The children descended like a wolf on the fold. The last Sunday before Debbie and I left and all the children, my Mum and Debbie’s brother’s family have come round for a late afternoon lunch. I love this time. The family congregates in a happy and relaxed atmosphere and genuinely enjoys each other’s company. It’s […]
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Preparation, preparation, preparation…
I love the mountains. It’s that sense of space, that sense of freedom. Even in the summertime, the air at altitude is cool and crisp, not just free of pollutants but crystal clear, enhancing Nature’s colours and defining proud peaks against the azure blue sky. It makes me feel good to be alive. It heightens […]
And full circle back to Delhi
We are back in Delhi, at the end of our Indian travels, preparing to move on to Africa. It has been an eye opening time and, as usual, has chased away stereotypical views that I held before I came here (not always for the better!). As we have found elsewhere, the people with whom we […]
An Indian bus journey to the north
We travelled to Nawalgarh in the centre of the Shekhawati Region by local bus because Debbie decided that “we have to travel by bus at some point.” I had spent at least a week dropping ever more obvious hints that I would slightly rather go by car than on one of the overcrowded, dirty, smelly, […]
Jaipur: the pink city
Jaipur is mostly pink. A result of an edict issued by Maharaja Ram Singh in 1876 to commemorate the forthcoming visit of The Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII). The owners of the city’s buildings are required to repaint the outside of their dwellings every two years with another coat of pink paint but, […]
Jaisalmer and the Thar Desert
Our guide book says that ‘between April and August we would be crazy’ to come to Jaisalmer because ‘the city becomes hellishly hot’. So we boarded the train for the 6 hour rattle from Jodhpur to the middle of the Thar Desert. Although the guide book is often inaccurate, in this instance the warning was […]
Jodhpur’s jewels, ramparts and opium
Besides giving its name to a ridiculous riding garment, Jodhpur is stepped in history. Driven from their traditional homeland, the Rathores settled in the region which was on the vital trade route between Delhi and Gujarat, profiting from the trade in opium, sandalwood, dates and copper. They prospered to such an extent that they decided […]