Masses of people from infants to geriatrics were strewn all over the station
(including the tops of trains). Were they dead or alive? It was often hard to
tell. Did they live here or were they catching trains? We believe it was often
the former. Then there are the ubiquitous sacred cows. They roam freely everywhere,
even on the tracks. Of course that means plenty of the bovine by-product. There
is cow shit everywhere, and no one seems to clean it up. No pooper-scooper laws
here!
Our first destination was Varanasi (Benares), one of the oldest and holiest
cities in India. Hindus flock here to bathe in the sacred (filthy) Ganges, and
to die and be cremated on the riverbank. We witnessed many cremation rituals
and got used to the sight of dead bodies being carried around the streets and
floating down the river.
You can't go to India and not see the Taj Mahal so our next stop was Agra. The
Taj was built by one of the Islamic Mughal rulers of India as a mausoleum for
his favorite wife who died in childbirth. We visited at dawn, and were lucky
enough to be the first people in, and so were afforded a rare view of the white
marble monument without another tourist in sight.
Another fascinating remnant of the Mughal times is Fatehpur Sikri, a city built
in 1571 as the capital of the empire. It was abandoned shortly after, owing
to the lack of water. The palace and mosque have been recently restored. The
architecture is stunning, red sandstone seamlessly blending Islamic and Hindu
styles.
We also took in some natural wonders, visiting a bird sanctuary and the Sariska
Tiger Reserve. We didn't manage to find any tigers however we did come across
a wild boar, vultures and jackals fighting over a fresh deer kill. All we needed
was the David Attenborough commentary.
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We tried to escape the heat (above 45C) by traveling north to the Indian Himalayas
for some more trekking. We were close to the Tibetan border, and the mountainous
landscape was spectacular, reminiscent of the natural beauty of Nepal. However,
the route turned out to be extremely popular with Sikh pilgrims headed to the
holy lake Hem Kund. It is auspicious for them to bathe in the glacial water.
Brrrr! They found us fascinating so we rarely had a moment to ourselves. It
was a taste of celebrity in its worst form. They all asked us the same inane
questions and wanted 'just one snap' with us. It is amazing to think of the
number of photo albums we now feature in across Asia. Probably described as
their 'western friends'.
We traded one set of pilgrims for another by going to Rishikesh. This is another
holy Hindu city, popularized in the West by the Beatles who came here to find
their guru. It was all a bit hippy dippy for us (and hot too!) so we escaped
to Mussoorie, a former British colonial hill station. After months of roughing
it, and as it was our wedding anniversary, we splurged a little and stayed in
an atmospheric hotel that was formerly a Maharajah's hunting lodge, complete
with rhino and tiger heads on the walls. Since hunting is thankfully no longer
available, we spent our time relaxing, ordering room service and watching TV.
It was then time to face the hot and hectic insanity of Delhi, India's capital.
We did some sightseeing, ate more good food and then split for the western deserts
of Rajasthan. It never rains that much there so we were hoping to miss the worst
of the monsoon rains. Rajasthan is famed for its romantic forts and palaces
thrusting out of the desert. We spent nearly three weeks visiting the pink palace
of Jaipur, the infamous rat temple - where, yes, they worship sacred rats (thousands
of the things running around); the stunningly romantic golden city of Jaisalmer.
We went camel riding in the desert here - very 'Lawrence of Arabia' but very
hard on the arse. Then it was the 'boys own' fort of Jodphur towering over the
light blue city. Our final stop was Udaipur, made famous in the oh-so-memorable
Bond film Octopussy. The highlight is the Lake Palace on an island in the middle
of the lake. Unfortunately five years of drought have reduced the lake to half
its size so it wasn't looking its best. We found a lovely old colonial hotel
with a swimming pool so managed to relax for a few days before the return trip
to Delhi and then on to London to recover.
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