Oops!!!

I read our itinerary wrong - imaging that!!! We were to go to Ajmer, then the Wildlife Refuge and THEN Jaipur. It's all in the same general area - an area a lot like west Tx. It's very dry here, not having had a monsoon for 3 or 4 years. The trip was not as long as I'd thought (since I thought we were going all the way to Jaipur), but it took quite a while. We were privileged to see India building a marvelous infrastructure in the form of roads. For a stretch we would make good time on a finished portion, then we find a stretch that was under construction. PC's comment at home is "This will be nice when they finish it", and that's true here as well. I got lots of pictures of workers and the construction details. India's big highways are built much like ours are, with concrete and rebar. The difference is there are less machines and more hand labor. Women work in construction as well as men. They break big stones into small stones, they carry a metal container on their heads that looks like a large wok. There is a round "cushion" about 2" thick and 6" in diameter between their head and their load. These women carry rocks, dirt, cement or whatever needs carrying from one place to another, and they aren't all young, either!!! The men work with the cement and the rebar and fashion scaffolding and supports from tree trunks, all about 4 - 5" in diameter - an interesting mix of using what you have to accomplish what needs to be done. Big machines are available and necessary, but they put lots of people out of a job.

Anytime I see a sight like this, I think "I will not pass this way again", but our kids (if they wait til they're 70) may see it completed, and hopefully, our grandies can come before they're 70!!! It seems to me this old, old country is in the process of renewing itself - and though it will take a long time, they have the time. They seem to enjoy life more than people in a more industrial country. That's just my observation.

At Ajmer, we stayed in a nice hotel, had very good food and went to a mosque. Tarun, our wonderful driver and guide and locator of barber shop and grocery store, picked us up in an auto rickshaw (a 3 wheel scooter fitted with a seat for 2 across the back 2 wheels and a cover overhead). The reason - his car is too big to get to the mosque. OK, I like the auto rickshaw we rode in in Pune, so off we went with Tarun sitting on a little "shelf" facing us - very cozy. We were on regular streets for a while, then more narrow ones, then very narrow ones that PC and I could almost touch the walls - he out the right side and I out the left. Presently we drove into a small courtyard and parked the rickshaw to continue on foot because the passageways were now too narrow for the vehicle. The walks were uneven blocks of stone with portals requiring the raising of the feet AND the lowering of the head. I've never considered myself tall before, but then I was. The rickshaw driver held onto PC and Tarun held onto me, gently dragging us through the most dense crowd I can remember. When we got to the gate of the mosque, we shed our shoes, of course, (I'm never quite sure I'll ever see our shoes again, but here there were hundreds of shoes, tied with a rope that had a # on it and we were given the same # on a tag to it to reassure us). We went up the stairs to the metal detector. At all metal detectors I've seen in India there are 2 lines divided by genders. A man searches the men and a woman, the women. I'll tell you about the women's line. In some places they wand you, in one place (an airport) they patted me down, gently, politely, but thoroughly. This lady was only checking for cameras. Tarun was holding mine and was on the outside - we were on our own!!!

A very friendly man came to us using very good Eng and explaining that he was not a guide. He indicated we should follow him, and knowing not where the mosque was, much less what to do once we got there - we followed him. He talked to us continually, reassuring us and guiding us and giving info and instruction. When we got to the mosque there was an even larger crowd. Our not-a-guide muscled his way in and drug me who was dragging PC. It's amazing how connected we get when we don't have a clue what we're doing.

First we were sat down (which is a trick for me when there's plenty of room) and told to sit cross legged. Remembering our Loas manners, I ask if it was rude to show the bottom of the feet.
Yes, it is, so we curled as best we could, signed their book, pledged the amount we were going to give for the upkeep of the mosque, gave it, and continued on into the very small bldg with a rock or statue or something holy in the middle that we walked around. We were given another chance to contribute to the welfare of the poor - ("As you like") - We didn't like, so we left. There were vendors EVERYWHERE selling everything from food to flowers for an offering, and including clothes, Islamic men's hats (which they are not required to wear) to handkerchiefs, hats, scarves which the women ARE required to wear)

Of all the scarves I brought, I had none with me. I was reduced to emptying my bag of "necessities" and plopping that on my head. NOW I'm glad there were no cameras allowed.

Our not-a-guide led us safely to the gate and waved good-by. I gave him some rupees - THAT'S the way I like to do business, on my terms, not theirs. Tarun and the rickshaw driver helped us
retreive our shoes (yes, we got the very shoes we left) and let us lean against them to put the shoes on. Then we retraced out steps to the rickshaw and to the narrow passages. This is where we ran nose to nose with another rickshaw. There was a lot of loud conversation between the two drivers with shop keepers and others offering suggestions. They weren't speaking English, but we were understanding enough to be getting a little uneasy. In a bit Tarun turned and smiled and told us it was all over. We backed up a long way, with much being said under the driver's breath. Once they passed, his mood changed and all was well.

We were left at our hotel and had tea in a lovely garden ALL BY OURSELVES. What a contrast!!! from the press of many people and many voices to space and privacy. I'm not sure, but I think most Indians will never experience space and privacy.

I understand you're having winter, even school being out!!! It's cold here in the AM, very warm for 2 hours and cool again in the late afternoon. We're heading to really cold weather in Delhi. we're told. We miss you guys and love you all, mj