Amber
Rajasthan,
India
February 23, 2007
Dear Family and Friends,
It just keeps getting better!
"The magnificent delicate-pink, fort palace of Amber (pronounced Amer), a beautiful, ethereal example of Rajput architecture, rises from a rocky mountainside about 11km north of Jaipur." [*]
As Adit and I drive into Amber, the walls and the towers, more golden than pink, sit high and imposing on the mountains to my left.
Bogotá, Colombia
November 7, 2008
Here's a sampling of the way my world works:
Eight years ago I met Corina on a day-cruise on The Danube in Budapest, Hungary. Corina lives in Bucharest, Romania and I sent her my very first email ever! By some miracle she received it and she responded. Since I had never been to Romania, I decided to visit her the following summer. I have seen her on succeeding trips to Romania and we remain good friends.
Seven years ago, I met Anita and Marc in Sofia, Bulgaria. They were on their ‘round-the-world trip. Six months later we met again for dinner in Bangkok, Thailand. One day soon I hope to visit them and their three children at their home in Holland.
Five years ago I met Sushma and Paawan in Hanoi, Vietnam. They were on their honeymoon. When their first son was of proper age, they invited me to attend the traditional hair-cutting ceremony in Rajasthan, India. We met again at their home in Mumbai. They have a second son now and I expect to return to India next fall.
Three years ago I met Utami in Bali, Indonesia. We traveled together and she was my guide in Java. This year she was my guide in Sumatra.
Last year I met Li Li and Diego near my apartment in Bangkok. Since they live in Beijing, they helped me with hotel reservations, guides and warm hospitality when I arrived in China a month later.
For some reason (maybe my mother's good example of saying hello to everyone who crossed her path) I meet lots of friendly, like-minded people in my travels. And in this digital age, we keep in touch.
Two years ago I met Louisa and Luis and their teenage daughter Valentina in Flores, Guatemala. According to our plan, we met again two days later in Antigua. Luis and Luisa live in Chía, a town outside Bogotá; and they are also determined to see the world. So when I wrote to them and mentioned that I was visiting Miami and was also planning to fly to Colombia, they volunteered to pick me up at the airport and invited me to stay at their home.
Jaipur to Bikaner
Rajasthan, India
February 24, 2007
Dear Family and Friends,
The phrase "Horn Please" is emblazoned in huge, colorful and artistic boldfaced letters on the rear end of every powerful, solid, steel-framed intercity truck. Or "Sound Horn" appears. Or "Blow Horn." My favorite is "Blow Horn." India is a nation of one billion horn blowers.
It is good form. Everyone is encouraged to sound his horn to alert the truck driver ahead that his rig is about to be overtaken. And, (and this is a big "and") every driver of every type of vehicle alerts everyone else of his presence and his insistence to proceed unimpeded according to some preordained universal master transport plan known only to himself.
Jaipur, Rajasthan
India
February 23, 2007
Dear Family and Friends,
Noise and dust pierce the senses. Construction cranes pierce the sky. Jaipur is crowded. Jaipur is "developing."
My gracious hosts at the Govind Niwas Guest House, Admiral and Mrs. Madhvendra Singh recall earlier days when in the evening they would relax on their veranda or in the spacious garden in front of their home
Now, the avenue is just too busy. My friends are resigned to the inevitable yet they continue to enjoy the beauty of their city.
How many travelers have I met who focus only on Jaipur, dusty and "developing?" Like my hosts, I seek out Jaipur, pink and attractive and "developed."
Cartagena de Indias
Bolívar Department
Colombia
November 14, 2008
Dear Family and Friends,
From time to time, my curious friends ask, "Jan, how are the ladies there?" (Wherever "there" is.) So their "inquiry" regarding "Las mujeres Colombianas" was no surprise.
How shall answer the question about Colombian women without exacerbating my own proclivity for hypertension and without interfering with any cardiac control devices out there? I'll do my best:
{C}
Medellín
Antioquia Department
Republic of Colombia
November 18, 2008,
Dear Family and Friends,
Now here's a unique travel adventure:
My Avianca flight from Cartegena to Medellín left on time at 08:00. Ten minutes into the flight the pilot made an announcement. Since my Spanish is improving day by day, little by little, poco a poco, I understood the pilot to say that the airplane had a technical problem and we had to return to Cartegena. We made a sweeping 180 degree turn and in a few minutes we were on the ground.
The gate agent estimated that our waiting time would be about an hour, mas or menos (more or less). "Mas or menos" I figured out is the Spanish equivalent of the Arabic "Inshallah."
