50 Year Adventure

Official 2010 Commonwealth Games building in Delhi which was an abandoned building previously since it had too many structural problems. We saw signs annoucing only 340 days until the games began as we went around the city. Then we saw a half finished cricket stadium and wondered how in the world it would be finished in less than a year.

Bangla Sahib Sikh Temple in Delhi. The travel agent we used to book all of our train tickets was right across the road from this huge complex, which had an underground parking garage. We could hear the singing over the temple loud speakers, so I had to go over and see what the building looked like up close. I did not go inside but this was as close as you could get without taking your shoes off.

Ansal Plaza in Delhi. I took this photo since it shows a nice billboard with Rabindranath Tagore. Notice the Lee jeans store below him and the Shah Rukh Khan billboard above him. There is no way Tagore could ever have imagined being sandwiched between Bollywood and USA jeans!

Ansal Plaza in Delhi looking out over the second floor deck between the two parts of the mall.

The Apple Store in Delhi which was located in Ansal Plaza and the reason we visited this mall. It was small but looked just as clean and neat as any Apple store in the USA. We found the Apple computers for sale were a couple hundred more than the same models in the USA. There were all sold out of the 3G iPhones and said it would be another month before they recieved the new 3Gs models. They could not tell us how much they would cost nor the wireless service plans either. As in most high end stores, they had a guard who you can see in the photo who is opening the door for a customer.

This is the day train we took from Delhi to Amritsar, Punjab. I wanted to take the photo before the train car filled up with people. There were working power outlets right below the luggage racks which Rob used to plug in his Mac laptop to read my book.

This was the train station in Amritsar, Punjab, which is written in Punjabi, Hindi and English. I was surprised to see cycle rickshawsbeing used all over the city.

This was my hotel room in Gurdaspur, Punjab. It had a large sitting area with very nice wooden chairs.

This was my hotel room in Gurdaspur, Punjab. I did not have to use the A/C unit above the bed as it was perfectly cool weather for sleeping. I had to wash all of my clothes that night and so I hung then to dry in the room and turned on the overhead fans on full. They were all dry in the morning.

This was my hotel room in Gurdaspur, Punjab. This is where I washed all of my clothes by hand and then took a nice cold cup bath using that pretty pink bucket. I have no idea how many stars you would say this hotel had but it was very neat and clean and was perfect, all for the hugh price of $15!

This was right outside our hotel in Gurdaspur, Punjab. This shows the contrast always visible in India. A nice new compact car and a man carrying bags of rice by cycle rickshaw.

This was right outside our hotel in Gurdaspur, Punjab. Yet another illustration of the old and new India. A man on a horse drawn cart full of fresh bananas driving beside a woman on a cycle. I commonly saw woman driving cars also.

This was right outside our hotel in Gurdaspur, Punjab. A truck fully loaded with rice.

A petrol (gas) station outside Gurdaspur, Punjab. Notice the color coordinated stripes on the tree.

A truck stop daba right across the road from the petrol station. Notice the same color coordinated stripes on the tree, so maybe this was an authorized extension of the gas station!

Fields full of white egrets in a nearby village to the west of Gurdaspur, Punjab. This was very close to the Pakistan border and Himachal Pradesh. Not the best place to be long term but we were only there for a short time visiting a friend.

A farmer's water buffaloes tied up. These are not the most beautiful of beasts but they sure produce the most wonderful milk especially if heated up and drank warm.

These were carpenters building doors and windows by hand without any nails. The man in front is making small wooden nails. the men in the back are creating a window frame.

Hand made plaster finishing on the ceiling of the building we visited. This was really amazing to see such great craftsman workmanship.

This is a very important place in Amritsar, Punjab. We were told it was probably not best for us to go in. I am not talking about the "Chocolate Planet" store, but the Jallianwala Bagh on the left hand side. This is where the British fired upon Indians and killed 379 back in 1919. It is still an emotionally charged place. For details see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jallianwala_Bagh_massacre. Notice the streamers above the city street. There were in place for the upcoming Guru Nanak Jayanti held a couple of days after we were there. It was the 540th birthday of the founder of Sikhism. It was very crowded the day we were there, so I cannot imaging being there on the actual day.

This is the entrance to Harmandir Sahib or more commonly known as The Golden Temple, which is the most holy place for Sikhs. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harmandir_Sahib. This is a great photo as it shows the streamers put up for Guru Nanak Jayanti.

We left our shoes in the underground shoe deposit and took our small metal token with our shoe cubby hole number and then did the same for both of our backpacks in another small room near the entrance to Harmandir Sahib. As we walked through the main entrace I was not watching were I was going and failed to see the small trough of water that we were supposed to walk through to clean our feet. At least I did not fall down and just got the bottom of my pants a little extra wet. After walking down several steps, this was my first view of The Golden Temple. Such an amazing sight in person but the photo does capture the moment nicely as well. See http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/Golden_temple_pano.jpg

This is the view of the inside of the Harmandir Sahib main entrace clock tower with one of holy trees visible on the left hand side.

This is the entrace on the west side to Harmandir Sahib or to the right as you walk through the main entrance. Notice the brass railings on the left hand side on the ground. Those are for the other flow of people who want to enter the actual Golden Temple. The entrance walk way to the Golden Temple is right behind where I stood to take this photo.

This is a nice photo as it shows the main entrance clock tower, The Golden Temple in the middle of the pond and the east entrance to the temple. In the bottom front of this photo is a jute mat that some people use to walk clockwise around the temple grounds. You can see one man walking the other way so there is nothing that says you have to walk clockwise. You can see the long line of people walking on the foot bridge to get into The Golden Temple.

The people in this line are leaving the temple and all had a small dry leaf with prasad in their hands. I like this photo as the sun is glistening on the temple and makes it look even more amazing.

Everyone who enters the temple grounds must have their head covered as you can see in the men in the bottom right of this photo. This shows the west entrance and the line of people leaving The Golden Temple. Near this location is where worshippers are allowed to take a bath in the reflecting pool. I choose not to photograph them! Also near this location to the right is two men who are sitting in two small rooms visible behind large glass windows reading the holy book of Sikhs from cover to cover. I was told if they get tired, then they are allowed to be replaced by someone else. There are two other men on the other side by the west entrance doing the same thing. So there are four people at any given time reading the book from cover to cover.

This was taken as we were leaving Harmandir Sahib and proves that pizza is enjoyed even in the middle of the Punjab in a holy city, but I choose to eat Indian food while in India!

This is a classic photo of a family of four going for shopping in the main market in Amritsar. Something tells me that the motorbike was not intended for so many people at once. It was pretty common to see people cover their mouths and noses while driving motorbikes. You can see a man to the left sweeping the dirt from his shop. To the far left is a fruit selling, who has a nice arrangement going on.

This is my favorite photo from the whole trip. This is the Bahai Lotus Temple in Delhi. I saw this beautiful blooming tree and thought I should get a photo of it and the temple at the same time. This is what we saw as we entered the temple grounds. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotus_Temple

This is what the temple looked like as we appraoched it. There were just a few people visiting it that day. I did not feel as there were many people there at all, but this photo makes it look a bit crowded. The landscaping was very nice as all of the bushes wer eneatly trimmed and the grass was perfectly kept.

No cameras were allowed to be used inside, so this was after we deposited our shoes and as we walked up the last set of steps approaching the temple.

This was taken of the reflecting pools at the base of the Lotus Temple. See aerial photo by satelitte on Google Earth at http://jewarat.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/lotus-temple.jpg

Several friends at work suggested I see Akshardam BAPS Swaminarayan Temple in Delhi. This was taken from parking lot as all of the auto-rickshaws are visible at the bottom of this photo. It was quite hazy that day and since cameras were not allowed inside the temple grounds, this was the only photo I was able to take. The wikipedia web site below has great photos of the temple. I especially liked the Gajendra Pith around the base of the temple which was a series of elephants carved out of stone. The main temple was closed that day for repairs so I did not see inside. After visiting Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, I thought this was a big tourist trap. We did not have to pay to go inside, but they had a place selling snacks in the back of the temple grounds as well as a souvenir shop on the other side. They also have a large IMAX theater inside the temple grounds. It was amazing to see the stone carvings but I was not impressed with the tourist side of things. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akshardham_(Delhi)

This was the parking lot to the computer mall we visited. I thought this was a perfect example of how many motorbikes exist as they are a common form of transportation.

This was a typical street right outside Connaught Place or C.P. as it is called by Delhites. Notice how many auto-rickshaws are present. The buildings in the background are small shops selling tourist goods. Right behind me in this photo is the Cottage Industries building which was a one stop place to shop for everything a toursist would ever want.

I took this photo just for my kids as they love Papa John's pizza. I was actually surprised it was there as I did not expect it.

Also taken for my kids to prove that such things exist in India.

Another photo for the kids. This looks nicer than the Pizza Hut in our hometown!

I saw way too many of these around Connaught Place and everyone of them was jammed with people.

This was the parking lot for The Imperial Hotel. We went to visit the Purchasing Manager with the person we were staying with in Delhi. I looked up the prices for this hotel and the rooms range from $300 to $1700 and that is in US dollars. Definitely a 5 star hotel. See http://www.theimperialindia.com/

This is the main hallway inside The Imperial Hotel. Right after I took this photo Karina Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan walked out of the dining room on the left hand side of this hall and walked right past me. They are two famous Bollywood film stars. It was not shocking to see them since this hotel was so grand in everyway.

Yet another 5 star hotel in Delhi. This building was huge and I liked the architecture.

I really like the architecture for this home of a famous newspaper called The Statesman.

This was a brand new upscale mall near where we stayed while in Delhi.

This was a beautiful house right down the road from where I stayed with friends in Delhi.

This was the garden on the other side of the road from the previous photo.

This is a series of four cars in a row parked next to the house in the previous photo - Chevy car.

This is a series of four cars in a row parked next to the house in the previous photo - Ford car.

This is a series of four cars in a row parked next to the house in the previous photo - Honda City car.

This is a series of four cars in a row parked next to the house in the previous photo - Opel car.

This was the flower garden right across the road from the house I stayed in while in Delhi.

On the train from Delhi to Bhubaneswar, Orissa on the Rajdhani Express in the morning after a cramped sleep, I took photos looking out the train door. I like this photo as Bengali is visible on the side of the trailing so that means we were in West Bengal. Plus the stripped bars indicate a clearance so trucks cannot enter the small dirt road to cross the train tracks.

The hills of Orissa became visible as we got closer to Bhubaneswar, Orissa. This reminded me of Stone Mountain, NC that my son and I climbed as it looked almost exactly the same - steep on one side and gradual on the other.

The hills of Orissa with rice paddies in the low lands.

I really like this photo of the green rice paddies with the hills in the distance while in Orissa.

One of the houses visible from the railway tracks in Orissa. What a beautiful orange color with nice yellow and green trim - nicely color coordinated with the flowers in the foreground.

What colorful Orissa houses - I really like the shape of those windows in the pink house.

I had to ask what these were - they are water chestnuts and in several of the ponds I saw people in them waste deep picking them.

If you look closely you can see the water chestnuts blooming. Nice banana trees in the foreground and date palm trees in the background.

Everywhere in Orissa I saw this nice yellow plant in full bloom. Except for the wire, this is a nice photo of yet another water chestnut pond.

There is an interesting story behind this photo. On every overnight train, we were supplied with a pillow along with pillowcase, a warm blanket and two white sheets. That was wonderful since we did not have to carry our own. At this train station in Orissa we saw those same railway sheets on the ground in all directions for as far as we could see. Turns out they wash them at this location! I am not sure about laying them on the ground to dry but that was a common sight everywhere especially in Varanasi as we saw later.

One of the places we intended to visit in Orissa was a boy's home in Pipli about 10 miles from Bhubaneswar. Since we arrived around 7pm at night and stayed in the home that night, this is what happened when we got there. The boys had their hands full of marigold flower petals which they threw at us. This photo shows me trying to shake every one of their hands. I am sure I shoke several hands more than once. These boys are so cute staring at the camera.

This was the young daughter of the family who stayed at the Pipli Boys Home and was called Lovely, which is an appropriate name!

This is a group of people who came to the Pipli Boys Home while we were there the next morning.

All of the boys got dressed in their school uniforms and put on their Australian caps which someone had given them recently for the photo shoot on the roof. Of course they insisted I join them for the photo.

One of my plans before arriving in India was to play cricket with all of the boys at the Pipli Boys Home. All of the boys came out to join me at the Pipli High School grounds which was right around the corner from their house. The high school was really only three buildings like the one visible in the background. The ground we were playing on was really mostly just moss. All of the boys took their shoes off while playing. One time I ran and slid as I reached to catch a ball and the moss came off the ground as I slid around. Every one wanted to bat when I bowled. Most of them were just your typical boys running around chasing each other.

Even though the boys were running around lot, when I got up to bat they all got excited and paid attention as they wanted to catch my ball and get me out. I was using a miniature bat so it was not that easy to hit the ball.

Even when I bowled the boys were so fascinated watching me - I am glad I could entertain them as much as I enjoyed being around them.

Right before we left to return to Bhubaneswar to catch our train we had to have one more photo at the main gate to the house. The man at th eback in the middle with glasses is the man who runs the home. An interesting detail, the boy to the right leaning on the gate surprised me while playing cricket. As I was batting he bowled and it was so fast it scared me. I asked one of the boys about him and they told me he was 13 years old and was from a rural area in Orissa.

This is the family we stayed with in Bhubaneswar. Rob knew Sura in Bombay back in the 1980's and that was the connection to the Pipli Boys Home as Sura's brother-in-law ran it.

This was taken from the back of the cab we caught at Howrah station as we crossed the famous Howrah bridge in Kolkata.

I did not take many photos while in Kolkata since it was very crowded all the time.

One of the busiest train stations in the world - Kokata Howrah Station is the definition of overcrowding. Someone stole my extra backpack as we entered our train in this station, so I am currently not happy with Howrah.

While in Varanasi we stayed in a 150 year old building with Swamiji Muktananda. This is one of the windows on the third floor. I really like this photo as this window is solid stone and was hand carved.

This is inside the same building - we were told that this was originally Rajasthani architecture.

This is the main altar in the same building.

This is the bed where we stayed while in Varanasi. The window in the back is yet another stone window.

From the roof of the building where we were staying I could see the Muslim Mosque in Varanasi. The green object in the photo was a kite that a boy was flying from a nearby roof.

While on the roof I turned all around and took these photos. I like the light blue colors with an occasional interesting building, like the pink rooftop in this photo. You can see the Ganges in the background which was pretty low this time of year.

I really like that read roof on the top of that adjacent building and next to the light blue buildings makes it look even more dramatic. Of course I could have done without the cell phone tower in the background!

Yet another view from the roof top and this time a bright yellow building next to a light yellow building with the Ganges in the background - nice.

While on the roof I heard many monkeys being loud and then I spotted them. They looked like they were picking bugs off the mother or father, who knows which. The two small monkeys were going crazy chacing each other all over the place.