Indian stories - part 5 - Jodhpur in less than 24 hours

I was passing by Jodhpur, the blue city of Rajasthan. I visited the Mehrangarh Fort, my fifth fort in 10 days. Haven eaten practically only in the guest houses (locals in Rajasthan do not really eat out), that night I was looking for McDonalds! Big mistake. Two days before a big holiday of Diwali (“Festival of Lights”), the city was going crazy. New beginning means new clothes, new everything, the whole country goes shopping.

The very next morning I fled to a smaller Udaipur.







A few other photos on flickr

Indian stories - part 4 - Jaisalmer

If in Bikaner I felt "I finally found it" ["it" being that adventure, that discovery feeling about a place, hospitality and curiosity of the locals], then in Jaisalmer I lost it again. Jaisalmer Fort with its narrow streets inside, Jain temples and millions of souvenir shops is gorgeous. I look at every picture in my album and I love it - the colors, the shapes, the texture... but it was difficult. 10 days in India and I was still untrained in dealings with local annoyances. I had to escape the constant haggling in the privacy of four walls of my guest house.

Better late than never (only 5 months later) I will show the beauty of Jaisalmer:






I visited all three mysterious and beautiful Jain temples and I love my "alive" goddess. I admired the great detail in decoration, but I would not say I understood and remembered much about the ancient religion of Jainism. It is too complex to understand with my random visit to a temple or two.





The fylfot (swastika) is among the holiest of Jain symbols and as Jaisalmer has a significant Jain presence, swastikas (along with Ganesh) are seen everywhere, more than anywhere in Rajasthan. I even stayed in a guest house called Swastika [as an eco-conscious tourist I stayed outside the Jaisalmer Fort :)]





Lastly, no visit to Jaisalmer is complete without watching sunrise (or sunset) over the Sam Dunes in Thar Desert.



More pictures on flickr set. Please tell it is quite pretty, no?

Indian Stories - Part 3 - Bikaner and Thar Desert

From touristy Jaipur I escaped to a small town of Bikaner (Rajasthan). The differences were striking. I was left alone to wonder around town, everybody would stare, but nobody would dare to speak. In the quest for old havelis (merchants' mansions of Northern India) I got lost only to be found by a gang of kids. In Hindi they would demand to be photographed, fighting for the spotlight, and later rushing to see themselves on the screen. Lots of fun.








Then I was saved by an English speaking teenager and my journey around Bikaner began. I saw havelis, I took more pictures of kids, I visited a Hindu temple, the bazaar, witnessed a wedding procession, talked to some curious tailors on the street (now with the help of my guide). Finally I ended up in his cousin's house where the girls were painting my feet with henna. My "go with the flow" theory has worked flawlessly. I could not have asked for a better day, but I got it - in the afternoon I visited the magnificent Junagarh Fort built by Raja Rai Singh.

It must have been not only its beauty, but also quietness of the fort that made such a strong impression on me. I spent at least 3 hours wandering around and still did not manage to see all the room and listen to the full audio guide. Each room had a story and its own design.



My next two days I spend flowing through the Thar desert on a camel's back. The camel safari around the area is known to be less crowded and more "authentic" than in Jaisalmer. The experience is a bit too slow as the landscape is not changing, but I appreciated a lot to experience the simple food cooked for us, the desert village life and sincere curiosity and smiles of kids on the way.







Also discussing the cast system in India with our guide was quite a revolution for me.

More pictures from Bikaner are on flickr set.

between regression analysis and game theory questions

I have 4 exams within the next three days and all of us are going a bit insane with the studying. I am twittering in-between.

I have discovered a number of amazing things within the two months at INSEAD. I will have a pile of links, books, and ideas to go through in many years post graduation. Just this awakening was worth the tuition, but since I am getting so much more out it I am extremely happy I joined in.

My adaptation/integration/adjustment period is over and I feel 200% better now at INSEAD. Finding the rythm, the people, the goals, the balance, the compromise was truly important. And everyday "it" is getting better.

Indian stories - part 2- Jaipur

The bus was beeping all the way from Delhi to Jaipur. I was happy. I was getting into the real thing.

Having heard so much about tourist hassling, I got to experience it first hand. As we were approaching the city center my face became more puzzled as to where to get out. On one of the stops the experienced rickshaw driver read my mind, he jumped into the bus and started waving at me – "Yes, city center, city center, ma'am, get off." It was suspicious, so I decided to get off later (a good rule of thumb – get off when the driver kicks you out, he knows 99% of the time where tourists go). As the bus was turning into the bus station, I saw the crowd of rickshaw drivers running behind the bus. The quick ones managed to jump up and knock on my window to get the attention. There was no way to escape - I honestly got scared, but I survived.

My small guest house with an adorable owner was my safety heaven. He told me how to book train tickets, what to see in Jaipur, where to eat, where to buy jewelry. I slowly felt acclimatized.

Jaipur is one the cities of the Golden triangle (Agra, Varanasi and Jaipur), which means the city center revolves around tourism. Infinite number of rickshaws are fighting for tourists and driving the rates down. I was going around with a rickshaw for the whole day for 400 rs ($8) - the cheapest day rate (I could have negotiated it further down) I came across in India.

Jaipur is known as Pink City as it got painted in pink in honor of the Prince of Wales' visit in 1853. The most impressive architectural complex is outside Jaipur - the Amber Fort, built by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh in 1727.

Amber Fort:



The Jal Mahal:



The old town enclosed by pink walls buzzes with everyday life, to watch which is a fascinating but very tiring experience. I have never seen anything more crowed. Each bazaar street consists of 6-7 "layers" of activities - shops, shopping alley, another line of sellers, people cleaning anything from plates to themselves, parking for rickshaws, more pedestrians walking, street food, washing facilities, cycle rickshaws, auto rickshaws, occasional camel or elephant on the way to Amber Fort, cars, buses, mopeds, bikes. Everything that can make noise makes noise, everything that can beep - beeps. The city catches you and never lets you go. Not many people like Jaipur, but I was amazed at the intensity. Never visiting a city was more tiring.

Hawa Mahal, Jaipur:


First lesson learned:

As we were taught in rafting - let the river take care of you, do not fight it - the same with India, learning to go with the flow was essential to enjoy the trip.

Some pictures from the City Palace where the current Maharaja of Jaipur lives - His Highness Sawai Bhawani Singh Bahadur.






The rest of the pictures on flickr [link].