India, India, India

The last week in India has been a very eye-opening (and at times nose closing) experience. The poverty is incredible, the crush of people on the streets unbearable and the splendor of the palaces and temples astonishing. Every one of your senses is instantly on the defensive, with the aroma of the open sewers, the constant beeping of horns (every time a car passes another car, or a driver decides to drive on the wrong side of the road), the near unavoidable physical contact with other people, the sight of the ravages of poverty and the terrific spices of the food. It is an incredible place that seems to accept the balance of extreme wealth and the extreme poverty, a remnant of the bygone caste system.

In the past week I have traveled on the Palace on Wheels from New Delhi to Jaipur, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Chitturgah and today I am in Udaipur. The train has been a great experience, with great service and great people. Compared to the public transportation in India, the train is truly a luxurious service. It is hard not to feel guilty when we pull into train stations and the next train has hundreds of people per compartment for an overnight trip or see buses with people sitting on top.

The highlight so far has been the palaces and forts that we have visited, particularly the Amber Fort in Jaipur. It sits atop a hill, as all of the forts and palaces do, and was the first place that I came across monkeys. Big black faced rhesus monkeys that stroll among the people and run atop the archways and roofs. Udaipur is also a great place (also the cleanest town so far), centered around the Lake Palace. The low point is a tie between the constant battle to walk past persistent street merchants (the national saying may well be "50 rupees. Great price. You like?") and being shut out on a tiger safari. I am going to try to go on another tiger safari before I head to Africa and hopefully my luck improves.