You know you’re alive when you’re in India. It simply has to be the most vibrant place on earth. The scenes on the streets are a feast for the eyes—nonstop near-neon in yards and yards of textiles that wrap the body without so much as a button or a pin.
No need for big box sttores. Everything is in markets on the street. Merchandise is bought and sold in a hectic environment that has pedestrians evading tuk tuks and bicycles, motorbikes and cars. It’s a frenetic dance to the tunes of beeps and everybody seems to know the steps.
The images below are from the streets of New Delhi, Varanasi, Jaipur, Udaipur and Mumbai. Enjoy the rainbow of life that is India.
The tilaka or pundra is a sign placed on the forehead by Hindus to indicate belonging to a precise religious orientation. Indians wear tilaka on some holidays, but also in their daily lives. It is obtained from sandalwood paste, ash, turmeric or clay depending on the desired color.Cattle are revered and free to roam wherever they want. They have the right of way., and you will find little to no beef on the menus here.Dhobi Ghat laundry in Mumbai, since 1890. Over 100,000 clothes are washed each day.The red mark on her part indicates she is married Jewelry seller
One of the things I had hoped to see in northern India was a Bengal tiger. Since we were spending two days in Ranthambore National Park, famous for its tigers and one of the best locations in India to see them, I had high hopes. But alas, the elusive predator remained just that for us, but the other half of our group of eight did see one on their game drive in a different part of the park.
The park is forested, hilly terrain and quite dusty due to minimum rainfall. Visitors may observe other wildlife such as leopards, hyenas, wild cats, reptiles and birds. The park also has deer and antelope, AKA the tiger buffet. We saw many deer and antelope, a crocodile and a leopard, the latter of which was a nice consolation prize for missing the tiger. And then there were the show offs. The peacock is the national bird of India and a common denizen of the park
While an Indian safari can’t compare to an African safari, it was fun to see natural India after spending time in hectic, chaotic, noisy cities where we had come from. The safari operates between October and June, and is closed during monsoon season.
Spotted deerThis beautiful leopard was our consolation prize for not seeing a Bengal tiger. Black-faced monkeyParakeetsWarthogs and peacocks. Who knew?People from all over the world come to pray at Trinetra Ganesh Temple located within the park.
I’m not prone to posting a raft of pictures of my hotel, but I’m making an exception for the Taj Lake Palace in in the middle of a lake in Udaipur, India, because Condé Nast ranks as one of the best hotels in the world, and who am I to argue with Condé Nast? It was a royal palace built by Maharana Jagat Singh II and completed in 1746 Over the years, it’s changed from the official summer residence of the royal family to a museum, and finally a hotel in 1963. To reach the hotel, you arrive by boat from the hotel’s private dock. Only hotel guests are allowed to come over. Not even our guide is allowed on the boat. By now we are a bit of a disheveled group of eight. I’m surprised we were allowed on the boat. Lol take a look at this lavish place.
The hotel pier where you take a boat to the hotel in the middle of the lake The hotel appears to float on the lake Hotel guests are treated as Royalty The hotels party boat Uncommon common areas
In Varansai, the holiest city in all of India, we witnessed the final rights of Hindus where the remains of the dead are cremated on the banks of the Ganges River and their souls are believed to ascend to the heavens. On average, 100 bodies begin burning each day before sundown. Eighty-four staircases (ghats) lead to the river. We descended the 87 steps of DasashwamedhGhat, the city’s main ghat, pushing through a sea of bodies (Anthony called it Covidpalooza) to board a boat to view the ritual from the water. Hindu priests chant or sing hymns in a rhythmic manner, while the funeral pyres burn. This spectacle attracts thousands, starts in the early evening and continues until two the next morning. We left long before that. Did I mention 87 difficult steps down to the river? Oddly enough, there were 87 steps back up. Pictures can’t begin to do justice to the sense of awe and wonder we experienced. But I’ll give it a go:
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A candle placed in flowers and floated in the Ganges symbolizes the soul, and its placement on the river represents the link between the inner and outer worlds. In India, where the tradition originated, some perform the ritual daily — at dawn and dusk — at the banks of the Ganges River.
We wrapped up our journey Down Under in Auckland on the North Island of New Zealand. It’s known as the City of Sails. With a population of 1.6 million people, more than 500,000 sailboats and yachts in various sizes are anchored and moored at marinas in the city—more vessels per capita than anywhere else in the world. With the Tasman Sea to the west and the Hauraki Gulf to the east, Auckland has plenty of access to the water. Also, Auckland has several large commercial and container harbors, as well as multiple large marinas and yacht harbors. Fifty-three volcanoes shape the city, so it’s a hilly affair, which can be a bit of a challenge for a flatlander from Florida. Better call Uber.
It’s a multicultural city, drawing the largest Polynesian population in the world. And the Māori culture is evident in its museums and in design elements throughout the city, including on our waitress’s manicure at dinner.
Side note: Tom and I sailed in to Auckland Harbor 14 years ago aboard the MS Queen Victoria. He mistakenly left his glasses in Tonga, the previous port, and thanks to the tenacity of our good friend Luisa, whom we met on board, a new pair of perfectly-fitting transition-lens spectacles awaited him upon our arrival.
Here’s a taste of Auckland today. Take special notice of the red sailing vessel, Steinlager 2, winner of the 1989-90 Whitbread round-the-world race. I saw her moored in the harbor. I didn’t know what she was, but I knew she was special so I shot a few pictures and then looked her up on the internet where I found a gorgeous picture of her under sail.
Pedestrian drawbridgeKnown as the City of Sails, Aukland has 500,000 vessels moored in her marinas, more per capita than any other place in the world.Our view one evening dining al frescoAukland’s War Memorial Museum also pays tribute to the nation’s Māori culture.An authentic Māori storehouse on display in the museumMāori carvingA Polynesian canoe of the type that early settlers used to cross the Pacific Ocean and land at what was to become New Zealand, an island bordered by the Tasman Sea and the Pacific Ocean.The Kiwi is the national bird of New Zealand. Colorful sculptures of Kiwis are found throughout the downtown area.Sky Tower, the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere. Auckland rings in the New Year with an explosion of fireworks off the tower.Cuteness overloadSteinlager 2, now owned by the New Zealand Sailing Trust, won every leg of the 1989-1990 Whitbread Round the World Race. Steinlager 2. Photo: Jeff Brown / Breed Media
I challenge you to say Whakarewarewa three times–or even once. However it’s pronounced, it’s a Living Māori Village in a geothermal landscape in Rotorua on the South Island. Our guide there was a direct descendant of the Whakarewarewa Māori, New Zealand’s indigenous people. Their facial tattoos are deeply spiritual, and can have a range of meanings, such as family, prosperity, travel, strength, career path and more. The village features a job training program for young people to further their cultural identity and give them skills for the future. Students serve a three-year apprenticeship where they learn to carve traditional Māori totems and other items, and weavings using traditional methods.
The village’s stunning features are the natural geothermal resources, including the Pōhutu Geyser, boiling mud-pools, steam vents and bubbling pools. We concluded our visit with a haka, where Māori warriors greet the chosen leader from our group In a manner meant to intimidate. After showing respect to the warriors, we were allowed to continue indoors for dinner and a cultural program.
Facial tattoos on Māori warriors are deeply spiritual, and can have a range of meanings, such as family, prosperity, travel, strength, career path and more.Māori meeting houses are used for meetings, celebrations, funerals, educational workshops and other important tribal events.Māori symbols are shared across many New Zealand art forms (tattoo art and pounamu carving especially) and have symbolism that stems from their original use hundreds of years ago to represent parts of the culture, belief system and history of Māori. The symbols represent the future and past.The village features a job training program for young people to further their cultural identity and give them skills for the future.The Pōhutu Geyser is the largest in the Southern Hemisphere and among the most active in the area, erupting up to 20 times per day at heights of up to 98 ft.The village features natural geothermal resources, including boiling mud-pools, steam vents and bubbling pots, in addition to the Pōhutu Geyser.Māori war dances show bravery and are intended to scare the enemies.
A canceled morning flight from Queenstown to Rotorua in New Zealand was in our favor with a 10-hour wait time for a rescheduled evening flight. The agility and speed of our tour company, Odysseys Unlimited, was more than impressive. Quite quickly, a motor coach magically appeared to carry 21 of us from the airport to a gondola ride up to lunch at a mountain-top restaurant with panoramic views.
With the remainder of the afternoon to fill, Odysseys arranged for a 21-passenger mountain bus (how’d they do that?) to take us on a one-way hairpin road through The Remarkable Mountains to view movie scenes shot in Skippers Canyon. Think Lord of the Rings, among Dozens of others.
This region of the South Island is the site of the 1862 gold rush and where believers still pan for gold (and find a nugget or two) in the Shotover River. It was spectacular, and we would’ve missed it had our flight not been canceled. Making delicious lemonade out of lemons!
Our group of waylaid travelersThe hairpin road was one lane and no guardrails. Here we pulled to the side to let this van through. To the side means to the edge where I had a great view looking straight down.People still pan for gold in the Shotover River, site of the 1860s Gold Rush. The Pipeline Bridge in Skipper’s Canyon once the site of a popular bungy jump it was bought by a competing site and closed down. At 334 feet above the Shotover River, the span is the longest and highest single span suspension bridge in the Southern Hemisphere.
Low-hanging clouds floated over Queenstown in New Zealand as we boarded the shuttle for the ride to the Kawarua Gorge Suspension Bridge. “It’s a 30-minute drive to Kawarua,” the driver said to the dozen or so passengers, “so you’ve got time to think about it.”
We were headed to the birthplace of bungy jumping. The folks on the shuttle were going to take the 141-ft. plunge. I would be a spectator. I was amused when my son fastened his seatbelt. Really? You’re concerned about safety?
It was cold. It was drizzling. I was back in my puffer coat. This is crazy. Instead of stopping him, I was there to video him. Mercifully for my cardiovascular system, he didn’t prolong things by hesitating. He just took the plunge over the roiling Kawarua River. Here it is, all 2 min. 46 sec. of it.
We got a good look at the landscape as we drove south from Christchurch to Mount Cook and Mount Cook to Milford Sound via Queenstown. The spring grass was emerald green, and well-fed grazers munched at the lower elevations. As we motored along, we stopped in small town cafés for lunch (some towns were barely a crossroads) and got to see how the locals enjoy their meals out in rural New Zealand. The atmosphere was always cozy and casual. Nice to be away from big, impersonal chain restaurants.
I really had no idea about the Southern Alps range in New Zealand. The range of mountains comprises 2,122 named peaks extending 310 miles, nearly the length of the island, from Nelson down to Milford Sound. The highest peak is Mount Cook, at 12,218 ft., where I spent my birthday at The Hermitage Hotel, marveling at the rugged landscape outside my balcony.
Continuing on our overland journey, we arrived at Milford Sound and boarded a sightseeing boat. The thousand waterfalls were running as we sailed through the fjords. They were running because it was raining. Unlucky folks who come all this way to see them and find a sunny day, may nary well see a trickle as they plow the fjords to the Tasman Sea. In fact, Milford is one of the wettest places in earth, with an average of 182 rainfall days per year. It was a bitter wind on the water, but I had done my homework and came prepared. Two pair of socks, jeans, a cashmere sweater layered under a heavier sweater and a zippered fleece and a puffer coat. Plus a warm hat and scarf, gloves and a hood. No way would I let a little weather stop me from photographing this cathedral of rock, rainforest and water. It was 10 hours round trip from our Queenstown hotel. This is the very wilds of New Zealand’s South Island. It doesn’t get any better than this if you love nature.
Cattle and deer herds graze on the emerald spring grass. Deer are farmed here for venison.Lunch on the road was at local small-town cafes where the food was delicious.Mount CookSun setting on Mount CookView of Mount Cook, rear center, at my birthday dinner at The Hermitage HotelThe stunning landscape made the 10-hour round-trip to Milford Sound worth it.We didn’t have to wait until we got to Milford Sound to see waterfalls.We stopped for a nature walk along the way.At last we arrive at Milford Sound and board the sightseeing boat.A thousand waterfalls gush on rainy days, of which there are 182 annually.
As author Bill Bryson wrote in “In a Sunburned Country,” Australia “has more things that will kill you than anywhere else.” Besides deadly snakes and spiders and jellyfish, to name a few, Oz has its share of friendly furry creatures and beautiful birds, too. And feathered friends are in abundance. To see these animals it’s best to go to an animal park. The empty vastness of Oz would have you forever searching for its fauna. We saw reptiles at the Alice Springs Reptile Center in the Outback, birds and mammals at Featherdale Wildlife Park in Sydney, and butterflies in the Kuranda Butterfly Sanctuary in the northeast part of the country.
Fair warning: There are two pictures of snakes at the end of the photo scroll, photos #15 and #16, so proceed with caution if you have an aversion to snakes.
Sleeping Koala BearKangaroosWallabyWombat gets a love patKookaburraCassowaryWestern BowerbirdRed Golden PheasantI have no idea what this beautiful bird is. Do you?EmuCrocodilePerentie Monitor LizardFrilled LizardBoyd’s Forest Dragon
Postcards 