Ellora Caves, Mumbai and Home

We're home! Other than battling jet lag, we're doing great. Before we wrap things up completely I wanted to share one last photo of the Taj Mahal. My camera's software came with a photo stitch function. It looks a little wacky in places, but all in all it's a very cool photo.


Before we left for Mumbai, we visited the Ellora Caves. The oldest cave dates from the 6th century and was a Buddhist monestary. It's pretty plain compared to the Hindu temples.





The visit to these caves was by far my favorite part of the trip.

(Gid: Mine as well. It it sobering, but important, to remember that while many of our ancestors were struggling with the collapse of Rome and running around in animal skins, others were building incredible monuments to God and, indirectly, the human endeavor. For some, the Dark Ages weren't that dark. )

One of the caves had the most amazing ceiling:


(Gid: The ceiling is simply amazing--- stone carved as wood. I've never seen anything like it--- probably never will at another site.)

We haphazardly wandered up to the second floor of this cave where Gideon pointed to the open door noting that the door wasn't usually open to the public so we should take advantage of the opportunity.

Eventually, we realized that some tourist had paid the staff to unlock door let him in. Well... when in Rome... Gid tipped the staff and he let us in, too.

(Gid: Baksheesh can be a beautiful thing.)








Our only goals while in Mumbai were to visit Elephanta Island and do a little shopping. When we got into Mumbai, I was about ready to write it off as another pit, much like Delhi. Upon arriving in the city we passed one of the biggest slums in Southeast Asia -- a very sobering sight. However, as I soon discovered, the central area of the city, Colaba, is beautiful. There's a bunch of old colonial architecture, but what makes it so interesting is its juxtaposition with the native flora and fauna which is so exotic looking.

(Gid: Mumbai, previously known as Bombay, is an incredible mix of everything. As "Slumdog Millionaire" accurately depicted, Mumbai is currently as sight of incredible growth and wealth, but also of incredible poverty. It can be jarring to see some of the richest individuals in the world sharing a city with some of the poorest. 100,000 people arrive in Mumbai per month, or the addition of a city the size of Sacramento every 4-5 months. Mostly, these are rural folks in search of a better life--- much like NYC in the early Twentieth Century.)

We left ourselves a little more than eight hours to get everything done, but the traffic in Mumbai is worse than LA. It took nearly an hour and a half to travel 20 km to the ferries that would take us to Elephanta Island. (Gid: No joke. And no exageration. That's an average of 8 miles/hour.) In addition to that, we told our driver to meet us at the ferry station three hours after he dropped us off. He looked a little confused and we found out why: the ferry ride takes another hour and 15 minutes. Long story short: we got to the island only to turn right around and hop on another ferry heading back. I'd have been more upset if the situation weren't so ridiculous. I mean, who doesn't appreciate two and a half hours on a ferry?



(Gid: Limca--- the world's greatest soda. Owned by Coke.)


(Gateway to India)

India was definitely a hard place to travel. It calls for major cooperation between travelers and eventually, we had to designate Gideon as the leader of the trip. One, he's done it before, and two, Indians respond way better to a man than a woman. That was probably the hardest part for me, taking a backseat when it came to some of the haggling and telling the touts to piss off.

(Gid: This was the hardest part for me as well. I've talked with folks who have been to China and other large Asian nations, but India takes the cake in lacking mercy and being brutal on its visitors--- not to mention its citizens. India can be a richly rewarding experience, but it comes with sweat and great difficulty. Match that with the general indifference of officialdom in India as to whether a tourist enjoys his or her experience/lives or dies generally, and you have the makings of an adventure.)

If I could do any of this differently, I would have liked to have spent little more time in Mumbai. Although, that could have been easily accomplished if we'd been able to book a hotel in the Colaba area (apparently, November is the busy season). And, I think I'd have liked to stop in Singapore for a day or two. Getting to Singapore after India was SO nice. Their airport must be the cleanest place on Earth. (Gid: Singapore in general is amazing. Historically, politically, socially--- a strange mix of a benevolent democratically elected dictatorship, with a dash of free trade and socialism, plus modern tech hub bound up in the only remaining true City-State.) Other than that, I wouldn't change anything. India was so rewarding, if only for this huge sense of appreciation I feel now that I'm home.

(Gid: I second that. After coming back from India each and every time, I have a renewed and deepened appreciation of what America is and the economic and social freedoms we can take for granted--- as well as an appreciation of what India bring in cultural and spiritual richness, which America can sometimes lack. But it's always good to be home.)

About to Wrap Things Up...

We're in Mumbai and almost down to the final 24 hours - our plane leaves at 12:30 AM on the 20th.

Tomorrow we'll hire a taxi to stick with us for most of the day before heading to the airport and I think I'll finish this travel blog from home.

I'm already planning my first meal... you have no idea how good a burger sounds after being in a country where cows are sacred. Actually, India's approach to livestock and other animals is interesting. Since reincarnation is a pretty widely held belief, animals are treated with quite a bit of respect. All throughout India we'd see goats and dogs lying in the middle of very busy streets and intersections without so much as a close run in with a rickshaw. Or, we'd see cows wander into train stations and no one gave them a second glance.

Until the final entry, I'll leave you with a few photos of the Ellora Caves, some of which date from the 6th century:

Ahmednagar

We made it out of Varanasi and to Pune without much of an ordeal. The plane from Delhi to Pune was delayed several hours before we finally boarded and we still sat grounded for another hour an a half before takeoff. The only real culture clash was when the pilot kept announcing that they just need "another 5-10 minutes" to deal with "some technical problems". In my experience, pilots tell you nearly too much when you're delayed for takeoff.

(There are 30+ exemptions from the security check... all the way down to recipients of various Indian awards.)

The next morning we left for Ahmednagar. Right now we're staying at the Meher Baba Pilgrim Center. Roughly put, this is a dorm-style retreat center for those followers of the Indian spiritual leader, Meher Baba. This is where Gideon and his family would stay during their many visits to India.

It's kind of a trip, the people here are definitely a little whacky... but I think this place and this community in particular is conducive to, and is in fact a draw for, that. Mostly it's really relaxing, the food is great, you can drink the water, and going into town is hassle free. There are tons of westerners here so we're basically ignored by the locals unless we wander into a store. And the best part: all the rickshaw rates are pre negotiated.

(Gid: Since Erin is spending a lot of time with the Baums, she should experience The Crazy first-hand.)

Ahmednagar is more rural than any of the other cities we've been to, so the air is much clearer and there are far fewer people (though it still seems more crowded than any US city). No more diesel-related headaches. Some of the dogs here are kept as pets - so we've made a few canine friends.

(Gid: They're easier to deal with than the Baba lovers.)




We're both over our colds and my foot is healed... which is great since there's a lot of walking in Ahmednagar.


(Gid: On one hand, the Indian Government says, "No." On the other hand, they reserve the right to say, "I told you so." Government at its finest.)

Tomorrow we're headed to the Ellora Caves.

Wikipedia: The 34 "caves" – actually structures excavated out of the vertical face of the Charanandri hills – being Buddhist, Hindu and Jain rock cut temples and monasteries, were built between the 5th century and 10th century.

This will the my first chance to see some Hindu ruins. The Taj Mahal, the Red Fort and Fatehpur Sikri were built by Muslims.

(Gid: The caves are a personal favorite. Hopefully, we'll have some good shots.)

We leave on the 18th and head for Mumbai. It's the last leg of our journey and we've got Elephanta Island last on our list of things to see.

Housebound

Well, we didn't make it out to the ghats after all. Due to some sort of allergic reaction to the flea-bag hotel in Agra, my leg was too swollen to walk around on (70+ bites). I'm fine now, but we've both come down with colds and have decided not the leave our hotel in Varanasi. Considering the hotel Gideon chose, things could definitely be worse. Further, we've come to the conclusion that the Ganges isn't going anywhere and we'd much rather be healthy than anything else.

(Gid: Actually, the hotel I've selected is amazing. Sort of colonial, very comfortable, a good place to get healthy for the next leg of the trip. Well done, Me.)


Tomorrow we're flying to Pune and the following day we're heading to Ahmednagar.

Just A Couple Of Sandstone Buildings In India

OK--- following the Taj Mahal we decided it was time for lunch. Fortunately, our hotel had a roof top restaurant with a great view of the Taj. (Unfortunately, however, we think the hotel also had fleas.) (Gid: Think? Know. I think I'll write a cranky letter to Lonely Planet about it.)


After lunch it was off to the Red Fort. The Red Fort is only about two km away from the Taj Mahal. In fact, Shah Jahan ( the Taj's builder) was imprisoned in the Red Fort by his son, Arungzeb, from which he could see his creation. Shah Jahan was kept there until his death in 1666, after which he was placed in the Taj Mahal next to his wife (for whom the Taj was built).




(The Hall of Public Audience)


(View of the Taj from the Red Fort)


(Gid: Other fun fact: Arungzeb killed his older brother as part of the struggle for the crown, and then sent his head in a box to his father. Forcing his father in a prison where his only view was his favorite wfe's tomb, and then sending him his eldest son's head? Stone cold. Billy and Aaron, take note.)

The Red Fort, unlike the Taj, was pillaged by the British. All of the precious stone inlaid in the sandstone was removed. One of the really cool features of the Red Fort was the old school air conditioning... there are shallow troughs running all over the complex through which water was conveyed in order to cool the fort.

(The dark spots are where stone used to be.)

(Gid: I saw the system in operation once in a documentary on Mughal design--- very cool. As for the looting, our trip to the Red Fort easily could have be sub titled "or: Why the British East India Company were liars and scoundrels." No joke. They even call them liars in an informational marker.)

The next day we traveled about an hour outside Agra to Fatehpur Sikri. It was the former capitol of the Mughal empire under Akbar.

Photos of Agra:

About ten minutes outside Agra our driver stalled the car and couldn't start it again... right in the middle of an intersection. We had to wait for about an hour for the next car to arrive. In the mean time, while the driver was pushing the taxi to the side of the road from outside his closed driver door, a guy on a scooter tried to edge past us. Our driver, having placed himself way out of reach of the brakes not only ran into the scooter but pushed the scooter into a banana cart. Mostly, there was just annoyed looks and explanations of why the other driver was at fault. The banana cart proprietor didn't seem to mind as long as we didn't park the car in front of his cart.

(Gid: Classic India. The motorcyclist appeard fine, though annoyed. I pushed the car out of the way with the vendors, and we all had a good laugh. Erin, however, was not amused. Funny, that.)

After about two hours we arrived at Fatehpur Sikri--- built in 1570 by Akbar, Shah Jahan's grandfather. It's hard to describe the opulence with which this must have been built... the only appropriate Western corollary I can think of is Versailles. For example, there's a life-sized Parcheesi board. And, the palace is so big we kept getting lost and we circled the same building several times before we could move on to another part of the complex.






The architectural detail was amazing.

(Gid: For me, Fatehpur Sikri is, in some ways, even better than the Taj. You get to see a preserved series of buildings that mirror the political system of the time--- the little enclaves where advisers schemed, the palaces for the wives, the large entertainment buildings, the multiple Indo-Muslim touches, including Jain building columns. It's incredible. Fatehpur Sikri was also where Akbar, who was actually quite spiritual, gathered all of the notable leaders of the many faiths of his empire and looked for commonalities in order to create a kind of single, unifying faith. Obviously, this didn't succeed, but it's very much in the vein of the mystical tradition on India, and according to what I've read, India's Muslims.)

Again, more old school AC:

Operations and Maintenance:



(Gid: One other note--- Erin and I saw a water buffalo grazing on some grass near a dilapidated entry gate... created a stark image of a lost age. We caught a few photos, but it was a uniquely Indian shot, and a reminder of the stark truth "This too shall pass". )

That evening we hopped aboard the night train to Varanasi.

It took about 13 hours... but when you're asleep most of the time, it's not a bad way to travel. Gideon, just by existing, clearly annoyed the woman sleeping below me. We're still not sure what that was all about.

(Gid: I thought only Erin felt that way towards me. Apparently, it's both cross-cultural and international.)

After getting into Varanasi, we hired another rickshaw driver. This guy pulled all the same tricks as the rickshaw driver in Agra: pulling out a notebook with comments from previous customers, trying to get us to commit to sight-seeing with him, etc. Last time we got conned into overpaying, which wouldn't have been a huge deal if the ordeal had been hassle-free. Not only did we over pay, we paid up front and then almost got cheated out of our final rickshaw ride to the train station. It was at that point that Gid laid down the law and we got our ride for free.

(Gid: Refer to Taj "Game Face" photo.)

What's so frustrating is that you have to keep your guard up all the time. Even the hotel manager in Agra seemed to be in on the ploy.

(Gid: Dollars to doughnuts he was. It's a growing and common Indian tradition to soak the Westerners of whatever they can get. Hard to blame them, sometimes--- we do have quite a bit more than they do, and 100 rupees is only about $2.25, which has little impact on our daily lives, but great impact on the lives of the average Indian citizen. On the other hand, it sometimes becomes out-and-out theft--- claims of no change when they clearly do have change, or not providing services that have been paid for. What's sad is that the general rule becomes "If they're trying to be helpful and friendly, they're trying to take your money.")

Right now, were staying at a pretty great hotel and are taking it easy for the next couple of days. I think our plan is to schedule a guided tour with the government run tour agency... that should include a boat ride on the Ganges at 5:30 AM. I'm somewhat prepared for dead bodies and King Cobras... maybe.

(Gid: Just plain Cobras. Now, a bite can kill an elephant, but what's the worry?)

The Delhi/Agra Nutshell

Where to begin? We've just completed our first four days in India and the only major conclusion I can come to is that I'm exhausted.

We landed in Delhi on the evening of the 3rd and as soon as we got outside the airport I asked if it was foggy. Gideon grinned and said, "Nope." At the end of each day I feel like I have a cold. It's so polluted that Agra specifically outlawed motorized vehicles within 50 meters of the Taj Mahal. The marble actually started to change color.

You can see the haze in the background.

Delhi is a city I left behind with no problem. We made one venture to the downtown area, Conaught Circle, but that was enough. The touts and rickshaw drivers are really aggressive. It's strange because I feel like I come from a culture, or at least a generation, where "no" means "no". It's not quite the same here... it's sort of like, "No doesn't mean no until you're inside the gate and I no longer have access to you."

(Gid: As a wise man once told me, "Delhi is a pit, man.")

Speaking of rickshaw drivers, the traffic here is remarkable. There's no other experience quite like riding in a rickshaw, basically it's a series of near misses.

Horns are another oddity. As far as I can tell, horns are used any time a driver approaches an intersection, approaches another vehicle, approaches a pedestrian, is stuck in traffic, or when the vehicle in front of you asks for it:

The horn used in lieu of the brakes most times, too. In fact, when the taxi driver took us from the Delhi airport to our hotel, instead of waiting in traffic behind a couple of semis, he veered off the road to get around all the other cars. (Gid: Welcome to India.)

Plus, there's nothing like watching a tour bus swerve to miss a bicycle.

(Gid: The behavior of drivers in India is truly fascinating from my view, though terrifying in the moment. Before they get on the road, many drivers will pray using a small alter in their car, as well as incense. Then, as Erin described, they drive with a single purpose--- get where they need to go as quickly as possible. I think there's something unique here--- you ask God to look after you, place it in His hands, and then drive with abandon, a beautiful chaos, believing that if something happens, it simply was your time.)

Poverty is another inescapable part of life in Delhi. I shouldn't have been surprised, because I'd been told about and read about the poor in India, but I suppose I wasn't prepared for the sheer number of people living in makeshift camps. At times, the smell of human feces was a little overwhelming. (Gid: Somebody needs to spend more time up on Haight Street...)

We only spent one day in Delhi and then we were off to Agra.

We hit the Taj Mahal first thing after dropping our bags in a hotel. I kept taking photos only to press the playback button and realize nothing comes close to the real thing.

(Gid: Truly. And the Taj is something that only grows as time passes--- I've seen it at least four times, and it gets more awe-inspiring each time. It simply defies belief--- you look at it, but you cannot process. It's as if your mind is correcting your eyes and saying "That is not so." It's worth seeing at least once--- but to avoid the touts and what not, a guided-tour may be in order.)

(Gid: Game Face.)

The big red building is the gate to the Taj Mahal.

The Taj is also flanked by two mosques.

Here's a strange thing: We're constantly being stared at because we're white (I know this is why; I finally asked.) By staring I mean unabashed, slack-jawed staring. Also, when caught staring... there's just more staring. But to top this off, you would not believe the number of time we were asked to have our photos taken with people. A group of four would come up and they'd each take turns grinning next to us. I've got to admit, that at first I found it mildly amusing, but sometimes it's obnoxious.

(Gid: For some folks, we're the first Westerners that they've met in our age bracket--- from TV and films to real life. In some ways, we're more diverse than India is--- it's the rare American that hasn't met, say, someone of Chinese or Indian decent at some point in their lives. In Blue States, anyway.)

That's all for now - more to come on the Red Fort, Fatehpur Sikri and Varanasi.