Forts and Palaces

We started in Agra at the Agra fort moved on to Fatehpur Sikri. In Jaipur we did a whirlwind tour of the Palace of the Winds, Amber Fort and the City Palace with observatory. I can't tell the pictures apart but the architecture is amazing. Most of the forts are really palace complexes except Fatehpur Sikri which was a whole city abandoned when the water supply dried up. We did get an elephant ride to the Amber Fort.

Taj Mahal

Who can come to India and not see the Taj Mahal? This is just the gate.

It was spectacular. White and shiny. There were masses of people but lots of room for them all. A little claustrophobic in the temple. 

There was a wedding group in all their finery. 

Fabulous carving and all inlayed  with precious stone,

Here's a monkey picture for my grandson.

And here is the proof that we were really there.

Cooking Class Delhi

This is our teacher. We made samosas. Chapati, nan, seasonal vegetables and chicken butter masala. It was delicious. I might even be able to do it at home.

We made samosas filled with lentils or potatoes. Fried twice like good French fries.

Misty rolling out the chapati 

And cooked it on a griddle. It is finish over an open flame to make it puff up. I am looking forward to doing it on my next camping trip.

Mixed vegetables and butter masala.

We ate so much we had to skip dinner. 

Varanasi part deux

This was a very auspicious day for bringing the society's image of Shiva down to the Ganges. Parades of men and boys with loud music playing make their way through the streets,

Give the image a dip in the ganges,

put it on a boat, 

row out, say a prayer or two and dump it in. It's made of clay on a bamboo and wood support. All biodegradable. Enterprising boat men haul the wood supports our and sell them to the manufacturer. We did see one, way too big for the boat that didn't quite make it and fell in prematurely.

Last boat ride of the day- sunset tour to see the cremation ghat and an elaborate ceremony with 7 priest performing with incense burners and open flames. Then the walk back to the hotel dodging people, dog, cows and their respective land mines.

Varanasi morning

What three things you need to drive in India- a good horn, good brakes and good luck. It's a experience on the road, not terrifying more like an amusement park  ride. A real adventure. 

This is the way to go. Very few boats are motorized, it's peaceful and quiet. 

We lite our candles and made our offerings. Every part is degradable. Leaf boat and candle made from ghee.

All the buildings along the river were built by wealthy families so their elders could come here to die insuring they go to heaven. The government has a plan to clean up the riverside building it will be lovely when they do. 

There were 2  parrots in the tree off the hotel roof top terrace where we ate breakfast after the boat ride.

We caught our boat right outside our hotel. The foreign tourist go out in the predawn hours, you can see the candles flickering in the dark. The pilgrims go out after their dip in the river and prayers at a temple. 

Indian Afternoon

UOur last afternoon here at Sangam. The tailor delivered our Indian finery. Ellyn's is much fancier than mine.

Here is our group of 8.

We did crafts. Here is warli painting, traditional of this region.

Rangoli is sand painting on the floor.

Here is the real expert at work.

For dinner we had a special regional banquet served on a leaf plate. We were encouraged to sit on the floor which I did not.

Followed by classic dancing which was fabulous.

And then, to cap it all off, we received our participation certificates and Sangam pins since we are leaving before the closing ceremony tomorrow. It's my last world center woohoo! 

Visit to the scout shop

We set off in a rickshaw, the trip took about 20 minutes. We passed a cemetery for WWII, very nicely maintained, and a huge army garrison.

Here is the outside. It was built in 1938. The first Boy Scout troop was started in 1918, the girls didn't start until 1938. Most troops are part of school curriculum. 

Carol enjoyed a cup of chai, she drank mine too.

We met the district commissioner and exchanged scout facts. We were presented with the pink neckers and woggles.

I love this knot display. We are going to make knot boards with my scouts this year. We can use power tools, always a good thing.

Shopping day

Today we headed off to Laxmi Road, the oldest part of Pune and home to a huge shopping area.

This woman insisted I take a photo of grandma below.

These are cones of kumkuma used to mark the forehead in either a social or religious welcome. 

This is the evening after most of the throng is gone. Teaming masses doesn't begin to describe the day time crowd. All manageable though.

This is what we have been waiting for since we started planning our trip- going to the sari shop. Everyone bought either saris or punjabi kits and the tailor is coming to measure to make either blouses for the saris or the pants and tops for the punjabi. We will wear them for our India afternoon. 

After dinner in a restaurant we returned by public bus- an adventure in it's self. 

We hit the streets

They turned us loose on the neighborhood where we went spice shopping.

We made friends with the local school kids and found the supermarket.

It's true about cows wandering the streets. There's also dogs, cats and goats. All competing with the pedestrians, scooters, bikes, rickshaws and  cars for road space.

We had lessons in crossings the street. Pick your moment and don't stop. The traffic stops or at least slows down and the drivers get a little shirty of you hesitate and get in their way. 

I am not only comfortable riding in the rickshaws but really like the dodging and weaving. It's like an "E" ride at Disneyland.

We had yoga this morning. Just as the sun was coming up.