Rick's Blog: Oct 9 Mandawa, Rajastan

Caravan of cows

Mandawa is a town of 20,000 people, 190 kilometers north of Jaipur, founded in the mid 18th century. The main attractions are the Mandawa Fort, and several beautiful havelis (mansions), adorned with large fresco paintings. The town is called the 'open art gallery' because of it's lavishly painted walls. On the road from Delhi to Mandawa I saw a lot of things i've never seen before. Here are a few:

Caravan of hundreds of cows along the road to Mandala from Delhi

...the roads were lined with garbage, like most streets in India.

A typical street full of animals and garbage

...a 45 minute stop for the train to pass

A young girl who wanted her picture taken

Dalit man toilet cleaning

I arrived at the Hotel Heratige in Mandawa in the late afternoon.

Hotel Heritage

Hotel Heritage Bellman

Front desk staff at the Heritage

New friends

I had dinner of chicken and rice for $3 at my hotel with two new friends, Claremont and Alexandra from Paris, who were traveling on a four month journey to India, Nepal, Bhutan, Cambodia, and Viet Nam to study Indian food. Claremont is a chef in Paris. I enjoyed their company.

Dinner with Claremont and Alexandra on the roof of the Heritage

My guide, Vip, took me on a walking tour of the city, including the Fort and Havelis, where I learned about Hindu gods. The elephant is the god of good luck. The horse is god of power. The camel is the god of love. The monkey is the god of strength. When I mentioned that I was from America people responded, "America, the most powerful nation on earth!." Vipa and discussed a number of things; the caste system, arranged marriages, relations with Pakistan, and more. He believed that the caste system is not good for the untouchables, and that if an untouchable touched a Brahman he could jailed. Arranged marriage is very much part of the culture. He also said that Indians don't like the Pakistanis.