EWR or HAJ?

Diwali in Delhi...

Sublime at Samode...

Bollywood in Bombay...

Elated at Ellora...

Awestruck at Ajanta...

I think I was the only person who had a good night’s sleep last night. Poor Ferris couldn’t breathe because the power was off all night and her breathing machine wouldn’t work. There was a strong rain all night and Cliff and Cathy had a water leak directly over their bed. Meanwhile I was peacefully asleep.

In the morning when we woke up the power remained off. If power is off, there is no hot water, so we delayed taking showers until electricity returned and the water could heat. By 8am there was no change so we decided to take sponge baths and wait until our layover in Mumbai at a day hotel to clean up before our flight back to the US. We ate breakfast, filled out hotel feedback forms and gave high marks to Alex and low marks to electricity, and departed the hotel at 10.

A note about electricity at Siolim House. Power was constantly going off throughout our stay, possibly due to the non-stop rain. We discovered there was a huge panel in a cupboard next the table where we ate breakfast that contained all the fuses and master switches for electricity. We joked that the inside looked like something out of a mad scientist's laboratory. There was a huge red dial in the middle and buttons and switches on either side. Frequently Alex would come running, open the cupboard, flip switches and turn the big red dial and suddenly power would resume. One day we were introduced by Alex to his new intern of sorts whom he was training to perform the many tasks that Alex did so well. I’m sure that manning the electrical cabinet was one of them. I suspect that when Alex went home for the evening to his family, that junior intern was supposed to make sure the backup generator got turned on when the power went out, but that it didn’t quite happen the way it was suppose to last night.

Back to our travels. We were scheduled to depart Goa at 2 pm and arrive in Mumbai around 3. Then Ferris and I would go to a day hotel and get to the international terminal at 9 or 10 pm for a 11:50pm flight to Newark. Cliff and Cathy would be staying a few more days in Mumbai before returning home. The weather was gorgeous and sunny in Goa as we waited but we began hearing reports that the rain we’d experienced the past two days was related to a cyclone now moving toward Mumbai.

At first our flight was delayed a half hour, then an hour, and so on. Cliff somehow found a deluxe (for Goa) waiting lounge where we could order lime drinks. Our part of the lounge didn’t always have electricity or AC but it did have comfortable chairs. We watched weather notices on TV and chatted with fellow travelers sitting near us, mostly Indian businessmen who like us were making fun of Indian inefficiency. Finally at 4:30 we got the word to board. We waited on the tarmac for quite a while in Goa, and circled over Mumbai for another long while. What is a short 45 minute flight ended up taking 2 ½ hours from boarding to landing.

At the airport in Mumbai Ferris and I said our thanks and farewells to Cliff and Cathy. It was now 7pm. Because our Goa flight had taken off much later than planned, we canceled the day hotel reservation and headed directly to the International Terminal. We were glad we did because it took us over an hour just to take the airport shuttle bus from the domestic terminal to the international! So it was well after 8 pm before we arrived at the Continental check-in desk.

That’s not the end of our story. We’d made plans to extract our cold weather clothes from our bags (which had been synched with a tight security band and required finding a scissor to open) and change into them in the airport. But the international terminal was jammed with Muslims in white robes headed to Saudi Arabia for the HAJ! You know things are bad when you’re turned away from the ladies room by a toilet attendant who wags her finger at you and says “very dirty here; very dirty” and escorts you to another ladies room. I didn’t realize that you must be rid of your normal clothing and into your white HAJ attire before boarding the airplane until this airport experience. We were not the only people in this terminal trying to change clothes.

We finally made it through to a business class lounge for one hour of rest (and a lively conversation with an Indian woman who now lives in New York) before heading to our flight. We flew Business First to Newark and arrived (after a 16 hour flight) at 5:30 am on Nov 12.

Arrived to find the temperature a brisk 50 degrees and the trees in Central Park are yellow and red and beginning to cover the ground. A picture perfect fall scene. Quite a change from where I was this morning, half a world away.

So to bring this trip's journal to a close, here are a few favorite moments with the most cheerful and resourceful traveling companions anyone could wish to have. Here's to our next adventure together!

Goan Casual / 10 Nov 09

Having been out late last night we were not in the mood for an early start. At 10:30 we piled into the van in a light rain and headed into town. In addition to seeing a few traditional sites such as Portuguese churches, we had silly goals in mind. Alex had introduced us to music by an Indian singer named Kishore Kumar and we wanted to visit a CD store. We’d read about a cashew liquor made in Goa called "Fenny" and wanted to pick up bottles to sample. We were also curious to see clothing by a local Goan designer, Wendell Rodericks, who we’d read about.

While in town we stopped for lunch at a locals-only restaurant and had a traditional meal eaten with fingers. I, being the Purell freak that I am, ate with a spoon.

In the afternoon it began raining heavily so we called a relatively early end to the day and returned to Siolim to pack our bags. We’d decided to eat at the hotel for dinner and at breakfast had placed orders for lobster, prawns, red snapper and lots of cauliflower for Cliff (his favorite veg). We sampled the cashew liquor, had more Sula wine, and after dinner retired to the media room to watch a Bollywood film. However the weather and the electricity had other plans. Every time we got the film queued up to the point we’d left off the power would go out. After the second time we gave up and decided it wasn’t meant to be.

When Ferris and I walked through the living room on our way to our room we saw little frogs hopping across the damp tile floor. The heavy rain sounded wonderful falling on the roof as we went to bed. I wonder if this is even remotely similar to what India must be like during monsoon?

Goa By Way of Bollywood / 9 Nov 09

Thanks in part to Alex and in part to Kashmera, we had a spectacular day. Alex de Sousa served as our guide. On the way south Alex drove through northern villages and along famous beaches including Morjim, Mandrem and Arambol. The weather was drizzly so our view of beaches was somewhat tempered but we could see the appeal of the less touristed north.

We’d read about a museum of Portuguese houses called CALIZZ near Candolim Beach and selected it as our first stop. Calizz is a restored village square with houses that represent both affluent Portuguese homes as well as native Goan mud-brick dwellings. The museum seems to be the pet project of a wealthy Goan who has a hobby of collecting antique objects and whose desire it is to preserve Goan heritage. Apparently there is very little in the way of museums in Goa so this small museum is a jewel. We had a beautiful young guide at the museum who knew every fact about the objects on display. She gave us fascinating insights into current Goan society by telling us stories about her own life.

We headed south, winding through more villages and fields. After two hours or so and many bumps over “sleeping policemen” (the Goan name for speed bumps) we arrived at the Intercontinental Hotel. Kashmera had only arrived in Goa a few hours earlier. She offered us her room to freshen up while she dashed off for a pre-show rehearsal. At 6pm her makeup artist and hair stylist arrived and they began final preparation. We had a great time watching the application of layers of stage makeup, including sparking silver eyeshadow. Several wigs and costumes were selected before dashing off at 7 for the performance.

The event was a corporate reward banquet for high-performing Bridgestone sales people from all over India. Kashmera was the featured entertainer of the evening and she both opened and closed the show. What looked like heavy stage makeup in her room appeared completely natural under lights. Kashmera danced with a troupe of 10 and lip-sync’d (as is customary in India) to popular Bollywood songs. The Bridgestone men adored her; they held still and video cameras high in the air despite a steady and hard rain. By the end of the performance we were thoroughly soaked but the warm rain felt good. Alex, our faithful friend and driver, had accompanied us to the performance and we were relieved to have him to drive us the long way back to Siolim.

The Miracle of Air Con / 8 Nov 09

Prawns, Baby Kingfish and Lobster presented before cooking at our Goan beachside restaurant

Ferris on the steps of Siolim House

Siolim House living room

Typical Goan village architecture

Cliff on the "throne" in his room!

Today was a day of travel and transition. Left Aurangabad on an 8:35 am flight; transferred in Mumbai for arrival in Goa at 1 pm. As we walked from the plane to the terminal building we were immediately struck, not only by Goa’s lush tropical vegetation, but also by the much higher temperature and humidity level.

We were led to our van by a disinterested local contact named Joachim who, unlike all of our other airport greeters, did not lift a finger to help the driver load the van. This was our first clue that Joachim might not be a good fit for us. The drive to our hotel merely confirmed our suspicions. Joachim began telling us about the four-hour tour included in our package that was to begin at 8:30 tomorrow morning. This tour included several things we knew we didn’t want to do and omitted several things that we did want to do. We told Joachim we’d be willing to pay extra for changes and that these changes were important to us. Joachim was intractable. Our touring could only be from 8:30 to 12:30 and must include the four specified items.

Another factor in planning the next day was our desire to attend an evening performance by a friend of Cliff and Cathy’s – a Bollywood actress named Kashmera Shah – which would take place at the Intercontinental Hotel in south Goa, two hours from our hotel. We wanted to plan an itinerary that would gradually take us from north to south Goa and end by arriving at her hotel by 4pm. Joachim quoted a price for having a driver for the full day but insisted that the morning itinerary remain unchanged. We all looked at each other and knew that more than likely we’d end up canceling the entire morning and developing a new plan that did not include Joachim.

The airport is located near the Goan capital of Panaji, approximately midway down this long and narrow state. Goa is bordered on its western coast by the Arabian Sea. Our hotel, the Siolim House, is a one-hour drive north of the airport.

We spent the drive on narrow two lane roads passing through rice fields and small villages with brightly colored houses. As we traveled north, I had the sense of moving deeper into rural Goa. We passed through one village after another. Large houses with tile roofs surrounded by walls were interspersed with small ones made of mud brick. Even the most beautiful and best maintained houses showed signs of withering under the constant tropical moisture. There were dense groves of palm and coconut trees, pink, white and red bougainvillea, and even prickly pear cactus. I constantly had the feeling we were on an island, particularly as we drove along wide sandy beaches.

Finally the van turned off the larger road and onto an even smaller one. I didn’t seem possible that a hotel could be located anywhere nearby. We pulled off the tiny road and stopped suddenly in a dirt parking lot in front of a three-sided store selling potato chips. Joachim told us to get out. Puzzled, hot and tired we stumbled out and looked around. Across the street was a two storey white house with a plaque by the front gate saying Siolim House. The moment we entered we knew we were in for a treat. Siolim House is a restored 300 year old Portuguese Manor House with tile floors, tropical wood furniture, an open courtyard in the middle, and high beamed ceilings. It was once the residence of the Goan-Portuguese Governor of Macau.

We were led up a beautiful staircase to two large suites with a sitting area in between. There was even a media room with a huge flat screen TV. The only thing Siolim House seemed not to have was air conditioning. We were told to close the windows from 5 to 7 pm to avoid mosquitoes, but since there were no screens in the windows I was a bit skeptical about our ability to open the windows at all in the evenings. Mind you, it had to be in the very high 90s as we sat, sweating and contemplating our situation. At a beautiful hotel (with limited amenities), one hour from a major town and two hours from the Intercontinental, no plan for touring worked out, two full days ahead of us, in sweltering heat and humidity, limited to whatever cooling we were able to get from overhead ceiling fans.

I don’t know if it was the heat or fatigue from a long day of travel, but I opted for a bit of rest under the ceiling fan. When I awoke from my nap, Cliff, Cathy and Ferris came rushing in to tell me that our entire picture had changed. They’d not only discovered that Siolim House has other rooms available with air conditioning (we moved to them post haste) but it also has a driver/tour guide/waiter/jack of all trades named Alex who would be available to take us around Goa the next day and drive us to Kashmera’s performance. This changed everything.

We enjoyed a bottle of our favorite Indian wine, Sula Savignon Blanc, and delicious cashew nuts, courtesy of Alex. He then drove us to a restaurant about 20 minutes from Siolim where we had a wonderful dinner on the beach of lobster, prawns, Baby Kingfish and other local seafood specialties.

Ajanta Caves / 7 Nov 09

Our entire day today is devoted to visiting the Buddhist caves of Ajanta. We drove 2 ½ hours (approx. 100 kms) to Ajanta. When we arrived, once again it was curious there were no other foreign visitors anywhere in sight. To reduce the amount of automobile and scooter fumes reaching the caves, all vehicles have to park at a central area and take a bus to the caves entry point. All of the other passengers were Indian. Where are tourists? Why aren’t they coming to see these incredible sights? I can’t figure it out.

The Ajanta cave site is along the walls of a horseshoe shaped bend in a river. The caves are carved into volcanic rock and below them is a drop descending 250 ft into a ravine. They are 30 caves in all created between 2^nd c BC and 4^th c AD (earlier than Ellora) and were created as retreats for Buddhist monks during the rainy season. These caves were completely lost for 100 years and rediscovered in 1819.

Although I’d seen pictures, I hadn’t expected the sight to be as beautiful as it was. We sat outside at the entrance for about an hour while Mamod gave us an orientation to Ajanta. Because of the fragility of the paintings inside each cave, you are only allowed a certain number of minutes to visit each. So getting a debrief beforehand is a good idea.

We learned about the 10 qualities that painting was expected to have at the time these paintings were created (form, proportion, similarity, emotion, etc.) and about the materials used to paint them (only six pigments in milk-based tempera).

Then we climbed a series of stairs to reach the caves themselves. Our first visit was to Cave #1, a Mahayana monastery that dates to the end of the 5^th century. Our guide explained that this cave contained some of the most beautiful paintings at Ajanta and he spent time pointing out with his flashlight important scenes and interpreting them for us. Of course no photography with flash is permitted anywhere at Ajanta so we struggled to find settings that would enable us to capture the exquisitely painted figures.

Next to Cave #10, a Hinayana Buddhist Chaitya, dating to 2^nd c BC. We saw paintings of royal personage with their soldiers, dancers and musicians. Women wore exquisite clothing and jewelry and coiffures. There were complicated scenes from the Jataka Tales that Mamod interpreted. Not only are the Jataka tales complicated to follow, but also the painters of these scenes did not follow any linear mode of storytelling, so scenes that are chronologically related are not shown near each other. Mamod explained that the viewer would have already known the story and would have looked around to locate the scenes.

In Cave #17, a Mahayana monastery, also called the zodiac cave dating from 5^th c AD, we saw perhaps the most famous painting of all – the Flying Apsara – a beautiful woman with pearls and precious stones on her head and dripping from her neck. This cave is renowned for its magnificent paintings and again we spent time discussing stories and enjoying beautifully rendered scenes.

Cave #19, a small chaitya dating from 5^th c AD, has been called a sculptor’s “treasure chest”. It reminded us somewhat of the wonderful chaitya at Ellora, but this one contained far more sculpture. The most famous sculpture at Ajanta is in this cave. It is the image of the reclining Buddha (the depiction of the Buddha at moment of his death, about to be released from the cycle of death and rebirth).

The afternoon was getting late and we all hated to leave this beautiful place. I followed Mamod down a different path than the one we’d entered on; we walked along the river and through trees on a much cooler route back to the entry point. He plucked leaves from a large ficus tree (aka the Bodhi Tree; the tree under which the Buddha sat to attain enlightenment) and gave one to each of us.

Our ride was again 2 ½ hours back to Aurangabad. We packed up to fly tomorrow to the beach resort of Goa. I'm so happy that we came to Ellora and Ajanta and would highly recommend this visit to anyone. It was magnificent.

Ellora / 6 Nov 09

Had a 4am wake-up call in order to leave the hotel at 5am for an hour drive to the airport. Departed at 7am and arrived in Aurangabad at 8:15. Transferred to our beautiful hotel, the Taj Residency. This hotel is so tranquil that I’d love to stay here for several days although there’s no reason to be in Aurangabad other than use it as a launching pad for day trips to Ellora and Ajanta, which is why we’re here. Our rooms are down a long open corridor with bougainvilleas on one side and a huge beautiful pool on the other (our room looks out at the pool), very reminiscent of the Caribbean, and they are so far from the lobby that it seems like a 15 minute walk to reach them.

After check in we returned excitedly to the van for our afternoon at Ellora. Ellora is 18 miles from Aurangabad. Getting to Ellora and Ajanta has been a dream for me (as was getting to Borodudur in Indonesia) since taking a class on Buddhist Art several years ago. When I heard the explanation of how they were created I was simply amazed. I never thought I’d ever see them.

But suddenly there I was at one of the world’s most spectacular places – the “caves” of Ellora, a misnomer because many are not caves at all. They are either “cut-out monoliths” or “cut-in monoliths”. The first means that temples were cut down from above into the rock, the second mean that temples were cut in from the front of the rock.

The “cut out monoliths” are completely amazing feats of human imagination and engineering. Someone conceived a temple in three-dimensions and then figured out how cut down into rock so that the temple was created in one piece without mistake. Our guide, Mamoud, was very effective in describing how the temples were created, the meaning of the carvings, the various religions represented (Jainism, Brahmanism and Buddhism) and informing us about the history of Ellora.

Our first visit was to Cave #32, known as Indra Sabha, Assembly Hall of Indra, king of the gods - what Mamod affectionately termed as our “appetizer”. This Jain monastery was built in 10-11^th century AD. Jain priests cannot eat meat. They can’t eat anything grown in (under) the ground. They cannot do anything that might kill a living being. They cannot walk outside after sunset for fear of accidentally killing a life.

Then on to our “main course” – the spectacular cave #16 - Shiva Temple Kailash. Mt. Kailash in the Himalayas is the mythical abode of Shiva. This is one of India’s most famous monuments. This vast temple is formed from one piece of rock and 3,000,000 cubic feet of rock were quarried to create it. The temple actually consists of three building connected by an overhead bridge. We walked around the lower level which is ringed by elephant carvings, then climbed inside one of the chambers to see beautiful elephant painted overhead (our day of paintings will be tomorrow at Ajanta). The entire structure reminded me of wedding cake because it was so richly carved on the sides and on top and I was eager to climb up on the hillside to get an overhead view. While we were touring we met a group of Indians, mostly women and children, who were eager to have their pictures taken with us. As coincidences will have it, we learned that they were tourists from Orissa (near Puri) and our guide explained that we had just returned from there. We took lots of pictures together, occasionally the women would hug one of us which was very sweet, and then waved to each other until parting.

For dessert, we entered the Buddhist chaitya, cave #10, from approx. 7^th c AD. I thought the following was interesting so I will quote from my guidebook: “This cave temple is dedicated to Vishwarkarma, the architect of the gods and the patron saint of many Indian artisans even today, but having no connection with the Buddhist pantheon. This commingling of concepts, which the Mahayana system initiated, resulted finally in the absorption of Buddhism in the current of Hindu thought and its virtual extinction in the land of its birth.” I quote this because we spent a lot of time discussing religion with Mamod and one of the puzzles is why did Buddhism, which arose in India, eventually disappear from India, and Hinduism, which preceded Buddhism, continue to flourish?

Mamod had us sit quietly at the base of the pillars, as Buddhist monks would have done. Be began to chant, sing really in a basso voice, and his voice reverberated beautifully throughout the chaitya. I can’t describe how beautiful it was; he went on for quite some time and I think all of us left having had a very special experience.

As we walked back toward our van I noticed the beginning of the pathway leading up above the Kailash temple. Cliff was game to go, so we climbed to the top with Mamod who knew exactly the right spots to stop along the way for photos.

The views were extraordinary. In fact this has to be my favorite memory of the trip. Seeing Kailash from above – the beauty of the carvings – the size and scale of it all – and marveling at how this temple could be formed by digging downward from the spot where we were standing.

We returned to the hotel and headed straight for the bar. We could see a beautiful buffet set up on the lawn outside and decided to try it. It turns out we were the only people having dinner that night and there must have been four dinner buffet tables set up. We were given a menu with 25 items on it and were told we should select the dishes we wanted and the food would be brought to us. I jokingly said “we’ll have one of each” and somehow this became a reality. A taste of each and every dish on the menu was bought over, one by one, for what seemed like hours. It was the meal that never ended. Every dish was wonderful. We staggered back to our rooms after a wonderful day of exploring and eating.

Mumbai On Foot / 5 Nov 09

Left the hotel at 8am for a walking tour of the area around the Taj Hotel (called Coloba), the oldest part of Mumbai. About a block from the hotel we saw the oldest hotel in the city that had, in its day, once been incredibly majestic. Every important person coming to Bombay stayed there. Today it is in ruins, barely standing, full of squatters with their laundry hanging from windows.

This same area is the heart of Mumbai’s financial district, the equivalent of our Wall Street. Tall modern banking building tower behind 19^th century English designed buildings such as the Victoria Terminus, a train station that hundreds of thousands of people (maybe more) commute through every day. We had a marvelous guide for our morning tour (a walking encyclopedia) and she told us about her own experiences commuting back and forth from her suburban town to downtown Mumbai. She travels 1-½ hours each way on a train so crowded that she often has to stand on one foot for the entire ride. She said because it’s so hot inside the train, and so packed with people, people will do almost anything to get to the seats next to windows. We walked out onto the platform and peeked into one of the commuter train cars. It was horrible looking, like a an old Long Island Railroad car that’s been left to rot for 100 years and then set on fire. There was one car designated for women only so they can avoid “inappropriate touching”.

When we entered the train station our guide told us that no photography was allowed. We saw serious police presence, machine guns, bunkers, metal detectors (which, ok, no one seemed to use). Cliff wanted me to take a photo of him and Cathy striking a Slumdog Millionaire pose on the platform but I told him there was no way I was going to an Indian prison for his blog.

On a nearby street we saw a huge richly decorated banyan tree. Beneath it sat a woman with a cow. People and cars were stopping to pray at the shrine at the base of the tree and were feeding the cow. It seemed unusual so we asked our guide about it. As we all know, cows are venerated in India. She explained that the woman owns the cow. She also grows the food that people are purchasing to feed to her cow. Pretty good gig this woman has going! But wait, there’s more. The woman sells the urine from the cow which people want because it’s believed to have certain medicinal properties (and no, they don’t drink it). She also sells the dung from the cow which is dried and burned and villagers use ash made from cow dung as an ingredient in a powder used to “brush their teeth”. I’ve heard about the golden goose but I think hers is surely a golden cow.

As we dodged “construction” on the sidewalks – men in dhotis with pick axes – we marveled at modern Indian men and women in business suits hurrying by. This seemed so incongruous in the context of what we’d just seen.

By noon at the conclusion of our walk we were soaked, tired and thirsty. Although it was a short distance back to the Taj, we opted for a taxi. We headed to the café for a lime soda, the most marvelous drink ever. I’m told they’re just lime juice, sugar syrup and soda water, but they’re better than any margarita or cocktail I’ve ever had.

After a very brief rest we headed back out, this time to take in museums and galleries we’d seen during our walking tour. First stop was a contemporary gallery showing very emerging Indian artists. Then to a wonderful museum containing ancient Indian sculptures and artifacts on the ground floor, arrange around a lovely domed atrium. On the second floor we saw a special exhibit about Krishna. Gorgeous music played in the background and I was determined to see if I could get the CD. I asked the security guard what it was and he referred me to the small bookshop downstairs. The bookshop had no idea and told me to go to a CD store around the corner and ask them…

But first we stopped next door to see a contemporary show called Informal Cities, about people who live at the margins of society and the terrible condition in which they live (ex under a bridge, in a favella, in shantytowns). Wonderful show with strong international artists represented.

Now we return to my hunt for music and Cliff’s ongoing hunt for Bollywood DVDs. It turns out he’d been referred to the same store, Rhythm House, so off we went. The store turned out to be quite good although they had no idea what music was playing in the Krishna exhibition. I bought a few CDs and hoped for the best.

By the time we returned to the Taj, Ferris and I were about to collapse. Cliff and Cathy had planned to meet Kashmera and Krushna for dinner. We all needed to pack our bags to prepare for a 4am wake-up call the next morning to get to the airport in time for a 7am flight to Aurangabad. Ferris and I decided to stay close to home for dinner and enjoyed Japanese food for a change on the top floor of the Taj Tower. We had a beautiful view over the city and the Arabian Sea. And sure enough, at the stroke at 10pm we got a call from the bell desk that our khadi clothes had just been delivered! Just under the wire.