Delhi then Udaipur by train

Tori and Jaime went with Jeff and Barb to Apollo Hospital to see what premier Indian medical service looks like, then went off (rather bravely I thought) with Chris and Cole in a taxi to Connaught Place, a shopping area in the center of town built by the British – concentric circles of white buildings with columns. It is a mixture of upscale shops and local sellers on the sidewalks. We saw one woman and her Rajasthani handicrafts being taken away, presumably because she didn’t pay her baksheesh to the local mafia. After Jeff and Barb finished up our yearly physicals, we met the rest of the crew for a wonderful Indian meal at United Coffee House Restaurant. We took the modern and oh-so-clean Metro and then an auto-rickshaw to the Likir House, a Tibetan guest house with spartan but clean rooms.

The next Great Adventure was sightseeing in Delhi. We hired a driver for the day: driver Ranjit took Tori, Jaime and Barb around Delhi to see such sights as Qutub Minar, the Bahai Lotus Temple and Dilli Haat where we bought some beautiful handicrafts.

From 200901Udaipur

Meanwhile, Jeff, Chris and Cole had been at the American Embassy Club where Chris was taking a physical fitness test for his application into Marines ROTC. We met up at the Indira Gandhi house and museum – a great historical review of the political life and times of Indira and her family, as well as the country. We ended our day with a driveby of the India Gate – with preparations underway for the Republic Day parade the next day, then went to the train station to catch the Mewar overnight express to Udaipur.

We rode in 2nd class AC 2-tier open berths – two-level bunks in a compartment – only a curtain separated us from the hallway, with various vendors announcing sandwiches, chai, or tomato soup. None of us slept well, but it was an Indian adventure not to be missed. Tori and Barb watched the sun rise over the desert as the train chugged through Rajasthan in the early morning. Bleary-eyed, we were met by the hotel driver who brought us to the Rang Niwas Hotel in Udaipur, a former summer palace of a Maharajah in days gone by.

From 200901Udaipur

From 200901Udaipur