I am sitting in the infamous Lotus cafe in Udaipur this morning, (lonely planet got it right, it's a great little haunt, they've only been 50/50). It is a relaxed little outfit hidden away from the frenetic streets and nice when you just need a break. They even have salt and pepper in the shakers! (this is a reoccuring motif in India, for some reason they will have two shakers on the table both with salt?) Also, the Dido music in the background and the connect four is pretty cool,its a nice touch for homesick and weary travelers. (we actually discovered this place last night and spent an hot playing connect four, it was pretty rad!)
We are taking a sightseeing break today and both feel a little weary ourselves. Niki has been sick the past couple days(a cold that won't let up)but has been a real trooper and insisted we go out. however today we decided to do a few
errands and then just relax. One errand being I'm going to get a haircut, I'll let you know how that goes:)
I received a nice long email from my Mom today so that was nice. Sometimes home seems intangible (especially because technically we don't have one) but getting letters from family and friends brings that home feeling to a more tangible level.
Her updates about Diego were so great. To be honest, though traveling of this calibre is challenging the biggest hardship is be away from the "big guy" (Diego) for so long. Any childless couple understands that your dog becomes like your kid. I actually cope with missing him with some classic Freudian repression but when I do think about him or read about him I miss that fur ball:)
Niki and I were actually talking about how fortunate we are to have such great parents. My parents have been just amazing for taking Diego and I know he is having the time of his life! He has visited the doggy spa a few times and gets pretty pampered by them, I'm getting an insight into the type of grandparents they will be! Our kids will never want to come home! My father acts like he is indifferent to dogs but secretly he loves Diego and my Mom has said they are attached at the hip! Diego is a good dog but as dog owners know it is still work and we couldn't have done this trip without them. And knowing that he is so happy makes us feel better.
And my second wonderful set of parents have been so amazing at helping us with our travels. My mother in law has worked tirelessly to ensure our flights were set up properly and been so helpful with any booking issues that sprung up(the Instanbul nightmare!)
And my father in law has been such a big help with property issues back
home. Just been there for us at the drop of a hat. We feel like the luckiest people in the world.
Udaipur continues to be a beautiful city though I can feel that we are "citied out". We have been trekking through large cities since we stepped foot into Istanbul on October 2nd and we both admit, we could use a little Goa in our lives. Particularly in India walking is not something you do to relax but for function as the traffic is so congested not to mention loud. (more particularly in the old quarter where we are staying)When you see Indians covering their ears you know it's hardcore. Being able to just walk as a means of relaxing will be something we both revel in soon.
That being said we have been enjoying Udaipur immensely, it is without a doubt the most beautiful city we have seen in India. And anyone reading this who is thinking of working or volunteering in India it is a very livable city, much more relaxed and aesthetically pleasing than other cities we have visited. Yesterday we visited an area outside the centre and it was actually quite quiet. Also,having all the water around you adds very much to the charm and even though they are all lakes you don't feel so land locked.
We enjoyed our day yesterday, as I
mentioned we rickshawed to a residential area one of the lakes called Fateh Sagar Lake and took a boat ride to an Nehruh Island Park. The park was impeccably clean (Im afraid this is something you appreciate here after seeing how much Indians litter)
And just a gem of park. Unfortunately it was 33 degrees out and we couldn't survive the heat for to long but spent an hour on a bench enjoying the peace and of course being propositioned by a few groups of school kids who wanted photos of us. We accepted, when it's kids somehow it harder to say no and being that it wasn't an overly crowded place we knew wouldn't get swarmed:)
Headed to a nice plaza after to pick up some necessities (toothpaste etc.) and we enjoyed that, it was a mall but not touristy,a place where the average Indian (well, with a decent income) would shop. It was nice being in a regular urban neighborhood doing what regular Indian people do.Sometimes the hardest part of traveling is being stuck in the tourist centre where you feel everything is built up for tourism dollars. Even a foreigner living in Udaipur wouldn't live or frequent the centre. But as always the tourist quarters are convenient as they are always situated near high value attractions. The regular urban mall felt normal and a welcome break from the heat. I also found my hair salon there!
Furthermore, regarding high value attractions we took in the 9 day Neverati festival last night and the thoroughly enjoyed the stick dance. Can't even describe it, I'll will just let you watch the video but it is basically a dance with both women and men of all ages (though mostly younger,it is pretty high paced!)holding a stick in each hand and smacking them together and with other people. At first glance it looks like everyone is just chaotically doing their own thing but actually it is an intricately choreographed dance and is quite a sight! Honestly, it was a top sight in India! I was just mesmerized at the speed and accuracy of the sticks and the sheer size of the mob of dancers was intense! We plan on going again on the 25th where apparently they have the biggest stick dance.
Well, off to get my hair cut( it's getting a little out of control!)
Peace all:)
We are taking a sightseeing break today and both feel a little weary ourselves. Niki has been sick the past couple days(a cold that won't let up)but has been a real trooper and insisted we go out. however today we decided to do a few
errands and then just relax. One errand being I'm going to get a haircut, I'll let you know how that goes:)
I received a nice long email from my Mom today so that was nice. Sometimes home seems intangible (especially because technically we don't have one) but getting letters from family and friends brings that home feeling to a more tangible level.
Her updates about Diego were so great. To be honest, though traveling of this calibre is challenging the biggest hardship is be away from the "big guy" (Diego) for so long. Any childless couple understands that your dog becomes like your kid. I actually cope with missing him with some classic Freudian repression but when I do think about him or read about him I miss that fur ball:)
Niki and I were actually talking about how fortunate we are to have such great parents. My parents have been just amazing for taking Diego and I know he is having the time of his life! He has visited the doggy spa a few times and gets pretty pampered by them, I'm getting an insight into the type of grandparents they will be! Our kids will never want to come home! My father acts like he is indifferent to dogs but secretly he loves Diego and my Mom has said they are attached at the hip! Diego is a good dog but as dog owners know it is still work and we couldn't have done this trip without them. And knowing that he is so happy makes us feel better.
And my second wonderful set of parents have been so amazing at helping us with our travels. My mother in law has worked tirelessly to ensure our flights were set up properly and been so helpful with any booking issues that sprung up(the Instanbul nightmare!)
And my father in law has been such a big help with property issues back
home. Just been there for us at the drop of a hat. We feel like the luckiest people in the world.
Udaipur continues to be a beautiful city though I can feel that we are "citied out". We have been trekking through large cities since we stepped foot into Istanbul on October 2nd and we both admit, we could use a little Goa in our lives. Particularly in India walking is not something you do to relax but for function as the traffic is so congested not to mention loud. (more particularly in the old quarter where we are staying)When you see Indians covering their ears you know it's hardcore. Being able to just walk as a means of relaxing will be something we both revel in soon.
That being said we have been enjoying Udaipur immensely, it is without a doubt the most beautiful city we have seen in India. And anyone reading this who is thinking of working or volunteering in India it is a very livable city, much more relaxed and aesthetically pleasing than other cities we have visited. Yesterday we visited an area outside the centre and it was actually quite quiet. Also,having all the water around you adds very much to the charm and even though they are all lakes you don't feel so land locked.
We enjoyed our day yesterday, as I
mentioned we rickshawed to a residential area one of the lakes called Fateh Sagar Lake and took a boat ride to an Nehruh Island Park. The park was impeccably clean (Im afraid this is something you appreciate here after seeing how much Indians litter)
And just a gem of park. Unfortunately it was 33 degrees out and we couldn't survive the heat for to long but spent an hour on a bench enjoying the peace and of course being propositioned by a few groups of school kids who wanted photos of us. We accepted, when it's kids somehow it harder to say no and being that it wasn't an overly crowded place we knew wouldn't get swarmed:)
Headed to a nice plaza after to pick up some necessities (toothpaste etc.) and we enjoyed that, it was a mall but not touristy,a place where the average Indian (well, with a decent income) would shop. It was nice being in a regular urban neighborhood doing what regular Indian people do.Sometimes the hardest part of traveling is being stuck in the tourist centre where you feel everything is built up for tourism dollars. Even a foreigner living in Udaipur wouldn't live or frequent the centre. But as always the tourist quarters are convenient as they are always situated near high value attractions. The regular urban mall felt normal and a welcome break from the heat. I also found my hair salon there!
Furthermore, regarding high value attractions we took in the 9 day Neverati festival last night and the thoroughly enjoyed the stick dance. Can't even describe it, I'll will just let you watch the video but it is basically a dance with both women and men of all ages (though mostly younger,it is pretty high paced!)holding a stick in each hand and smacking them together and with other people. At first glance it looks like everyone is just chaotically doing their own thing but actually it is an intricately choreographed dance and is quite a sight! Honestly, it was a top sight in India! I was just mesmerized at the speed and accuracy of the sticks and the sheer size of the mob of dancers was intense! We plan on going again on the 25th where apparently they have the biggest stick dance.
Well, off to get my hair cut( it's getting a little out of control!)
Peace all:)
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