Our last week in India was a whirlwind adventure in what Katie and I once dubbed “go mode” during our Australia travels. We didn’t spend more than one night in each place and covered a lot of ground, seeing the Taj Mahal in Agra, and exploring Rajasthan.

We set off from Delhi early, taking the sitting class train three hours to Agra. Piled in on long benches facing other passengers, Beth and I bundled up as best we could against the freezing wind blowing in through the windows. At one point, I stuffed toilet paper through the crack in the window, which seemed to help a little. (more…)

(Note: We struggled to write this blog. We wanted to be honest about our own experiences in Delhi, but we also know and want to emphasize that all travelers have very different experiences.  We certainly would not discourage anyone from going to Delhi. However, it has taken us some time and distance to be able to process some of the things we saw there.  The poverty was so extreme that we barely have the words to describe it…)

Our express train from Goa rolled up in Delhi around 2pm.  We got off and were immediately bombarded by taxi drivers, offering to take us for “only” 150 rupees (about US$4).  We knew that the train station had a prepaid taxi stand run by the local police, where we would only pay about 70-80 rupees for an autorickshaw, so we turned down the repeated taxi offers and headed toward the pre-paid booth.

Outside was chaos.  We tried to make our way to the prepaid taxi booth but dozen of men were talking to us, some encouraging us to go to the prepaid booth, others telling us that we didn’t want to go there.  At some point, one man put his hand on Beth’s arm to get her attention.  Suddenly, another man grabbed the first guy and threw him to the ground, yelling at him in Hindi.  We’re still not sure if it was because the guy inappropriately touched Beth or if it was because he was trying to steal away business. (more…)

More Fun with the Matatus

Lauren: You suck.
Matatu Driver: I am not suck.

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On the train ride to Goa, one of the Masala tea servers came by. Lauren ordered some, asking, “May I have some Masala tea?” The server cocked his head to the side, subltely wobbling it side to side. Lauren, confused and unsure of what she had said wrong, took this signal to mean no and said, “but…” as the server began pouring the tea anyway.

As he left, Beth pointed to the Let’s Go guide where she had ready earlier, “A quick tilt of the head, a sort of wobbling sideways nod, means ‘Ok,’ or ‘I understand.’ Many foreigners are baffled by the gesture, thinking their hosts are answering their most innocent comments and requests with a firm ‘no.’”

Later, we heard our friends Thomana (Kalpana and Thomas, see “The Breast Mystique”) discussing the bobble. Kalpana explained the gesture can mean completely different things, depending on the context.

Thus, we discovered the “bobble.” (more…)

Our flight from Bangkok to Mumbai had a stopover in Delhi.  We wouldn’t change planes but some passengers disembarked and others boarded.  We watched with raised eyebrows as the cleaning crew simply refolded used blankets, fluffed pillows and set them out for the new passengers that were boarding.  We later were told this was the typical Air India experience… buyer beware.

We arrived in Mumbai and were pleasantly surprised by the hassle-free ease with which we were able to hire a pre-paid cab and zip into the city more than an hour away. We glided past the Back Bay, touring Marine Drive, and arrived at the famed Taj Mahal Palace hotel in the Colaba district. Just for fun, Lauren walked in and inquired if there was a room available for the evening.

The receptionist shook her head, restraining laughter. (more…)

… and do cartwheels!! For those of you who haven’t been reading between the … er… messages under our blogs, BETH GOT INTO HARVARD!! Woo-hoo!! Though she’s still waiting to hear back from a few others, chances are she’ll be Boston bound upon arrival in the US next August. We’ll all be waiting with eager anticipation as our smaarty pants perfects yet another accent. Paark the caar…

This is called a To-Go Cup, er, Bag

In Thailand, to-go drinks are served in little plastic bags with handles and a straw.  Here, Lauren and I are drinking some of the best Thai iced tea in Chiang Mai.  To go.

I’ve decided Lauren needs to pitch the Food Network a show where she travels around the world sampling different foods.  I think the majority of our photos and footage are of the amazing foods we’ve had.

And food is definitely a highlight.

One Thai food we haven’t seen exported to the U.S. (but strongly believe should be) is Kao Soi (pronounced cow-soy).  It’s a soup-esque curry, with noodles, vegetables, tofu and crispy fried wontons on top.  But the amazing part is the sweet-spicy sauce.  It’s unlike any flavor I think I’ve ever tasted.  Like a party in your mouth.

My favorite Thai food, pad thai (which Lauren complained was a boring choice in the US, until she tried it here) is even more amazing in Thailand.  And I sampled the Indian food, masala tea, pork dumplings, tom ka gai, sushi and BeerLao that Lauren has blogged about before, and I’ll admit, they are worth writing home about.  (more…)

Today is Lauren’s birthday!  Happy 2…er, 25th-ish…, babe. 

We’re in Goa, India celebrating in style with our old friends Kalpana, Thomas and Trak. 

We’ll update the website soon with our Thailand and India adventures…

Negative Ghostrider

Pintu: Your last name is George? Are you in the same caste as George Bush?

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