Ellora Caves and around Aurangabad June 10, 2010
Posted by admin in : India , add a commentAfter a day’s washing, sleeping, getting cash and finding our way around the city we headed out for a day in Dalautabad. Catching the bus was a bit of a nightmare. Feeling a little ropey from food the night before, we managed to squeeze through the massive pushing match, screams and kids being crushed so people can get on the bus, finally on I find a bag halfway on the seat and so put it in the baggage area above and sit down. A guy then comes up immediately shouting and pointing at us, to which the bus start debating the merits of the situation. Turns out that Indian people throw their bags onto a bus as it is pulling into a depot to “claim” their seat. Obviously we didn’t know this, but as a religious (Muslim) person didn’t expect to be shouted at without some reasoning first- so much for religious people’s tolerance. Things didn’t improve when the bus driver took our money and failed to give us a ticket. I asked him if we can have one, “No…. Senior Citizen” he says, well strange then that everyone is getting on. We insist and by the time we get a ticket out of the conductor he kicks us off as we have missed Delautabad. Landing in a nowhere place in the baking sun isn’t great. The nearest sign tells us we were off by 10km. Laura this time is fuming instead of I. The Ellora caves are only 4km away so although we try to avoid them as much as possible took on to regain a sense of momentum to our day.
Ellora was a treat that made up for the journey there. Built in 700- 900 AD these cave temples are in such good condition due to the hard stone hill they are excavated from (200,000 tons of rock removed to build them). There were 3 sets of caves representing the Buddist, Hindu and Jain faiths, in a period of religious tolerance (clearly we are digressing in this respect!), the largest temple called the Kailesa temple was massive and the oldest temple still in use today. The best in my opinion was the Buddist “Music Hall”, where the incredible acoustics were demonstrated by a standby guide. The massively echoed chants he produced in this chamber that is reminiscent of church roofs (curved to amplify sound) was truly mesmerising, which clearly was designed to put followers into a trance- it worked on us.
The next day we relax as we decide to have one day of sightseeing and one day not. I finally get in touch with a business contact I have made and meet up over lunch just after moving to a hotel (the hostel closed due to refurbishment work) and we found the best value for money place to eat yet; good quality and yet not expensive. The Thali I learnt means plate in Hindi and why the dish is named as such. Faiz is a gregarious man who quickly starts creating a daily timetable for us to see everything that Aurangabad has to offer. As we were not really into the planning style this is over facing, but it is good to know what a local thinks of the various sites.
After a bite to Faiz invites us to some of the sites around town, so we head off in his decrepit car and are shown around the university as well as the university history museum. I ask whether he thinks that keeping 700 AD stone sculptures outside was ok, but he seemed to think it wasn’t a problem- I am not so sure considering they were kept in a cave for millennia previously. Either way seeing the medieval weaponry and artifacts was fairly interesting.
Next however we headed out of town into the hills where we are told that the Buiddists when they arrived came to produce the temples, but the rock was not good enough quality (too soft we concur) and so they moved their efforts to Ellora. We do not go in, but have a quick picture moment of the cityscape below and caves from a distance, enough due to seeing Ellora a few days previously. It is absolutely baking at this point and even the wind feels like it from a furnace. The landscape is baron, arid, dusty and dead, but even then a lone guy in the middle of nowhere is pushing a wheelbarrow somewhere!
The last step with Faiz via a lime soda (the best for rehydration, which Laura needs at this point, looking very hot and red) is Bibi Ka Maqbara aka the “poor man’s Taj Mahal”. This is a sand and limestone version of the Taj built by the grandson of Shah Jahan (the person who built the real Taj Mahal), after Aurangzeb, Shah Jahan’s son killed his father and marched everyone to Aurangabad (what a family!) The detail is not amazing due to erosion, but a good effort to say the least. The only trouble we experienced was mock-celeb status that we have been getting to an extent, but nothing like this. Girls following me and guys staring Laura up and down, pictures taken of us without permission and the one sit down before we look around we are circled, I have a baby placed on my knee and at least 8 cameras snapping away. Laura isn’t feeling great but they don’t care, as long as they have “one for the album”, for what meaning exactly I am still not sure.
Now the heat has completely drained us we head back to sleep. This is where Laura’s trouble starts. I suspect sickness is the result of a combination of overheating, sun exposure, eating and then being driven across the bumpiest roads ever. Lucky the next day was a rest day as Laura slept all day, unable to eat or even leave the room.
Arriving in Aurangabad June 9, 2010
Posted by admin in : India , add a commentAfter spending 6 hours the night before uploading photos due to numerous power failures rendering Internet use almost impossible, a 6am start was tiring. We set of to find a rickshaw hoping that we would receive the usual battle. After dismissing the first group on a scam, the next was ok and we made it to the station having spent the right amount of money and in good time.
The train departed under “training cumulus” clouds, which signal the onset of the Monsoon season and say goodbye to the risk of rain as we head north to Aurangabad. In the spirit of trying everything we opted for 3-AC class this time due to travelling across the Deccan plateau for 9 hours (in Goa we used the standard sleeper “SL” class). My suspicion was that 3-AC was a standard sleeper, plus the “luxury” of air conditioning, which attracts a charge of at least 70% extra (this Internet café is charging Rs15 instead of 10 due to their AC, and hotels do the same- the rooms are the same they just switch AC on). However I was wrong. The train actually had something that resembled a toilet and not just a hole onto the tracks below. The clientele was also middle class Indian people, there was far less screaming, noise and crowding, which made the experience a lot more civilized. I do question the value of AC overall, but burning your hands on double glazed windows from the sun also made me think twice. Fans, as is the outside breeze traveling at speed are great for cooling down and so AC is perhaps an unnecessary luxury, but both of these do increase dehydration and so maximum comfort is worth it occasionally.
We arrived in dusty Aurangabad at 7pm the same evening and the first impressions were the swarms of Rickshaws. Harassed instantly we head for the only guy sat patiently and get in, most to the disgust of the other people. Trouble is he doubled the fare when we arrived at the Youth Hostel (the meter was the reading per person didn’t you know!) to which I told him where to go and paid the actual reading.
Thankfully the hostel was Rs70 per night for a dorm room because it was more like a concentration camp. I have been to quite a few hostels and this was the dirtiest. Why a lady is sweeping the outside area from falling leaves and flowers when the floor inside makes your feet instantly filthy is beyond me. I also wonder of the benefits of urinals which are disconnected from any water supply or sewerage system so that going to the toilet means you urinate all over your feet… use the floor next time (you think I am joking). Either way due to the low season we are in a pretty much empty hostel, although there is no food available as the guidebook states for this reason (another limitation of guide books is that they are written with high season visitors in mind).
The hostel though resembles the city as a whole- a bit of a dump. More baron wastelands and rubbish, plus a river running through it that literally has more poo in it than water (you can see this due to the colour and consistency, oh and the smell is a bit of a giveaway). That is a shame considering that this area is perhaps the most historically significant due to the sights collected in an area of 100km. Built predominantly by Aurangzeb, the Mughal who built the Taj Mahal and then some years later decide to march the population of Delhi over 1000km to Aurangabad only to turn them back later due to Delhi being defenseless against attack!
From the farm back to reality and onto Auragabad June 6, 2010
Posted by admin in : India , 1 comment so farFarm back to reality
Following a week at the Mango farm we need to get back to Pune to catch our train to Aurangabad which leaves early in the morning of 28th May. Umesh collects us midday and invites us to stay at his for the night. He is such a great host, we a balled over with his generosity. With the promise of chicken and beer, great company plus an A/C room it all seems too good to be true!
For dinner, Al and Umesh go ‘shopping’ for the chicken at a chicken farm nearby. They select the plump bird of their fancy and from what I heard killed and feathered it in a pretty inhumane way which consisted of chucking it into a machine that shook it around. I would just like to say at this point that I said before I leave that I would be veggie whilst in India. After a week of eating 2 meals a day (both consisted of Roti, rice and predominantly ocra) made by the local villager; so I was gagging for some protein. No more ocra…please! I think in any other situation I would have thought twice about aborting my vegetarianism. The other point on this is that everyone tends to be vegetarian and only eats meat at home, or where they are absolutely certain on the methods of how the meat is being cooked and where it came from. Also, if the host eats meat, so do I.
Al, being interested in collecting recipes, was in heaven as Umesh teaches him how to cook the dish. Also we discover that ‘masala’ actually just means spices. There was I thinking it was a particular type of dish…King prawn Masala for example.
Once the food was prepared, we tucked into several different appetizers and a few bottles London Pilsners. Umesh also got some chicken tandori take-away to have as a snack with the beer. It was so delicious- best tandori I think I have had, although I was starving so I think most things tasted particularly good!
After many hours of chatting, Umesh suggests eat. Hehe. I was ready for bed! I had forgotten that we hadn’t even had the main course yet. The chicken stock he had made was heavenly and the chicken killed for the occasion was certainly cooked to perfection. With time having been so warped, I glanced at my watch and noticed the date was wrong on it. When I commented on this, it transpired that Al and I were both a day out of keel and actually our train was not due to depart the following morning, it was due the day after that! Oops. Umesh was more than happy to put up with us for another day though (thank goodness), so this meant we had an unexpected day in Pune to do some touristy stuff. Fantastic!
As highly recommended for our unexpected extra day in Pune, we headed towards the Patalshvara Cave Temple with the intention of having an explore around this side of town. Possibly venturing into the Raja Dinkar Kelkar Museum.. We hopped into an autorikshaw who took us at speed down the highway to J.M Road.
The Patalshvara Cave Temple is cut into the rock, it’s small and unfinished but dates back to the 8th century. Such an amazingly calm, tranquil and shady place. It was so nice to sit there and chill. A guy near us was reading the paper in the temple, which made me wonder why we don’t use our churches as a place to be calm in our lunch breaks back in the Uk?! I don’t think you have to be religious to realize the potential of such places. As long as respect is made to those who are around you.
Next door to the Patalshvara Cave Temple, was the more recent Jangali Maharaj Temple. This seems much busier with people dropping in for a quick payer as well as ladies sitting for hours chatting quietly. We hung out in the temples for a good hour and be time I left, back onto the very busy J.M road I felt peaceful and full of energy for the rest of our day.
One thing I have noticed about Pune is that it is a lot cleaner than Mumbai. The people seem more cosmopolitan too. J.M Road definitely reflected these thoughts. The street, although with the usual hectic vibe and zillions of rickshaws was broad with many up market shops and cafes. Al noticed a KFC joint that he could not resist trying out. For those who don’t know: Al loves fried chicken and has tried KFC in Poland, Bankok, Vietnam and other places around the world and has noticed their menu varies depending on where he is. Indian KFC has a ‘masala’ topping on it – very nice- tasted like spicey tomato flavour.
For the rest of the afternoon we wondered around and soaked up the people, place, shops, traffic, smells, sounds, tastes, etc. I tried my first fresh cocnut- which I have always wanted to do. Very tasty milk, but I much prefer the flesh to be hard. With the coconut being so fresh is was a bit of a slimy texture of which I wasn’t too keen.
We had intended on walking towards the museum, but discovered that Lonely Planet was out of date and it had moved a few months back. Nevertheless, we enjoyed walking all the way down J.M Road (very long). Near the end we came across what seemed to be the wedding district. Every shop was either silk, clothing or gold shops. I was pretty cool to see all the dowry gold on show.
That evening we hang out with Yash (Umesh’s daughter). We go and eat street food with her. Her favourite is pane puri, so of course that is on the menu. Along with a few other pulse dishes that are bloomin spicey (but tasty).
Finally, the 28th arrives and we jump into a rickshaw to get to Pune rail Station. My gut is not happy and I think that may 3 different pulse dishes from the street vendors was a little optimistic. Hey ho, it is bearable, just a bit grumbly.
Our train departs at 8:45 sharp and isn’t overly busy which is great. We opted for AC this time, as the journey will take 9 hours through the heat of the day. It is comfortable, if not a little cold. A very sick man (we think diabetic) was in one of our bunks, so we willingly use the top bunks instead. Also, there is a bunk on the other side of the aisle which has a window next to it. So we were more than happy. I spent the whole journey reading about Indian history and looking out the window. The view for much of the time was of the Deccan Plateau…VERY arid. I could see where water would normally gush was completely dried up. Bring on the monsoon- the villages need it badly.
Arriving at Aurangabad we are confronted with the most rickshaws I have seen so far! How on earth do the ALL make a living??- Al had pondered. We selected one who hadn’t bugged us and drove to our pre-booked hostel. Rs70 for a dorm room…can’t go wrong. Although, I don’t think I have ever stayed in such a scummy place before. I don’t think the floor has ever been cleaned in its whole existence! The toilets don’t flush and when I chucked a bucked of water down instead, I learn that the pipes have holes in them! Ergh. It is all good though, the girls dorm was completely empty- so just me in a big room to myself. Al’s dorm has one Chinese guy staying- and that is it! I guess most sensible travelers don’t come to Aurangabad when it is 42c. Or if they do, they get an AC room. The Chinese guy told Al that there are loads of mozzies, so we promptly get out mosquito nets up. Although my effort was a bit of a blond moment…I didn’t turn the fan off first and as I stood on the bed to hang it up the fan took a chunk of skin out of my finger, OUCH. Really clever Laura. It’s ok though- not much blood- just an achey bruised knuckle minus a bit of skin. Lucky really!
Sleeping in the hostel wasn’t too bad so we are going to base ourselves here for another night at least. Tonight we are meeting up with a business contact of Als, who is keen to tell us the best places to go. Of course in the next few days we will be visiting the Ajanta Caves- very excited about that. They are apparently very well preserved considering how old they are.
Today we are having our 1st Month travelling day. A day to recoupe, take stock, do laundery and have an explore around Aurangabad. First impressions though; Auragnabad is hot and dusty and the men seem a bit more sleezy here..
That’s all for now folks. Namaste.
Post written by Laura
