A recent ad campaign promoting travel to India used the motto: "India- It's Incredible". Well, after 2 weeks there, I think that my version is more accurate: INDIA: TIPS INCREDIBLE! Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not complaining. It's well-known that people in India are poorly paid and most don't have the advantages we do. But, my goodness, the expectation of a tip, payment, handout or bribe is relentless here. You get to feel like a walking ATM after awhile. It's in complete contrast to Japan, where tips are considered an insult and an indication that you haven't done your job properly.  

After leaving the desert, and our one-humped friends behind, we headed to an area of Rajasthan offering mountains, forests, and lakes . This meant beautiful vistas and slightly less heat, a welcome relief. The many wild monkeys along the road kept us entertained. We stopped a few times, and they jumped on the car looking for tips, er, I mean food. 
With the long, tiring days behind us, the remainder of our time was relatively low-key, with long drives, and fewer sites to visit. Our first stop, Jodhpur, was the cleanest and sanest all the places visited. It's known as the Blue City because many of its buildings and homes have traditionally been painted that color. We had only two sites to visit there. Both were really impressive, though I have to admit that we have reached what I am calling 'palace fatigue'. 

Like the cathedrals of Europe, you can only visit so many before you hit the wall and say: "enough". You get saturated with stories of the various maharajahs whose funds built and decorated these lavish fortresses/palaces. Ostentatious wealth and comfort are the themes here, in sharp contrast to the poverty of the populace . You can't dispute their historical significance and beauty, however. They are magnificent treasures, and definitely worth seeing, though sometimes, we schlepped through them, just anxious to get back to our car and its air conditioning. Aren't we the spoiled tourists now? 

Besides the ancient fort/palace in Jodhpur, we visited an interesting site, a beautiful white marble mausoleum. Here's a quick back story, as far as we could make out. There was a maharajah who had a beautiful necklace made for his wife, the maharani. Unfortunately, he died before she could wear it. Once he died, she was required to wear black clothing and no jewelry for the rest of her life, a rotten fate but the way it was back then. Since she could not wear the necklace, she sold it and built this ediface to honor him. I have asked Bonnie not to do this for me.

My favorite part of Jodhpur, however, was an encounter with a large group of male and female soldiers who were on a march through town . I asked the driver to stop the car, got out, started high-fiving them as they marched. I don't know what possessed me to do it, but the reaction was fantastic. I got smiles from the soldiers and handshakes from their officers. Our guide and driver were flummoxed and apoplectic. Bonnie waved enthusiastically from the car, and smiles and waves were returned. Would I ever do this back home? You know the answer to that.

After, Jodhpur, our trip took us to the site of a dramatic temple built by the Jain sect hundreds of years ago. It is huge, intricately carved marble, and mind-boggling in its design. Interestingly, the Jains don't believe in a divine being, but rather living a pure life as a way of attaining inner peace and nirvana. I don't know about you, but a pure life seems a bit boring to me. Sin seems a lot more fun.

Our final destination, Udaipur, was scenic, with lakes all around. Hey, guess what? Yet another palace awaited our perusal . This one was over the top in its decor, full of mirrored, elaborately-decorated rooms. Our local guide, however, was our least favorite of the 5 we had had, with a pejorative attitude that drove us nuts. We dumped him as soon as possible, but did it in a most agreeable way. We took a boat ride on a lovely lake lined with buildings reminiscent of the canals of Venice. Just beautiful and a perfect way to wrap up our visit to Rajasthan. 

From Udaipur, we flew back to Delhi, and our travel agent had arranged our last night at a posh hotel, The Lalit, which was also housing diplomats from around the world attending some type of economic summit. The place was crawling with security and suits. While large and a 5-star, the hotel lacked the warmth and charm of other places we'd stayed at during this most amazing Indian trip. 

Our last day in India was spent back in Delhi. We visited the Bahai temple, nicknamed the Lotus Temple because of its shape . Bonnie really wanted to see it, but I found it a yawn and a bit of an exercise in subtle prostelytizing. However, this was more than compensated by a visit to Old Delhi, a warren of narrow streets, with throngs of people, tuktuks, bicycle carts, and more little shops than imaginable. We were warned of the danger of going there alone, and as far as we could tell, there weren't any tourists to be found other than Bonnesh and Davinder. We were told of pickpockets, thieves, and other nefarious sorts. Instead, we found streets congested with residents busily buying stuff in preparation for Diwalli, the main festive holiday of the year coming up in about a week's time. Picture mid-December back home, and that begins to approximate the total chaos that reined on the streets. We intentionally got lost, talked to people who were curious about us and friendly, or alternatively, were gawked at (something we've gotten used to). We bought a few things and even tried a few foods and sweets. Ironically, we never felt unsafe or threatened . In fact, we loved it. Only fatigue ended the evening. 

But I have to tell you one quick story about Old Delhi. Bonnie was looking for a pair of earrings as a last momento of our visit. We were in a tiny jewelry shop (one of dozens there- it seems that Indians love jewelry!). She spotted the perfect pair, and the compulsory haggling began. She was getting nowhere, until she said something brilliant, which had me laughing long afterword. Before I tell you what that was, a brief fact-- all Indian currency contains a picture of Mahatma Gandhi. 

Frustrated in the negotiations, she pulled out some bills and blurted out: "Mahatma Gandhi will be happier with you, and the earrings will be happier with me!" The seller cracked up, I cracked up, and she got the earrings at her price. 

This is the fourth and last blog entry from India. As you can probably tell, its been an incredible journey, and we have memories that we'll cherish for a long time to come. From here on, we start our long trip home, a trans-Atlantic cruise from Rome. We plan lots of sleep! And, without doubt, cows will figure prominently in our dreams.