the southern comfort.

i just took a stroll down the beach to get to this internet place, dipping my feet into the warm sand and wavy water. yes, i'm back south and it feels even better than it sounds! :D
i had this idea of going a bit around north, maybe even to nepal, but there was a cold wave in the entire asia which just wasn't loosing up. so after ten days in and around delhi, i decided i'd go back down south, where it's warm, nice and familiar.
we took a break from delhi for a couple of days though and went a bit north of the city, to rajaji national park, haridwar and some very nice and posh places we were pampered in around uttar pradesh.
then it was time to hit the road, so i was mentally preparing for the 35+ hour ride back down south. it actually passed quite fast and painless and now when i'm here, it feels like nothing...
anyway, here's a couple of photos and you'll hear from me after about a month, when i go back north...
cheers from sunny gokarn,
mladen


light games inside a church in uttar pradesh.


washing stuff in the ganga.


the sunset over the holy ganga.

little elephant, unfortunately captivated for training.

fancy places, yes...

delhi metro, on the way to the national museum.


outside the museum.


detail of india gate, a momument decorated to indian victims.


south extension, delhi's posh shopping area.


back south...

a tad from delhi...

well, it's been a while since i last posted anything, so here goes...

the rest of rajasthan was nice, since we met some friends and prolonged our stay a bit... the not so nice thing is that my stupid usb transferred the virus that i mentioned earlier and infected nitin's laptop, so we lost all the data. yeah.
luckily, nitin had gotten his laptop recently and it had vista on it, which miraculously saved all the data even though he restored it fully to the factory setting. i don't know if i'm that much out of date, but this is great and it's so nice to see all those photos back on...

anyway, delhi's been weird, especially after the last couple of times i was here and it felt great. this time i just felt suffocated by it, by its shitty weather and the shit-covered streets, there's a massive cold front along whole asia and it's coming down from the himalayas, but it's sunny today, so we'll see what we'll do. nitin suggested we might play volleyball or something, since we're not going to corbett reserve till next week, from what it looks like.
oh yeah, the other day i took the metro three lines operating at the moment and more about to come by 2010) and it was cool, super clean and fast.

anyway, i haven't been doing much but sitting in my room and trying to fix my broken discman. last night i got really pissed off by this guy who plays harmonium, the world's most annoying instrument, at insane times like 11 pm or 7 am. so just now i went and bough another crappy discman, which is hopefully gonna get me through all of this guy's musical nights...

i haven't got a clue where to go next, since i was planning to go north, but i just keep reading about record snowfalls (like in the past 100 years) in the newspapers. i've been talking to marina and nitin, so after corbett i might stick around uttaranchal, going to haridwar, rishikesh and around and then coming back to celebrate marina and nitin's anniversary and waving them bye...
then we'll see, i might go down to orccha or somewhere around, since i've spent most of my money and there's no way i can afford going to nepal and around, as the original plan was...

anyway, there's not much i've got to say actually, i have a feeling like i should leave delhi for a bit, since it seems a bit overwhelming at times, but i've run into some people here and i'm trying to find some charm in it all. the crazy thing's that i'm actually managing...

since i've no idea where i'll be off to next, don't get all worried if i don't write or post, since the internet in the mountains can sometimes be hard to find. you'll hear from me when i get a hold of a computer or when i get back to delhi or somewhere...

i hope all's ok with you guys, have fun and i'll talk to you soon...

cheers from at-the-moment sunny delhi!

mladen
म्लादेन


enjoying the cushioned view of pushkar.


rajiv chowk at delhi's connaught place.


marina and nitin enjoying the pushkar haveli.


the peanuts inspection's back.


monkeys hanging around the temple.


someone told me there's not enough photos of me,
so here's my big dry nose.


pidgeons flying over one of pushkar's temples.

a bit around rajasthan...

the last few days in pushkar were spent trying out different restaurants, sitting on the terrace and flying kites. our guest house owner took us for a ride outside the town and inside the barren landscape of rajasthan. we visited a baba, had some tea and saw a 500-year old banyan, a tree that grows roots out of its branches. people usually take scooters or bikes to go around the surrounding villages, but it was even better in a car, with all the dust and sand kept on the other side of the window. the evening was spiced up with a fire on the terrace (and additionally with a piece of dry cow shit we used as well), since it's been very cold lately.

in order to break up the daily pushkar routine a bit and float outside the pushkar bubble, we decided to go for a ride to jodhpur. we set of early in the morning (which would be something around eight), just after we met up with jenny in the it's-actually-named 'techno chaishop' on the main bazaar. the ride was great, since nitin (and us all) could enjoy the fancy new roads, another project of the indian government (thank you for the music). it took as around five hours to get there, but the ride was everything but boring. surviving multiple trucks-buses-tractors-bikes overtakings, trying to spot neel gayas (a type of deer or so) and checking out the bare landscape outside made the time pass by quite fast.

before we knew it, we could spot the 500-year old fort meherangarh in the distance and we started fighting our way into the city. although lonely planet (and some people) warned about the hassle in the city center, i've experienced much more hassle in mumbai, jaipur and some other places. i didn't want to jinx myself though, so i kept quite and enjoyed the (for now) peaceful walk around the bazaar. we spent most of the time sitting on the terrace enjoying the view (and a kind of millet bread) or walking around the bazaar. we also used to opportunity to grab a couple of beers (since alcohol's banned in pushkar) and we hit the sack after the dinner and a couple of mind games.

we were staying at an older couple's guest house with a fantastic view of the old fort, which we visited the next day. grabbing the set for the audio tour and shamelessly taking photos, i was determined to take advantage of all the options i got for the amount i had to pay to get in (not to mention the tourist vs. indian price ratio is more than 10:1). the fort was built on a 125 m high hill and is still run by the maharaja of jodhpur, showing the magnificent abilities and the influence of the rajas at that time (as well as now). the city was located on an important trading route, so it grew big and powerful and today it's one of the best-known spice meccas, famous for its saffron lassi (a drink similar to sour milk), supposedly the most refreshing of all drinks. the actual size (second thickest walls in the world, after the chinese wall) and the surreal appearance of the fort hit you as you start climbing towards it up the hill. turning around and looking over the whole city is even crazier.

jenny hit the road towards udaipur and we started back towards pushkar. we'll be heading for delhi, visiting some friends and settling business (in marina and nitin's case). the weekend after we'll be going off to corbett national tiger reserve, so keep those fingers crossed we spot some.

until the next update...


when in rome...


old jodhpur from the fort.


inside the fort.


nerdy tourists...


outside the fort.


view out the street from the roof top.


marina and nitin enjoying the sun...


the fort.


the 10 km walls around the city...


the blue city...


the 500-year old banyan tree.


need to change your saari?


view outside the balcony.


walking around jodhpur...


the skyline...