Road Trip! Hitching a Ride.

A week ago I had another visit to the property in Jaipur.....another long day of leaving at 7:00am and not returning until approximately 11:pm.

The mode of transportation was by car this time....not the usual quick flight of an hour......but a trip by car that takes no less that 4.5 hours.

This is my preferred mode of transportation, because of the sites that avail themselves.....but sometimes, the need to effectively utilize time does not allow for this, and the plane is necessary.

There are some incredible sites that one can witness while driving anywhere on any road in India.

The "Truck Art" is amazing......Preston enjoys "collecting" pictures of truck art as well.

And then.....the Indians have taking the term "Hitching a Ride" to a new level......In this picture you can count six people hanging on the outside of this Jeep....what you can't see is how many people are packed inside.....I am not exaggerating when I tell you there were at least 10 people inside.....traveling about 40 km/h down the highway.

Experiencing India by car is an amazing journey all it's own. A word of advice is to always have your camera ready.....anything is possible.

Pink City Blues!

Jaipur is thus far Linda's favorite city in India.....and although Jaipur is high on my list, I honestly haven't visited a city in India that I haven't liked.

Jaipur is rich in History, Heritage and Legend......One such "legend" is how Jaipur earned the designation of being the Pink City.

The story is told as follows:

Jaipur needed a fresh coat of paint to welcome its distinguished guest, the Prince of Wales, in 1905-6. The contractors inability to supply any other color in the required quantity compelled the choice of pink shade for its walls. A contractor’s compulsion famed Jaipur to become known as the Pink City.

I cannot attest to the accuracy of the information....because several of the websites I visited had different years that the Prince of Wales visited......the earliest stated that he visited in 1852......some in between, and the latest was 1905-06. Who knows?

One thing is for sure.....Jaipur is a very special place and besides the history/legend behind it's name.....Jaipur is also know for Blue Pottery.

The influence of the Mogul Rulers can be found in the architecture and arts throughout India. Like these, the use of Blue Glaze was developed by Mongol artisans who combined Chinese glazing technology with Persian decorative arts. This technique travelled south to India with early Muslim potentates in the 14th century. During its infancy, it was used to make tiles to decorate mosques, tombs and palaces in Central Asia. Today, the art is being revived by only a few skilled artisans.....but they are making many decorative items for modern consumers to use in their homes.

When Linda learned about Blue Pottery, her first visit to Jaipur would not have been complete without a stop at a place that sold Blue Pottery....luckily, one of my earlier visits to the City I learned of just such a place that has their own artists and factory.

All handmade and hand painted.......the result of this timeless tradition yields some beautiful works of art....vases, drawer knobs, tiles, coasters, bowls,figurines, plates, furniture....

I have no doubt that our family and friends will be recipients of some Blue Gifts from the Pink City!

Enjoy!

Delhi Landmark - Qutub Minar

As incredible as India is, it is remarkable that there is so much literally right in our backyard.

With the intention of preparing for Parker's upcoming visit, we have decided to embark on several exploratory trips to plan what will surely be an action packed adventure for him.

This week, Preston and I discovered Qutub Minar......a New Delhi landmark since the year 1193 A.D.

That right......1193 and built on the site of 27 former Hindu and Jain Temples that were destroyed by the first Sultan of Delhi; Qutub-Ud-Din who managed to only reach the first level before his death.

The Qutub Minar is part of a vast complex of other monuments of historical importance....and is a must see landmark on a visit to New Delhi.

The last picture I included is the beginning of a second tower, which was supoosed to be twice the height of the Qutub Minar, but the Sultan died and it was never finished.

Here are some interesting facts and 5 of the 354 photographs that we took at the site......

Interesting & Fun Facts about Qutab Minar

Qutab Minar is the tallest brick minaret in the world.

The height of Qutub Minar is 72.5 m. or 238 feet tall.
There are 379 stairs inside the tower, which lead to the top.

The foundation of the tower was laid down by Qutubu’d - Din Aibak in 1193 AD.

The purpose behind the construction of Minar was for the use of mu'azzin (crier) to give calls for prayer.

The next three stories were added by Shamsu'd-Din Iltutmish, the son - in - law of Qutubu’d - Din Aibak.
The fifth and the last storey were constructed by Firuz Shah Tughlaq.

Some say it was damaged twice by lightning and subsequently repaired in the 1300's.....some say it was from earthquakes.

The Minar contains numerous inscriptions in Arabic and Nagari characters, which narrate its history.

Qutab Minar is made up of red and buff sandstone, containing intricate carvings and verses from the Holy Quran.

Enjoy.

The Last Mughal Emporer - Safdarjung

I caught a cold.......and I am not a good patient. My cold started on Friday which was a bit of a bummer because Linda and I had purchased tickets to the Aussie Wine and Food Event.....and there was no way I was going to miss it....sick or not. I had been looking forward to it all week.

Sunday, as you can tell, was my day of just relaxing, taking care of my cold and catching up on my blog entries......but boredom set in for both Preston and I. If I were back in the United States, I would have just jumped into the car and headed for a drive.....only Parker can uphold the Lauland tradition of.....driving to escape.

Ramesh had the day off....so Preston and I grabbed a Tuk-Tuk at the end of the street and off we were to Safdarjung's Tomb.

This tomb was also fashioned after Humayun's tomb which was built some 200 years before. Safdarjung's son erected this tomb in his fathers honor in 1754.....22 years before the United States gained it's Independence from Britain. Safdarjung's son didn't realize when he commissioned the resting place for his father that he would be responsible for the last significant example of Mughal architecture in Delhi.

It is truly a beautiful building, that is currently undergoing restoration. Restoration work is revealing some beautiful hand painted design work that has been covered for sometime.

Discovering Delhi: Humayun's Tomb

A few weeks ago, Preston and I discovered Hauz Khas....and we both thought it was time that Linda joined us for the fun of discovering the "Incredible India" that exists all around us in Delhi.

After the "Walk for Life" we returned home, only to realize that we still had a huge part of our day left.....so it gave us the opportunity to explore.....Humayun's Tomb.....and you get another history lesson!

Before we arrived, we learned a great deal from Ramesh on the ride over. In his previous job, he would take tourists visiting Delhi to sites like this all the time....he shared with us that Humayun's Tomb is sometimes referred to as the "Mini Taj Mahal".....it was built before the Taj and there are many similarities between the two.
Humayun's Tomb was commissioned by his widow.....the Taj by a grieving husband for his wife whom he loved dearly. The design used in Humayun's Tomb is considered to be the first example of proper Mughal Style which was inspired by Persian Architecture, and it is clear that the Taj borrowed some of the same elements.

The name Begum and the number 14 also pose some unique similarities between the two buildings. Humayun's widow,Hamida Banu Begum, commissioned the tomb to be built for her husband 14 years after his death......in the case of the Taj, it was the wife of the Emperor who died while giving birth to their 14th child, a son named Gauhara Begum.

Construction of the tomb began in 1562 and took a total of eight years to complete....including the gardens and water features that surround the tomb. There are several other tombs that are part of this complex that sits on approximately 20 acres on the East side of Delhi.

The buildings are magnificent and it is very difficult to believe that they were built 4.5 centuries ago......they are in such great physical shape....truly built to stand the test of time.

A visit to Humayun's Tomb will certainly be on our list of sites to take visitors......enjoy the photo's.

A New Delhi Sunday Drive

If you are wondering what a "DAY OFF" consists of for me right now, here is a peek into my Sunday! It isn't much different that what would have taken place at home.....I am just without my family and thousands of miles away.....but the routine is the same.
Normally, this would be extremely boring......but I have cool pictures to illustrate some of the things I did ( of course, you may still find it boring).
Ramesh picked me up at 1:00pm and we toured neighborhoods...again..then I asked him to take me to a new place for lunch.....it was a place that Prem (my friend from the plane) suggested Ramesh take me too. It is just on the outskirts of Connaught Circle (Circus).....Hotel Saravana Bhavan or HSB for short. There are even 4 locations in the good ole USA.....for those of us in the south, the closest is in Decatur Georgia! Go figure, I had to travel 14,000 miles to find them. Great food....and it was right next to a McDonalds, which was more expensive!
Next he took me to see some of the Government buildings and then we made it to Hauz Kaus Village for some furniture shopping. It was in the village that I came across an art exhibition and I took some pictures outside the gallery. it was a great day, found the source where Pier 1 buys their furniture.....at extraordinarily low prices compared to the states....and there was a 30% off sale! Enjoy!

Dusshera Again!: My second Thursday in India and another National Holiday!

I am beginning to think that India has as many festivals as Louisiana. Yes it is true that on Wednesday, I celebrated this same holiday in South India (Chennai), but today it is being celebrated in New Delhi. I was driving through several neighborhoods in South Delhi, looking for the ideal place for Linda, Preston and I to settle, and came across several parks which were being decorated for the evenings festivities. In Delhi, neighborhood organizations put on a live reenactment of the story of Rama defeating Ravana. Replica's of Ravana are constructed of different materials and are erected; later in the evening, the actor playing Rama shoots an arrow into the stomach of Ravana and the replica catches fire. The evening is filled with fireworks and music and food; just like Louisiana! Here are a few pictures that I took at one such celebration site. I wanted to witness the celebration first hand, but I decided to sit this year out and enjoy the view from my car. Next year, I will feel a bit more comfortable and will enjoy it with Linda and Preston.