Sunday February 15th, 2009

I now find myself at a guest house in Jodhpur with plans of leaving tomorrow. Jodhpur is a fair sized city and has an impressive fort called the Mehrangarh Fort.

The bus ride from Udaipur to Jodhpur was crazy. I had my own seat, number one, but it seemed to be shared for most of the seven hour journey. We stopped in many small villages along the way to pick people up and drop people off. The arm of my chair and the small space at my feet was occupied for the whole trip. I'm sure three hundred people were on and off that bus.

The bus left early and I bought a small bag of plain almonds for 100Rs before leaving Udaipur. I had trouble opening the bag and when it finally ripped open, about 1/4 of the almonds dropped to the floor. The bus was quite old and very dirty so I wasn't about to pick them up.

Five hours in, a group of young girls got on with a few tots. They sat on the floor of the bus and started picking up the almonds to eat ... even the pieces that had been trampled over by hundreds of dirty shoes.

This places amazes me. I'm not sure I like it here so much. Some of the sights are spectacular but the streets are shocking. The sounds are fantastic ... prayer calls four to five times a day, the constant hum of traffic and horns and birds ... so many of them! The aromas from the food stalls on the streets make my mouth water only to then turn a corner and be smacked in the face with the smell of urine.

I met a couple from Montreal in Udaipur and they came to meet up with me here in Jodhpur. The three of us will hop a morning bus to Jaisalmer and spend a few days there. After that, I plan to head to down south. This time next week, if all works out, I'll be laying on a beach with my thoughts.

I have many things to consider these days. I am currently reading The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. I'm going to spend the afternoon on the balcony of the guest house which is situated just below the fort.

Almost three weeks into my trip with many more to go. I miss the warmth and love from my cats, especially come the nights. I miss hot showers and clean fluffy towels. I also miss raw vegetables and being able to brush my teeth with running tap water. Simple things which are so easily taken for granted.