Home again

I have returned from the magnificent country of India bringing with me many memories and experiences, but mostly a greater understanding for the country and its remarkable people. Will I return to India? Absolutely!

Varanasi

We were able to witness the evening blessing of the Ganges (Ganga) River. Here a group of priests pray with a family along the banks of the river.


A priest during the nightly ritual of the blessing of the river.


Early morning on the Ganges River.


A fire being built along the river for daily cremations.


A Priest blessing the river in an early morning ritual.


Liz and Dean enjoying a rickshaw ride.

Mr. Puneet Dan

We had the great fortune in meeting Mr. Puneet Dan and having him as our guide for the second half of our journey. Puneet has the enviable gift of making the temples, monuments and palaces breathe in life as he describes the times of their creation and the people who lived during those times. His gift to us is his passion for the Taj Mahal. During his description, the cold stone mausoleum seemed to shine with warmth from its creator and occupants. Puneet is truly a rare and gifted tour guide and he became a very special part of our enjoyment of this magnificent country.

Puneet and traveling companions, Liz and Dean.

One more tiger photo

I thought I would not post any more tiger photos but I am so pleased to have seen four tigers at one spotting that I had to share this. This mother and three almost grown cubs were the first tigers I saw. In the 23 years our guide had been seeing tigers, he had never seen more than three at one time so we felt very special. Due to the evening darkness, the photo is a little grainy so please do enlarge to enjoy.

A magical evening

We journeyed to Gwalior on December 3 and stayed in a place of dreams - a palace. It is the Usha Kiran Palace. It is now a Taj hotel in Gwailor and offered us an opportunity to live our dreams. We were given the Sun Suite and the Moon Suite (be sure to request them when staying here) on the third floor, the top of the hotel. The wonderful thing is that they are the only accommodations on the entire third floor. In addition to those rooms, there is a terrace that could accommodate 300 people (pictured below). Since this is all private, the hotel, run by the exceptional Mr. Vikrant Jharia, offered to have dinner presented on the terrace. The chef created a menu just for us that night. We were a party of four, the wait staff was a party of three. This evening, a dinner on the private terrace of a palace, was more magical than even Mr. Walt Disney himself could have created. I have mentioned before how this country offers so much more than I ever anticipated and last night at Usha Kiran Palace was another such experience.

The Table is set.

Our guide, Mr. Puneet Dan on the left, and Liz and Dean Ramus, traveling companions.

Light on the Taj Mahal

These two pictures were taken as the colors of the Taj Mahal changed. They are taken from the same place, same angle.

Taj and Agra

This is the mental image most people have India - the Taj Mahal. I will only post two of the hundreds of photos I have. This is the expected "Taj Mahal with reflection".


The people on the Taj will give perspective of the size.

Ladies "hanging out the laundry" in Agra.

A street scene of controlled chaos.