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Udaipur’s Culture
Been in Udaipur, in South Rajasthan for just over a week now & thoroughly enjoying it. The view from our room & from the rooftop restaurant is spectacular – we see the whole of Lake Pichola & the old town (about 450 yrs. old).
The traffic’s still crazy in the tourist lanes on the other side of the lake, reached by a footpath, a bit hard on the nerves, but doable. Our favorite place to visit is the huge Indian market, very close to the tourist beat, but oddly free of foreigners. The vege market’s the best with its kaleidascope of colors. Whatever we buy here in the Indian market we pay regular Indian prices, rather than ramped up tourist ones. For example my made-in-India watch cost Rs280 (about $7).
We see no women at our family run hotel; all the kindly, English speaking staff are male, except for the family matriarch, who ‘womans’ the downstairs desk in the late afternoon, greeting guests with a friendly ‘namaste’ & selling them toilet paper!
Fortunately we meet females in the service industry – our lovely travel agent & the family across the lane from our hotel who I had chai with after a very skilled shoulder & neck massage from their 20-year-old daughter.
Tomorrow we’ve been invited on a short road trip by our travel agent & her colleague, to some villages including his home village, then to Mt. Abu overnight. Looking forward to it.
All sounds quite fascinating, quite a glimpse into this culture. I loved Udaipur, and found it so different than other areas. I relate to standing out by yourself. Like when I arrived in Rishikesh at 1 am and would have been in serious trouble if 2 yogis hadn’t helped me out. Am enjoying your posts, keep ém up!
Your blog is so intriguing – I love to hear about your travels! I added a Women’s Health community on my website, http://www.shareWIK.com (share What I Know) and would love your input! ShareWIK is an online community bringing together people of all areas of expertise so that they can share what they know. Keep up the great work, and we would love to hear from you!
Hi Diana: Thanks for your positive feedback; I appreciate it. We’re nearing the end of our 3 month working/vacationing trip now, so when I return & finish my ‘re-entry’ to Canada, I’ll definitely look you up.
Thanks & warm wishes
Ellen
Hi Susan: I forgot you went Udaipur. Yes, it’s very different & the very best place I visited apart from McLeod Ganj of course!
Unfortunately the conditions for women in Rajasthan, especially rurally, are very backward (many/most?? rural women cannot read or write (Hindu or even their local language, never mind English).
Ellen