back from road trip

(img from prev trip through Rajasthan, march 2010)

* A full day from Ahmedabad to Baroda on a full of tolls highway (almost as costly as if i have booked a low cost plane ticket with the same destination)

* a very late in the evening Delhi that is not friendly with my friend that forgot his passport at home, in Baroda

[* an amazing timing for my PMS pains. last time they caught me in Singapore trip, now here they came again, worse than last time. luckily, had the pills with me :D]

* an old city in Delhi where the nice bartender understood our thirst (Gujarat thirst especially) and went in a shop in the neighborhood and surprised us bringing at the table some glasses wrapped in pink tissue. instead of the sweet lassi ordered with disappointment we found inside beer. Real, legal beer :D :D :D

* a morning with roof-top breakfast and the most rude waiter I ran into in India in 1 year

* a for-the-3rd time-passing-by-it India gate, so we just stopped, walked around it and took pictures. and, as usual, Indian fellows around took more pictures with us :P

* a trip to Agra: almost 4 hours instead of the expected 2 hours

* a Taj Mahal where, as a foreigner you pay around 17$ (750Rs) while if you are Indian, you pay less than 0.5$ (20Rs). And of course, if you are a foreigner, you'll be easier to spot by the guys that are "official guides" and that got used with the refuses for being a guide so they got another offer: we take the pain of 2 hours of staying in line to get inside. did some bargaining, payed some money, went through the area where supposedly are still leaving the families of the workers that helped constructing Taj. few minutes and a security check later, there we are, in front of the gate, getting some bonus history and spicy stories about it.

* lots of pictures, fun abut other people's pictures, soldiers looking like elfs due to the green uniform and compulsory red bags put over the boots, a tomb inside in a room probably intentionally kept in the dark so it will be more spooky. conclusion: exactly like in the tons of pictures I've seen in the last months, only that a little more impressive

* a new hotel and roof top bar in Delhi, close to Gaylord hotel. it was poping in everybody's eyes with the glittery advertising panel

* a national highway to Amritsar with the speed limit at 50 most of the distance. and even if it wouldn't have been, as Christian mentioned, driving 80% of the road on the borders of cities where bicycles and kids run around free among few cows don't encourage you increasing it even without the speed limit panel.

* the nicest place, the kindest people, some of the first garbage bins I've seen around it, lots of kg of gold on water, nice sort of quiet and vibrating ceremony, picturesque people and... that is what surrounds Golden Temple

* the regret of not having the big good camera with me and the promise that if I ever get a little bit more passionate of photography and i will be into human subjects, I would definitely look for the chance on taking up Punjabi men for that. the features of their faces and expressions on some of them were...

* an evening with a British girl, then some other tourists, awesome weather and a morning at the temple again. picture and the regret we can't stay longer

* a road through semi-rural Punjab and then to the desert of Rajasthan

* a few glimpses at the forts and palaces of Bikaner under the night moon and guess what: an actual bar - haven't seen one since Mumbai

* a lunch in Jodhpur, saw on the move what appeared to be a very old... castle let's say and a still not finished Rajasthan desert

* Christian stating "back to lovely but boring Baroda"

pictures to be added on facebook hopefully by tomorrow evening