Gana and I are traveling through India with friends. This is our first trip to India so it really is an adventure for us. Our trip started in Delhi where we stayed a couple of nights visiting sites there including the Red Fort and various tombs. My impression of Delhi is mixed. New Delhi certainly is relatively easy to travel through; the streets are clean and traffic flows. Old Delhi is another story....but old Delhi is the real India. The India that slaps you in the face. Taking a rickshaw ride through the narrow streets with interconnected electrical lines running overhead just out of reach, with walkers, bikers, and rickshaw riders jockeying back and forth in rhythm with each other in some grand choreographed play where people and objects pass uncomfortably close to one another without touching. Horns blowing have their own rhythm. There's the short blast signifying that I'm overtaking you so move over a bit for me to pass. This is quickly followed by several more blasts if you don't move over quickly enough, then the long blast if you don't move over at all. This horn blowing has it's own language. Only drive these streets if you've mastered it or else end up in horn-blowing hell.
One of the advantages of being in the travel business is the best hotels want you to stay with them and thus we get to stay in the best places at very little cost. In Delhi we are staying at The Leela Palace however being hosted for dinner at The Imperial by their sales manager Shilpa Tuli. Hotels want us to experience their services so that we can feel comfortable that our guests will have a similar experience. In Agra we are staying at the Oberoi Amarvilas with direct views of the Taj Mahal. In Jaipur we stayed at the Oberoi Rajvilas which are a bit out of the city but are just beautiful and peaceful. We also did a site inspection of the Taj Hotels Rambagh Palace. Today we are in Udaipur staying at the Oberoi Udavilas with views over Lake Pichola to the Lake Palace. Today we will have lunch at the Lake Palace as well as have an evening boat ride. Life is good for me, but I'm having difficulty managing the dichotomy of my environment and the life of 99% of the people I see in the streets. More on that later........
One of the advantages of being in the travel business is the best hotels want you to stay with them and thus we get to stay in the best places at very little cost. In Delhi we are staying at The Leela Palace however being hosted for dinner at The Imperial by their sales manager Shilpa Tuli. Hotels want us to experience their services so that we can feel comfortable that our guests will have a similar experience. In Agra we are staying at the Oberoi Amarvilas with direct views of the Taj Mahal. In Jaipur we stayed at the Oberoi Rajvilas which are a bit out of the city but are just beautiful and peaceful. We also did a site inspection of the Taj Hotels Rambagh Palace. Today we are in Udaipur staying at the Oberoi Udavilas with views over Lake Pichola to the Lake Palace. Today we will have lunch at the Lake Palace as well as have an evening boat ride. Life is good for me, but I'm having difficulty managing the dichotomy of my environment and the life of 99% of the people I see in the streets. More on that later........
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