Last stop Bundi!

As a last place to rest up before Delhi and home Bundi isn't a bad choice. Overlooked by many tourists it has a nice unhurried ambience. Stay more than a few days and before you know it half the locals know you. Hovering over the town is what could qualify as India's answer to Gormenghast. A vast Palace that Kipling once described as being g built by Goblins rather than men. 

One of Bundi's highlights for me has been Krishna's Chai shop, fabulous Masala tea lovingly made and served with a huge smile.

Where did Pushkar go?

Pushkar disappeared in a whirl. No sooner had I arrived when I realized it's almost time to leave. A week has flown by, since the lakeside priest gave me my Pushkar puma passport. And I  have been pulled under Pushkar's skin. I haven't made any big trips to local temples or taken part in anything more exciting than a piddling uncomfortable Camel ride at sunset that even came thought was deadly dull. Yet I feel I have been deeply engaged through all my waking hours. I arrived with low expectations and a little sceptical. I  leave impressed and refreshed. As another of India's holiest destinations, there is definitely an energy that seems to eclipse all the rampant commercialism that no on can escape. Here a few pics that don't really do the place justice.

Scenes from Udaipur

I could write and wax lyrical about how pretty Udaipur is. But as it's a real feast for the eyes better to leave the telling to some pictures instead. 

Udaipur with special tea

Apart from the fairytale architecture and the exotic landscapes, the other big plus to being back in Rajasthan is that the Sun is shining. It's still bloody cold in the night but that's not  problem when I'm tucked up in bed with big thick blankets.

The tourist trap areas are a little less pushy than I expected, which is no bad thing but the traffic scuttling down the narrow lanes is horrible. There a few too many cafe latte places for my liking but I  have found where to get the best chai in the area.

Views from the hotel roof are nothing short of spectacular, especially at sunset. A scene I enjoy along with a special tea as it's called on the bill. basically a beer served up in a tea pot and drunk from a tea cup. An elaborate way to get around the fact that they are not licenced to sell booze. And coffee served in a beer glass.

The hotel is a lovely old Havelock and my room, although simple, is comfortable and beautifully decorated.

Going Lala in Orcha

I have just one more day to go here in Orcha, most of the time the area has been cloaked in fog, raining and bloody cold. But today the sun came out just when I needed it. I was even beginning to go a bit Lala and so apparently was one local store.
Orcha is one of those Indian destinations that seems to have a surprise around every corner with abandoned temples and palaces just sitting in the middle of fields used as stables for cows and homes for bats and vultures.

When I  got back to my hotel after a full sunny day of wandering, I found that there was a ceremony in full swing dedicated to dear Saraswati