The trip has commenced. Last night we met Api who will be our team leader on the tour. We sat around tables at the hotels conference centre to get the low down on the tour, dos and don’ts of India and a definite no no which is riding elephants. Riding camels is okay as they have always been ships of the desert and they will never ever do what they don’t want to. Elephants try to oblige, the typical circus climb on and up the elephants trunk actually injures the animal. This is why Intrepid has taken such a strong stand as a tour organisation.
After the meeting, we ( hence forward the group) walked to a fine restaurant and Jennifer and I opted for the package meal of three chicken dishes and lamb rogan josh. All beautifully cooked, and a vastly more flavoursome meal than the previous night at the hotel. There the chicken kormas lack of flavour was only exceeded by the gluey texture in which the chicken was criminally entombed by the chef. It was a fun evening with the group made up of two anglicised Chinese, Mum and daughter, us, one young new nurse from the Netherlands and the rest are Canadians. The next morning the final member of the group arrived at breakfast, a young Colombian who has been working in Germany,
Overnight, the dog chorus started up at 2 am. It lasted till 4 am. Even ear plugs jammed into the inner ear, could not obscure this annoying cacophony.

In the morning, we had a bright early start, we all walked to Karol Barg station, then took the metro to Chawri Bazar on the yellow line. It was crowded but not bone crushingly so, which was pleasant. We took bike rickshaws to Jamah Masjid. Our driver looked pre cardiac trying to pull us along on a rickshaw with shredded tyres and about five gears. The driver pulling the two Chinese ladies in his rickshaw, who weigh about 45 kg each, looked blithesome as he zoomed past us.

Jamah Masjid is an immense yet still beautiful mosque, and in fact, was the last building constructed under the auspices of Shah Jahan. Aurungzeb his son, imprisoned him soon after, and he spent his final years, in a cell with a poignant view of the Taj Mahal. The mosque has a vast paved area, a large rectangular pool, the paved area regularly accommodates up to 25,000 worshippers. The sandstone coloured mosque itself has splendid minarets at its apices. Inside the building, vast pillars support a roof with a series of magnificent Mughal arches. Light dances into the building, shining on and through the red sandstone, a material rightfully beloved by Mughal architects.
Entry is free, but it’s 300 rupees to use a camera. The gate officer tried to diddle me of 200 rupees, that’s four dollars. When I write that down, I sort of wonder why I got so testy with him. When he said it was alright, and I answered, not it’s not alright, a long bloody way from alright. Any biggish white guy is an unknown entity re aggression, and he is not to know, I have the martial prowess of a potato.
None the less, I am really glad that I used my camera, as it is a very, very beautiful and interesting place.

We then rejoined the rickshaws, for another trip to the Sikh Temple we visited yesterday. We were able to take photos this time, as well as visit the brobdingnian kitchens of the Sikhs. Massive woks, the size of small boats, pans over a meter in width and height. All of them bubbling over immense hot jets and some being stirred by turbaned Sikhs with huge ladles. It reminded me of Lemuel Gulliver who visited the land of the giants, Brobdingnag. Sikhs at their temples, provide free food to any visitor at no cost.

The temple area, was just as moving spiritually as on our first visit. There is a spirit of tolerance of Sikhs for other religions and in fact this temple is one of the few places where all members of all faiths can enter together and talk together. Also there is tolerance of Sikhs for the varieties of religious faith within their own sect, there is no ill will between the most traditional of Sikhs and those who wear only the turban and do not adopt all the attributes such as never shaving or cutting hair of the most devout followers. There is a religious side to Sikhism, the clothes, the rituals and there is a spiritual side, where prayer and faith are emphasised.

We had Chai, and samosas at a nearby outdoor cafe, all absolutely delicious, then headed back to Karol Barg, and the hotel. On the walk back, I studied the ancient buildings. They were built in the 16th century and are barely altered even today. Outside the gutters and corners of the buildings, are confused spider webs of electrical and phone cables. I suspect every power point has its own direct cable to the generating power station.
We did some shopping on our return, bought some food for our overnight train trip to Jaislamer. We head off in a few minutes, so I will conclude.

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It is now 6pm and Jennifer and I are sitting, well to be honest I’m lounging, in seat/sleepers 19 and 22 of carriage A1. We left the hotel amongst a fleet of cabs, bravely dodged the limitless number of other vehicles which decorate New Delhi’s roads to transport all of the team to Old Delhi Railway station. The route skirts the wall of the Red Fort, giving a foretaste of the many forts and Palaces we will experience in Rajasthan. The railway station, is large, with two vertically striped pink and white towers that vaguely resemble minarets. We put our luggage through the scanners, which is required at all stations including all those of the metro. In addition, everyone is scanned and patted down for weapons. Men going through a scanner on the left and women on the right, the only other difference is the ladies area is screened.

We went to platform 9 to wait for the train. A long, some what beaten up two tone blue train, with NR on the sides, pulled in. We are all allotted particular seats in the carriages. The sleepers are more comfortable and much less jerky than sleeper trains coming out of Hanoi. I suspect the tracks are better laid but perhaps I am being premature, as we have 19 hours to go. The train is no Grande Vitesse, pausing at stations (40 actual stops) and sometimes in the middle of nowhere in particular, as if to savour the darkening Indian countryside. It’s dark now, but in the daylight we would have seen farms and trees, growing mustard trees, sugar cane, coconuts and of course rice.

We will while away the hours eating our pre cooked Indian meal of dosas, then chill out with a book or iPads.

PS the dosas were yummy!!