Haven't posted for a couple days mostly because we have been trying to nail down tirelessly our travel plans in the evenings as the days of "standby" tickets are long gone and hotels here get pretty full. My mother in law has been an incredible help with the flights so that has taken the pressure off us a lot!
Yesterday was very nice, we enjoyed a stroll through the Amber Fort, a 16th century Mughal fort that you could literally get lost in. It was virtually packed with secret passages that connected to forts kilometers away and on the charming side had an infamous hall of mirrors.
We also took an elephant safari around the forested area on the outskirts of Jaipur known as elephant village. Our elephant friend "mohti" was adorable, all 3000 kg of her! It was sweet to spend time with her, such a massive animal with such a gentle temperament. It is interesting, we were told elephants take great care in watching their steps and it is thought by many it is due to their big feet and the damage they can do. Whether you believe it or not we did watch and Mohti was quite careful and would disobey of she didn't like a path or it had to much brush,rodents or
rubbish on the path.
I believe that she followed the Spiderman philosophy, "with great power comes great responsibility"
She was cute and majestic and I have a feeling we will encounter some other elephants just like her on our trip.
Poor Niki has been feeling sick so today was a recoup/trip planning day. We finished all our hotel bookings and visited a store Niki has been excited about here in Jaipur called Anochi famous for its organic fabric clothing that is hand made from all over India. It was nice and relaxing, a little higher end than the junky tourist markets but better quality and a company with a conscience.
We have been in India 10 days and I find every night I am feeling the imprint of it into my psyche. Being that we are not on a tour, just traveling independently we
have been taking tuk 's everywhere as a more affordable form of transportation rather than taxis. This has allowed us to see India in a way that I never thought we would see it, definitely much more up close and personal. I prefer this as it is more authentic but the reality here for many people is never off my mind.
Sometimes I am just in shock that as a planet that refers to itself as a modern civilization there are people that still live in such appalling conditions.
Even more, I am having a difficult
time with the juxtaposition of walking out of a clothing store/ cafe where we have made purchases, filled our bellies and used nice western toilets to hopping on a rickshaw to head back to our hotel and seeing people disfigured begging, people urinating and even defecating on the street.
It's hard to reconcile in your head and I tend to feel "privilege guilt".
Over half of this country does not have proper sewer, the train tracks are often referred to here by Indian
social activists as the " largest toilets in the world" as it is a popular place to do your business.
It is a country of contrasts. Mobile telecommunications have become widely available here as they are affordable so most Indians will have a cell phone( often a nice one) and not have a toilet!? ( this goes for most electronics)
I have been reading some Indian political literature(not written by politicians!) to help make sense
of what I see every day here. And many of the great minds here agree that it is a weak and corrupt government that is central to the problem.
Put best the private sector
is strong while public sector is weak.
This is why you can leave a beautiful theatre in India with service and decor meant for a Maharaja to crumbling streets of filth and poverty.
The next theme I have found many social scientists agreeable on is "value limbo"
If someone asked me what Canadian general values are I may say responsible government, freedom, equality etc. Many think tanks here argue that due to India being a new country(1949) it has not "found Its groove"
Indian social scientists purport that when the British were here they imposed values on India but when they
left the Indian identity and value system was a clean canvass that never had a proper painting.(or messy depending on how you look at it)
Indian social scientists agree that in the private sphere there are values such as family, religion etc but in
the public sphere there is just confusion and people with no faith in
their government.
I have spent the last few days reading both books( we visited an Indian bookstore) and online. And it truly has helped me process what I see.
This is a country with much beauty and awe but to ignore the darker sides
would not really be seeing the country.
And quite frankly, any visitor who could ignore the darker sides would concern me.
We set off on this trip to see, listen,learn and maybe if we were fortunate enough,get closer to understanding the essence of life.
I can say with confidence I am
experiencing all of the above.
On a lighter note, we're off to Pushkar tomorrow and totally excited! We are lucky and arriving during the Annual Camel exposition where people come all over India to bid on camels. If the bargaining goes well we may have to scrap the train and take our new
camel around the country!
Off to pamper Niki back to health! I feel bad for her as traveling is tough when your sick. Hoping some pampering and early to bed will help.
Peace:)
Yesterday was very nice, we enjoyed a stroll through the Amber Fort, a 16th century Mughal fort that you could literally get lost in. It was virtually packed with secret passages that connected to forts kilometers away and on the charming side had an infamous hall of mirrors.
We also took an elephant safari around the forested area on the outskirts of Jaipur known as elephant village. Our elephant friend "mohti" was adorable, all 3000 kg of her! It was sweet to spend time with her, such a massive animal with such a gentle temperament. It is interesting, we were told elephants take great care in watching their steps and it is thought by many it is due to their big feet and the damage they can do. Whether you believe it or not we did watch and Mohti was quite careful and would disobey of she didn't like a path or it had to much brush,rodents or
rubbish on the path.
I believe that she followed the Spiderman philosophy, "with great power comes great responsibility"
She was cute and majestic and I have a feeling we will encounter some other elephants just like her on our trip.
Poor Niki has been feeling sick so today was a recoup/trip planning day. We finished all our hotel bookings and visited a store Niki has been excited about here in Jaipur called Anochi famous for its organic fabric clothing that is hand made from all over India. It was nice and relaxing, a little higher end than the junky tourist markets but better quality and a company with a conscience.
We have been in India 10 days and I find every night I am feeling the imprint of it into my psyche. Being that we are not on a tour, just traveling independently we
have been taking tuk 's everywhere as a more affordable form of transportation rather than taxis. This has allowed us to see India in a way that I never thought we would see it, definitely much more up close and personal. I prefer this as it is more authentic but the reality here for many people is never off my mind.
Sometimes I am just in shock that as a planet that refers to itself as a modern civilization there are people that still live in such appalling conditions.
Even more, I am having a difficult
time with the juxtaposition of walking out of a clothing store/ cafe where we have made purchases, filled our bellies and used nice western toilets to hopping on a rickshaw to head back to our hotel and seeing people disfigured begging, people urinating and even defecating on the street.
It's hard to reconcile in your head and I tend to feel "privilege guilt".
Over half of this country does not have proper sewer, the train tracks are often referred to here by Indian
social activists as the " largest toilets in the world" as it is a popular place to do your business.
It is a country of contrasts. Mobile telecommunications have become widely available here as they are affordable so most Indians will have a cell phone( often a nice one) and not have a toilet!? ( this goes for most electronics)
I have been reading some Indian political literature(not written by politicians!) to help make sense
of what I see every day here. And many of the great minds here agree that it is a weak and corrupt government that is central to the problem.
Put best the private sector
is strong while public sector is weak.
This is why you can leave a beautiful theatre in India with service and decor meant for a Maharaja to crumbling streets of filth and poverty.
The next theme I have found many social scientists agreeable on is "value limbo"
If someone asked me what Canadian general values are I may say responsible government, freedom, equality etc. Many think tanks here argue that due to India being a new country(1949) it has not "found Its groove"
Indian social scientists purport that when the British were here they imposed values on India but when they
left the Indian identity and value system was a clean canvass that never had a proper painting.(or messy depending on how you look at it)
Indian social scientists agree that in the private sphere there are values such as family, religion etc but in
the public sphere there is just confusion and people with no faith in
their government.
I have spent the last few days reading both books( we visited an Indian bookstore) and online. And it truly has helped me process what I see.
This is a country with much beauty and awe but to ignore the darker sides
would not really be seeing the country.
And quite frankly, any visitor who could ignore the darker sides would concern me.
We set off on this trip to see, listen,learn and maybe if we were fortunate enough,get closer to understanding the essence of life.
I can say with confidence I am
experiencing all of the above.
On a lighter note, we're off to Pushkar tomorrow and totally excited! We are lucky and arriving during the Annual Camel exposition where people come all over India to bid on camels. If the bargaining goes well we may have to scrap the train and take our new
camel around the country!
Off to pamper Niki back to health! I feel bad for her as traveling is tough when your sick. Hoping some pampering and early to bed will help.
Peace:)
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