Wild Frontiers tour leader, Dee, is in Rajasthan, India. After spending an 'alternative' Christmas at Castle Bijaipur our group is now geariung up for teh New Year celebrations! Dee writes -
27th Dec.
After an early breakfast we take a drive to Udaipur, stopping for some tea on the way. We arrive at the immense and ornate palace, its very busy due to the holiday season. The rooms are spectacular with morano glass and mirrors from floor to ceiling in the bedrooms. We end the visit and go for lunch at a quiet colonial hotel for lunch. After lunch everyone is excited about shopping the famous thing to buy is the miniture paintings. After we are all shopped out we head back 'home' the castle, we are warmly wellcomed by the staff and have dinner.
28th Dec
After a vigorous yoga session to work off the extra calories a few of the group go to Chittor to the Fort, its very impressive and has very few tourists, so a welcome change from the mayhem of Udaipur, after another wonderful lunch we visit a local Gujjar village near the castle to participate in the Opium ceromony, this is a custom for visitors. The pipe is passed round by the village elders while the group watches, most of the elders are looking for wives and we have several single ladies in the group!, after conversations about dowry's, cows and water buffalo we have tea. The ladies of the village sing a local song to us, so to return the favour we sing 'Rudolph the red nosed raindeer'. They don't seem very impressed, and we leave! We had a great afternoon.
29th Dec
We have an early yoga class today, we can see the village wake up from the rooftops while we do our sun salutations. The children are on the way to school they look up and wave and say 'goodbye!'.
We leave our 'home' for the night and transfer in jeeps for some and the more keen go on foot to the beautiful lotus lake. We stop en route for a lunch next to a different lake. Everything is laidout out by the caslte staff, we are not talking sarni's you know! Several Kingfishers later, the hard core guys walk to the lotus lake, and the rest go in the jeeps. We arrive at the Lotus lake and take a sharp intake of breath......ah.....heaven. This is glaming, not camping. the Raj- style tents are home from home. We then have afternoon tea and fruit cake. Rishi, the son of the castle owner Raoul has a birthday and we need no excuse to party. Cake, drink and plenty of Bangra dancing is partaken.
30th Dec
Slightly fuzzy headed we awaken at camp and have a stroll around the lake. the ducks are happy to see us and do not mind sharing the lake. The water is calm and clear, but none of us are brave enough to have a dip! We go in the jeeps back 'home ' to the castle settle into our rooms and have a cookery demonstration, we do of course have to have a taste.
After lunch we go horse riding and a few snooze by the pool, we are all getting excited about the party tomorrow....what will I wear?
Comments