A.B. Away: Gokarna to Jaisalmer (Sam)

(Sam) After 4 nights on Kudle Beach we moved to Gokarna town. It is a small town, but due to its importance on the Hindu pilgrim circuit it is bustling. There are cows everywhere and often traffic will be slowed to a halt because of a cow sleeping on the road. During our two or three days there we spent most of our time shopping, walking through town and along the beach and drinking sweet lassis and eating sheeras with curd. Sheera or shira is a semolina and pineapple cake that we discovered at the Pai Hotel. On the 9th of February we left Gokarna and went to Panaji or Panjim, the capital of Goa. On the train ride there we met Enriquez, from Spain who we first met in Kaniyakumari. We spent two nights in Panaji admiring the colonial buildings and the cathedrals of Old Goa. On the 11^th, we flew to Delhi. When we arrived, the 24 degree Celsius weather was incredibly refreshing. After we got our bags, we went to the prepaid taxi stand and booked a taxi to the Canadian high commission where we are staying with friends. We spent our first night playing with their kids and the following morning we went out to Old Delhi. We walked down Chandi Chowk, the jam-packed back-bone of Old Delhi, to the Red Fort. We were planning to go in, but the queue was so long that we thought better of it, we got lost in the bazaars instead. After being spun around a bit in the maze of streets we found ourselves at Jama Masjid, the largest mosque in India. Mhari and Dad were tired and the man at the gate was hassling us about money because we had a camera, and all sorts of other reasons that I can't remember, so they stayed outside and held our bags while we went in. The mosque was made of red stone and had lots of intricate Islamic carvings. We bought tickets to climb up the minaret because I had read that it was a great view. The view did not disappoint, but the walk up was not for the claustrophobic. The tiny spiral staircase was dark and the stairs were not much wider than my fore-arm. Whenever someone was coming down you had to hug the wall to make room. The top of the minaret was also tiny, although it was bright and airy. When we left the mosque we wandered back through the insane smells, sights and sounds of the old bazaars. I stopped at a paratha (flatbread) place for lunch. When I was halfway through my first plate a cook came up and said something to me in Hindi, I sort of shrugged my shoulders and a minute later he came back with more food! I ate most of it but I had to pay double.

Today we started the day by going to Lodi Gardens, a landscaped garden with centuries old tombs scattered around. It is a very beautiful place and although the tombs aren't huge, they're still very beautiful. We also stopped at another, much bigger tomb called “Safardangs Tomb”on our way to the Metro stop. It was more impressive but we were starting to tire of ancient tomb's by then. We took the Metro to India Gate, an Indian Arc De Triomph. The Metro here is very modern, although it is the first time I've seen signs in a metro station cautioning you not to ride on the roof of the train, and there is as much security as in an airport. At a few major stations the train practically empties, and then fills up again in the 30 seconds that the train stops for. This should be easy, except it fills and empties at the same time creating a crush of people. The India Gate was very impressive but we didn't see much of it because we were being bombarded by hawkers and school children wanting a photo. In a desperate attempt to escape the hawkers, we started walking towards Connaught Place. It was a pleasant walk and we had a (long) break at the “Central Cottage Industries Emporium” the 6 storey government handicraft store. My mom and sister bought several things, I was tempted by the amazing marble inlay work but it was a bit too much money for me. We finished off our day at Connaught place, the commercial heart of Delhi. It looked a lot like the Parade in Leamington Spa (the name of a street, not an actual parade) except more Indian (more garbage, more traffic, more beggars, more hawkers etc.).

On our last day in Delhi me and my Dad went to the Lotus Temple. When we got off the Metro into the cold and rainy weather we spotted a street stall whipping up dahl with fresh chapati, we couldn't resist and it really hit the spot. With our stomachs full we started walking towards the Temple. The Lotus Temple is Baha'i, a religion whose philosophies revolve around peace and understanding (don't they all). The temple is very modern, pearl white and shaped like a lotus flower. Inside the temple there were people reading from the Bible, The Qur’an and various other holy books, and everyone was praying according to their own religion. We did not have much time but it was quite a cool place.

That evening we took the night train to Jaisalmer, way out near the Pakistani border in the westernmost reaches of India. After we found a hotel and a meal we went to Jaisalmer fort, because Jaisalmer is in the desert the fort is made with yellow sandstone making the fort appear to be a giant sandcastle. When you head through the main gates and start walking up to the looming fort it really is awe-inspiring. The Maharajas Palace is very good, not as amazing as the one in Mysore, but because it is so well organized, they have done a lot of restoration work and the audio tour was fantastic (for a change). It was a really good experience. The best parts were the views from up top and the intricately carved screens on the windows. Inside the fort, the streets are very winding and narrow and full of people who want to sell things to you. For lunch one day I had a special treat, Masala Dosa. I had been wondering what I would do without it now that we are in the north but I saw a street vendor making south Indian food so I went for it. Another special thing about Jaisalmer is that we came during the Desert Festival, They have got all sorts of things going on around town, some of the best things we have seen are, Rajasthani (we are in the state of Rajasthan) folk music (very energetic with a good beat), lots of Rajasthani dancing, including one little boy doing what seemed to be Rajasthani break dancing, camel dressing competition, air force drill team, water jug on head carrying competition and (only in Jaisalmer!) camel polo. After a few days in Jaisalmer and the desert festival coming to a draw we decided to tackle a camel safari.