jaipur – The Kinetic Canuck

Should I go to India? (Rajasthan)

It’s difficult to imagine a country more diverse than India. With 22 official languages, 6 major religions and countless traditions and cultures, your experiences in India will depend greatly on the areas you visit. Of the places we visited, Rajasthan was the most flaunting of their customs and traditions, and no matter where you travel there, you get a taste of the individual cultures that make up this desert state.

Rajasthan is a state located in north-western India. Although it is mostly famous because of its Thar Desert, Rajasthan has much more going on than just sand. We visited 5 cities (and could have doubled that number if we’d had the time) and had some pretty awesome experiences. Here are some of the highlights of Rajesthan.

Palaces and Forts

Prior to its independence from England in 1947, India didn’t look the way it does today. Although it is now a democratic country, India used to be made up of several small city states, run by kings. As a result, there is an abundance of history in Rajasthan and if you like seeing antiques and learning about the past, the palaces and forts in Rajasthan are excellent ways to spend your afternoons.

20160202145554 — Rajasthan’s forts speak volumes about India’s past. The different colours seen here are because these two areas were built in different times and of different materials

The fees to get into some of these palaces were quite high, and from what I heard from other tourists, not always worth the money. In Udaipur, we opted to skip the palace because of the high camera fee. We were relieved to hear from a couple later on that it had been wise to skip it; there was little more than a few paintings to see. In other places, like Jodpur for example, the forts (and attached palaces), are well worth your time and money.

There are often museums in the forts. They are a great place to learn about pre-colonial culture in India

A cradle for young Jodpur princes

Ornate rooms where Kings met with royalty from other parts of the country

one of the innner rooms in the palace

Our hotel in Jodpur sat right under the fort

Built over the course of hundreds of years, you can actually see that the newer parts of the fort have been built on top of the older parts

Cannons for protecting the city

Damage to the fort from neighboring Udaipur’s army

Many of the hotels in Rajasthan are actually old palaces and government buildings from past rulers. We stayed in several of these buildings, known as Havelis, while in Rajesthan…each had beautiful architecture and interesting rooms.

The lobby in our hotel/haveli in Pushkar

Ornate walls in our Jodpur hotel

The grounds at these hotels were also beautiful

Architecture

Each city we visited in Rajasthan seemed to have a nickname. Jaipur is ‘The Pink City’. Udaipur is ‘The Lake City’, Pushkar is ‘The Pilgrimage City’, Jaisalmer ‘The Golden City’ and Jodpur ‘The Blue City’. Each of these nicknames comes from the unique architecture and geography in the area.

The Pink City, where citizens paint their homes pink to honour a special historical visit of kings

The Pilgrimage City (this is considered a holy lake)

The Golden City, where everything is made of sandstone.

A view of The Blue City from Jodpur fort. Similar to Jaipur, citizens paint their homes blue in the old part of town.

Jaisalmer impressed me the most with its beautiful sandstone carvings. Not only is the golden colour of the sandstone beautiful, but the intricate detail found all around the city is a photographer’s dream.

A stable in Jaisalmer

Similarly, Udaipur’s gorgeous hotels built along the lake are a sight to see. The white buildings reflect on the lake, giving the city a serene atmosphere.

And if the cities themselves aren’t beautiful enough for you, the temples and other landmarks in India are also sights to behold. After all, the Taj Mahal is just one of India’s famed buildings…there are many, many more!!

A garden of temples in Jodpur

A stable in Jaisalmer

A temple outside Jodpur

A restaurant in Jaisalmer: Saffon. VERY worth stopping in!

More parks

Markets

If shopping is your favourite pass-time during travel, Rajasthan is for you! Every city we visited had markets where you can check out Rajasthan’s unique textiles. And, for a state famous for its desert, you wouldn’t believe the colour you’ll see in these markets!!

What many of the stores look like once you’re inside.

Traditional Rajasthani stitching

The market in Pushkar

One of a hundred shops in Udaipur

Among the best cities for shopping were Pushkar and Udaipur. While the shopkeepers in Jodpur and Jaipur were pushy and known to chase you down the street…Pushkar and Udaipur had a much calmer feel to them. There was an abundance of art and textiles (bedding, scarves, clothing etc…) to see everywhere we visited in Rajesthan, you could only really peacefully visit shops in these two smaller cities. We bought the majority of our souvenirs in Pushkar, where the prices were fair and where I was given the chance to try things on without people grabbing my arms and trying to drag me into different stores (a frequent experience in Jodpur!)

The salesmen here were EXTREMELY pushy! Several tried grabbing us by the arms. One convinced me to ‘follow him upstairs…where he had the kind of shirts I was looking for’. He didn’t. He had button up t-shirts…They were for men…

The clock tower, where all the action is at in Jodpur proper

Of course, you do need to be careful when shopping in Rajasthan. The prices aren’t nearly as inflated as they are in the Golden Triangle, but you will still be ripped off if someone sees the opportunity. Pushkar specifically had an interesting scam that involved locals trying to push you into paying for flowers that are originally presented as being free. A rule of thumb in Pushkar…people are really nice…just DON’T BUY THE FLOWERS!!!! And, of course, be weary of anyone telling you that their products are 100% Kashmir or Pashmina…they most likely aren’t. I paid 1000 rupees for a scarf that I saw for 400 rupees only a few days later in one of the smaller cities. Be skeptical of initial prices and BARGAIN HARD! (even when they try and make you feel like you’re ripping them off…it’s part of their shtick)

jipsy work — I saw these table clothes for 500 rupees in the market. We ended up buying 3 of them from a gentleman in Jaisalmer, who was selling them for some of the women living out of the city. We paid only 100 rupees each and we knew he was STILL making good money on our purchases.

Wildlife and Landscape

Rajasthan is THE place to visit if you are interested in diverse landscapes and wildlife. From monkeys to cows, there won’t be a day you don’t see an animal while in India. And because Rajasthan covers such a large area, the landscapes change a great deal as you travel around the state.

Eastern Rajasthan

Western Rajasthan

Rural Rajasthan

The farm life within the cities is astounding. Not only cows roam the streets of Jaipur and Jaisalmer, but also goats, sheep, pigs and chickens…

Some goats being herded near Pushkar

A goat in Jaisalmer

Some cows munching on garbage in Udaipur

There are monkeys all over the place in Rajasthan! I’m always afraid of being bitten because monkeys can be so aggressive, but the zoom on my camera made it easy to get some good close ups of these cool little dudes…

Mama monkey in Jaipur

Baby monkey in Pushkar

Monkeys running along a building in Jaipur

Rural black monkeys on our way to Jaisalmer

And of course, I can’t forget about the friends we made in the desert…

The most remarkable animals we saw in Rajasthan were the famed Demoiselle Cranes we saw outside of Udaipur. These cranes are famous because they have the most difficult migration of any bird on earth. Not only do they need to fly over the Himalayan mountains to get to their breeding grounds in India…but they get attacked and eaten by Golden Eagles along the way! Don’t believe me? Watch Planet Earth! We watched the episode about Mountain Landscapes after we got home, just to see the cranes that we’d been lucky enough to see up close in Rajasthan!

These cranes nest in India by the thousands

The area where you can stop and watch the birds1

A sweet close up with my camera allowed us to see these birds up close

Some Cautionary Tales

There are far more ups than downs visiting Rajasthan. For Dave and I, the biggest downer was our driver, who was strange and actually pretty terrible at his job. Look around for drivers that have good reviews before booking because you’ll be spending 35+ hours in a car with that person…and trust me…you don’t want a guy who plays the same 5 minute Ohm on repeat the entire time! It can really ruin a trip!

Additionally…it’s a good idea to book ahead of time. While it’s often better to book tours once you’re IN a country, you will be overwhelmed with the number of tour guides trying to sell you packages once you’re in New Delhi. Many of them will lie to you to get your business (ours assured us that they were government run…they were not!) and they will all try and rip you off. Check Trip Adviser before you get tied in with anyone in India.

Also…make sure you’ll be being driven around in a decent car. This was our driver and car…the driver was ok…the car was nice. I can’t imagine how horrible it would have been to spend 35 hours in something without proper suspension!

Aside from drivers…make sure to look around before buying things so you get a feel for what prices are in markets. Don’t believe anyone who tells you their scarves are 100% anything…they are lovely, and I wouldn’t discourage you from buying 1 (or 3…), but I would caution you to limit how much you spend. Most of the time, the Kashmir or Pashmina scarf they’re selling you is mostly silk or even polyester.

20160131180634 — And, of course, I highly recommend that you make purchases at places like Belissima…shops that specialize in art and textiles being made by people in need…This particular shop helps women who have been widowed or who were never married. (it’s located in Jaisalmer fort…there are signs everywhere so it shouldn’t take long to find!!)

So there you have it…Rajasthan is chalk full of things for every type of tourist. From gorgeous landscapes to intricate architecture, you’ll find something interesting at every stop you make. If I could do things differently, I would have taken 3 of the days we had in New Delhi and added them to our time in Rajasthan so we could have seen Bikaner or Rathambore. Perhaps some day I’ll get the chance…

Should I go to India? The Golden Triangle

It’s been over a month now, since Dave and I returned from our 29 days in India. I’ve written 12 blog posts about our trip and have spent countless hours going through photos and videos. I filled a journal with anecdotes and airplane tickets and have reminisced a great deal about our time in that crazy country. So now, before my memory gets too fuzzy on the details, is the perfect time to dole out some advice for my fellow travelers. Is India worth the trip? Let’s take a look at the facts (according to my own experiences anyway!)
Golden Triangle Tours

The Golden Triangle is THE tourist circuit in India. Tours typically begin in New Delhi, then head to Agra and finish in Jaipur. These 3 stops can be done in a short amount of time (3 days is easily doable), making them popular for foreigners who don’t have a long stay in India. And, because the Golden Triangle covers so many of India’s ‘must-sees’ (The Taj Mahal, The Pink City, etc…), you will not have difficulty finding tour operators or drivers for a trip around India’s most popular tourist circuit.

Let’s break it down…
The Good

Beginning in New Delhi, you will experience the country’s capital, for better or for worse. There is a great deal of history there, which is great if you’re interested in India’s past (both modern and ancient).

India has an incredibly multicultural history. Between it’s time under Hindu, Muslim and Brittish rule, the diversity in Delhi’s historic sights is well worth mentioning

There is also plenty to see in terms of more modern events. Visiting Gandhi’s memorial was an educational stop

Visiting the National Museum gave me a real view into just how old Indian society really is.

In addition to the historical sights in Delhi, the Zoo was surprisingly impressive. The animals seemed to be well cared-for and the park where the Zoo is located is a nice escape from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Agra has a great deal to offer tourists as well. The Taj Mahal and Agra Fort alone are enough reason to make the 4 hour drive from New Delhi. Best of all, if you leave New Delhi early enough and are okay with a long day, you can see Agra’s most famous sights and then head onto Jaipur for dinner.

The Taj Mahal is a wonder to behold

Agra Fort

Jaipur is the final stop in the Golden Triangle, and it’s a nice little introduction to the state of Rajasthan. Dubbed ‘The Pink City’, Jaipur is full of markets, historical sites and, of course, several forts. It’s a lovely place to spend a day or two, especially if you’re tight on time and want to see Rajesthan, but can’t make it to one of the other cities I’ll be writing about later on this list.

The Pink City, where citizens paint their homes pink to honour a special historical visit of kings

selling peas in the market

Tiger Fort

New Delhi, Agra and Jaipur can surely offer you some insight into the rest of the country and are a great place to start if you have limited time to spend in India. I can see what attracts people to these 3 places, but if I’m going to be honest, there were a lot more drawbacks than selling-points for me during my time in the Golden Triangle…

The Bad

I’ll begin with the most trivial problem on my list, though it IS the most relevant for the average traveler. If you are traveling to New Delhi, prepare yourself for scammers! There are an unbelievable number of people out on the streets at any given time trying to get into your pockets and take you for as much as they can. Some of my favourites:

Taxi drivers who tell you that your hotel is closed/full/doesn’t exist, who offer to take you to a hotel that their cousin/brother/friend owns. The hotel they bring you to is invariably be cheap and dirty but the prices for the room will be jacked up, because the taxi driver is making commission. You will face this type of scam right at the airport, so beware!
Travel agents who claim to be ‘government owned’. They might give you a tour, but I estimate we paid about 30%-40% more than we should have when we signed up for our tour. That’s nothing compared to what some people face…
Tuk Tuk drivers who charge 5, 10 or 50X the price they should for taking you places.
Tuk Tuk drivers who say they’ve met you…and then try to make you feel bad for not remembering them. These guys will guilt you into letting them take you to an ’emporium’, where everything is massively over priced and where they are given a commission.
Counterfeit everything! Don’t buy scarves, or anything for that matter, from any emporium. Once you get out of Delhi, the ‘hand painted post cards’ that the nice painter made in the Emporium go from 350 rupees to 35 rupees…you also discover pretty quickly that they aren’t hand painted…Silk is another big one…most people can’t tell the difference between Cashmere, silk and polyester, so do yourself a favour and skip buying any expensive scarves.
You will be told all sorts of things about how you can tell that a person’s scarves are ‘the real deal’….the one I fell for was the ‘burning hair’ routine. They will tell you that burning cashmere smells like burning hair…it does…but so does any silk (low-grade or high-grade), which is a MUCH cheaper material

These are just some of the scams Dave and I experienced (and in most cases…evaded) while in Delhi. It’s honestly an exhausting experience being in Delhi, because you feel as though you can’t ever trust anyone; a feeling I really dislike. Furthermore, Delhi isn’t the only place where you’ll experience these scams. India’s tourism industry is filled with dishonesty, and you’ll deal with this in all of the big tourist destinations (Delhi, Agra, Mumbai and Varanasi are the worst)

This is the tour company that scammed us. It’s located right ouside of Connought Place, and they overcharged us by an indecent amount.

We were lucky because at least they prepared a decent tour. Many tour operators will take your money and leave you in unsafe buildings with bedbugs…

The next problem on my list: the pollution!! New Delhi holds the record for being the most polluted city in the world. While everyone talks about Beijing’s pollution problems, China’s capital got to about 500 points on the Air Quality Index this winter (making big news!), whereas in New Delhi, this has been happening for years. They had to actually expand their AQI scale because the city was so often blowing past the highest number ON the scale! New Delhi’s pollution is estimated to cause 1.5 million deaths every year and is causing massive issues for the country’s healthcare system.

From a tourist’s perspective, the pollution is little more than an inconvenience. Staying in New Delhi for a few days isn’t going to kill you, but it WILL make you appreciate the clean air back home!

Sight seeing our first few days in India

Fog is also a problem in New Delhi and it feels like condensation sticks to the pollution, making it very difficult to breath

In addition to the air pollution, New Delhi is also very dirty. You’re told by everyone who’s ever been to India to expect it…but there’s really no way to prepare for some of the things you see. The garbage bins that exist hardly seem to be in use, and people mostly just throw their trash onto the ground. Later on, a cow or dog will come along and eat anything edible…everything else gets burned at the end of the day. Sadly, from what I saw, burning garbage isn’t solely done to eliminate trash…it’s also done for warmth…

10-DELHI-386 — Not taken by me….but we saw things like this often. There are countless stray dogs roaming the streets of New Delhi, and they rely on garbage for survival.

To say that Delhi is poor is a gross understatement. More than 50% of the population lives in the slums. For those of you who have had the fortune of being born in a 1st world country, where slums of this degree don’t exist, I will paint a picture…

APTOPIX India Daily Life — An Indian man sleeps on the roof of his house at a shanty area in New Delhi, India, Monday, April 20, 2015. . (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Slums are basically groups of makeshift houses, built in areas that can’t technically hold buildings (near rivers that are prone to flooding, for example). The poorest of the poor live here, where there is often no electricity or running wate, and therefore, no toilets. People mostly defecate in the streets, creating sanitary issues. Without clean water, children and adults both die of parasites and something as common as a bad case of diarrhea is a death sentence for many of these people.

poverty5 — Once more, I cannot make claim to this picture, but Dave and I did see countless naked children running around the streets of New Delhi. His belly is most definitely not large because he’s full…parasites are a big problem in India.

It sickens me to say that you can actually pay people to go on tours of these slums, in both Delhi and Mumbai. The idea of gawking at the poor, who already live with so little dignity, bothers me a lot. There are many organizations out there that are trying to help these people, but it’s too big of a problem to be going away any time soon…

80730059 — People filling jugs with clean water brought to them by a relief group. This clean water is vital for their survival

So…if I’m going to sum it up…I wouldn’t visit the Golden Triangle again. The Taj Mahal was VERY cool and I highly recommend a visit, but if I were planning our trip again, I would be spending as little time in New Delhi as possible. There are plenty of other places in India that ARE worth a visit, and next I’ll be outlining the pros and cons of travel in Rajasthan. Thanks for checking in!

Pilgrimage to Pushkar

Oh Rajesthan: The contrast continues!

I am writing this post from the lobby of our hotel because the internet doesn’t work in our room (it also barely works here…I’ve resorted to typing this up in Wordpad and I plan to copy and paste it later). The internet on our phones has been working beautifully, but I’m nearly out of data now so Wifi is becoming increasingly important. It doesn’t seem that the hotels in India care to spend more than they have to on their guests, so the toilet paper provided is minimal, the internet is sketchy if it exists at all and the facilities in the rooms are minimal at best. For anyone who isn’t well traveled, I can’t imagine India being a very enjoyable place. For those of us who have stayed in the cockroach infested hostels of southern China though, it’s been bareable enough. I’m happy to have read many blogs ahead of time and I came prepared with my hair dryer and we’ve been buying toilet paper in town when we start to run low.

This is our 3rd stop in this desert province, and we are so far impressed by both its beauty and also by the unique characteristics that define each city. Jaipur, the pink city, was buzzing with bazaars that are a clausterphobic’s nightmare. Udaipur’s peaceful lake gives the city a much calmer feel, but as soon as you enter the street, you are once more overwhelmed by the shopkeepers and rickshaw drivers. Pushkar, our current destination, is different yet. It’s a sleepy town (as far as India’s concerned) and the fact that it is a pilgrimage destination gives both its cuisine and its tourists some different traits.

20160128144012 — On the surface, all Bazaars may look the same, but this was one of the most enjoyable I’ve seen. It was much more relaxed with a lot less traffic than others we’ve seen in India

Pushkar is one of 5 important pilgrimage sights in India (we’ll be visiting a second, Varinasi, later in our trip). People travel here to see the holy lake where Brahma, a Hindu god, was said to drop a lotus flower (India’s national flower). Some of Ghandi’s ashes were also scattered in this lake, so it is definitely an interesting little stop

People are far less pushy in Pushkar and many of the prices in the bazaar are fixed. Even when prices aren’t stated right upfront, the barganing is way less brutal, so we did some clothes shopping while we were there. Without rickshaws everywhere, it was a lot less stressfull here than it had been in Udaipur. I don’t think we’d have wanted to do more than 1 day in Pushkar, but overall, the time we spent there was very much enjoyed.

There are 2 Falafel places on the main road….excellent value for excellent food!

The owners were super nice guys too!

One aspect of Pushar though, was not quite to our taste, so to speak. Because it is such a holy place, meat is non-existant there, and it was even impossible to get eggs. This wasn’t too big of a deal for me, because my stomach took a turn for the worse in Udaipur and I was mostly just nibbling on french fries, but Dave wasn’t too pleased! As I write this now, we are in Jaisalmer, and I have to admit that after nearly a week of strict vegetarian diet, Dave and I were very excited to order meat for dinner tonight!!

We did make some animal friends though, so that made up for the lacking diet…

Some puppies that very badly wanted to come say hello to us, but were too scared

A cat we met at a cafe who was not the least bit afraid of us

He loved using my lense cap as a toy, which made for some cute shots 🙂

My absolute favorite part of Pushkar though was neither the markets nor the lake. Our hotel had a very special tenant that made my stay in this small city…

20160128122420 — A Great Dane with floppy ears and a sweet disposition

We called him Frankie because we didn’t know his actual name (or if he even had one…) and not only was he friendly and incredibly sweet, but he was also an excellent judge of character! While he adored us, leaning up against me and always asking for more scratches… he HATED our driver, Prama. We don’t like him either, and I think Frankie could sense that because as soon as Prama came near us, this loveable dog would start barking at him until he left. This dog stole my heart…

mmexport1453955682263 — The best part was that Prama was terrified of this goofball!!! Gawd I love Danes!!!!!

Tomorrow we head out on our desert safari! I’m very much looking forward to writing about it! Until then, I’ll leave you with some pictures of the beautiful Rajesthani countryside.

Cows, Cows, EVERYWHERE!!!

Rural Rajasthan

20160127182415 — We have seen SO MANY monkeys! These are Black Monkeys: just 1 of 15 species of monkey found in India

Our driver made himself useful today and took us to a migration sight for Demoiselle Cranes. They spend 5 months away from their home, in Russia, and they’ve chosen this spot in Rhajesthan because Jaine Monks were feeding them regularly. Today we saw about 1000 of these birds.

Internet permitting, I’ll be back upon our return from a night out in the desert!!!

The Problem with People

The world is a funny place. All I have wanted to do, for as long as I can remember, is to travel. And I have. In the 29 years I’ve lived so far, I’ve seen 6 Canadian provinces, 5 US states and 9 Chinese Provinces (plus Hong Kong and Macao, which don’t actually count as Chinese provinces but sort of are…). I’ve also visited Cuba, Thailand, Cambodia and now India and I’ve gotta say…everywhere I go, people are pretty much the same.

We all basically have the same needs, no matter what our religion, ideology or race may be. We all want to feel safe and to have a place that we can call a home. We all suffer defeats and achieve our goals and feel defiance and pride and a great deal of other emotions. We all have families and loved ones and we all want what’s best for them. Everyone you meet is looking for the same basic things you are…but it’s hard to remember that when you are in the face of a strange culture where you are ‘the other’.

20160124125948 — A store selling Indian rugs. None of them can fly…

I made a new friend in Suzhou recently. He found a good job as a chemist in China and is currently dealing with Culture Shock. When he was at our place a few weekends ago with his girlfriend, he mentioned that nobody ever writes about that stuff in blogs. Everyone writes about how lovely travel is; how rewarding it is to learn about other cultures. I laughed and said that although some of my posts can be downers, most of the time, i try to put a positive spin on my experiences. Mostly I do this because I find it helpful to look for a positive when I’m in a negative situation. But if I’m being perfectly honest with myself, part of me really wants to hang onto that idea that travel is all lollipops and rainbows…

20160124175834 — Nobody talks about the line ups you wait in so that you can go see an overpriced attraction. And nobody wants to talk about the traveller’s diareha! It’s real and it’s awful!!!

So let’s be honest for a moment…

Today was one of those rotten travel days. We’re beginning to realize how much we overpaid for our tour and we’re both getting tired of being treated like walking piggy banks. We had a group of children follow us through the bazaar today, trying to sell us something (we aren’t sure what) and we’ve had countless people grab our arms and try to bring us into their stores to sell us their goods for 10x the price they’d charge a local. It’s exhausting knowing that you can’t really trust anyone when you are travelling….being a tourist can really jade you in that way…

20160124193312 — Can you spot the difference? This isn’t actually very surprising or unfair. We don’t pay taxes to keep up these beautiful places so it’s only fair that we pay more than the locals. What’s unfair is that we had been told by our tour operator that all the sights we’d be seeing were free. This one was the cheapest one we could find today…

Of course, we do have some coping mechanisms. Sometimes it’s an inappropriate joke (every tourist makes them). I recognize that it can be culturally inappropriateive or offensive to laugh at Chinese medicine or to make a joke about Ganesh and his giant elephant head, but it’s sort of like laughing at a funeral…sometimes an inappropriate joke is the only thing you can do to relieve the tension that has built up with every encounter you’ve had throughout the day.

Because really, at the end of the day….people suck! We are a sefish group, we really are! We are destroying the earth because we are too lazy to recycle plastic bags or to walk to the store. We allow corporations to treat their employees like garbage because it saves us money on our groceries. We use animals for entertainment when we go to Swim With the Dolphin programs or when we go on an elephant ride.

20160124181638 — Disclaimer: This animal was tortured for months so that you can ride on its back!!

And for some reason…we (and I’m referring to all of human kind) think that people from other countries are somehow ‘less’ than we are. Canadians have the resources and space and jobs (yes jobs!) to take in refugees but many are against it, because they think Canadian lives somehow matter more. Somehow we have to fix ALL our problems before we can hep anyone else…why should we all have to be living at 100% happiness before starving children and families fleeing war can be helped? How are they less important??

It’s the same on this side of the planet. I’ve been taken advantage of in nearly every country I’ve visited because of my white skin and my accent. Somehow, because I’m Canadian, it’s ok to take advantage of me because I have ‘so much money’ and I can always make more. I came here with a budget that I need to stick with….so all our tour guide did by charging us 30% more than he needed to, was to take away from what we would have spent on the second half of our trip.

20160124182251 — This also means that we have less money to tip musicians and artists who are trying to make a living without begging. These are people I like to support.

And yes, these are trivial problems. I’m sure some of you at home are rolling your eyes and hating me for ranting about my ‘first world problems’…but there are bigger issues too…

I did a lot of research before coming to India because I knew it would be very easy to get sick here Disentary is something many travelers suffer from while in India and I did not want to be one of those unlucky travelers. Basically, the water in India is very contaminated and dirty. So dirty, in fact, that you are told to brush your teeth with mineral water and not tap water.

This means that all raw fruits and vegetables are off limits to us…because if they were washed with tap water (and they probably were), we will get sick. And I’m not talking about a tummy ache….many people need to be hospitalized and are on medications for months if they catch something from the water here. It’s no laughing matter.

20160121182849 — We are also on a vegetarian diet while we’re here, because meat is often unsafe. We’re only ordering it in top notch restaurants, and even then, I find myself sticking with Dhal (lentils and chickpeas)

So when I learned that you are suppose to crush your empty water bottle when it’s finished, so that scam artists can’t refill it with TAP WATER and resell it in the market place, I wanted to scream. These aren’t just people who are trying to make an extra buck off of me…I can understand why those people resent me. I am no better than them…i was just lucky enough to have been born in Canada. I can forgive them for taking as much as they can… After all, many of them are supporting extended families as well as their own children.

But there are actually people here who are knowingly getting people sick to make a few extra rupees…. That’s a completely new level of behavior. That goes so far beyond ‘doing what you have to go get by’.

So that’s how it is. That’s what it can be like to travel in foreign countries. Tourists aren’t protected by the same laws we have in Canada here, because let’s face it….their government has bigger fish to fry. The number of homeless people in India is astounding and my tourism dollars can go a very long way to help those people…I just wish so much of that money wasn’t in our tour operator’s pocket…

20160121200040 — The number of stray dogs is astounding…you see them curled up in the boulevard between lanes, trying to sleep like this

But I will leave you on a happy note..

We had a lovely walk today through Old Jaipur. We set out early and were walking through as everyone was just getting set up for the day. The crowds weren’t out yet, and we were able to walk along slowly, taking in the Pink City. And the most wonderful thing, was all the smiling. We had several people give us the warmest, most genuinely beautiful smiles. They couldn’t communicate with us verbally (now that we’re out of the capital, fewer people speak English), but they spoke in a way that they could. Indian people, as a whole, are so wonderfully inviting. It’s a shame that the bad apples all flock to the tourist industry, where they tarnish the name of a country that is otherwise, welcoming and vibrant.