Day 4

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Heck of a day here in India. Even in the market this afternoon, people that spoke no English saw us and shouted "Obama." This was a big deal even for people that didn't know anything about our country. When we do something consistent with what we say, makes others look up to us and respect us. We hope that translates into positive things for us. We say we are a liberal democracy and that anyone in our country can grow up to be President. Now we've proved it.

Also, this afternoon, Vincent got word that his brother had died unexpectedly. Fran had already bonded with him and I had pretty much gotten over his macho asshole approach to teaching and was beginning to learn. I've got to admit, he's not a bad guy, just insecure. I hope you like my pictures. I've worked hard on them and Vincent helped me a great deal. But he must go home. So we will be taught by Fatima, the director of the Palm Beach School of Photography, by Fran, and by Andre Reichmann (Toronto real estate, Canary Wharf, Reichmann).

This morning we went to a Temple, not a Synagogue and we took a few pictures. Then this afternoon, we reviewed our favorites for the first time. We showed some of the pictures from the blog and others. And then we went to the outdoor market again. On the way we stopped at a school. Udaipur is famous for it's miniature paintings. The artists are all from one family, for hundreds of years. They sit on the floor in a yoga position, painting miniature paintings. Each one takes several months. They paint with a brush made out of a few bristles of a squirrel tail. The big brushes are made from the eye lashes of a camel. All the paints are made from different minerals, made right there. Pretty cool. This is a short blog today. We leave early tomorrow for the Pushkar Camel Fair. Two days without the cell phones or Internet. So, we'll have lots to talk about when we get back. For now, here are some pictures.

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Photos

opium den Nov 3
Opium ceremony time

Comments

[Theo Folz]

improving
It looks like the quality of the trip improves as you get away from large cities. Don't let the camels bite you.

[janebishop]

not jealous this time!!
we are so enjoying your blogs and wait everyday for update. we wondered who's idea it was for you to travel there. my friends daughter lives in goa.. are you going there? loving the pics.....something tells me we're going to be seeing new photos at the horvitz house! stay safe.... jane and jack

[Gary Corr]

Opium
Let's hear about the opium!

[David Horvitz aka Pops]

opium
Interesting, this family, and others from their sect have "opium ceremonies" every day. All the men are hooked on opium because they drink it, diluted, during the ceremonies. Women are not permitted to participate, but they do secretly. Because the dilution is weak, and because it's drunk, it doesn't seem to do anything but benefit their dispositions. But, as you can tell, there are no rocket scientists coming out of these sects. I got a little buzz and it made my queasy stomach feel much better. That's all.