India - 21 Oct to 5 Dec 2008 (Last diary of GR3)

Hi There

Having left Pakistan , we entered India through the Wagah/Attari Border at around five o'clock the evening, with a lengthy demonstration of the Indian bureaucracy, regarding our carnets and Visas….no hassles, though, just time consuming!

Finally, with everyone excited, we entered India, aware though, that our time here would be bitter/sweat…..we had decided to ship our vehicle back to SA after our tour of India and in so doing, end our two year long ‘Journey of a Lifetime', but for now, the subcontinent's bamboozling symphony of sights, sounds, tastes and smells still awaited us all, so although sad, we remained eager and excited to explore and experience this ‘colourful' country!! India happens to be one of the world's most multidimensional countries, with a diverse spectrum of travel encounters…..it is said that the poverty is confronting, Indian bureaucracy exasperating and that the crush of humanity can at times turn the simplest task into an energy sapping battle….we remained thrilled, none-the-less and ready to confront it all!!! By now, we were also in serious need of our new tyres and rims and were hoping for a hassle-free delivery while in Delhi …how would this saga play itself out?

After our border crossing, we arrived in the Punjab & Haryana states of India and our main attractions would include the wonderful Sikh Golden Temple in Amritsar, the modern city of Chandigarh and the Kurukshetra Panorama & Science Centre, in Kurukshetra….but first, the ‘Closing of the Border' ceremony. Every evening, just before sunset, the Indian and Pakistani military meet at the border to engage in an extraordinary 20-minute ceremony of ‘pure theatre'. It is conducted with machismo, pride and posturing on both sides, but is also acted out in harmony. There were thousands of people…dancing, singing, shouting…..all with very high energy……chanting “We love India” “India our mother land” with great enthusiasm, what a great introduction to India. We could not help but wonder what a cricket match between these two countries would be like…in three words, we were sure it would be a ‘spectacle' of note'!! Not long after the ceremony, we found ourselves back at our vehicles and by then, the sun had set, it was dark and we decided to spend the night in the parking lot…we planned to leave early the next morning.

We arrived in Amritsar 's old city, the beating heart of the Sikh religion, around ten o'clock the morning. Our main attraction was to be the Golden Temple , an exceptionally beautiful and serene place, but first we had to navigate through the bustling and grimy alleys of the surrounding old city…..fun, but also an eye-opening experience! The Golden Temple is open to all and strangely, no-one asked us for any money during our visit….hard to believe, giving the place a rather spiritual atmosphere, despite the crowds!! On entering the Temple , we had to remove our shoes, wash our feet and cover our heads with scarves…the kids loved the rig-ma-roll!! We walked along the Parkarma (the marble walkway surrounding the pool and decided not to cross the Guru's Bridge to the two-storey marble temple, Hari Mandir Sahib, that stands in the middle of the sacred pool, Amrit Sarovar, that gave the town its name. We found our way to the Sikh Museum , later, that tells the grisly history of the Sikhs that were martyred by the Mughal, the British and Mrs. Gandhi…..hard to believe that people could be that cruel and horrific to each other!! Unfortunately, no photos could be taken, but one painting that stood out was a man being sawn in half, from head down….gruesome stuff!! GR1 decided on lunch at the Guru-Ka-Langar, the free community dining room of all Sikh temples, where they enjoyed free lentil soup and chapattis, while we opted for a vegetarian meal at a restaurant in the old city….both meals fantastic. The only other attraction visited, was the Jallianwala Bach, a small park only a 5 minute walk from the Golden Temple . This park commemorates the 2000 Indians killed or wounded by the British authorities in 1919, under the command of General Dyer, while holding a peaceful demonstration.

We left Amritsar late afternoon, heading towards Chandigarh , India 's greenest, cleanest and most prosperous city. Chandigarh is also known as India 's only planned city…can this be true??? While driving into this city, we noticed a rather fancy-looking Toyota dealership and it was then decided that ‘My Van' and ‘Tipperdee' would be serviced here. We arrived in Himalaya Marg and after a desperate, but unsuccessful search for a good hotel at a reasonable rate; we were advised by a local, to try a guest house a few blocks away…what a great find! We checked into the ‘Bed and Breakfast Accommodation' for a two night stay and our first task the following morning was the servicing of our vehicles. As it turned out, our host directed us to another Toyota dealership, but our vehicles were serviced and cleaned…..this did, however, take the entire day. It was decided to visit the Nek Chad Fantasy Rock Garden early the following morning and then to reach Delhi by evening. The mazelike Rock Garden had a real ‘lost world' feel to it, with armies of human and animal figures made from recycled junk such as broken pottery and bangles, used electrical sockets, pebbles and sacks of concrete to build canyons, archways, walls and even waterfalls. We spent around two hours wondering through this whimsical and inspirational garden, but then it was time to continue our journey to Delhi . First though, a quick visit to Kurushetra, a town along the way to Delhi . We had just enough time for a visit to the Kurushetra Panorama & Science Centre, with its boldly painted diorama and models telling the story of the 18-day Mahabharata battle between the Pandavas and the Kauravas, upstairs and a hand-on science exhibit on the ground floor…..we enjoyed the 3-D show the best!! Our time here was short and after an hour long visit, we once again continued towards India 's capital. Our journey to Delhi was ‘interesting' and we soon discovered that in India…road rules do not apply, the size of your vehicle doesn't mean much, one-ways are actually two-ways and auto-rickshaws are everywhere. What rules the road though, is the volume of one's hooter….not long and all we did was ‘Blow our Horns'!! Let's not forget the power of the arm, as well….somehow, once you've stretched your arm out of the window, it automatically gives you the right to change lanes or turn….great if you have long arms!

We arrived in Delhi just as the sun set and the most notable impression was the smog. We could not see more than 200m ahead of us, in any direction and along with the smog, came the smells….what an introduction. Before long, it was dark and we found ourselves battling our way through the traffic, heading for Nehru Park ….we heard from a French couple in Cairo that we could camp for free and that there were showers as well!!! By the time we reached our over-night camp, we were exhausted and opted for an early night. The next two days, in Delhi, was spent visiting numerous travel agents around Connaught Place for both domestic and international flights…..sight seeing would follow later. We booked flights to Varanasi from the Sheraton Travel Agency and finally, after much searching, we found Ashok Travels & Tours that proved to be the best, for our international flights…Chennai – Bangkok – JHB!! First thing Friday, though, was a visit to the imports cargo bay at the Indira Ghandi International Airport …Good news, our tyres had left PE, Bad news, our tyres were stuck at the JHB International Airport . We later discovered that the reason for the delay….the box of toilet chemicals sent by our parents….these would later be left in SA!!

Vanita was not happy spending our time camping in Delhi and on Friday, we opted to check into the Hotel Blue Sapphire, in the Karol Bagh district, for a two night stay and then on Sunday, to the Hotel Cosmo… in Old Delhi, as well….needless-to-say, parking was difficult, but hotel management made arrangements for us to park ‘My Van' at the main entrances and as a ‘plus', they had 24 hour security…we felt at ease. On Sunday, we planned a day of sight-seeing with Ashok T&T, but our day was cut short as Zack managed to fall while visiting the Red Fort….he sustained a severe knock to his head and face…we had to cut short our day and spent the remainder of Sunday in our hotel room. After spending the entire afternoon in bed, Zack felt a lot better and later continued to behave like the Zack we all knew. We were glad that we decided to end our tour, but at least we got to see the Jama Masjid (a short distance away from the Red Fort and one of Asia's largest Mosques, built by Emperor Shah Jahan and completed in 1658) and the Red Fort (the Mughal citadel of power carved in red sandstone and dominates the cityscape on the way to Old Delhi….entering through the fort's main gate, Lahore Gate, then the vaulted arcade known as the Ghatta Chowk, then the Naubat Khana or Drum House, the Hall of Public Audiences, the Hall of Private Audiences and then Zack's accident and the end of our visit!). Monday morning, we checked out of our hotel early enough to meet up with GR1 in Nehru Park, but as little more could be discovered about our tyres, we collected our international flight tickets and also completed our one-day tour of Delhi, with Rajoo, in our personal taxi.

Rajoo started our tour off, with a drive past the Indian Gate, a 42-m high stone memorial arch for the 90000 Indian soldiers that died in WW1, followed by a visit to the Parliament Buildings and then a stroll through the World Heritage Monument of Humayun's Tomb…..a grand mausoleum built for the emperor, Haji Begum, by his senior queen and is one of the first Mughal garden tombs, said to be the inspiration for the Taj Mahal. After our visit, we were starved and decided on a late lunch at Nehru Place , where we enjoyed some fresh, hot pizzas. We had a quick ‘photo-stop' at the Lotus Temple and then a visit to the Qutb Minar complex. Our drive to the complex was interesting, especially since Diwali was to be celebrated the next day and all the streets seemed to be filled with people, rickshaws, animals and motor vehicles….a lot of the people seemed to be selling something or other, but even more spent their time and Rupees buying something, for Diwali!! The streets seemed alive with everyone bustling around, but what made it special, were the flowers….orange, yellow and pink flowers seemed to be everywhere with the women selling them wearing beautiful, colourful saris….only in India, hey? By the time we arrived at the complex, the boys had fallen asleep in the vehicle and as the sun had already started setting, it was decided to leave them be, while the adults visited the complex. The imposing buildings date from the onset of Islamic rule in India and are fine examples of early Afghan architecture. We seemed to have been just in time to view the all impressive Qutb Minar, a World heritage Monument and an imposing five-storey tower built in 1193; the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, a novel construction of Islamic domes and arches with decorative panels from the Jain and Hindu temples…the first mosque to be built in India and finally, the 7m-high Iron Pillar. Our visit to the complex was our highlight attraction of Delhi and our time there was just too short, but it was dark and we had planned to meet up with GR1 at the Parsi Anjuman Hall, for an hour-long performance of regional dances that included bhara-tanatyam, kathakali and Manipuri. We arrived a few minutes late, due to the traffic, but enjoyed the rather poorly attended show. We were surprised to meet up with the Ragas' from PE, who had arrived in India earlier that day for a one month visit and after a brief get together after the show, it was time to head back to Nehru Park.

We spent Monday night in Nehru Park and on Tuesday afternoon, we headed back to the airport as news reached us that our tyres were in India…hip, hip hooray!! Tuesday, unfortunately, was also Diwali and nothing could be done…we decided to spend the night at the gates to the cargo bay and later Chris and Julia joined us as well. We celebrated Diwali with some ‘alcohol' and although this was not allowed, airport security and the police allowed us anyway…not bad considering our location! Wednesday morning Chris and Julia left for northern India and we were left to face ‘true Indian bureaucracy'. Everything seemed easy enough initially, but as the day progressed, our patience and at times our tempers were truly tested. We were sent from pillar to post, for signature after signature, but as it turned out, none of the officials we were dealing with really knew what procedure should be followed. What really frustrated us was that everyone seemed confident that what he was doing was correct and then after a while, being told that we needed to follow a different route. After lunch, it seemed that we were finally getting things right, but by the end of the day, still no tyres…we were to return the following morning and by then we were really getting nervous…..we had a flight booked to Varanasi the following day and we wondered whether that flight would be made!! The ladies and all the children spent the entire day patiently in the vans, with no complaints…how did they manage??

Thursday; and we were to fly to Varanasi at 2h30 pm….would our tyre saga be over by then? We arrived back at the airport at 10 a.m. and finally around 13h00 we managed to drive away with our new rims and tyres, but not before a few more demonstrations of really frustrating Indian bureaucracy, with their need for multiple signatures and our demonstrations of complete lack of ‘cool heads', at times. We just about managed to squeeze in a quick good-bye to GR1, with the promise to meet up in Agra , in a few days time; before we had to rush off to the domestic departures of the airport, for our flight to Varanasi . This happened to be Zack and Troys' first flight experiences and the both of them were brimming/glowing with excitement…we were flying Spice Jet!!

We were now entering Uttar Pradesh (UP), often referred to as the cow belt or Hindu belt, India 's most populous state. We were flying to the mighty, myth-laden Ganges, UP's backbone and Hinduism's most sacred river, with Varanasi being one of the holiest pilgrimage centres. While in Delhi , we had made reservations at the Temple on the Ganges Hotel, for a two night stay and on our arrival, we booked a government taxi, for the 25km ride into the town and our hotel. Vanita had lost her ‘cool' with the taxi-ride sales person at the airport and during our ride first tried to deny the incident, but later we all laughed at the whole episode. But, as she claims…they don't know us, we don't know them and no-one knows anyone; so why should anyone trust anyone, especially when it comes to price???

We arrived at our hotel as night fell and were pleasantly surprised with our marble-floored room and satellite TV…..a tad pricey, but this was Varanasi after all!! Varanasi is known as the beating heart of the Hindu universe, a crossing place between the physical and spiritual worlds and the Ganges is viewed as a river of salvation, an everlasting, ever flowing symbol of hope to the past, the present and the future generations….we decided to indulge ourselves!! After settling in, we enjoyed a roof-top supper, over-looking the Ganges and the old town of Varanasi , from our hotel and were entertained with fireworks as well as the sounds and smells of Varanasi . That evening, after watching a scene from the movie Pearl Harbour, where Ben Affleck knocked his head, Zack explained that that was exactly how he had felt when he had knocked his head at the Red Fort…we could not help but burst into laughter….all of us!! We rose at dawn the following morning, for an hour long boat trip along the Ganges to view the Ghats from the river….a truly unique experience. Most Ghats are used for body bathing and clothes washing, but there are also several ‘burning Ghats ' where bodies are cremated in public. Our one hour long boat trip lasted nearly two hours and took us from the Assi Ghat to the burning ghat of Dasaswamedh Ghat. The accessibility to the practices of ancient, but still living, religious traditions was what captivated us most….our boat ride transported us back in time and it seemed hard to believe that we were still in the 21 st century…what an experience, a definite highlight not only for India, but for our trip as a whole!! We arrived back at the hotel for a late breakfast and then a two hour ‘lay-in'….our day had started rather early!! Our afternoon was spent wondering through the overcrowded, polluted, dirty and poorly maintained old city and ended with a late lunch at the Bread of Life Bakery restaurant. We spent about an hour in a silk factory as well, where we met an elderly gentlemen, the previous owner now retired, desperate to do some good before he's death…..as he said: “I need to do good as I do not want to return as an animal in my next life”. We couldn't agree with him more and decided to buy some pillow cases from him at a really good price. We arrived back at our hotel just before dark and spent our evening in our room….Vanita ventured out after dark, but returned back within an hour… Varanasi was best seen in daylight!! Pat celebrated her 70 th B-day that day, but after failing to make contact earlier in the day, we finally managed to speak to her. Unfortunately, the kids had fallen asleep by then and we planned to give her a call the following day as well. Our last morning in Varanasi was spent purchasing a marble elephant and taking one last walk along the Ghats and through the town. Our taxi arrived at 13h00 and after another call to Pat; we took the hour long ride to the airport, where we enjoyed a fantastic lunch, before our flight back to Delhi . Unfortunately, we also discovered that our cell phone had been left in the taxi…...we were once again communication-less!

We arrived back in Delhi after dark, having forgotten that we still needed to change all our tyres and rims. We managed to change two tyres along the way to Nehru Park and before settling in for the night, we bought some groceries and filled up with diesel, where we changed the remaining two wheels at the petrol station….we were ready to drive to Agra the following morning….a trip that took us around five hours for a mere 200km!!

UP is best known for India 's most famous icon, the 350-year-old Taj Mahal, as well as other splendid Mughal monuments in Agra and Fatehpur Sikri and we planned on a two night stay at the Hill Top Hotel, in Agra . Here, we were allowed to camp, plug into electricity, fill our water tanks, empty the toilet and wash clothes…excellent!! After a quick lunch at our hotel, we decided on an afternoon visit to the famous Taj Mahal. The Taj is described as the most extravagant monument ever built for love and construction is believed to have run to about US$70 million in today's monetary terms. We arrived by auto-rickshaw and entered through the west gate, spending a good few hours marvelling at India 's tourist emblem. Loads of photos were taken and only once the sun had set, we decided that it was time to leave. We met up with GR1 at their hotel and spent the evening enjoying a delicious supper at the hotel…our ‘last supper' as the Globeriders!! GR1 had planned to travel up to Nepal the following day, while we were to head west to Jaipur….our time together had drawn to an end, after nearly two years of travel and after a splendid evening together, we parted ways…..we would meet up again in SA, after a possible year and a half apart….what did the future hold in store for us all??

Please click here to read GR3's EPILOGUE of their Journey of a Lifetime