Have you ever been inside a police station in India? Well, up until the 16th, neither had I. Following breakfast with the rest of the team on Saturday morning, most of them boarded a bus and departed for the airport to then fly to Jodhpur. Since Linda had lost her passport, she could not board a plane to fly anywhere, and since the American embassy is closed on the weekends AND it is Presidents' Day on the 18th, nothing can be done to issue her a new passport until the 19th at the earliest! That meant Linda would have to remain in Delhi for the weekend, doing ton thing and not partaking of the sights and sounds and smells of the places we were to visit. It only seemed right that I also stay behind, arrange for her to go to the police station and file an official report and then see what we could sort out for the rest of the weekend.
I spoke with Sanjiv and indicated that I would stay back, work with Linda in getting the report filed and then we could hire a driver to take us to Nagaur to meet up with the rest of the Dream Team. "Elias, do you have any idea how far that is to drive? It takes between twelve and fourteen hours!" Well, so be it. This is the only plan which made sense to me so we implemented it.
The rest of the team departed for the airport, after I removed my bags from the bus, and Linda and I had a driver take us to the police station. When we arrived, we were told that it was the wrong police station end that we had to go to another one on the other side of the city from where we were to file the report. The driver took us to the station near Connaught Place. When we arrived and walked through the gate we smelled what seemed to be "weed" being smoked but I am sure it was simply some street people who were "easing the pain" outside the confines of the station. Our escort took us into the station and we began the process of filling out the paperwork. Without going into detail, this process took about an hour and then we left to be driven to another part of the city to meet our new driver for the long journey west.
We met up with Rakesh and boarded his van, somewhat cramped on the inside, but what would be our home for the next half-day! Linda and I talked about our Rotary Club projects and other travel experiences as we headed toward Gurgaon, where we would meet yet another driver, who would ferry us through some horrific construction areas. Little did I know what we were about to experience. It seems that for the past decade, roadways in India have been under major construction. One of the objects of this construction is to build "fly-overs" in then congested areas of towns located between major cities. These "fly-overs" will move traffic along, even while local traffice will be diverted off the main roads in order to move everyone along at a more efficient pace. The interim, however, creates cavernous ditches, which if one were not careful, one could have his or her vehicle totally swallowed up!!!
Our "new" driver was temporary, but particularly skilled in maneuvering around and through this new congestion. I took some photos and a video out the window, but have not been able to upload it to my iPad to include in this posting. Possibly at a later date.
The first stint in the van was just under 4.5 hours and when we had travelled around the city of Jaipur, on the bypass, I suggested we should stop for getting out of the vehicle and possibly grabbing something to eat. We had already dropped off the other driver, and when Rakesh located a "restaurant" on the side of the road, we pulled into the parking area. He kindly opened my door and I found I was unable to move. I had been cramped into the back seat behind him for over four hours and had lost all mobility! He helped me out of the van, but I was not sure if my legs would hold me without buckling. A few minutes of just standing and leaning against the van worked and I was finally able to walk to the restaurant. Both Linda and I had to use the facilities, which were, in and of themselves, "rustic". We then came out to the open area and washed our hands at the wink next to the garden!
We went in to sit at me of the tables in the restaurant and could not read the menu,but decided to have some fried rice and some garlic and buttered Nan. Although neither of us wanted a soft drink, the restaurant served no beer, wines or spirits, so we settled for bottles of Coca Cola. We finished up our snack and returned to the van for the next leg of our journey. During that part of the ride, I remembered the telephone number if a friend in Jaipur and called him. He was pleased to hear from me, asked
I spoke with Sanjiv and indicated that I would stay back, work with Linda in getting the report filed and then we could hire a driver to take us to Nagaur to meet up with the rest of the Dream Team. "Elias, do you have any idea how far that is to drive? It takes between twelve and fourteen hours!" Well, so be it. This is the only plan which made sense to me so we implemented it.
The rest of the team departed for the airport, after I removed my bags from the bus, and Linda and I had a driver take us to the police station. When we arrived, we were told that it was the wrong police station end that we had to go to another one on the other side of the city from where we were to file the report. The driver took us to the station near Connaught Place. When we arrived and walked through the gate we smelled what seemed to be "weed" being smoked but I am sure it was simply some street people who were "easing the pain" outside the confines of the station. Our escort took us into the station and we began the process of filling out the paperwork. Without going into detail, this process took about an hour and then we left to be driven to another part of the city to meet our new driver for the long journey west.
We met up with Rakesh and boarded his van, somewhat cramped on the inside, but what would be our home for the next half-day! Linda and I talked about our Rotary Club projects and other travel experiences as we headed toward Gurgaon, where we would meet yet another driver, who would ferry us through some horrific construction areas. Little did I know what we were about to experience. It seems that for the past decade, roadways in India have been under major construction. One of the objects of this construction is to build "fly-overs" in then congested areas of towns located between major cities. These "fly-overs" will move traffic along, even while local traffice will be diverted off the main roads in order to move everyone along at a more efficient pace. The interim, however, creates cavernous ditches, which if one were not careful, one could have his or her vehicle totally swallowed up!!!
Our "new" driver was temporary, but particularly skilled in maneuvering around and through this new congestion. I took some photos and a video out the window, but have not been able to upload it to my iPad to include in this posting. Possibly at a later date.
The first stint in the van was just under 4.5 hours and when we had travelled around the city of Jaipur, on the bypass, I suggested we should stop for getting out of the vehicle and possibly grabbing something to eat. We had already dropped off the other driver, and when Rakesh located a "restaurant" on the side of the road, we pulled into the parking area. He kindly opened my door and I found I was unable to move. I had been cramped into the back seat behind him for over four hours and had lost all mobility! He helped me out of the van, but I was not sure if my legs would hold me without buckling. A few minutes of just standing and leaning against the van worked and I was finally able to walk to the restaurant. Both Linda and I had to use the facilities, which were, in and of themselves, "rustic". We then came out to the open area and washed our hands at the wink next to the garden!
We went in to sit at me of the tables in the restaurant and could not read the menu,but decided to have some fried rice and some garlic and buttered Nan. Although neither of us wanted a soft drink, the restaurant served no beer, wines or spirits, so we settled for bottles of Coca Cola. We finished up our snack and returned to the van for the next leg of our journey. During that part of the ride, I remembered the telephone number if a friend in Jaipur and called him. He was pleased to hear from me, asked
Somehow I must have reached capacity for this posting so will add another chapter soon.
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