Sunday, 16 November 2014, Udaipur
Pati and BeeBee had agreed with their guide and driver that they would be picked up at 9 am by the driver to meet the guide at the city palace to start the day with a tour. Breakfast was scheduled for 7:45 am, which fit nicely with a 9 am start. They finished breakfast with 45 minutes to spare and went to their room for teeth brushing and internetting before meeting the driver. Since the room would be cleaned while they were gone, they also needed to collect their belongings to make cleaning easier for the staff. At 8:30, the owner of the homestay knocked at their door: the guide was here, saying there would be a VIP in town causing traffic problems, could they come earlier? Since they had agreed to meet the guide in town, BeeBee was puzzled, but decided that the potential problem must be serious enough that the guide had come to get them. Finishing their tasks as quickly as possible, they went out to meet the guide at 8:40. It was not their guide! He was indignant, demanding to know who they were. The owner of the homestay had followed them out. BeeBee told her that the man was not their guide. The owner explained that Pati and BeeBee and the Indian ladies were all clients of the same travel company. The guide made a cellphone call while Pati went down a few steps toward the parking area to check whether Deepak was there. He was, so Pati and BeeBee went down the long flight of steps, listening to two cellphone calls, because the guide and Deepak were both on the phone. Were they talking to each other, BeeBee wondered? She hoped not, because she was not impressed with this guide. Deepak hung up. The guide continued to talk. Whew! Pati and BeeBee got into the car, explaining the mixup to Deepak (why they came out early), and they drove away. The Indian ladies got to sleep in and the nasty guide would have to fend with the mysterious VIP.
Arriving at the city palace, they waited a few minutes for their guide. They then toured the city palace which towers over the beautiful Lake Pichola and the Jagadish temple beside it. Their guide did a very good job of pointing out the best parts and explaining the architecture and religious aspects of the sights. Pati and BeeBee have been in several temples by now with other guides, yet this guide's explanations were much clearer and understandable. They are quite impressed by him. (Deepak told them later that this guide was much newer at his job -only about a year and a half - and was still excited about his work, while the older guides were stuck in their ways and just recited the same story all the time.) After a 3 pm lunch, they took a boat cruise on Lake Pichola, visiting Jagmandir Palace, the island palace in the middle of the lake. This palace was the inspiration for the Taj Mahal.
Not mentioned in this post are the shopping opportunities interspersed with the sightseeing. The shop keepers were not as aggressive as those promoted by other guides, and so the experience was almost enjoyable.
Following the last tour and shopping, Pati and BeeBee decided that they were too full from lunch for another large meal, and asked their guide and driver to just take them somewhere for dessert in lieu of dinner. The guide knew of a restaurant with a beautiful garden and took them there; at this point his services were over and goodbyes were said.
After dessert, Deepak drove them back to the homestay, and he was free to get what rest he could before tomorrow. After he takes Pati and BeeBee to the airport tomorrow, he starts driving back to Delhi empty (meaning, with no passengers) to pick up his next tourists for a Golden Triangle tour (Delhi, Agra, Jaipur). The trip to Delhi will take 15 hours of driving; he will get a few hours of sleep halfway between Udaipur and Delhi. (As he told them a few days ago, "Life is very hard in India.") By the time he gets to Delhi, Pati and BeeBee could very well be in Varanasi (flight tomorrow to Delhi, flight Tuesday to Varanasi). He does not get a break between driving Pati and BeeBee and driving his next passengers; he will not see his family for a long time yet.
Pati and BeeBee had agreed with their guide and driver that they would be picked up at 9 am by the driver to meet the guide at the city palace to start the day with a tour. Breakfast was scheduled for 7:45 am, which fit nicely with a 9 am start. They finished breakfast with 45 minutes to spare and went to their room for teeth brushing and internetting before meeting the driver. Since the room would be cleaned while they were gone, they also needed to collect their belongings to make cleaning easier for the staff. At 8:30, the owner of the homestay knocked at their door: the guide was here, saying there would be a VIP in town causing traffic problems, could they come earlier? Since they had agreed to meet the guide in town, BeeBee was puzzled, but decided that the potential problem must be serious enough that the guide had come to get them. Finishing their tasks as quickly as possible, they went out to meet the guide at 8:40. It was not their guide! He was indignant, demanding to know who they were. The owner of the homestay had followed them out. BeeBee told her that the man was not their guide. The owner explained that Pati and BeeBee and the Indian ladies were all clients of the same travel company. The guide made a cellphone call while Pati went down a few steps toward the parking area to check whether Deepak was there. He was, so Pati and BeeBee went down the long flight of steps, listening to two cellphone calls, because the guide and Deepak were both on the phone. Were they talking to each other, BeeBee wondered? She hoped not, because she was not impressed with this guide. Deepak hung up. The guide continued to talk. Whew! Pati and BeeBee got into the car, explaining the mixup to Deepak (why they came out early), and they drove away. The Indian ladies got to sleep in and the nasty guide would have to fend with the mysterious VIP.
Arriving at the city palace, they waited a few minutes for their guide. They then toured the city palace which towers over the beautiful Lake Pichola and the Jagadish temple beside it. Their guide did a very good job of pointing out the best parts and explaining the architecture and religious aspects of the sights. Pati and BeeBee have been in several temples by now with other guides, yet this guide's explanations were much clearer and understandable. They are quite impressed by him. (Deepak told them later that this guide was much newer at his job -only about a year and a half - and was still excited about his work, while the older guides were stuck in their ways and just recited the same story all the time.) After a 3 pm lunch, they took a boat cruise on Lake Pichola, visiting Jagmandir Palace, the island palace in the middle of the lake. This palace was the inspiration for the Taj Mahal.
Not mentioned in this post are the shopping opportunities interspersed with the sightseeing. The shop keepers were not as aggressive as those promoted by other guides, and so the experience was almost enjoyable.
Following the last tour and shopping, Pati and BeeBee decided that they were too full from lunch for another large meal, and asked their guide and driver to just take them somewhere for dessert in lieu of dinner. The guide knew of a restaurant with a beautiful garden and took them there; at this point his services were over and goodbyes were said.
After dessert, Deepak drove them back to the homestay, and he was free to get what rest he could before tomorrow. After he takes Pati and BeeBee to the airport tomorrow, he starts driving back to Delhi empty (meaning, with no passengers) to pick up his next tourists for a Golden Triangle tour (Delhi, Agra, Jaipur). The trip to Delhi will take 15 hours of driving; he will get a few hours of sleep halfway between Udaipur and Delhi. (As he told them a few days ago, "Life is very hard in India.") By the time he gets to Delhi, Pati and BeeBee could very well be in Varanasi (flight tomorrow to Delhi, flight Tuesday to Varanasi). He does not get a break between driving Pati and BeeBee and driving his next passengers; he will not see his family for a long time yet.
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