Nepal- Rock Star with Indians; Back to Future Trekking

I flew from New Delhi to Pokhara, Nepals 2nd largest city and the starting point for the Annapurna Base Camp trek (always referred to here simply as ABC. Pokhara is friendly city abutting a pretty lake.  

While standing there admiring the lake, a young Indian fellow (maybe 21) started talking to me and then asked if he could have his picture taken with me. While being a little apprehensive that it might some sort of scam- I man I am good looking and all but still- I consented. Then all of his 7 or 8 mates asked if they could have their picture taken with me too. In an expansive mood by that point, I again agreed. I felt like a celebrity. Maybe the blog has gone viral in India  

Turns out they had just graduated from college and were all there on a holiday for perhaps their last time together  it was a fun moment and of course they posed with me- 

I then started my 5 day trek to ABC   The trek is usually done in 6 days but I am trying to do it in 5 as the accommodations leave something to be desired-  

At least the first night I had a single room   When I started my hiking activities with my old friend Craze over 50 years ago, we stayed in bunk rooms in cold Appalachian Mountain Huts  So this ABC trek is back to the future with tiny cold bunk rooms- 

I would rate these mountain Tea Houses as maybe .00005 stars   Here is my guide trying to stay warm as they have no heat- 

The weather hasn’t cooperated much either with a lot of clouds and rain   But early this morning I did see one of the most beautiful mountains I have very seen- 

Agra- Fort, Baby Taj and Room with a View

Indians apparently do not stores lot of food particularly refrigerated food but rather shop each day for the ingredients in market for their or other meals-

After completing the safari, i traveled to the city of Agra   Along the way I stopped at a former Mughal capital (it seems like most cities in India were Mughal capitals at some point) and saw the largest gate in the world-

Red sandstone was clearly the Indian fort material of choice. 

Then on to Agra and another huge red sandstone fort, Agra fort  -

And then the so called “Baby Taj”, a Mughal tomb building built in the early 1600s before the Taj Mahal-it was quite impressive in its own right- 

I had gotten a boutique hotel which advertised that it had a view of some other obscure tomb  building from it’s rooftop-

It seemed intriguing so, having a little time on my hands, went to visit this little known place- 

The Indians should really think about marketing this place  

Yes the Taj Mahal   It is truly breathtaking. I can honestly say I have never seen a more beautiful building.  Just exquisite. The detail with all of the inlaid marble (no painting on it) and the carved screens is phenomenal. Pictures do not do it proper justice but- 

While often frustrating and maddening, not to mention “cluttered “ and “receptical challenged”, India is a fascinating country with a rich and varied history and culture and the only place in the world where you can see with your own eyes  the world’s most spectacular building     

Pink City; Tiger Safari

 Jaipur- the 2nd leg of India’s  so called Golden Triangle (Dehli is 1st leg and Agra the 3rd)- is called the pink city but I am not sure why-

 

Next to Dehli, it is a small town, a village really, with only 4 million people. It is famous for the enormous Am er Fort which is surrounded by the 3rd largest wall in the world- 

It was built in the 12th century tho some parts go back a couple of centuries earlier.  Some invaders still enter by war elephant- 

These vats would feed 2000 people  That’s a lot of soup-

Ancient forts are a big thing in India particularly in the dry  eastern state of Rajasthan where Jaipur is located. Most were logically built on hilltops   

In the midst of a lake, there is a famous “water temple”  built 600 years ago where I met up with some authentic locals dressed in traditional Indian garb- 

Ok they were from Canada but roots in India- authentic enough for me  

Besides the Amber Fort, the big tourist attraction is the Royal Palace where the Maharaja (super king rather just plain Rajah  run of the mill king) still resides though without any political power   The Palace was built in the 1600s and, while open to tourists, is still today privately owned and operated - 

I understand that the Maharaja is a world class polo player  ell I guess you have to do something if you are an unemployed Maharaja  as they aren’t many Maharaja openings nowadays  

Jaipur also boasts the worlds largest sun dial, built by a bored Maharaja in the 1750s, and accurate within 2 seconds and somehow great for predicting monsoons-

After leaving Jaipur, I travelled to Ramanbore National Park where I did a safari in the hope of seeing a tiger  I saw large monkeys, antelope, some beautiful peacocks, wild boar- 

And one tiger (blow it up to see)- 

They are big! 

On to Agra and the Taj Mahal