Dear Friends and Family,

We took the 06:00 train to Jodhpur. Pink Jaipur receded from us in the pale morning light. We had a compartment this time with four beds and a grey dawn outside of our window. Train trips like this live in my head where those special peaceful memories exist.

We took a tuk tuk to our lodging, a haveli. This was a wonderful place. Old town mansion, multi-level with courtyard gardens smelling of jasmine tea. We found our rooms (with stain glass windows!) and dropped our bags off inside. The next stop was the Mehrangarh Fort. This was privately owned by the Maharaja’s family still, rather than state owned, and as such, the tour guide really was quite excellent! We wandered through the beautifully kept fort listening to our audio guides. Look up the story about the “Maharaja’s grandmother visit to London in 1925 and the ankle” to get the idea of Purdah, by the bye. From here, we walked to the Taj Mahal of Jodhpur, before wandering the streets of Jodhpur through the blue alleyways. Dinner was on the rooftop close to our place, with the fort lit up behind us, a very epic scene I thought. I would also like to say at this point that the mosques of Jodhpur had been calling out adhan all day, and to me, it was truly spiritual. I loved this sound.

The next day, we took the midday train to Bikaner. Second class, but still incredibly nice to sit with knees drawn up, beside the window and see the deserts of Rajasthan pass you by. We took a tuk tuk to our homestay when we arrived in Bikaner, and the wife brought us inside with food and drink. The hospitality of our hosts during this trip so far has been incredible. The exploration of the city in the evening revealed crowded streets and temples being decorated for Holi.

Bikaner really is in the middle of the desert, and as such, we could go on a little wildlife safari into the desert, offered by our host at the homestay who has a PhD in the ecology of this area. Therefore, after a tour of the city in the morning to the havelis and temples, we did exactly that. We drove into the desert and saw desert foxes, vultures and eagles swirling in the sky, and lizards bathing in the sun. It was a wonderful experience! Our host provided us with some top quotes too: ‘To drive in India, you need three things. A good horn, good brakes and good luck’ and ‘In India, everywhere you go, you will see tuk tuks, dogs and cows.’ Indeed, we came across all three in the desert. We took the night train to New Delhi that evening.

Ever seen Batman: The Animated Series? Or Blade Runner, LA 2019? The rising sun in New Delhi reminded me of these crimson skies as we exited the sleeper train and headed into New Delhi at 06:00. Broken buildings like rotten coral on the horizon. We dropped our bags off with our 86-year-old host (who reported that his astrology signs were saying he would live for many more years yet) and then set about exploring the city. We went to the Red Fort (but not inside, we had had enough of forts), before walking to the other end of this long street, to the mosque. I had not realised Islam was such a large thing in India. We visited the old spice market, but then subsequently got crushed by the amount of people and it was quite overwhelming, trying to escape this place. Finally, we visited the art museum where I discovered my new absolutely favourite artist, Prof. Bireswar Sen. But by this point, I was exhausted, mentally and physically.

The next day was Holi. We were told to avoid most things, and that most everything would be closed. We went to Humyan’s Tomb anyway, which was a total movie setting. Gorgeous. Finding lunch was a challenge, and we had to accept some paint on ourselves from Holi celebrations before we found somewhere. The rest of the day was spent cleaning ourselves and packing for our flights the next day. We went to a Himalayan restaurant for our final dinner and drink which was lovely to do it with such wonderful friends. Our flights were the next morning. We would be back at the grind before long.

Love,

Al