Samode Palace and Elephant Polo

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Well the two hours in Mumbai passed uneventfully enough after my last entry. Boarded the bus to take us to the plane to drive about 50 yds across the tarmac and then get onto the plane!

It was empty almost more crew than staff and the girl next door who was rather attractive received VIP treatment. We were also never left alone offered second helpings more fruit juice, but we would have loved a glass of wine but there was none to be seen.

When we got to Jaipur, strangely late having left on time, Solly asked who the girl was hoping it was someone famous but sadly not, she was the Aviation Minister's Daughter!

Jaipur airport small and as one might expect scruffy but with nice trees and plants for Solly to admire. Greeted at steps of aircraft by Jet Airways lady who escorted us across the runway to the terminal. Ambushed on entry and another Irs 100 saw our bags being collected and us in the Hotel car.

Usual terrifying drive, weaving through lorries and driving straight at everyone coming the other way, brought us to the Hotel.

Through about three or four gates winding up this hill. Up a long flight of stairs and then another to the reception, slight disagreement quickly solved over how many nights we were staying and then up several more staircases to the top of the hotel to a Suite, another upgrade! Aren't we doing well.

We had opted to be anti-social and went down for a quiet meal on our own believing all the OEs were at the other hotel, only for it to dawn on us as the evening wore on that we were surrounded by them!

Retired to our four poster bed and soon asleep, it had been rather a tiring and boring day.

Woke up this morning to lovely weather and to really see this Hotel in all its glory. It is beautiful genuinely an old Palace stuck on a hillside in the middle of the country. On the way to breakfast we got ambushed again and shown around the Durbar Hall where we are having dinner tonight. Amazing room with frescos all very colourful and in its own way beautiful.

I didn't comment much on the food to date but Breakfast rather carried on the trend of Dinner. Like so many places in Asia they get lost between producing their own cuisine de-spiced to supposedly satisfy the Westener and trying pitifully badly to replicate English Nursery food. Result culinary disaster. Sad really when everything else here is so lovely.

After breakfast we explored the hotel further and went to the spa, have booked an Ayurvedic massage for tomorrow morning. Gym pathetic with a walking and cycling machines that look unlikely to work and more likely to electocute you. And as there is a power cut literally every 5 minutes I suspect you would not get very far! Well that is my excuse and I am sticking to it.

Then off to Samode Bagh the sister hotel where the Elephant Polo was taking place. On an open Jeep we went with Lord Paddy like a Royal procession through the village being shouted and waved at we proceeded down the road.

Arrived at Bagh and onto the polo field, 6 playing Elephants and 1 ceremonial all walked up from Jaipur, which is an hours drive away and now on their way back I guess.

It was rather surreal and a definite sign that the Raj is still alive. Braying Old Etonians atop their elephants with the Indians running around picking up the Elephant shit in their hands and into buckets!

Great fun mostly young crowd in their 20s with a few older ones and us near the old age of the spectrum!

The Jammu and Kashmir Infantry Pipe Band played between chukka's marching with a strange limping motion rather as they wag their heads.

Tents for the spectators from which you couldn't see the polo so Lord P and us took our chairs to the touchline and sat their chatting away to different people.

A team of younger OEs working in India won all wearing specially designed shirts.

Lunch at the Bagh was slightly better that Dinner here but again fell into that culinary hole I mentioned.

Have taken loads of photos so will endeavour when I get to a computer to put them either on here or on Facebook.

I am with it aren't sitting in a deckchair on our balcony in the middle of the Indian Country side sending this from a Blackberry and talking about Facebook!!!

Long live the Raj!!!

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