We happily left Jodhpur and spent the morning on the road to Udaipur. I had previously asked Nanu to take me to a place to buy a yoga mat as I miss my hot yoga workout. True to his word, he took me to a store that sells hand woven rugs done by hand, which is what people use here for yoga. No soft pink spongy mats to be found. Be careful what you ask for! Nanu also told us how he was the driver that took President Clinton, Chelsea and his mother-in-law ar
ound for three days on his tour to India in 1993. He showed us his access pass that he still has and was quite proud of!
Early in the morning, we stopped at another temple which had over one hundred pillars, all carved individually. A western woman was meditating in one section and many locals were saying their daily prayers in the main hall. The religious leader of the temple asked us if he could pray for us. We acquiesced, knowing full well that the request for money would come shortly after. And of c
ourse....We are getting more than a little bit tired of being hit up for tips and hidden fees everywhere we go, such as charging you to take your shoes off at a temple, or playing music for you that you didn’t request, or giving you a turban tying lesson that lasts 30 seconds, and immediately demanding a tip. Ok, starting to sound bitter here!
ound for three days on his tour to India in 1993. He showed us his access pass that he still has and was quite proud of!Early in the morning, we stopped at another temple which had over one hundred pillars, all carved individually. A western woman was meditating in one section and many locals were saying their daily prayers in the main hall. The religious leader of the temple asked us if he could pray for us. We acquiesced, knowing full well that the request for money would come shortly after. And of c
ourse....We are getting more than a little bit tired of being hit up for tips and hidden fees everywhere we go, such as charging you to take your shoes off at a temple, or playing music for you that you didn’t request, or giving you a turban tying lesson that lasts 30 seconds, and immediately demanding a tip. Ok, starting to sound bitter here!Shortly after the temple, along the road to Udaipur, a gang of monkey's popped out o
f the trees looking for some attention (or food). They were so adorable and friendly that we had to give them all the leftover bananas in the car! We tried to share them out as best as possible, but some monkeys got carried away! I wish we could have taken one home! Nanu said that Hindu's are supposed to feed monkeys on Tuesdays and Saturdays as part of religious karma as monkeys are the protectors of one of the hindu gods.
After another tourist trap lunch (I refused to eat), we arrived in Udaipur in the late afternoon and fell i
n love with the city immediately. Surrounded by beautiful manmade lakes, it is a quaint tourist town filled with backpackers and shops galore!
We spent the rest of our day/evening in and out of the shops and spending some much needed time in the internet cafe. Everything here is tourist cheap and I’m loving it! Feeling a craving for Italian food we went to the Jolly Italy cafe for dinner. The place actually looked more like a tokers paradise, but we decided to give dinner a try as we were really hungry
and the menu prices cheap. I noticed a guy sitting by himself on one of the floor tables. After inviting him to our table, we found out that Tony is from New York and has spent the past two years working in Bangkok. He and Joe enjoyed puffing on the nargila pipe as we ate pizza and falafel, trading travel tips/stories until the mosquitoes began to eat us alive. It was so great conversing with a native English speaker. Surprisingly 
all the tourists we have seen/met in India have been German or French and are double are age. A short walk back to our hotel and to bed!
Our first morning in Udaipur began with a quick trip to a loc
al temple and an explanation of Hinduism by our guide Ramesh. There are over 33 million gods/goddesses in Hinduism. Ramesh gave us a detailed account of the peaceful religion and how it forms the basis for all religions coming from India including Sikhism and Buddhism. Our next stop was at the Sajjan Niwas gardens that were previously used by the queen and her maidens to run around naked in (Ramesh mentioned naked about five times, so I wanted to emphasize it!)
After the gardens we were taken for yet another sales pitch to a school where they teac
h detailed small painting art. The work is all painted by hand using crushed stones to generate long lasting colors. I did fall in love with a beautiful piece depicting the Taj Mahal but wasn’t willing to pay $450 for it! We did manage to bargain down, but it seemed impractical and expensive to buy art this far from home when we have a long way to go on our travels.
Since the Udaipur palace was closed due a wedding, we had some free time left in the afternoon. I had seen a poster for a local non-profit shelter that treats street animals (the only one of its kind) and wanted to visit. I will put in a little plug for them as they are truly a remarkable shelter. Animal Aid Unlimited or AAU (www.animalaidunlimited.com) take
animals off the street that have been injured and provide them with the medical care they require. With a full staff of Indian workers and a few volunteers the shelter must raise US$10,000/month to remain open. We met dogs, cows, donkeys and even tortoises that were taken from the street to be given treatment and a lot of love.
As some of you may know, cows are considered a holy animal in the Sikh and Hindu religions. On
ce cows are finished their years of work, they are left to roam the street of town eating and sleeping as they please and they are fed by local people and/or scavenge like the dogs. The problem is that there are so many of them and on occasion they get hit by a passing car or truck and are not properly cared for afterwards. AAU takes these animals in and provides them with medication and necessary surgery before releasing them back to the location they were found, if possible. Some donkeys must remain at the shelter as their limbs are permanently damaged and they can no longer work.
f the trees looking for some attention (or food). They were so adorable and friendly that we had to give them all the leftover bananas in the car! We tried to share them out as best as possible, but some monkeys got carried away! I wish we could have taken one home! Nanu said that Hindu's are supposed to feed monkeys on Tuesdays and Saturdays as part of religious karma as monkeys are the protectors of one of the hindu gods.After another tourist trap lunch (I refused to eat), we arrived in Udaipur in the late afternoon and fell i
n love with the city immediately. Surrounded by beautiful manmade lakes, it is a quaint tourist town filled with backpackers and shops galore!We spent the rest of our day/evening in and out of the shops and spending some much needed time in the internet cafe. Everything here is tourist cheap and I’m loving it! Feeling a craving for Italian food we went to the Jolly Italy cafe for dinner. The place actually looked more like a tokers paradise, but we decided to give dinner a try as we were really hungry
and the menu prices cheap. I noticed a guy sitting by himself on one of the floor tables. After inviting him to our table, we found out that Tony is from New York and has spent the past two years working in Bangkok. He and Joe enjoyed puffing on the nargila pipe as we ate pizza and falafel, trading travel tips/stories until the mosquitoes began to eat us alive. It was so great conversing with a native English speaker. Surprisingly 
all the tourists we have seen/met in India have been German or French and are double are age. A short walk back to our hotel and to bed!Our first morning in Udaipur began with a quick trip to a loc
al temple and an explanation of Hinduism by our guide Ramesh. There are over 33 million gods/goddesses in Hinduism. Ramesh gave us a detailed account of the peaceful religion and how it forms the basis for all religions coming from India including Sikhism and Buddhism. Our next stop was at the Sajjan Niwas gardens that were previously used by the queen and her maidens to run around naked in (Ramesh mentioned naked about five times, so I wanted to emphasize it!)After the gardens we were taken for yet another sales pitch to a school where they teac
h detailed small painting art. The work is all painted by hand using crushed stones to generate long lasting colors. I did fall in love with a beautiful piece depicting the Taj Mahal but wasn’t willing to pay $450 for it! We did manage to bargain down, but it seemed impractical and expensive to buy art this far from home when we have a long way to go on our travels.Since the Udaipur palace was closed due a wedding, we had some free time left in the afternoon. I had seen a poster for a local non-profit shelter that treats street animals (the only one of its kind) and wanted to visit. I will put in a little plug for them as they are truly a remarkable shelter. Animal Aid Unlimited or AAU (www.animalaidunlimited.com) take
animals off the street that have been injured and provide them with the medical care they require. With a full staff of Indian workers and a few volunteers the shelter must raise US$10,000/month to remain open. We met dogs, cows, donkeys and even tortoises that were taken from the street to be given treatment and a lot of love.As some of you may know, cows are considered a holy animal in the Sikh and Hindu religions. On
ce cows are finished their years of work, they are left to roam the street of town eating and sleeping as they please and they are fed by local people and/or scavenge like the dogs. The problem is that there are so many of them and on occasion they get hit by a passing car or truck and are not properly cared for afterwards. AAU takes these animals in and provides them with medication and necessary surgery before releasing them back to the location they were found, if possible. Some donkeys must remain at the shelter as their limbs are permanently damaged and they can no longer work.Because of the laws of India, the vets are not allowed to euthanize the cows for fear of losing their license, although some of the cows can no longer stand and their quality of life non-existent. An Indian woman massages their limbs daily to help circulate the body. Jim, who founded AAU with his wife and daughter says he considers the shelter a sort of hospice for cows
, which is his way of coping with the laws. They have a true love for all animals and only put them down when as Jim puts it “they request it with their eyes.” There are many happy amputees roaming the property with wagging tails and loving licks. It was a really educating and eye opening visit and one that particularly touches my heart as an big animal lover. The shelter also does its part to educate locals on the proper care of animals and has treated 29,300 animals to date. A truly great staff work there and are in desperate need of volunteers (and/or financial contributions) for anyone looking for an educational holiday or are able to donate online through paypal!We finish
ed up the afternoon with some much needed computer time before I went to my previously scheduled ayurvedic massage and facial!! Very invigorating and a little painful, Lalit used the most amazing smelling oil and lotions and I felt very relaxed afterwards. We finished the evening with falafel, shakshouka and a game of pool at the Jolly Italian cafe before heading off to bed. 
Great blog! Hope your yoga mat softens up! Just think how happy you will be to see your soft cushy mat when you get home.
ReplyDeleteI love that you guys visited the shelter. Only you Elana, with the biggest heart around, would make time to visit & love the poor injured animals.