Laura's Year in Asia = Fun Stories

Well last I checked in I think my world centered around a camel...Now not so much. From Jaisalmir we went back down to southern Rajasthan, and stopped in Jodhpur. Known as the Blue City because all the house of Brahmins are painted bright bright blue.

Jodhpur (as in the pants) is a pretty busy Indian town, with a population of "Eleven hundred thousand" (a Indlish quote from our hotel owner) So there isn't much to do but wander the narrow streets of the old town, or hit up the market to buy overpriced bangles. Jodhpur also was our entrance to the 'Underground Travel Network' in India. Bascially it involves gettin to the approximate area of a recommended hotel in the lonely Planet, and then balking at the inflated prices the hotel now quotes, and going to the next two or three hotels on the same street for much cheaper and better prices. AND once you get to one hotel, buddy has a friend/cousin/brother/Muslim associate in the next city you're going to, and will hook you up with a free rickshaw and pickup from the bus station. And you're never forced to stay anywhere - its common for me to make small talk about my home country of Jamaica and 4 kids (don't ask long story) with the owners while Justina goes next door to check out the other places. (good rooftop restaurant? Mattress thicker than 10cm? Ample hooks on the walls?). We utilized this network to the fullest in Jodhpur, and lucked out at buddy's brothers hotel that had the best view of the old city with the HUGE fort in the background. All for 50rs each a night. A DOLLAR!!!!!!!!!!!

We did get out in Jodhpur, pulling ourselves away from the seemingly endless supply of milk coffees and saffron lassis we were able to consume on said rooftop, and hike up to the massive Meherangarh fort. You guys know how forted-out I am, but this was apparently the fort Not to Miss in Rajasthan. Included in the tourist price was a free audio tour. Best thing ever. Not only did the guy in my earphones have the best Colonial Indian meets Barry White voice, but it combined the knowledge you gain from having a guide and the sanity you gain from bein able to turn it off whenever you want. (Indian guides in person don't shut up) We wandered the fort for a couple hours, snapped some shots, and generally enjoyed this fort experience! On the way home we grabbed some Frooti mango drinks, and tried to dodge angry cows that take up the whole old city lanes, and avoid the children taking their morning squat in the gutters.

From Jodphur we bussed it to Udiapur, on a recommendation from another traveler. Udiapur = Indian wedding capital of the world. Cause or Effect (?) is that the city looks like one big white frosted lacy wedding cake. It surrounds a lake, that is only a lake after monsoon season, and has more top-end hotels per square foot than anywhere I've been. James Bond 'Octapussy' was also filmed there, and no one lets you forget it. So we spent one night watching the movie on a rooftop wondering how James was able to get rickshaws so easily? The lake palace (runs around $3000US/night...more than my budget for the whole 3 months here) dominates the lake, and although we couldn't even afford the boat over for lunch, I think I saw a rich person turn on their light. Liz Hurley and the pick of British celebs were apparently on their way over for her wedding, but we didn't see Elton at the internet cafe or Bhang shops. Damn. Justina and I also took a cool autorickshaw trip up to the Monsoon palace that overlooks the whole Udiapur valley, for a romantic sunset on our 11-week anniversary of traveling together.

From Udiapur we decided, "Hey why not take a quick cut into central India to check out some Buddhist caves. It will only involve an overnight bus ride, a stop in a town that has never seen a white person, a long local train ride, and 3 sanity-saving samosas!" Stay tuned for that wonderful blog... Pics will come I promise, but I'm at the point where if the keyboard of a computer works I'm ecstatic, let alone USB ports....some PICS can be found here on Justina's blog.