Better late than never

This post should have appeared last night, but after I had written it and carefully inserted the photos, I managed inadvertently to delete it. And we have been unable to recover the deleted draft: such is life, and computers.

Anyway, we arrived in Delhi shortly after midnight on Wednesday, and were kindly met by the agency people and taken to a comfortable hotel not far from the airport. In the morning, there was a car and driver to whiz us down to Jaipur to catch up with the train.

The drive down showed us sides of life in India that we would otherwise have missed — not least the driving style, which is certainly no incentive to self-drive a car rental. Trucks etc dawdle along in what we think of as the fast or overtaking lane, and people overtake on both sides, with much hooting. An additional hazard is the cows, which wander where they will, including all over the roads and highways

We reached Jaipur in time to join up with the rest of the group from the train for lunch at the City Palace, which is the historic residence of the Maharajahs of Jaipur, known as the Pink City for the prevailing colour of its stone and stucco.

After lunch we had an interesting tour of the palace exterior, with a knowledgeable guide. We were not allowed into the imposing seven-story building where the current (Former) Maharajah and his family live.

A handy 700 litre solid silver water bottle, with interesting reflections

Outside, the streets were bustling despite the afternoon heat. The traffic was intense: a maelstrom of overloaded tuk-tuks and scooters, cars and lorries, all hooting at once. Surprisingly, no-one seems to get hurt, despite a notable lack of helmets.

There were quite a few animals to be seen too, quite apart from cows. Camels, or rather dromedaries, some pulling carts, horses, and even an elephant.

We returned to the train by way of a carpet and textile shop: we resisted the carpets, but not the pashminas, silk scarves and cotton shirts. Retail therapy!

Then it was time to settle into our cozy cabin on the train — twin-beds and ensuite bathroom — and check out the Wi-Fi, which seems to be working OK. Then mootch along to dinner.