I spent the day sightseeing in Udaipur. This is a lovely way to finish the trip. Udaipur is the cleanest city I have been to in India. Having said that it is also the first place where I stepped in a cow patty. There goes my record, 25 days without stepping into one of those.
Udaipur is the home of the Marahana of Mewar, the name of the local ruling family. He can trace his lineage back to the 6th century, making this the longest ruling dynasty in the world. They have done well. Over the last few years he has converted his palaces into museums and luxury hotels.
The City Palace, part of which is his residence, is huge, 250 m long, and it is very opulent. It still has a lot of the family's furnishings and art works. It is very impressive. There is a Crystal Gallery, showing his collections. There is even a bed made of crystal. The great hall has seating for a few hundred people, and has three 1000kg chandeliers.
Udaipur is located in a pretty setting, there is a 4km long lake, and it is surrounded by hills. One of the palaces takes up an entire small island, and is now a luxury hotel. Prices start at 750 dollars a night, and go up to 3000 dollars a night. Those suites have their own lotus shaped swimming pools.
It was also a setting in the James Bond Movie, Octopussy.
I had lunch at a restaurant called the "Edelweiss". Imagine an Austrian restaurant without slabs of cheese and meat. It's like a brothel without women..an oxymoron.
This is probably my last entry, so I should leave some final impressions.
-Registering in any hotel, no matter how much of a dive takes time. There is a huge ledger, 18 by 30 inches. The usual information, name, address in Canada, sex, age, passport number, Indian visa number, but also when these documents were issued, when they expire, and where they were issued. Exact time of arrival at the hotel, what city you came from, what city you will travel to next. One place even asked for my father's first name. Once that is filled out there is another register that repeats just about everything.
-Coke and Pepsi still is served in bottles
-Stores still sell rolls of Kodak film. I wonder what the "Best to use" date is on those
-You can still buy 256M photo cards
-Even though a guide book can give you the name and street number of a hotel, it is completely useless, because there are NO street signs, and I have yet to see a street number on any building. The only way to get anyplace is to ride a tuk-tuk, and even they sometimes have to ask for directions.
-I have never seen a speed limit sign. Outside of Delhi I have yet to see a traffic light.
-Streets and public urinals are the same thing.
-You do see a lot of animals on the street; dogs, buffalo, cows, oxen, donkeys, goats, monkeys, camels, and even elephants. I know that one of the questions on the customs form when I get back to Canada is whether I have visited a farm. I can honestly say no, but I won't mention that the farm was with me the entire trip.
It will be quite an adjustment getting back to the Canadian way of life, but I have to say I am looking forward to the change.
I hope you have enjoyed my musings. It has been quite the experience.
Auf Wiedersehen
Udaipur is the home of the Marahana of Mewar, the name of the local ruling family. He can trace his lineage back to the 6th century, making this the longest ruling dynasty in the world. They have done well. Over the last few years he has converted his palaces into museums and luxury hotels.
The City Palace, part of which is his residence, is huge, 250 m long, and it is very opulent. It still has a lot of the family's furnishings and art works. It is very impressive. There is a Crystal Gallery, showing his collections. There is even a bed made of crystal. The great hall has seating for a few hundred people, and has three 1000kg chandeliers.
Udaipur is located in a pretty setting, there is a 4km long lake, and it is surrounded by hills. One of the palaces takes up an entire small island, and is now a luxury hotel. Prices start at 750 dollars a night, and go up to 3000 dollars a night. Those suites have their own lotus shaped swimming pools.
It was also a setting in the James Bond Movie, Octopussy.
I had lunch at a restaurant called the "Edelweiss". Imagine an Austrian restaurant without slabs of cheese and meat. It's like a brothel without women..an oxymoron.
This is probably my last entry, so I should leave some final impressions.
-Registering in any hotel, no matter how much of a dive takes time. There is a huge ledger, 18 by 30 inches. The usual information, name, address in Canada, sex, age, passport number, Indian visa number, but also when these documents were issued, when they expire, and where they were issued. Exact time of arrival at the hotel, what city you came from, what city you will travel to next. One place even asked for my father's first name. Once that is filled out there is another register that repeats just about everything.
-Coke and Pepsi still is served in bottles
-Stores still sell rolls of Kodak film. I wonder what the "Best to use" date is on those
-You can still buy 256M photo cards
-Even though a guide book can give you the name and street number of a hotel, it is completely useless, because there are NO street signs, and I have yet to see a street number on any building. The only way to get anyplace is to ride a tuk-tuk, and even they sometimes have to ask for directions.
-I have never seen a speed limit sign. Outside of Delhi I have yet to see a traffic light.
-Streets and public urinals are the same thing.
-You do see a lot of animals on the street; dogs, buffalo, cows, oxen, donkeys, goats, monkeys, camels, and even elephants. I know that one of the questions on the customs form when I get back to Canada is whether I have visited a farm. I can honestly say no, but I won't mention that the farm was with me the entire trip.
It will be quite an adjustment getting back to the Canadian way of life, but I have to say I am looking forward to the change.
I hope you have enjoyed my musings. It has been quite the experience.
Auf Wiedersehen
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