Advertisement
Published: October 30th 2006
Edit Blog Post
Hello all. Had a great 4 nights in Udaipur. Not loads to do.....which was a good thing.....saw an uninspiring palace, a lake, shops, restaurants.......most of which were on the hotel roof tops and had amazing views over the lake, i was quite happy just sitting with my book in one hand and a beer in the other..........was definatly due some chill time! watched the obligatory James Bond Film 'Octopussy' which was filmed here, and got overly excited when i saw some of the land marks where i'd been.
decided to stay a fourth night so we could do cookery course........it came highly recommended.......and although very expensive was well worth it, especially as we got to eat the end result...mmmm! The teacher was a lady called Sushma, and we were promised an 'experience of devine cooking'.........sounded good. i just wanted to be able to recreate some of the amazing food i've been eating, when i get home. but we learnt oh so much more. learnt about all the spices, how to roast and grind them, how to make curries, breads, samosas, chai, all from scratch. she made it look so easy, i just hope i can remember it all by the time
i get home. i was definatly taken back to home economics classes with Mrs McMahon.......those of you from Cavendish should remember that well! Once we had made the feast, we sat with our fellow cookery students (an ozzie and american couple) and ate till curry was coming out of my ears......and spent the afternoon snoozing in a full, but happy and content state!
as if this wasn't enough pampering for one day.........i thought i deserved a massage for my hard work slaving avay in the kitchen. Ayurvedic Massage sounded very exotic.....so i paid the few hundred extra rupees, it sounded kinda special! Not quite sure they are the words i would pick now, it was good, but i was stripped down to my panties, covered in what smelt and felt like a mixture of cooking oil and tiger balm, and half heartedly massaged head to toe. the ambience was also slightly ruined by her sons mobile phone going off every two seconds and her other son doing a stinky poo in the toilet which was about 5 metre from where i was lying, nice! Our hotel owner, who we got quite friendly with over the four days, just laughed at
how much i had paid for the cooking class and massage, and offered to do them both for free for me! Erm, cookery course would have been good but i think i'll pass on the massage, i said in the politest possible way!
So....6 hour drive with our now miserable driver Sanjeev...for a two hour stopover at the Pushkar Camel Fair......then 3 more hours on the road to arrive in Jaipur, the pink city!
Driving boring.......camel fair interesting to look at...think it is Indias equivalent of Glastonbury. People can from all over the country to trade camels, camp out, play on the fairground, and have fun. Saw lots of strange Carnie/ traveller kinds that get their kids to perform all sorts of wierd and not so wonderful tricks in from of large crowds, ther was something a bit wrong about it!
also lots of 'i've been in india too long' backpacker types........the ones that are wearing local dress.......riding motorbikes with confidence, have taken up some wierd spiritual belief, looked like they havn't washed since they arrived and looking down on everyother westerner as if to say 'tourist'! so although it was interesting to see was pleased to be heading on.
although going to have to get used to the strange hippy type for when we get to Goa!
got to Jaipur in the evening, exhausted from a long day on the road. hadn't heard great things about this place, but arrived to a funky guest house with a Gaudi-esque roof top restaurant...........just what was needed. so curry, beer, sleep was the agenda for the evening, and that was pretty much it!
today we did a whistle stop tour of the city, palace, observatory, fort and i'm ashamed to say, McDonalds (sorry kate!) Couldn't resist those golden arches, and only 99 rupees (1 pound twenty) for an extra value meal, mmm, i could really taste the quality!
The sights we saw earlier was ok, nothing has quite lived up to the forts and palaces in Jodhpur. The view from Nahargarh Fort was quite amazing, the roof top would make a fantastic setting for a Mary Poppins/ Bollywood classic???? The Maharaja used to live here with his nine wives, untill he died and all the wives sacrificed themselves on the fire where his body burnt! thats devotion for you?!?
we met three english guys in the fort, finally, a familiar accent. they
are over here filming the cricket for sky....and offered us free tickets.....would mean sacking in going up north to Shimla, but sounds like too good an opportunity too miss! Will have too see though, things like this don't always come off!
Off to the nice roof top restaurant for more curry now...........keep telling myself that because it is fresh vegetarian and authentic that the pounds aren't going to pile on........???
so once again, i've written too much, sorry if i bored you. keep in touch, love katie xxxxxxxxx
ps more photos to put on from udaipur onwards, but they aren't working right now, will try again soon (bet you can't wait!!) xxx
Advertisement
Tot: 0.059s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 7; qc: 24; dbt: 0.037s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Dad
non-member comment
Madur Jaffery
Thought it was Fanny Craddock ( before your time). Like the dolls rolling pin. Did it make Katie ( or me) size popadoms? Would have come home already if thats all there is to eat. Dont forget to exercise. Love Dadxx