*Warning: Images may be considered NSFW.* Another early arrival. We dropped our bags at a little spot recommended by the very nice Keralan couple at Ayur Arogyam, a fabulous - but pricey - ayurvedic massage place recommended by everyone. The hotel was only a spot to rest our heads and not particularly recommended, although staff were helpful. We stayed only for the day. Another train out late this evening to Varanasi. The temples for which Khajuraho is famous for are breathtaking, and it's even more amazing to think that many of them originally arose from a lake, now long gone. Most of the 85 temples - 25 of which now remain - were built between 950 to 1050 CE and remained in use for quite a while afterwards. Khajaraho's isolation helped preserve the temples from the ... read more

First class is certainly the way to travel. Last night we had our own compartment on the train to New Delhi, with a door that locked and an attendant available should we need anything. The bathroom was still down the hall. We would have enjoyed it more if we hadn't been so exhausted. At least we slept well! When we arrived at 5 am it was already hot. I don't typically sweat much in the Kentucky summer heat, but I was melting when we arrived in this city, and the sun wasn't even up yet. We found an auto-rickshaw to our hotel, Amax Inn, and although I took some photos it wasn't much to write home about. A decent room, air-conditioning and a fan, our own bathroom. Sleep! By the time we made it up we ... read more

Udaipur. Venice of the East. Rajasthan’s - maybe India's - most romantic city. This was one of the loveliest cities I've visited. Its beauty was tempered only by the noise and fumes of the many auto-rickshaws that ply the narrow streets of this town. On our arrival we checked into our fantastic hotel, Kankarwa Haveli. The accompanying photos speak louder than the words I could use to describe it. The owner is a most gracious gentleman, and our stay was such a pleasure. Highly recommended. We visited the major sights the city had to offer, but also spent a lot of time enjoying our hotel, including the rooftop terrace and restaurant. Otherwise, we visited Jagdish Temple, took a lovely boat ride on Lake Pichola to the palace on Jagmandir Island, and made a thorough tour of ... read more

This is India! the land of dreams and romance, of fabulous wealth and fabulous poverty, of splendor and rags, of palaces and hovels, of famine and pestilence, of genii and giants and Aladdin lamps, of tigers and elephants, the cobra and the jungle, the country of a hundred nations and a hundred tongues, of a thousand religions and two million gods, cradle of the human race, birthplace of human speech, mother of history, grandmother of legend, great-grandmother of tradition, whose yesterdays bear date with the mouldering antiquities of the rest of the nations--the one sole country under the sun that is endowed with an imperishable interest for alien persons, for lettered and ignorant, wise and fool, rich and poor, bond and free, the one land that all men desire to see, and having seen once, by ... read more

Well, thank the stars, I'm back in Europe. Tangier came and went and I have little to report from there. My only suggestions in terms of that city: do not trust the Lonely Planet hotel reviews and in fact, save your time and just take the train to Asilah instead. You're not missing much and can still easily catch the morning ferry to Spain and/or travel down to Marrakesh, whichever way you're headed. The ferry ride was great - I think boat travel ranks right up there with train travel, as long as the craft is large enough for a cafe and plenty of bathrooms. Arriving in Spain was another joy - I as so happy to be back in Europe after all these years! I met a very interesting fellow San Fransican named Aish on ... read more