I woke up this morning to see the sunrise. Actually, I woke up at 5am this morning to do a 1-hour climb up a mountain to Savitri Temple, where we watched the sun rise over the city of Pushkar. Needless to say, it was incredible. In an hour or so, we will hike up to Brahma Temple on the other side of the city, to watch the sun set over Pushkar and Savitri Temple. We arrived in Pushkar yesterday morning, taking a 10-hour sleeper bus from Delhi. Basically they stick you in a coffin-sized compartment in the bus, and as the name implies, you sleep through the night. It was actually pretty awesome.
The city of Pushkar itself is beautiful - only hours away from Delhi but a whole new world. The people are incredibly friendly, bright, beautiful colors everywhere, and relatively calmer than the Main Bazaar in Delhi. And there is actually more Hebrew signage here than in Delhi, but because we arrived at the end of the season, there are very few Israelis still here.
We also visited the Taj Mahal a few days ago. About 5 hours each way in a jeep makes it a tough day, but I was not going to let myself regret not seeing the Taj. 1 of 7 Wonders of the World down, 6 to go...
While I came to India with no set plans, I did have a rough trip outline, and intended on heading to Nepal within 2 weeks of arriving in India, to do the famous Annapurna Trek at the base of Everest before the season closes, reopening only around September. I have been wrestling with the thought of changing my course and continuing in Northern India for the next few months, and then reaching Nepal when the next season begins. I have a few days left to decide, but I'm not rushing to make any decisions until I have to. 11 of us arrived at the Yes Please Guesthouse from our original flight. 7 of us took the sleeper bus to Pushkar. From here, only 2 people know with certainty where they are heading after this week(or so)-long visit in the region of Rajasthan, and the rest of us will play it by ear.
So that's it for now. I'm heading out to see the sunset now.
Namaste, and Shabbat Shalom.
-Erez
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Touching Down in Delhi
As the plane descended beneath the clouds, the land below, quite different from any other I'd seen from that height, came into sight. The most dimly-lit cities I had ever seen. An occassional random assortment of specks of lights bunched together, surrounded by darkness, and I was left only with my imagination to wonder what it all was. Yet I knew that in the morning, I would start to instantly better understand the land I was in.
When they opened the airplane door, the smell was not as bad as I had heard from some people, though it was certainly noticeable. A crazy non-stop-honking cab ride later, we arrived at the Yes Please Guesthouse with roughly 20 other Israelis. While we were hanging out and drinking chai, an older Israeli man walked in with bite marks on his leg, saying he just got bit by a dog. At night, there are literally 2 stray dogs for every 10 paces that you take. And they are all the same inbred overbred dogs so they all look alike, just different sizes and colors. They typically lay quietly, but a honking tuk-tuk passing by could aggravate them, so remaining alert is critical.
We spent the day today walking around the Main Bazaar area. It's amazing how many Indians here speak Hebrew and how many of their signs are in Hebrew. If you're ever here, I recommend getting the Chicken Masala at the Hare Rama Guesthouse. Get it only medium hot though, trust me. And everything is SO cheap! I feel like a millionaire! Rupee rupee bills ya'll!
Tomorrow we're heading to the Taj Mahal for a day trip, so look out for the next update, and hopefully pictures up on my facebook shortly afterwards.
That's it for now. I hope you can all put up with my switching from serious writing about the amazing things I see/experience, the fun/funny stories that happen, and just my regular wise-assing and sarcasm. Hey, it's like 3 blogs in one! Lucky you!
When they opened the airplane door, the smell was not as bad as I had heard from some people, though it was certainly noticeable. A crazy non-stop-honking cab ride later, we arrived at the Yes Please Guesthouse with roughly 20 other Israelis. While we were hanging out and drinking chai, an older Israeli man walked in with bite marks on his leg, saying he just got bit by a dog. At night, there are literally 2 stray dogs for every 10 paces that you take. And they are all the same inbred overbred dogs so they all look alike, just different sizes and colors. They typically lay quietly, but a honking tuk-tuk passing by could aggravate them, so remaining alert is critical.
We spent the day today walking around the Main Bazaar area. It's amazing how many Indians here speak Hebrew and how many of their signs are in Hebrew. If you're ever here, I recommend getting the Chicken Masala at the Hare Rama Guesthouse. Get it only medium hot though, trust me. And everything is SO cheap! I feel like a millionaire! Rupee rupee bills ya'll!
Tomorrow we're heading to the Taj Mahal for a day trip, so look out for the next update, and hopefully pictures up on my facebook shortly afterwards.
That's it for now. I hope you can all put up with my switching from serious writing about the amazing things I see/experience, the fun/funny stories that happen, and just my regular wise-assing and sarcasm. Hey, it's like 3 blogs in one! Lucky you!
Sunday, April 12, 2009
The 11th Hour
As I sit here on the computer, a mere hours before my flight to India, I keep having to remind myself to not write anything about the upcoming days, weeks, or months, but rather focus on the recent past, and more importantly, the present.
It's been quite a hectic 2.5 weeks in Israel, reuniting with family, friends, and the land that I have always and will always think of as my home. No different than when I was in the US a few weeks ago, my thoughts have continued to be on my upcoming trip, with frequent reminders from everyone I've been around as they ask questions and give me travel tips for the places they've visited.
And now it's here. The 11th hour. 3am. 1 more hour until I have to catch my train to the airport. And it still hasn't hit me. Ya know, the big "Holy shit I'm about to go backpacking on my own for the next 6 months!" I think it will come when I'm standing on the platform in an hour, waiting for my train. The first time I'll be all alone to start my journey. Oops. There I go talking in the future tense.
No predictions. No anticipations. Just the present. And right now, the present is a bit uneventful, so I guess we'll just have to wait for when the present becomes more interesting, and then (when I find an Internet cafe) I'll tell you all about it as my recent past.
It's been quite a hectic 2.5 weeks in Israel, reuniting with family, friends, and the land that I have always and will always think of as my home. No different than when I was in the US a few weeks ago, my thoughts have continued to be on my upcoming trip, with frequent reminders from everyone I've been around as they ask questions and give me travel tips for the places they've visited.
And now it's here. The 11th hour. 3am. 1 more hour until I have to catch my train to the airport. And it still hasn't hit me. Ya know, the big "Holy shit I'm about to go backpacking on my own for the next 6 months!" I think it will come when I'm standing on the platform in an hour, waiting for my train. The first time I'll be all alone to start my journey. Oops. There I go talking in the future tense.
No predictions. No anticipations. Just the present. And right now, the present is a bit uneventful, so I guess we'll just have to wait for when the present becomes more interesting, and then (when I find an Internet cafe) I'll tell you all about it as my recent past.
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