Tomorrow is my little cousin's birthday. Happy birthday, Chessie!
Mar 30, 2008
Mar 28, 2008
Thought this might amuse everyone...
It's an email from my mum:
I love your posts! The photos and the commentary. And was Fas to see Gosh's camp. Oh lord, not for me!!!
But darling, you must get your head around apostrophes. The first par has "it's biodiversity" , "it's lush green rainforest" ,"it's a heap of Russian ..."
This is wrong. With the apostrophe before the s, it is an abbreviation of IT IS. This is not what you are saying, you should be using "its" as a possessive.
Later, you write "It's the symbol for toilet.." This is correct, because you mean 'It is the symbol". Also, "It's actually been raining.." You can write this because you mean 'It has'.
And a spelling mistake - rejuvenate, not rejuvinate.
Honestly, you must get your head around its/it's because you keep making mistakes which means you don't understand whether it's possessive or an abbreviation (which is was in this sentence!).
Yes, yes, I make mistakes too, and I don't seem to be as good at spelling as I used to be. But at least you know I will tell you when you make such glaring errors, not note them, as others might, but not tell you.
Lots of love,
K bye :)
Mum
Comments?
I love your posts! The photos and the commentary. And was Fas to see Gosh's camp. Oh lord, not for me!!!
But darling, you must get your head around apostrophes. The first par has "it's biodiversity" , "it's lush green rainforest" ,"it's a heap of Russian ..."
This is wrong. With the apostrophe before the s, it is an abbreviation of IT IS. This is not what you are saying, you should be using "its" as a possessive.
Later, you write "It's the symbol for toilet.." This is correct, because you mean 'It is the symbol". Also, "It's actually been raining.." You can write this because you mean 'It has'.
And a spelling mistake - rejuvenate, not rejuvinate.
Honestly, you must get your head around its/it's because you keep making mistakes which means you don't understand whether it's possessive or an abbreviation (which is was in this sentence!).
Yes, yes, I make mistakes too, and I don't seem to be as good at spelling as I used to be. But at least you know I will tell you when you make such glaring errors, not note them, as others might, but not tell you.
Lots of love,
K bye :)
Mum
Comments?
Mar 27, 2008
Goa
Goa is a tiny state that was a former colony of Portugal. National Geographic magazine described it's biodiversity as rivalling the Amazon basin. Inland, it's dense lush green rainforest and luminescent paddy fields. On the coast, it's gorgeous tropical beaches and palm trees. And at Palolem, where my uncle stays, it's a heap of Russian and English 20 year olds on two week package holidays.
Let's just say that I've heard people sitting around campfires singing "Hotel California" enough to last a lifetime.
The beach itself is so ridiculously beautiful it would be a cliche to put pictures up of it, also I can't zoom out on my camera enough to get it all in. But here's a photo off the web to give you an idea (except there are a lot more tourist huts and restaurants now):
These were Gosh's instructions on how to find his place once I got to Palolem:
"Go to the north side of the beach. If the tide is high, wait. Cross the water and walk to just before the restaurant in front of the island."
What was I expecting there? I didn't know. This is what I found:
Oh great, and how long am I staying here for?
It's actually been raining for an hour or so every evening, heavy monsoon rain that's come at least a month early. So after the first night of sleeping out in the rain Gosh got me a hut, and we're helping him move back over to the mainland a few weeks early. Here's what the sunset looks like from the road before the rains:
Yes I know there are no pics of Gosh here. The time isn't right. But here's a picture of a cow on holiday:
Let's just say that I've heard people sitting around campfires singing "Hotel California" enough to last a lifetime.
The beach itself is so ridiculously beautiful it would be a cliche to put pictures up of it, also I can't zoom out on my camera enough to get it all in. But here's a photo off the web to give you an idea (except there are a lot more tourist huts and restaurants now):
These were Gosh's instructions on how to find his place once I got to Palolem:
"Go to the north side of the beach. If the tide is high, wait. Cross the water and walk to just before the restaurant in front of the island."
What was I expecting there? I didn't know. This is what I found:
Oh great, and how long am I staying here for?
It's actually been raining for an hour or so every evening, heavy monsoon rain that's come at least a month early. So after the first night of sleeping out in the rain Gosh got me a hut, and we're helping him move back over to the mainland a few weeks early. Here's what the sunset looks like from the road before the rains:
Yes I know there are no pics of Gosh here. The time isn't right. But here's a picture of a cow on holiday:
From Jaisalmer to Goa
Is a big f...ing trip. It took me 36 hours by bus, then train, then bus again. It involved stopping in Bombay for an hour or so, and it felt like coming home.
Bombay from the taxi (all the mosques are green in the city, for some reason):
The Oval Maidan, where the kids go to play cricket. Saying you're Australian in here is tantamount to having to bat all afternoon, so they can all have a turn at getting you out:
Whoever designed Bombay was a genius: wide open tree-lined streets, great architecture, lots of parks. It takes a while to look past everything else to see how pretty it is though. Everyone lives on the street (as in eating, shopping, talking), so you can see the whole city at work just walking around.
Well a quick time there to rejuvinate, then on to Goa, to visit my uncle Gosh.
Bombay from the taxi (all the mosques are green in the city, for some reason):
The Oval Maidan, where the kids go to play cricket. Saying you're Australian in here is tantamount to having to bat all afternoon, so they can all have a turn at getting you out:
Whoever designed Bombay was a genius: wide open tree-lined streets, great architecture, lots of parks. It takes a while to look past everything else to see how pretty it is though. Everyone lives on the street (as in eating, shopping, talking), so you can see the whole city at work just walking around.
Well a quick time there to rejuvinate, then on to Goa, to visit my uncle Gosh.
This is the one thing you must know in India:
It's the symbol for toilet, and it crosses all cultural and language bounds.
Mar 22, 2008
The PER
I've revised the PER (Pos Exchange Rate), due to it being based previously on alcohol. This is not a good item for comparison as many areas are dry, and anyway alcohol can be disproportionately expensive here. It's now gone from x10 to x4.
That is, you decide what you would pay at home for something, then times it by 4 for the equivalent rupee price.
Of course, I was getting totally ripped off before, but I think I'm at about the right level now because they still accept my money but don't seem so happy about the sale.
That is, you decide what you would pay at home for something, then times it by 4 for the equivalent rupee price.
Of course, I was getting totally ripped off before, but I think I'm at about the right level now because they still accept my money but don't seem so happy about the sale.
Two anecdotlets...
The main driving instruction school in Mumbai is called, appropriately enough, "Good Luck".
I was smoking these semi-handmade Indian cigarettes and they were great. They were called medicinal cigarettes and I thought haha how quaint, until I was told they have opium in them.
I was smoking these semi-handmade Indian cigarettes and they were great. They were called medicinal cigarettes and I thought haha how quaint, until I was told they have opium in them.
Mar 21, 2008
Jaisalmer
Jaisalmer is probably my favourite place outside of Mumbai so far, very small, very pretty, relatively clean and quiet and hassle free, right in the desert on the border of Pakistan. Most people live in the fort area, the buildings in the fort are amazing and the whole thing gets lit up at night, but my damn camera will not zoom out enough to do it justice. So here's a random one stolen from the web:
And some of my own:
The Jain temple in Jaisalmer:
Part 3 of my on-going statuephilia:
After the safari I took a shower on a rooftop, here was my view:
I'm only a week or so behind now, once I catch up will provide more than just a photo show, I have musings ready to go.
And some of my own:
The Jain temple in Jaisalmer:
Part 3 of my on-going statuephilia:
After the safari I took a shower on a rooftop, here was my view:
I'm only a week or so behind now, once I catch up will provide more than just a photo show, I have musings ready to go.
Camel college.
In Jodhpur I met a German guy who wanted to go to Jaisalmer too, so we caught a bus together. He really wanted to go on a camel safari and persuaded me to go too. Then the morning of the safari his grandfather died and he couldn't go. So I was stuck on an unwanted-but-paid-for 3 day camel safari. Let me tell you about camels. They are not made to be ridden. But you do get to feel like Lawrence of Arabia when you are up the front.
The camel drivers were very funny, sharing all sorts of Camel College Knowledge, such as:
"No chapatti no chai, no woman no cry"
"24 hours of power, no toilet no shower"
"Why not coconut" (rhymes in Indian),
and suddenly singing "I'm a camel man, in the bloody sand" to the tune of Aqua's Barbie Girl.
Some pics. Indian mud and shit hut. Really. Made out of sand and dried cow dung. Have to be rebuilt after every monsoon, but very cool:
Marcello on the dunes.
Looks like the last camel didn't make it.
Ruby, our dog. She followed us the whole way.
We didn't have enough people to do YMCA or early Beatles covers, unfortunately.
There was another Aussie on the safari, Chris. A la Dale Kerrigan and his hole, we built a cairn.
In case anyone doesn't know what a camel looks like:
The camel drivers were very funny, sharing all sorts of Camel College Knowledge, such as:
"No chapatti no chai, no woman no cry"
"24 hours of power, no toilet no shower"
"Why not coconut" (rhymes in Indian),
and suddenly singing "I'm a camel man, in the bloody sand" to the tune of Aqua's Barbie Girl.
Some pics. Indian mud and shit hut. Really. Made out of sand and dried cow dung. Have to be rebuilt after every monsoon, but very cool:
Marcello on the dunes.
Looks like the last camel didn't make it.
Ruby, our dog. She followed us the whole way.
We didn't have enough people to do YMCA or early Beatles covers, unfortunately.
There was another Aussie on the safari, Chris. A la Dale Kerrigan and his hole, we built a cairn.
In case anyone doesn't know what a camel looks like:
Jodhpur back-blogging
Is my new term for blogging about things that happened in the past, as if they are happening now. Forgive me if I muddle my tenses.
So ok I got sick in Jodhpur, which was a lovely city to get sick in. I was staying at Joshi's Cozy Guest House, which I highly recommend. I didn't feel like doing anything so just stayed in the hotel. I met a few travellers my age, which was fun. Neil, a Yorkshireman who was just about to go back home, an American/Swedish couple who had been travelling for 2 years and were also sick, and Olga (briefly), a Russian girl who I also met in Bombay on the Bollywood day. We ended up drinking, playing cards etc, was a nice time.
Once I felt better I did a day's sightseeing. It's marriage season here and everyone was getting together the day before the wedding. The women look a lot more photogenic all over India because the men mainly dress in western clothes.
In town there was some kind of procession involving camels, tractors, people dressed up as Hindu gods, marching bands and a holy man. I'll post some video later when I can get a better connection.
I went up to the fort, which was quite impressive.
Hmm, where did I leave my camel?
Cheeky monkey back at the hotel.
So ok I got sick in Jodhpur, which was a lovely city to get sick in. I was staying at Joshi's Cozy Guest House, which I highly recommend. I didn't feel like doing anything so just stayed in the hotel. I met a few travellers my age, which was fun. Neil, a Yorkshireman who was just about to go back home, an American/Swedish couple who had been travelling for 2 years and were also sick, and Olga (briefly), a Russian girl who I also met in Bombay on the Bollywood day. We ended up drinking, playing cards etc, was a nice time.
Once I felt better I did a day's sightseeing. It's marriage season here and everyone was getting together the day before the wedding. The women look a lot more photogenic all over India because the men mainly dress in western clothes.
In town there was some kind of procession involving camels, tractors, people dressed up as Hindu gods, marching bands and a holy man. I'll post some video later when I can get a better connection.
I went up to the fort, which was quite impressive.
Hmm, where did I leave my camel?
Cheeky monkey back at the hotel.
Update: Here's the video of the procession.
Mar 7, 2008
Mar 6, 2008
Jodhpur
I took an overnight sleeper bus from Udaipur to Jodhpur which rocked up around 4 am. A guy at the bus stop tried to get me to go to his hotel, but I said no cause that's a common commission tout scam. Eventually got a taxi to the general area where the hotels are, but everything was still dark and a little creepy, and the same guy turned up. Finally I thought ok, I'll let him take me to his crummy place, pay the extra commission rate, get some sleep and get a new hotel tomorrow.
Tomorrow I'm going on a camel safari. Yes I'm a despicable tourist.
It was called the "Cozy Guest House" which immediately rang some alarm bells. But we got there and it was cozy, and it was his hotel, and it was fairly cheap, and he'd got up really early just to show people to it, and man did I feel bad. These are smaller towns in Rajasthan, I have to re-calibrate my trust levels.
This was the view from my room when I woke up:
I went for a walk around the markets and it was a lot less touristy than Udaipur, which was a bit of a relief. Similar architecture to Udaipur, see what I mean about like a Greek fishing village? All the buildings are white-washed (in this case blue-washed), open plan, very cool and breezy. The floors are made from marble inlay:
Tomorrow I'm going on a camel safari. Yes I'm a despicable tourist.By the way, this image was for a temple back in Udaipur. These carvings go all the way up, about the size of a three story building.
Updates
Cousins: Julia, your present is on the way, and no plans on getting married. Joanna, you have a post card sent and will look out for children's books.
Poos: Like the stockmarket, high liquidity and fluid.
Poos: Like the stockmarket, high liquidity and fluid.
Formatting status: Would like some help. There doesn't seem to be gaps after full stop's, some lines are closer together than others (I included that apostrophe just to annoy my mum).
Mar 5, 2008
Monsoon Palace
This is where the Maharaja's would go during the Monsoon in Udaipur, about a mile outside of the city on a big hill. It must be good to be king.
Mar 4, 2008
Some more pics of Udaipur
It's very photogenic. A little island castley thing:
Nice way to spend an afternoon:
The Lake Palace Hotel at Sunset, from the place with the snooty French people and waiters who wouldn't serve me. But it was pretty speccy (and got better at night when it was all floodlit). Parts of the James Bond film Octopussy were filmed here, they show it most nights on the rooftop restaurants.
Walking back from the above place, there was some kind of private party going on in the castle, perhaps the Maharajah?
Nice way to spend an afternoon:
The Lake Palace Hotel at Sunset, from the place with the snooty French people and waiters who wouldn't serve me. But it was pretty speccy (and got better at night when it was all floodlit). Parts of the James Bond film Octopussy were filmed here, they show it most nights on the rooftop restaurants.
Walking back from the above place, there was some kind of private party going on in the castle, perhaps the Maharajah?
Revising my opinion on Udaipur...
I was stuck in the tourist areas near the ghat earlier, and that's always depressing. It's filled with snooty French people who come for la gloire or the beauty or whatever. I went to a beautiful but fancy restaurant for a drink by the lake, but didn't get served. So thought bugger it, and took a taxi into the real part of the town to get some food and look around.
It's a cliche but it's totally different outside of the tourist areas. No one is trying to sell you stuff, people are either interested or diffident about you being there, not fake friendly. There wasn't a white face there. I guess Udaipur's charm is that it's smaller, more open than a place like Mumbai. Little kids with big brown seal eyes love practising their English and say "hello, namaste, how are you?". I say "Hello, I'm well thankyou, how are you?".
Slightly older kids like the bunch of cheeky buggers that followed me for a while want things like a pen, a coin, and when they got braver they sent one of them forward to ask for a condom, so I acted shocked and said "nahin" very loudly, then the next time he came forwards I gave him a kick in the pants.
That meant 15 minutes of them sneaking up behind me, then me turning round really quickly to chase them, loud screams, which was fun. I'd actually brought a bunch of 20c Au coins with Don Bradman on the back just for that purpose, but that kind of shit doesn't go down in Mumbai and I'd left them at the hotel.
Money status: You may be getting a good deal in Australian terms but still be ripped off in Indian terms. So ignore the real exchange rate, and factor in the cost of living here. Doing that, $1 is about 10 rupees. So 60 rupees is about right for a long neck of beer ($6), even though that's actually only $1.80 Au.
Food recomendations: In Mumbai, Paneer Tikka Masala. In Udaipur, get yourself to the Delhi Gate my friend and help yourself to all you can eat Thali for 50 rupees.
Gift status: Too many bought.
Item bought that gives me the most pleasure: A thing that you fling upwards and lights with a blue light on its descent. Cost: 10 rupees (or $1 using my rate, or 30 cents using the real rate).
Cricket status: I have 50 rupees riding on Australia winning the next final, so they better get their asses into gear.
Photos to come tomorrow.
It's a cliche but it's totally different outside of the tourist areas. No one is trying to sell you stuff, people are either interested or diffident about you being there, not fake friendly. There wasn't a white face there. I guess Udaipur's charm is that it's smaller, more open than a place like Mumbai. Little kids with big brown seal eyes love practising their English and say "hello, namaste, how are you?". I say "Hello, I'm well thankyou, how are you?".
Slightly older kids like the bunch of cheeky buggers that followed me for a while want things like a pen, a coin, and when they got braver they sent one of them forward to ask for a condom, so I acted shocked and said "nahin" very loudly, then the next time he came forwards I gave him a kick in the pants.
That meant 15 minutes of them sneaking up behind me, then me turning round really quickly to chase them, loud screams, which was fun. I'd actually brought a bunch of 20c Au coins with Don Bradman on the back just for that purpose, but that kind of shit doesn't go down in Mumbai and I'd left them at the hotel.
Money status: You may be getting a good deal in Australian terms but still be ripped off in Indian terms. So ignore the real exchange rate, and factor in the cost of living here. Doing that, $1 is about 10 rupees. So 60 rupees is about right for a long neck of beer ($6), even though that's actually only $1.80 Au.
Food recomendations: In Mumbai, Paneer Tikka Masala. In Udaipur, get yourself to the Delhi Gate my friend and help yourself to all you can eat Thali for 50 rupees.
Gift status: Too many bought.
Item bought that gives me the most pleasure: A thing that you fling upwards and lights with a blue light on its descent. Cost: 10 rupees (or $1 using my rate, or 30 cents using the real rate).
Cricket status: I have 50 rupees riding on Australia winning the next final, so they better get their asses into gear.
Photos to come tomorrow.
Mar 3, 2008
For those that came in late...
I took a 16 hour sleeper bus to Udaipur. That's a bus with bunks, basically. It was very nice except the driver was a speed demon whose mission in life was to overtake everything he could, and now he had the vehicle to do it.
Udaipur is one of those 'Venice of the ...' cities. It is very pretty, kind of like a Greek fishing village with arches etc... This is the first thing I saw getting off the bus:
Udaipur is one of those 'Venice of the ...' cities. It is very pretty, kind of like a Greek fishing village with arches etc... This is the first thing I saw getting off the bus:
It's also cheaper than Mumbai, here's what you can get for 400 rupees (that's about $12) in Mumbai:
And here's 400 in Udaipur, with toilet, shower, and a mattress that works:
The view from my room:
View from the restaurant on top of the hotel:
The city from the other side of the lake (ghat):
Cow deciding to take a rest at the middle of an intersection:
City palace:
Tiled room in the palace:
Random temple:
Look closer, money changers in the temple!
Procession going past my taxi:
Pretty Indian girl (I think she's already married Julia):
All in all, Udaipur is a lovely tourist town. It's pretty much heaven for my mum, with all the jewelry and silverwork. There are touts and scammers sure, but coming from Mumbai they seem pretty quaint. Udaipur is kind of like Strahan compared to Hobart, outside of the tourist areas there's not much going on. It's very nice, but so's Maine.
Things I've learnt: A few words in Hindi go a long way.
Status of poos: Still runny but solidifying.
The view from my room:
View from the restaurant on top of the hotel:
The city from the other side of the lake (ghat):
Cow deciding to take a rest at the middle of an intersection:
City palace:
Tiled room in the palace:
Random temple:
Look closer, money changers in the temple!
Procession going past my taxi:
Pretty Indian girl (I think she's already married Julia):
All in all, Udaipur is a lovely tourist town. It's pretty much heaven for my mum, with all the jewelry and silverwork. There are touts and scammers sure, but coming from Mumbai they seem pretty quaint. Udaipur is kind of like Strahan compared to Hobart, outside of the tourist areas there's not much going on. It's very nice, but so's Maine.
Things I've learnt: A few words in Hindi go a long way.
Status of poos: Still runny but solidifying.
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