Coming to India

The day I never actually thought would arrive has dawned. Ulco is coming to India. Years before I moved here, I suggested many times to Ulco that we should take a trip to India. The suggestion was usually met with silence, a stare, and then a not so subtle change of subject. India has never been on his list of places to visit, and more accurately, was probably near the top of places NOT to visit. But a few months ago he told me that he was going to be coming for a visit and I was both excited and nervous. I wanted to see him, but I just wasn’t sure I wanted to see him here, in Shah Jahan’s old town. My first instinct as to keep him somewhat isolated, visiting monuments during the day and keeping all of our lunches, teas, dinners and brunches at the Oberoi or the Imperial. But then I had another idea…

I have not taken any holiday time in India since I moved, and with the exception of a few weekend trips to places like Mumbai, Jaipur or Agra, I have not really seen anything of India. Even my first trip to India 12 or so years ago was pretty limited. Trains took forever, if they showed up at all and only really visited Delhi, Agra and Varanasi. That is all about to change…

Tomorrow morning at 4:30, Ulco, Manuel, Jon (another visiting friend) and I leave for 2 weeks of adventure in Rajasthan. We were originally going to go by train, but instead opted for a car and driver. My driver, actually, which makes the whole thing a lot easier logistically. We have a rough idea of where we will be going but that is all subject to change at a moment’s notice. The only commitment we have is for a hotel in Jaisalmer on Monday night and then on Tuesday we head out into the desert on camels for a night under the stars. It is a very touristy thing to do, but we have arranged through or hotel that we will be going to an area where it will be just the four of us, our guide, our camels and the sand dunes.

I won’t write any more about the trip now as I would not want to give away any surprises, but I will be blogging about it daily and posting as I have internet access.