West to Jaipur

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We left the madness of Delhi on Sunday and took the 06.10 train to Jaipur. The train was airconditioned luxury although it had seen better days - the service on board was five star, a real contrast to the sights from the train window as we eased out of New Delhi train station. Poverty is everywhere in India but even the poverty has different scales and levels. We are still coming to terms with what we have seen from the traders in the choking bazaars of the city to the people who work in ad hoc rubbish dumps on the outskirts of Delhi surely the poorest of the poor.

Everywhere you go even in the commercial centre of Delhi or Jaipur the poor exist (surely not "live") in the shadow of the commercial centres, banks or in the case of Jaipur the jewel palaces where one can buy rubies, sapphires and diamonds. We wondered what to expect in Jaipur away from the 15 million who live so chaotically in Delhi. Jaipur is a city of 2.5 million but it feels like more because it is contained in a relatively small footprint and also it appears on first glance that the entire population is on the road at the same time. The roads are choked with cycle and motorised rickshaws, bicycles, motorbikes, cows, horse drawn carts, pedestrians, cars, SUVs, buses, trucks and the odd saddhu (holy man) making his way seemingly unaware of the madness around him.

Indicators, lanes, traffic lights all exist in India yet no one seems to use them. The preferred mode of driving is with your hand/finger firmly on the horn which says, make way I'm coming through, look out I'm not stopping for the red light, sorry but sounding my horn in this way makes it okay for me to cut you up so much you have to stand on the brakes or nearly fall off your bike and a myriad of other things.

The old walled city of Jaipur was unusually designed in a grid system with relatively wide roads but alas to no avail as they are now too clogged and choked with traffic. At it's centre is the city palace an oasis of calm and splendour where still live a Prince and his family. They may not have the fabulous wealth of 100 years ago but they still live on another planet compared with their near neighbours. This I suspect will be a motif repeated again and again throughout this amazing, fascinating and occasionally infuriating country. P.

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Comments

[Rob]

Hello there...
Hey Alice and Paul, It’s great to hear your having such a great time, it sounds slightly more interesting than Skibbereen (only marginal though :) ).. Keep the updates coming and don't forget my socks! Take care, watch out for the cows and we'll talk soon... Rob p.s Paulie, Who Are ye have made it to the cup final, so we might be looking to fly you back for the game.. first class and all that, I’m sure you won't mind Alice? :)

[aliceandpaul]

Irlanda
Meditazione e cibo organico....suona familiare!! Vi auguro un buon viaggio, poi ci racconteremo a vicende le avventure da vivo! un abbraccio Alice