Incredible India

O lands! O all so dear to me – what you are, I become part of that, whatever it is.

– Walt Whitman

I wish I could do what Walt Whitman suggests. Visiting a country for a week obviously does not give one an in-depth picture. We pulled into harbor at Cochin (also known as Kochi), the capital of the state of Kerala, which has a population of 5 million people that has a diverse population (56 percent Hindu, 25 percent Muslim, 20 epercet Christian).  There is a Jewish quarter in the market visited by tourists hunting for bargains, but only eight Jews survive in Cochin. There is a strong communist influence in Kerala, and the government is Socialist. It is one of the wealthiest states in India with a highly educated citizenry.

India, with its 1.2 billion citizens, is the second-most populated country in the world, soon to overtake China.  Its economy is the world's ninth-biggest, and economic growth is clocking in at almost 8 percent. Area wise, it is the seventh largest, with 28 states, very different in every way, and seven territories. More than 20 languages are spoken. Eighty percent of the population is Hindu. Overall the literacy rate is 61 percent. Delhi, the capital with 22 million residents, is tucked away in the north. Mumbai, formerly called Bombay, on the northwest coast has 20 million. 

DELHI: Old Delhi was the capital of the Muslim Mughal Empire in the 17th and 18th Centuries and has many mosques, monuments and forts. New Delhi is the imperial city created as the capital of India by the British.  

Unfortunately we arrived in Delhi at night and left early the next morning for Agra, so we did not see much of the capital. I will quote Donald, a frequent traveler to India:

"It took me two days to deal with the crowds, the noise, the smells that assault you in this huge frenetic  place. The traffic-clogged streets are dirty and dusty, much more so than my first visit eight years ago. There are cycle rickshaws, motorized tuk tuks, scooters, motorcycles, trucks, buses, cows and oxen carts and dogs -- all competing for space with the incredible crush of humanity dodging the above in a strange choreography that somehow seems to function under the constant blare of horns ... There is an excellent new metro system, which works well if you are not too sensitive to being crushed in close intimacy with other sweaty and often pungent fellow travelers. Pushing and being pushed is the only way to get on and off, and everyone takes it in stride."

We left our five-star Crown Plaza Hotel in Delhi at 4:45 a.m. to catch a train that took us to Agra in two hours; the motor coach would have taken five hours.We had assigned seats on the train that had at least 10 long wagons. We were given bottled water and a snack.

AGRA: Two great Mughal monarchs, Akbar and Shah Jahan, transformed the little village of Agra into a befitting second capital of the Mughal Empire during the 16th and 17th Centuries. Today, Agra is full of contrasting buildings of red sandstone and white marble, including the Taj Mahal. Commissioned by Emperor Shah Jahan as a memorial to his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal, the Taj was designed and planned by Persian architect Ustad Isa, and it took 22 yeas to complete. Apart from its stunning design balance and perfect symmetry, the Taj is noted for its elegant domes (the major one stands 115 feet), intricately carved screens and some of the best inlay work ever seen. Today, Agra is a city of 1.6 million people and is the most-visited city in India.

Our next stop was Agra Fort, predominantly red sandstone, was built in 1565 by Mughal Emperor Akbar, and is surrounded by walls. We had a buffet lunch at a hotel in Agra and got on our bus with 30 other Semester at Sea travelers to get to Jaipur, which took a longer-than-usual 6.5 hours. The Ramada Hotel was a welcome sight with a pool on its roof, offering me a cold but refreshing swim.  Hotels in India charge for the use of Internet but I was happy to speak to two of my children. Knowing we were to leave at 6 a.m., I tried to get some sleep.

JAIPUR: "The City of Victory" was commissioned by Maharaja Jai Singh II, a warrior, astronomer and politician who ruled the Mughal Empire from 1699 to 1743. Today's Jaipur is known as the Pink City, partly because the walls of the city are red sandstone, but mostly because the buildings were painted pink in 1876 to coincide with the visit of Prince of Wales, King Edward VII.

Entering the palace of Amer

Amer Fort, high up in the hills, is a opulent mix of red sandstone and marble buildings that forms a complex of chambers, hallways and a palace, built in 1744. There is an imposing gateway painted with the images of the elephant-headed god, Ganesh. The merging of  Rajput Mughal architectural styles is captured in the Sukh Niwas and Jas Mandir apartments, and the Charbagh garden. Some 5,000 tourists each year visit the premonitory above Maota Lake near Amer village.

We proceeded to Dera Amer on rough, dirt roads in Kukas, in the middle of nowhere, a delightful change from the crowded streets. We had a home-cooked meal at this lovely  sanctuary, which sometimes holds elephant polo (something I had never heard of it before) where we fed the elephants bananas, painted their bodies and washed them with a hose. The elephants helping by filling their trunks with water and splashing on their backs and then scratching themselves on the nearby trees. The children in our group loved the experience,  A young lady from town painted beautiful henna designs on the arms of legs of those willing to pay $10 (half of which probably went to the guide). Some of the students later found out, they could have had it done for $1 in town. Still, I have to give this lady credit; she was a true artist.

In the afternoon we visited Jantar Mantar, the largest and best preserved of the five observatories built by Jai Singh II in different parts of India. The observatory, consisting of outsized astronomical instruments is still in use. We also visited the City Palace, a delightful blend of Mughal and traditional Rajasthan architecture.  It sprawls over one-seventh of the area in the walled city and houses the Chandra Mahal, Shri Govind Dev Temple and the palace with Maharaja's private collection of textiles and armory.

The highlight of our visit to Jaipur was the cycle rickshaw ride in the old city, through the small lanes where we saw a flurry of colors and beautiful architecture, including the Hawa Muhal, the Palace of Winds.

BACK TO KOCHI: Our flight back to Kochi via Mumbai took most of the day. I was glad to get back to the Explorer's air conditioning and the quiet of my cabin. We spent another day in Kochi, seeing Hindu temples, mosques and a couple of churches. The open market is always fun to visit, and the Taj Hotel near the port was splendid with its Victorian elegance and the beautiful views from its outdoor garden. I was glad to be able to Skype with Ayla, knowing we will be at sea and away from a port for at least six days.

Buses, motorcycles and tuk tuks compete for space on the streets of Kochi