this post will be filled with much more happiness and enjoyment.
My first time in India was really great. Deepali and I walked through 15th and 16th century forts, explored beautiful palaces beyond imagination, and stayed in some of the most gorgeous hotels India has to offer. We ate really awesome food and I never got sick (knock on wood). One of my favorite meals was probably Paneer Tikka and Garlic Naan at a small unassuming road side dhaba between Jaipur and Jodhpur.
One of my favorite nights, and probably Deepali’s too, was the night we stayed at an old hunting lodge in a small town called Nawli near Ranakpur between the cities of Jodhpur and Udaipur. The grounds of the hotel were really beautiful and it was also very peaceful there which was a great reprieve from the city noise and constant cars honking in Jaipur and Jodhpur. We had this beautiful thali dinner that night at an old stepwell in the town which was illuminated by thousands of candles; really really unique and memorable night.
Also I’ve come to notice many things in India I never knew about until I finally arrived here. First off, the traffic is like nothing I could ever explain. Dogs, cars, cows, auto rickshaws, motorbikes, trucks, pedestrians, all walking and maneuvering the streets in a cacophony of Hindi, car horns, Bollywood music, and the occasional muslim call to prayer. There are seemingly no traffic rules here. Cars driving on the wrong side of the road, no one stays in their lane, red lights are never adhered to, it’s amazing how it all works and how used you get to it after being here (kind of). From the outside its all chaos, but somehow this crazy dance allows everyone to pass on the roads unscathed. Also I’ve noticed there is this great juxtaposition on what you see externally and what is inside. The streets do have a lot of trash and are not exactly aesthetically pleasing per say but go inside a shop, a monument, a home, all that changes and becomes this oasis within this chaotic external world.
I learned a ton of random Hindi words while being here too also picked up a few Hindi swears (thanks Akhil!). Also I love in Hindi there are like so many ways to interchangeably say yes. Tk tk, acha acha, hah hah.
Instead of going on and on about the trip I want to share some of my favorite pictures of our time there. Enjoy!
