Ok so I'm starting a hair count!
This is a tab of how many hairs I find in my food. So far the lucky number is 4. It helps that they are thick and black as the night, so they're easy to see! :) Moving on...
Jodhpur is a City I don't care to say too much about except that I met a couple of French guys and had dinner with them at our hotel. They gave me the ins and outs of where I should go next and it was awesome just to hang with people other than my driver.
The next morning, however, Mr Singh (who has become very protective of me) gave me the silent treatment for a good 15mins. I couldn't figure it out! Was it the shitty tip I just left? (The Hotel gave me a shitty room and told me there were no others...a blatant lie and it's always a battle to get an awesome room when you've pre-paid)...But that wasn't it. Then I remembered having a 10 sec conversation with the concierge about how I was joining the 2 French guys for dinner and wouldn't that be nice because I've been mostly with my driver and haven't met that many people... YEP! that was it.
Mr singhs words:
"Why you not happy with your hotels and why you angry with me??!!!"
After careful explanation Mr Singh squeezed me and said:
"Ahhh Mckenshi, you are very Sunder Kuri!" My Mckenshi! Achaaaa!"
Translation:
Ah, Mckenzi, you are a very smart girl! My Mckenzi is Good good!"
Mr Singh gives me gifts every day...from buying me lunch to giving me little trinkets or showing me things that are not included in the tour. When his pen ran out one morning I gave him 10 different coloured ones of a bunch that I had brought over for the kids and I thought he was going to spontaneously ascend he was so happy. It really is the small things. If you're not happy in this country, things just arent right and the people around you will go to the ends of the earth to make it right. That's just the way it is.
Pulling into Udaipur, I am slightly worried cause it says in the "Lonely Plannet guide" that my hotel pretty much sucks. Imagine my surprise when I find myself in the princess of all princess suites overlooking the water, it's palaces and the City Palace!!! (Yes it did take 3 shuffles of rooms to get this one). The whole room is Marble, with 3 bay windows that I have to keep shut when I'm out cause the monkeys will come in. It's like I'm living a dream, and this town is so captivating.. and the shower is hotter than an erotic dream! I must have been in it for atleast 1/2 and hour.
I make my way to the roof top restuarant and I'm the only person up there. With a sudden lift of my heart, it takes my breath away. I can't help thinking about little Caper and how if I had his ashes with me I would let him free right over this knee high balcony and into the magical night. The tears come and I say a prayer. It's the first time since he left in April that I've felt like I've been there for him without guilt or pain. Just pure love.
I digress:
The toilet rolls here have enough paper for exactly 1 1/2 number 2's. That's it! No more no less! Just saying...
I am greeted on the roof top by my waiter, who is instantly awe-struck by me and after ordering my food he does not leave. He stands uncomfortably waiting for me to say something else, anything else and he stares at the ground trying to figure out what he can say. I wonder if he will ever leave. I take out my book...yup still there. I say thank you...still there. It must have been a good 2 mins before he backed away. I breathed a sigh of relief.
Unfortunately when my food came, he stood right next to me as I ate. It was very uncomfotable and psycho Mac was about to have a Mac-attack!!! 10 bites in he got a call from the kitchen. Thank you Krishna. Lets just say I ventured out of the hotel to eat from then on.
Enter Cal from Alabama:
A 25 year old home grown living in London and navigating part of the world before settling into a new job. Great company and even Mr singh didn't mind him coming on a couple of sight seeing adventures. On first meeting Cal in a hideaway kind of lunch spot I thought he was sick. His eyes were entirely blood shot...deep red and not much white left. All on account of a diving expodition where he went down too fast and didn't release his mask.
2 days break from the car and a whole lot of fun. We ate on the tallest roof top in Udaipur. This is the city where Octopussy was made, and they are not shy about advertising that fact. During dinner we could here that movie playing in atleast 3 nearby hotel roof tops.
The last day in Udaipur and it was Mr Singhs 10 year wedding aniversary! He is so in Love it's rediculous! We took him for a kingfisher beer and a sunset view.
That night in my Princess bedroom, a street dog, of which there are millions was nicely purched under my window howling to the dogs across the water. He was miked better that Mik Jagger and at around 2 am I was fuming. I stomped over to the window with a small bowl of sugar cubes, and pelted them as hard as I could down onto the lower deck. Futile of course!
Only thing it did do was excite the monkeys and what the hell! It's ficken dinner time at Noah's arc! Address: The Princess Mckenzi room. 2am til fer ever!
Awesomenesses:
2 full body massages=$20
2 beautifully taylored princess Mckenzi tops=$30
new pants(didn't want to pay for laundry)=$5
insanely good food=$3 to $4 a go
Traditional Indian performance under the stars .50c
Early morning chanting to wake up to.
then,
Good bye to Udaipur, to Princess Suites and to 2 day friends.
hello to another long drive to Bundi.
PS: Cal said he was going to win the lottery this march and that he would sent me 200 pounds of it so I'm putting this in writing for future reference.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
What just happened? Jan 20th
Remember when I said I wanted to tear it all apart and then reconstruct it? That voice in my head is saying; "Be careful what you ask for Mckenzi"
There I was minding my own business...actually I was feeling grumpy that Mr Singh was taking me to a gem store to look at some more stuff I didn't want to buy. (It's part of his job-and he tells me to "Just look no buy!") This was through a friend of his so it was both our first times in this place. I walked in the door to be greeted by Ajay, a short, understated 50 something man.
Do you think he said:
A) Hello and welcome to my store! What kind of jewelry do you like?
OR
B) Your throat Chakra is completely blocked and I am worried about you. You are so stressed, You are in panic mode. (It's true I've been having panic attacks since I got here)
It's not A)
While typing munbers into a calculator he politely asks me how old I am. I say 37. He pushes the calculator toward me with the number 37 on it. I thinkhuh? and try to remember if I've told my age to Mr Singh...Nope.
He asks me how my relationship is with my sister. Did I mention my sister? ... Nope.
Infact, he knows the personalities of everyone in my family including myself, and that i've been in a relationship for the last 2 and a bit years.
Without my having spoken, this man begins to cronologically go through my life in terms of events and emotions and relationships and does not stop there. ( some things are so graphic that I can't mention them here, but they are all true)
He makes a list of things that my family and I are to look out for... illnesses etc, and lets not forget all the existing ailments I carry:
1)My weak right Knee and Right shoulder
2) My grinding
3) my Thyroid
....the list goes on and on...
Oh did I mention that less than 1 min in to his observations I was in a puddle of my own tears and unable to get it together. He tells me to take a break and look at some jewels and leaves the room.
The much younger 2 shop assistants seem not to be phased by this at all. Infact they are sending me much love from their eyes. One says: "Don't worry, the first time I met him the same thing happened to me. He has a book and travels around the world healing people" "Ahha, I say like a sobbing, heaving 5 year old.
After a couple of mins they tell me to go into the other room where Ajay was waiting with some very expensive Jewels. He sits me down and says that he sees people every day and doesn't usually bring this stuff up, but with me...It was so obvious that he had to.
He takes my palms, and tells me to close my eyes. It's not Reiki, but I fell him giving me energy.
These are the words I remember:
"You are blocking off life with your fear. You are carrying massive amounts of anxiety, but you are meant to be a healer. You have the most beautiful energy, especially in your crown Chakra".
The Crown Chakra
Sahasrara is generally considered to be the chakra of pure consciousness. It is a tool that helps us communicate with our spiritual nature.
"You are meant to be creative and express yourself as you are and stop caring so much about what other people think. You are a writer and you have healing powers beyond belief. Your heart and mind are at odds but when you figure this out and open your Chakra a life of unending happiness and prosperity awaits you. You do not belong in Canada or Australia..there is another place for you and it is warm and with happy people. Here you will thrive."
And on and on...
So I'm like...Ahha...and about half an hour has passed. I've said a total of 2 sentences in this time and the anxiety I've been feeling since this trip began...infact for most of my life is dissipating rapidly. He receives a call from Canada, a client of his who visits him regularly. He was born in Victoria BC.
He takes my hands again and I can feel immense heat. My heart rate slows to a relaxing stroll. And the crying stops.
Here's the slightly dodgy part:
Ajay shows me an expensive Emerald that I should wear around my neck to help open my Chakra. I ask him why it is so much and then he shows me a much smaller one still out of my price range. He says he has a foundation for homeless children in Pushkar and most of the money goes to providing food, shelter, and schooling. He gave me his card and asked me to check it out when I get to that town. He also said the gems were cleansed and activated with special properties and mantras for healing. I wanted that gem stone so bad... but I left the store with my money in hand.
surrendipidously...
Just an hour before this I had been visiting a textile factory and met "Sunny". He was a fantastic person right off the bat and someone I knew I could trust and feel comfortable with. There was no pressure to make a sale and at the end of our time we swapped phone numbers. Not long after the gemstone experience I got a call from Sunny asking if I wanted to come to dinner at his parents place in Amer. Being the cautious person that I am, I ask him if he would like to come to my hotel for dinner. So 2 hours later Sunny and his other friend from the store (who tried to sell me a pashmina) turned up at my hotel. We chatted for a while and they were so lovely. They even brought me a gift...A PINK PASHMINA..to represent the Pink City of Jaipur.
The best part is:
I tell Sunny about my experince at the gem store and he tells me that it's something to believe. He also said he can get me an Emerald for very little money...if not for free...and his father is a healer/Palmist who can cleanse and put a mantra in the stone for me. He showed me his garnet ring which his father had endowed for him and says it has brought great "Magic to his life". He learned to speak excellent English in a very short time and this is one of the things he thanks his ring for.
All in all a very mind bending and heart opening day.
There I was minding my own business...actually I was feeling grumpy that Mr Singh was taking me to a gem store to look at some more stuff I didn't want to buy. (It's part of his job-and he tells me to "Just look no buy!") This was through a friend of his so it was both our first times in this place. I walked in the door to be greeted by Ajay, a short, understated 50 something man.
Do you think he said:
A) Hello and welcome to my store! What kind of jewelry do you like?
OR
B) Your throat Chakra is completely blocked and I am worried about you. You are so stressed, You are in panic mode. (It's true I've been having panic attacks since I got here)
It's not A)
While typing munbers into a calculator he politely asks me how old I am. I say 37. He pushes the calculator toward me with the number 37 on it. I thinkhuh? and try to remember if I've told my age to Mr Singh...Nope.
He asks me how my relationship is with my sister. Did I mention my sister? ... Nope.
Infact, he knows the personalities of everyone in my family including myself, and that i've been in a relationship for the last 2 and a bit years.
Without my having spoken, this man begins to cronologically go through my life in terms of events and emotions and relationships and does not stop there. ( some things are so graphic that I can't mention them here, but they are all true)
He makes a list of things that my family and I are to look out for... illnesses etc, and lets not forget all the existing ailments I carry:
1)My weak right Knee and Right shoulder
2) My grinding
3) my Thyroid
....the list goes on and on...
Oh did I mention that less than 1 min in to his observations I was in a puddle of my own tears and unable to get it together. He tells me to take a break and look at some jewels and leaves the room.
The much younger 2 shop assistants seem not to be phased by this at all. Infact they are sending me much love from their eyes. One says: "Don't worry, the first time I met him the same thing happened to me. He has a book and travels around the world healing people" "Ahha, I say like a sobbing, heaving 5 year old.
After a couple of mins they tell me to go into the other room where Ajay was waiting with some very expensive Jewels. He sits me down and says that he sees people every day and doesn't usually bring this stuff up, but with me...It was so obvious that he had to.
He takes my palms, and tells me to close my eyes. It's not Reiki, but I fell him giving me energy.
These are the words I remember:
"You are blocking off life with your fear. You are carrying massive amounts of anxiety, but you are meant to be a healer. You have the most beautiful energy, especially in your crown Chakra".
The Crown Chakra
Sahasrara is generally considered to be the chakra of pure consciousness. It is a tool that helps us communicate with our spiritual nature.
"You are meant to be creative and express yourself as you are and stop caring so much about what other people think. You are a writer and you have healing powers beyond belief. Your heart and mind are at odds but when you figure this out and open your Chakra a life of unending happiness and prosperity awaits you. You do not belong in Canada or Australia..there is another place for you and it is warm and with happy people. Here you will thrive."
And on and on...
So I'm like...Ahha...and about half an hour has passed. I've said a total of 2 sentences in this time and the anxiety I've been feeling since this trip began...infact for most of my life is dissipating rapidly. He receives a call from Canada, a client of his who visits him regularly. He was born in Victoria BC.
He takes my hands again and I can feel immense heat. My heart rate slows to a relaxing stroll. And the crying stops.
Here's the slightly dodgy part:
Ajay shows me an expensive Emerald that I should wear around my neck to help open my Chakra. I ask him why it is so much and then he shows me a much smaller one still out of my price range. He says he has a foundation for homeless children in Pushkar and most of the money goes to providing food, shelter, and schooling. He gave me his card and asked me to check it out when I get to that town. He also said the gems were cleansed and activated with special properties and mantras for healing. I wanted that gem stone so bad... but I left the store with my money in hand.
surrendipidously...
Just an hour before this I had been visiting a textile factory and met "Sunny". He was a fantastic person right off the bat and someone I knew I could trust and feel comfortable with. There was no pressure to make a sale and at the end of our time we swapped phone numbers. Not long after the gemstone experience I got a call from Sunny asking if I wanted to come to dinner at his parents place in Amer. Being the cautious person that I am, I ask him if he would like to come to my hotel for dinner. So 2 hours later Sunny and his other friend from the store (who tried to sell me a pashmina) turned up at my hotel. We chatted for a while and they were so lovely. They even brought me a gift...A PINK PASHMINA..to represent the Pink City of Jaipur.
The best part is:
I tell Sunny about my experince at the gem store and he tells me that it's something to believe. He also said he can get me an Emerald for very little money...if not for free...and his father is a healer/Palmist who can cleanse and put a mantra in the stone for me. He showed me his garnet ring which his father had endowed for him and says it has brought great "Magic to his life". He learned to speak excellent English in a very short time and this is one of the things he thanks his ring for.
All in all a very mind bending and heart opening day.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Driver of momentally awesome proportions
My Drivers name is Mr Singh, and if anyone has ever read Shantaram, he is a classy version of Praubaker. A man who has only my best interests at heart and is slowly teaching me Hindi. He navigates the streets like on a hydroplane and that's really saying something. He is a wise 44 year old Sihk who loves to sing and make me watch bollywood music videos in the car. He says the funniest things which will now be going in my book. ( He wants me to write a book about him). Honestly I don't know how I would have done this without him...well yes I do but that's beside the point.
Agra...more like...AGRRRRRRRRR! Yup not my favourite place. Yes home of the Taj, but as Mr Singh says: "Trust nobody from Agra! EVER!"
He was right cause my hotel tried to give me a crap room until I Quietly snapped "Mckenzi Style" and got bumped up to the delux Suite! Yeah! ...
No..they froze me to death in that suite and then made me pay 200RS (About $6) for a heater.
GRRRRRRRR!
Walking on the street was the best:
A little boy came up to me begging fopr me to buy pens and boxes. It was a fairly decent performance actually, maybe half a tear there, but as my last acting teacher would say: "Really???!!!" So the more I said no, the more things he tried, the best of which was. "Give me a kiss, just one kiss, the lips the cheek...the tongue!" WAS HE EVEN 10yrs! They start em young here.
So the Taj Mahal, is the most awesome thing I've ever seen....all 20 mins of it!!
I was one of the lucky ones actually. This is the month of fog apparently and it rolled in so fast that the entire massive wonder was invisible not 5 meters away from it. Luckily I have pre-fog pics.
QUESTION:
why did the cows cross the road?
ANSWER:
They didn't. They just sat in the middle of it watching the traffic go by like a bunch of spectators at a game of lawn bowls. I have pics for proof!
Lunch time:
This is on the road to Rajasthan, in a rather dodgy place. I asked Mr Singh if Tourists go here and he says "Sure Sure!" like this is a rite of passage or something. I go to the bathroom and have an automatic gag relfex and try to touch everything with my left hand...there was no soap and my hand sanitiser was not available.
Mr Singh orders lunch for me because I couldn't decide which food I wanted to be my last on this earth. It's everything I'm not supposed to eat. Wheat and probably unpastuerised yoghurt. The pots and pans I saw being washed by water I wouldn't wash my own butt with. Mr Singh is waiting for me to eat. I take my right hand and pray to anything worth praying to, and eat the food. I avoid the yoghurt but it was offensive not to eat some.
Lets just say that everything in my back pack I had to counteract bacteria I TOOK!!! and waited. Thank you lord for the Dukerol. 5 hours later I had stomach cramps and Thor-like rumblings. REIKI, REIKI, REIKI!!!
Then nothing...and here I am writing to you by the grace of life....big sigh.
Forgot to mention that after lunch we went to a national park and bird sanctuary. Driven around on a 3 wheeled bycicle and saw wild animals up the wazoo! Incredible! I was even 2 feet from 2 Pythons!!! Best afternoon ever! Pics for later.
I asked to drive the trycicle with Mr Singh and the driver in the back for a bit. Bad idea. I veered off the path and as the driver jumped off to stop us i put on the brake and his fingers were caught in the clasp. oops. He was fine but I felt bad. 300RS bad.
All in all an eventful day, and my hotel that night was just beautiful.
Agra...more like...AGRRRRRRRRR! Yup not my favourite place. Yes home of the Taj, but as Mr Singh says: "Trust nobody from Agra! EVER!"
He was right cause my hotel tried to give me a crap room until I Quietly snapped "Mckenzi Style" and got bumped up to the delux Suite! Yeah! ...
No..they froze me to death in that suite and then made me pay 200RS (About $6) for a heater.
GRRRRRRRR!
Walking on the street was the best:
A little boy came up to me begging fopr me to buy pens and boxes. It was a fairly decent performance actually, maybe half a tear there, but as my last acting teacher would say: "Really???!!!" So the more I said no, the more things he tried, the best of which was. "Give me a kiss, just one kiss, the lips the cheek...the tongue!" WAS HE EVEN 10yrs! They start em young here.
So the Taj Mahal, is the most awesome thing I've ever seen....all 20 mins of it!!
I was one of the lucky ones actually. This is the month of fog apparently and it rolled in so fast that the entire massive wonder was invisible not 5 meters away from it. Luckily I have pre-fog pics.
QUESTION:
why did the cows cross the road?
ANSWER:
They didn't. They just sat in the middle of it watching the traffic go by like a bunch of spectators at a game of lawn bowls. I have pics for proof!
Lunch time:
This is on the road to Rajasthan, in a rather dodgy place. I asked Mr Singh if Tourists go here and he says "Sure Sure!" like this is a rite of passage or something. I go to the bathroom and have an automatic gag relfex and try to touch everything with my left hand...there was no soap and my hand sanitiser was not available.
Mr Singh orders lunch for me because I couldn't decide which food I wanted to be my last on this earth. It's everything I'm not supposed to eat. Wheat and probably unpastuerised yoghurt. The pots and pans I saw being washed by water I wouldn't wash my own butt with. Mr Singh is waiting for me to eat. I take my right hand and pray to anything worth praying to, and eat the food. I avoid the yoghurt but it was offensive not to eat some.
Lets just say that everything in my back pack I had to counteract bacteria I TOOK!!! and waited. Thank you lord for the Dukerol. 5 hours later I had stomach cramps and Thor-like rumblings. REIKI, REIKI, REIKI!!!
Then nothing...and here I am writing to you by the grace of life....big sigh.
Forgot to mention that after lunch we went to a national park and bird sanctuary. Driven around on a 3 wheeled bycicle and saw wild animals up the wazoo! Incredible! I was even 2 feet from 2 Pythons!!! Best afternoon ever! Pics for later.
I asked to drive the trycicle with Mr Singh and the driver in the back for a bit. Bad idea. I veered off the path and as the driver jumped off to stop us i put on the brake and his fingers were caught in the clasp. oops. He was fine but I felt bad. 300RS bad.
All in all an eventful day, and my hotel that night was just beautiful.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Day 3
After about 36 hours in bed, with what I though was a relapse of mono, I am finally out and about and feeling much better. The people at the Ajanta Hotel have really looked after me. Thank you god! I'm starting to get a taste of the Indian Heart in people here. It's already brought me to tears once...ok I know it doesn't take much.
I have booked a 14 day tour of Rajasthan which starts today with my own driver and hotels set up along the way. A little more money but i feel much more comfortable about it as I make my way to feeling 100% again.
Had a free tour through Delhi yesturday! This city is like no other. The traffic and lack of any rules makes me laugh so hard, and the driver was cacking himself just as hard as I was. They run red lights, constantly honk horns, cut eachother off, get through cracks not even a mouse would consider...and on and on. My driver turned around on a 3 laned highway and went straight into oncoming traffic to get out of a jam!!! Better than Canada's wonderland!
Bought a phone for $30 canadian, and incoming calls are free. Lets just say my boyfriend Sean is a happy camper now.
Can't wait to be able to post some pics...
breakfast time, 6;30am. Does anyone ever get used to curry for breakfast? The answer is a resounding NO!!!
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
First day
It's been an interesting ride so far, and I'm a little dazed after sleeping for about 20 hours in my Delhi hotel room.
List of awesomeness:
-Got seat 23H on the plane which = emergency exit and lots of leg room.
-Sat next to Deepa from toronto who invited me to her Punjabi wedding as a part of the wedding party!
-Was collecting my luggage when the enitire Delhi airport went black! Deepa was clearly upset but I thought it was a riot. 3 mins later the generators came on. "Only in India" she says.
-My driver from the airport to the hotel was so great. Suprising that he really took his time, and explained alot of stuff to me (30 percent of which i understood). He did stick to riding right over the center line in the middle of the road and managed to dodge the tuk tuks swerving in and around us. It was fun actually.
-My stomach is a little mad with me but my hotel has Western food so I'm easing my way into it.
I'm off to bed again. This is your last chance to beat it jet lag!!!
List of awesomeness:
-Got seat 23H on the plane which = emergency exit and lots of leg room.
-Sat next to Deepa from toronto who invited me to her Punjabi wedding as a part of the wedding party!
-Was collecting my luggage when the enitire Delhi airport went black! Deepa was clearly upset but I thought it was a riot. 3 mins later the generators came on. "Only in India" she says.
-My driver from the airport to the hotel was so great. Suprising that he really took his time, and explained alot of stuff to me (30 percent of which i understood). He did stick to riding right over the center line in the middle of the road and managed to dodge the tuk tuks swerving in and around us. It was fun actually.
-My stomach is a little mad with me but my hotel has Western food so I'm easing my way into it.
I'm off to bed again. This is your last chance to beat it jet lag!!!
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