Well, I promised a lot of pictures the last time I blogged. After taking a two week break from teaching classes in Danta, celebrating Diwali in Mumbai, sightseeing in New Delhi, and finding my own way around Jaipur, I certainly have a few pictures to show you all.
It all started with Peter and I being late to catch our train from Kapasan to Jaipur; luckily I've always wanted to run and jump on a moving train as it pulled away from the station, albeit not with 30 pounds of baggage. As they say- beggars can't be choosers.
We made it on to the last train car. It was reserved for ladies, but they were kind enough to let us hang out until we reached the next station.
Hey, at least we didn't have to sit on top of the train. It could have been worse.
It also gave us a chance to channel our inner-canines.
We made it safely to Jaipur to meet up with Kash and figure out our plans for Diwali, and boy did it feel great to be on vacation at long last. Being almost exactly halfway through our journey, Peter and I had been looking forward to the holiday as a milestone in our travels, a chance to relax and prepare ourselves for the final stretch. And relax we most certainly did.
The Ranka home in Jaipur. What a change in setting.
Breakfast in bed, a driver at our beck and call, and not the slightest of schedules to follow day after day? Don't mind if I do.
As Diwali approached, we decided to tag along with Kash to Mumbai to spend the holiday with his family. At $50 a plane ticket, it was hard to pass up the chance to spend one of Asia's biggest celebrations in one of Asia's biggest cities. Boy, did we make the right decision.
First of all, apparently in India it is possible to purchase pyrotechnics that require a license to handle in America, and at a fraction of the price. Everyone in the city was lighting off fireworks, and I mean EVERYONE. From seeing elderly grandfathers light the fuses of rockets and shuffle away to seeing five year-old children throwing fire crackers at each other in what appeared to be jest, I've never felt so worried about personal safety that much in my life. I felt like my mother. As I got more and more used to the explosions though, I felt more and more like a kid and we convinced Kash to take us to a fireworks stand so we could start the celebration early.
This guy sells sandwiches for 50 weeks a year, but who likes Clark Kent anyways?
He reminded me of the Native American guy who sells fireworks in Joe Dirt, but he had more to offer than snakes and sparklers.
Fifteen minutes and a couple thousand rupees later (no more than $20), we had enough fireworks to last us the week as we excitedly ran back to Kash's house to check out our loot. We even got a box of rockets called Mr. White, which seemed way too fitting to pass up. Interesting choice of branding artwork, I'm still not sure who this Mr. White is supposed to be.
I'm not sure if little white girls are the target market, but I guess it worked for us.
Hmm... a weird Southeast Asian, hipster, astronaut. Cool shades though.
We weren't sure what size to get, so we got two of each. They all went "boom".
Besides the raining sparks and explosions, Diwali is a festival full of traditions and ceremonies. Hindu families in India hold what are called pujas, or prayer rituals, to honor one or more gods or goddesses depending on the occasion. We were invited to join Kash's family in this spiritual tradition, and for the special occasion we got ourselves kurtas, or traditional Asian blouses.
Oh, does it look comfortable? Cuz it freakin' is. I think I caught Peter off guard with this photo.
This is the puja we attended. Although I don't know Hindi, it was an amazing experience and I am extremely grateful that the Rankas invited us to take part in it.
As Kash headed north to Jaipur to continue with business, Pete and I decided to fly up to New Delhi to do a little touristy sightseeing by ourselves. At first we were nervous to leave Kash's side for the first time. Who would show us around? Who would be our translator? Who would make sure we weren't getting ripped off? But Kash had done a great job in preparing us to fend for ourselves, and who likes knowing how everything is supposed to work all the time anyways? It was time for a little adventure.
The first full day we were there, we jumped on a tour bus full of Indian families and headed towards Agra, the city of Agra Fort and the Taj Mahal. It was a long, hot, bumpy bus ride but worth it in the end. I've never seen a single structure so mighty and magnificent.
The Agra Fort from the outside. Can you imagine trying to scale these walls in full war regalia?
The fort from the inside. Being a prime example of Mughal architecture, the lines, arches, and curves were much different than the other forts we have visited throughout India.
For a moment it was easy to imagine ourselves somewhere in the heart of an ancient Persian city surrounded by Muslim motifs and Arabic writing.
After leaving the fort, we traveled along the Yamuna River towards the monstrous marble mausoleum that took 20 years to build in the mid-17th century. Designed by Lahauri, the Taj Mahal was built for Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal. I've seen a hundred pictures of the thing but none of them did it justice.
While we generally try to avoid tourists, especially the obnoxious European and Western ones who feel the need to dress themselves in traditional Indian garb, for once we felt right at home among the thousands of people who traveled across the world to see India's biggest tourist attraction.
This would be a great shot if someone's head wasn't covering half of the main dome. Dang it, BJ.
So. Much. Marble. And all intricately hand carved and inlaid.
At first I thought this beautiful Arabic script was painted on, which would be impressive enough. But as I walked up and touched it, I realized that it is all made of inlaid black marble. WOW!
Even in the hazy pollution that blankets most of India, the views as the sun began to set were breathtaking.
Finally, after a 20 hour day shoulder to shoulder with sweaty people, we made it back to Delhi and fell fast asleep, missing our 6am ride back to Jaipur the next morning in order to get some well needed rest. It was good though, because it gave us a chance to walk around the city a little bit more and it gave me the opportunity to find some street art which I have been actively searching for our whole trip.
A few classic tags. I can't wait to come back to India and fill the streets with my own mark.
I'm not sure what this graffiti is, but for some reason I really like it.
With a few days left before we had to return to classes, vegetarian food, and our same old schedules, we joined a small tour bus headed to Jaipur where we figured we could get off at any point in town we recognized and make our way back to Kash's house. Although a bit of a sketchy idea (not really knowing the city that well), we ended up making it home safe with a few stories to laugh about later.
And now, Wednesday night, we are back at our school planning lessons and sharing our stories with the students. I was afraid that the break would fly by and it would feel like we never left Danta, but each and every day held a new and exciting experience that ended up making this Diwali a perfect mixture of relaxation, travel, tradition, and of course, fireworks. Until I write again.
BJ