In the city of lakes and temples

We're in romantic Rajastan and in the truly wonderful city of Udaipur, the city of lakes and temples. We arrived yesterday evening after an epic day of travel involving four colourful bus rides to get from Anjuna beach to the airport in Southern Goa. We travelled in these rickety little buses, which were at times packed with people and luggage. Indians don't seem to have a problem with being squashed, I guess they are used to being crowded in. The bus rides were a lot of fun and it felt like we were true backpackers since we could have taken an expensive taxi all the way.

But on to Udaipur. It is probably most famous for something we won't be able to get to see. This is the Lake Palace Hotel, which was used in the James Bond movie Octpussy. It is a former royal residence and you used to be able to go across if you had a dinner booking, but now you have to be a guest. I think the rooms start from about $350 a night - so a bit out of our budget.

You can see the hotel from the city (it is in one of the photos above) as it sits serenly on its own little island in the middle of the main lake alongside Udaipur. We are staying in the old part of the city which is fabulous with its white-washed, flat-roofed buildings quite reminiscint of Morocco. There are narrow, steep, winding streets where you have to dodge the usual assortment of bikes, auto-rickshaws and cows.

We spent most of the day exploring the City Palace and two of the Hindi temples nearby. Both are about 400 years old. The temples are beautifully carved in limestone with images from Hindi mythology. While we were there a ceremony was on the go and there was singing and chanting. The palace has been turned into a museum and two hotels. The museum is a labyrinth of rooms and courtyards with fanstastic views over the city and lake. It was added on by various different maharajas and there are beautiful carvings, frescoes and paintings dating from different periods, showing things like royal processions, battles and lots of tiger hunts on elephants. These maharajas sure knew how to live! We had lunch on a rooftop overlooking the lake and palaces. They call it the Venice of the East and from where we sat it seemed an accurate description.

On the way back to our hotel for an afternoon nap, we walked up a little windy road. Kids in India love saying hello and being a bit cheeky with foreigners. Then followed the following exchange with a little girl from a window overlooking the street:

Little girl: Hello

Larna and I: Hello

Little girl: Give me five rupees

We ignored her request and walked on...

Little girl: You are bad foreigners

Larna: You are a bad local!

A sad goodbye to Goa

It's our last full day in Goa and unfortunately as the old saying goes, all good things must come to an end.

This is where we have been spending most of the last week (besides when we have been swimming), on the deck of the Sunset Bar and Guesthouse. We have eaten most of our meals here and spent the evenings (when it has not rained) reading until closing time or playing backgammon. It has really been an idyllic place and we will be genuinely sad to say goodbye to the wonderful staff who have made us feel so at home. Tonight as its our last night we'll have the restaurant's speciality- freshly caught fish, grilled with spices, served with rice and salad. The people here know how to cook fish and I can't wait for later.

I think we have been lucky with our stay in Goa firstly because of where we have stayed and secondly because we arrived before the big rush of people when prices will go up and it will probably be not quite as magical. They are already building beach huts and restaurants (they build them from scratch every year out of bamboo) for the big holiday rush. On a lighter note, we won't really miss saying goodbye to all the Russian white butt cheeks we have seen. There are many Russians on holiday here and they have a thing for wearing G-strings or small speedos regardless of body size!

Besides the beach, the surrounding countryside is beautiful. We took a long walk down some of the narrow roads on Sunday and it was so tranquil with cows grazing in the fields and palm trees lining the road swaying in the breeze. I also spotted lots of little Kingfisher birds sitting on the telephone poles. (Larna thinks I am a bit crazy my obsession with these blue-backed little birds with long red beaks). Many of the houses are the old Portuguese ones in colours of white, orange and blue. A lot are available for rent. Dogs come out to greet you or just sit on fence posts and bark in a more or less friendly manner.

Anyway, tomorrow we fly to Udaipur up north which is described in the Lonely Planet as an "egg shell blue" city with lots of ancient and wondrous things to see. From there we'll make our way to Delhi stopping at Pushkar in the desert, and Agra to see the Taj Mahal and fort.

A couple more pics below of various scenes in Goa:

Rain, Russians and finally a little bit of Goan paradise

The rain has stopped and the sun has finally come out. The last two days we have spent enjoying a little bit of imperfect Goan paradise on Anjuna Beach. Before we arrived yesterday we wondered if we would ever have a beach holiday. It rained for almost the entire time we were on Candolim Beach, about 10kms South from Anjuna. We stayed on Candolim for two nights. The beach was rather grotty, about the most interesting aspect was the herd of cows parked at the entrance and an enormous, grounded old oil tanker called the River Princess which is now a rusting hull about 50m from the beach. Candolim seemed the destination of choice for Russian package holiday makers. Even some of the brochures in shops were in Russian! The Russians seemed to be enjoying themselves despite the rain. I think so long as booze was on hand they were happy.

Anyway, we are now staying at a great spot called the Sunset Bar and Grill right on the main beach. It's not yet high season so the beach is relatively quiet. We are paying virtually nothing (about $12 a night) for an ensuite, basic room with a little balcony. The staff are fantastic, friendly, helpful and they have a bar which overlooks the ocean. Last night Larna and I had an early dinner and then spent the rest of the night reading and watching the waves crashing below. It was magic. Probably one of our best nights of the entire trip. We have booked in for another two more nights after tonight and might stay longer - it is just so relaxing. We have bumped into a few of the die-hard old hippes (Anjuna used to be "the" beach on Goa for yoga and getting stoned) and a real mix bag of nationalities - Germans, Scandinavians, Aussies, Brits etc.

About the only annoying thing are the women on the beach who run up to you and try and sell their jewellery and trinkets. They are quite aggressive and we have seen them plonk themselves down next to tourists and literally sit next to them until they buy something, or the tourist finds somewhere else to sit. And...the mosquitos which were not so bad last night, but are currently having lunch on my foot!

Some more photos below from Candolim and Anjuna:

The rain falls mainly...in Goa

We're in Panaji, the capital of Goa. It has been a big change from Mumbai. Goa is a former Portuguese colony and if you half close your eyes it does feel as if you are in a little Portuguese village with the colourful houses, white gabled churches and crucifixes all over the place. When you open your eyes fully though, its definitely India. There are lots of Indians about, the buildings are in various states of disrepair, gutters hang down and as with most things in India its in need of a fresh coat of paint and a rubbish collection.

That aside, we have really enjoyed strolling the quiet streets and exploring some of the neighborhoods. We stayed in a little Portuguese house run by an elderly Indian couple. They weren't quite as friendly as our Lonely Planet made them out to be (it described the place as 'like staying at your Portuguese grandparents', there is 10pm curfew, so perhaps that is what they were implying) but it was a big spacious room with lots of light and we passed a fair bit of the time reading and relaxing.

Unfortunately the heavens opened on Saturday night and it has not really stopped raining since them. We are still hoping to have a beach holiday at some point in Goa so hopefully the weather will improve. At least it cooled the temperature as it was very muggy when we arrived.

Our plan today is to catch the bus to Arambol, a beach in Northern Goa. It is meant to be less touristy and not crowded with party, drug-taking people and has beach shacks so if we can get one of those it could be very relaxing.

To get to Goa we took the night train from Mumbai. This was quite an experience. We were in the sleeper section. It was pretty basic, you had to make your own beds and the train was crowded but I managed to get some sleep. Larna said she could hear me snoring! Right up until about 1am porters moved up and down through the train shouting out "Garam masala" (hot masala tea), "Chai" (tea), "Cheese sandwich" etc. In the morning we watched the countryside drift past. There were a lot of little homesteads and cows grazing in pastures with local villagers looking on.

Larna and I have got stuck into the Stieg Larsson books. I just finished the first one which I thought was brilliant and could hardly put it down. We have all three (bought cheaply in Mumbai which has brilliant book stalls and shops) and I cant' wait for Larna to finish book number two so I can read it.

Bollywood and Hollywood

Well we are still in Mumbai, just a few hours more before we take the train to Goa. I noticed in the Australian media a story about the Bollywood film "Crook" due to its portrayal of Melbourne as racist and anarchic.

We saw that movie last night. It is ridiculous and over-the-top in true Bollywood style (violence followed by singing and dancing), but if you took it seriously you would think that Melbourne is the most dangerous city in the world, especially if you are a recent Indian immigrant. It certainly is not going to encourage Indians to come to Australia. Well, maybe they will go to Sydney instead.

For us it was strange seeing a film set in Melbourne while in India and made us a bit homesick. I thought the depiction of Melbourne was very silly and created a complete false impression. That being said, if you watch the film through to the end it is the Indian character who is the real villain and the white Australian supremacist who comes to his senses and is something of a "hero" at the end.

That said, the plot is so silly and unbelievable, it's all really about the singing, dancing, flashy clothes, an attractive and glamorous cast and generating excitement! Some of the acting is diabolically bad.

On a lighter note, we saw "Eat Pray Love" tonight at another of these great old Art Deco cinemas in Mumbai. Seeing a movie here is like going back in time. Not only are the cinemas from the 1930s and have all the old trimmings, they still have ushers who show you to your seat with a flashlight and their is an interval in the middle. My thoughts on the movie: having read the book, I had low expectations about the film, so actually thought it was pretty good. I give it 7/10!

Mumbai gets the 'thums up'

For those who don't know, "Thums Up" is the Indian version of coca cola. Actually it tastes a lot sweeter than Coke, but quite refreshing.

Beverages aside, we have had a very interesting and enjoyable few days exploring this enormous city and a lot of preconceptions have been shattered. It actually is a lot more easier to get around (and cross the street) than Cairo mainly because there are thousands of little black and yellow taxis (about 60,000 according to Lonely Planet) that charge on the meter so you only pay a few dollars to get around town. OK, so occasionally you can see the road through the taxi floor, but that aside, we have been making good use of them.

Everyone warns you about the smell in India, but the truth is that Mumbai does not smell. OK so we have experienced some truly vomit-inducing smells but these have mainly been when walking past the public toilets. Generally though, there is nothing to disturb the nose to any great degree.

The poverty is very real though. We walked back to our hostel at night last night and the night before and people literally sleep everywhere, on the pavement, in alleyways, in underpasses. And not just individuals, there are whole families sleeping on the streets. Its very upsetting. The other thing true about Mumbai is that it is very, very dirty. Filthy in fact. We have been to Chowpatty beach (in downtown Mumbai) a few times, its great in the evening as everyone comes out to have some food or just to chat. But the water's edge is covered in mounds of rubbish. People just throw their used wrappers and whatever else on the ground. Not just the poor, which would be understandable as they are trying to survive, the middle-class people traveling on the ferry with us today to visit Elephanta Island across the bay were just chucking their empty bottles and chips packets into the sea. It's shocking to people like us who are not used to it.

We have walked a fair bit of the city and though its big we have got a bit of a grasp of it. Downtown is full of old colonial era buildings from the time of the Raj, there is Malabar hills with more affluent apartments and around the centre you find some beautiful art deco buildings and apartments. And of course there is cricket. I have had numerous conversation involving the game. They love it. In the parks they are always playing or practicing.

I have had to bash out this post since it took 30 minutes just to get the photos on - some technical issues on the computer. I hope it makes sense. Tomorrow we are off to Goa by train and will try and write something more coherent and with more photos, but enjoy the ones below.

Muggy Mumbai

Greetings from India! We arrived in Mumbai early this morning. We were picked up and driven to our hotel through a rickety old road passed what seemed like endless rows of little shops with thousands of moped taxis, trucks and buses standing idle. It was pitch black outside yet lots of people were about collecting water or making their way to work. Some of the smells were pretty pungent, but by the time we reached the Hotel New Bengal, it was nothing we are not by now used to. Our hotel is charmless, we have a tiny box room with two whirring fans which makes it feel like we are sleeping in a factory. On the positive side it is en suite and we have cable TV!

We had some lunch in a nearby market (vegetable thali) and then took a taxi to the Gateway of India, the giant archway at the bottom of the harbour built to commemorate a royal visit about 100 years ago. It's across the road from the Taj Mahal Hotel, the grand hotel that was attacked by terrorists a couple of years back. Its white and red and very striking. As we were walking around the arch two groups of people asked if we would be in their photos - being a Sunday a lot of out of towners are in Mumbai (we figure) so it seems pasty white people are sought after for photo albums. It was quite funny being in these random photos. So far everyone is very friendly, with big smiling faces. The cattle roam as they please, even along the pavement and seem to be in better condition than some of the locals. Anyway, it's quite amazing and a little surreal being here.

On to Mumbai...(gulp)

Well in a few hours we'll be on our way to Mumbai trading in one city of 20 million plus souls for another of equal or bigger size. I keep wondering if Cairo has given us some kind of foretaste for Mumbai, given its size and chaotic nature, but I am sure it will be a completely different experience.

We spent Thursday night and most of Friday at the seaside city of Alexandria. It was a welcome break from Cairo, though its funny thinking of a city of 4.5 million as a break, but compared to Cairo it might as well have been a quaint English seaside village.

Alexandria was really cool with its palm trees, faded charm, elegant old hotels and long promenade running along the coast. As with most things Egyptian its ancient, dating back about 3000 years. It was founded by Alexander the Great in about 322BC and the last Roman ruler was Cleopatra. We visited some of the ancient ruins including the site of an ancient Roman temple, where this photo was taken. We also went down into the Roman-Greek catacombs which was really cool. Underground you find these empty coffins and a temple built into the rock protected by carved snakes and other mythological figures. It looked like something straight out of Indiana Jones. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take our cameras into the tombs.

So its goodbye Egypt. We would definitely love to come back, but I think we have both seen and experienced enough of Cairo, and would love to visit Luxor and Dahab on our next trip. It was nice to discover that Alexandria had none of the tourist menace that is so prevalent in Cairo.

What has been most surprising though about our overall Egyptian experience has been the incredibly backward state of the tourism industry here. Luckily for Egypt, it has so much to offer, you put up with it for the thrills you experience. Still, I can't help but wonder if they made more of an effort to jack up their tourism industry, a lot more people would visit!

Pyramids, scams, minarets and a faux paus

As you can tell from the title of this blog, we have had a hectic last two days in Cairo filled in equal measure with wonder, amazement, annoyance and frustration. Wonder at the wonderful pyramids we explored by camel yesterday and amazement at exploring Islamic Cairo, with its minarets and Khan el-Khalili market (the size of a city suburb), but frustration and annoyance at the scammers, confidence tricksters and those locals just out to make a buck off tourists who we have faced every day since arriving in Cairo.

Yesterday was devoted mainly to the pyramids. We got their via public bus and a local who led the way. This was one of the craziest experiences we have been through for the simple reason that buses don't actually stop. People run towards the bus while its still moving and literally jump through the open doorway, and the same applies when getting off. We got a sense of the size of Cairo (there are more than 20 million people here) on the bus journey which went on for ages and yet you never left the city. We were stuck in an almighty traffic jam where there are few rules of the road where bus, car, minibus, donkey, cyclist and moped rider compete with each other fo space. In between all this, people actually cross the road!

As for the pyramids, they are wonderful, breathtaking and everything you expect. The only disappointing thing was that we ended up spending a lot more than we needed to to see them which is a story for another day and was partly our own fault.

Anyway we spent about 3 hours on camels (we even road them ourselves part of the way) wandering among the pyramids and the sphinx. Our guide also showed us the ancient tombs of some of the people who lived at the time of pyramids, inscribed with hieroglyphics.

Today we caught a metro to explore Old Cairo (the oldest part of the city dating back about 700 years) with its churches and a very beautiful old synagogue. From there we caught a taxi to Islamic Cairo. This is a truly fascinating part of the city with mosques and a myriad minarets everywhere. We climbed up Bab Zwayla, the surviving Southern gate of medieval Cairo and dating back to the 10th century and from where these panaromic views of the city were taken (below). We even climbed up the minaret! At ground level, the streets below were clogged with people, market stalls selling just about everything, and craftsmen cutting, sewing and welding. Today was a public holiday and you got a real sense of just how many people are crowded into this enormous city. It was a real eye-opening experience and hard to describe other than its like being at a packed U2 concert that goes on for miles where people push past with enormous boxes on their heads, carrying fridges, pushing packed carts or riding mopeds and even the occasional car. By some miracle we found our way back to our hostel on foot.

As for the confidence tricksters and scammers, lets just say you meet up with people who you think are just being friendly and helpful, but while they are happy to help you there is normally a pay-off expected at the end or its just a scam (to get their hands on your tourist dollars). These are in the minority in what is a very friendly, jovial and very welcoming place, but unfortunately the con-artists target tourists so you have to be on your toes all the time. We have been burned, not badly thankfully, but still it leaves a bitter aftertaste.

As for my faux paus...I thought it strange to be the only male on a metro train packed with women on Monday night (Larna stayed in as she was tired). I took the stares to be directed at my strange appearance, beard and all (I draws stares believe you me). Only later did I realise that the train I was on was reserved only for females and is a hard-fought-for right that women have won in this city. Ah well, you live and you learn.

Confusing the locals, Cairo chaos and toilet touts

The reason for this photo is two-fold, firstly to update my father-in-law Frank as to the current state of my beard as we are in something of a competition; and secondly, to ask anyone who reads this blog if I look like the latest convert to Islam? Ever since arriving in Egypt my beard has been attracting stares from the locals, some have told me I look Egyptian and a shopkeeper asked me if I was Islamic? I should also say that in Morocco, the locals called me "Ali Baba", I thought this was my unique and cool name until I discovered that they seem to call any foreigner with sufficent facial hair by the same moniker. (I think though that I will have a shave before flying into the US, I have this irrational fear of arrest and deportation by US Homeland Security to Guantanamo Bay and questions like:"What exactly were you doing in Morocco and Egypt Mr. Schlesinger or should we call your "Abdul?"")

Jokes aside (though I do intend to cut or at least trim my beard for wedding purposes) its made for some interesting conversations over the last few days.

So today we spent a good few hours visiting the Egyptian museum famous for its ancient artefacts and mummies. The best part was undoubtedly the Royal mummy room with about twenty mummies on display most with their bandages removed. Very ghoulish, especially when you see the manicured nails and teeth sticking out. A little sign mentioned that when the mummies were first brough to Cairo in about 1923, the importers had no category for them so registered them as "salted fish" which I thought was probably as close a category as any when you think about it. The overall artistry and beauty of jewellery, sarcophogi, sculptures and statues was astounding.

And the toilet tout? We are growing used to people trying to get us into their stores, restaurants, up onto camels, horses etc, but today we experienced our first toilet tout in the museum who insisted that "Yes indeed, I really do need the toilet" when I noticed the sign for the WC. Even though it said clearly "Please no tips" on a sign outside, he suggested I pay him 5 Egyptian pounds (about one Aussie dollar) for the use of his dirty loo. I gave him a pound fifty.


We have not seen a great deal of Cairo yet (the first two days we were out of action recovering from colds picked up in Morocco) and don't think we will get to experience more than a taste of this chaotic, groaning beast of a place. We both realise we should have set aside more than a week in Egypt, not just for Cairo but for places like Alexandria and Luxor. Ah well, we shall see as much as we can.



Tomorrow, the pyramids await!

In the land of the pharoahs

I write to you from a steamy Cairo. We arrived this morning after an exhausting day and a bit of travel and very little sleep.

All I have seen so far of Cairo has been from the plane - a lot of desert and a city stretching for miles; the taxi ride to our hostel - some beautiful old mosques, enormous minarets and fabulous ancient looking museums; and on the short walk to get dinner - grey apartment blocks, people sitting around cafes cheering madly at the football (I think local club Zamalek are playing) and two shops selling only wheelchairs, crutches and prosthetic limbs.

Even though we have hardly seen anything yet, its so exciting to think that we are in the land of the pharoahs, pyramids, ancient civilisations and thousands of years of history. Just the little taste in the cab ride was fantastic.

It was nice that we finished our Moroccan trip back where we started, in Casablanca. We were up early on Friday to catch the 7am bus from Chefchauen to Casa. We arrived at lunch time and spent the next few hours sitting at cafes, drinking an assortment of mint teas, coffees and fruit juices. One thing the Moroccans have learnt from the French is taking the time to linger over a coffee or tea, particurlarly the men who seem to have hours to spare for this pastime. The other thing they may have learnt from the French is nonchalantly strolling in front of oncoming buses and other transport. Even a blast of the hooter hardly speeds them along.

It took us about 90 minutes to get to the airport from the city and then we had to wait until nearly 1am to catch our Egyptair flight to Cairo. When we did finally board we had these awful people behind us who insisted that Larna keep her chair upright and got up and down seemingly non-stop. We were bitching about them in English and we are certain they were doing the same about us in Arabic. Aah....the language barrier!

Anyway, here we are! Our hostel is called The Nubian and we are surrounded by friendly Egyptians.

What a game, it finished 4-3! If only I could read Arabic I could tell you who won.

Farewell Chefchaouen, farewell Moroco

Tonight is our last night in Morocco, as tomorrow night we will be at the airport in Casablanca waiting to board our flight to Cairo. What can one say about Morocco? It is a unique, wonderful and exotic place. The people have been warm and friendly, finishing most casual greetings with "you are welcome" and indeed making you feel very welcome in their country. The highlights for me have been the trip to the desert and riding camels across the dunes, the winding, narrow lanes of the medinas of Marrakech and Fes, and the smaller towns of Chefchauen and Essaouria.

It has also been exhausting at times, with constant invitations to visit people's shops and restaurants and enormous pressure in many cases, to make a purchase, especially from those Berber carpet shop sellers! It is all part of the experience I guess, but not my favourite bit (I hate bargaining, just show me a price tag!)

There is also the feeling that many people are struggling to eke out a living here, and that the gap between rich and poor is enormous, none more so than the king who I have read has a fortune in the billions of US dollars. Everywhere you go, you see pictures of him though with an aloof look.

Anyway, rather than waxing on about my thoughts and theories, some photos of the surrounding hillside of Chefchauen, after Larna and I went on a walk above the town in the late afternoon today...