One of many weddings in Udaipur!

 I'm so fortunate to have found, many years ago, a wonderful place to stay in Udaipur, the 'Lal Ghat Guest House.'  Right near it is the Gangaur Ghat, where parts of weddings are held.  Here's a sample of images from one of the many I would always run down to watch.

Please click on the pic to embiggen!  Not as easy to view on phones.

Sadhu Paul

A few years back I was fortunate to be introduced, by friends Walter and Klaus, to a fellow who has lived decades in India as a Sadhu, Paul from England. He travelled around India, as the seasons changed, and had a guru in north India, and a place in in Gokharna, Karnataka. I met him only a couple of times, but he really enriched the ongoing Indian experiences that I've been lucky to travel to many times since the late 1970's. I wanted to share some pics from a couple of encounters with Paul near Gokharna, Karnataka.   

I still have an image of him walking along with long dreds and lungi singing various Herman's Hermits and other '60's bands' songs.

Unfortunately Paul passed away in northern India a few years ago.

 This pic is of the stairway to his hidden away jungle home, just outside Gokharna.

Inside his mud-floored home.

His shrine.

Paul

Prepping a candle with ghee.

Having a stretch

Klaus and Paul and Walter and me heading off to an afternoon at a waterfall some distance away with a rental car and driver .

After a long downhill climb, we arrived at a waterfall fed river.

Making tea in the jungle near a river.

Of course our car had a flat, so we were lucky to find the ubiquitous store and phone.

A pensive Paul.

A Short Revisit To 2012

With no visit to India this year (we had been planning a June-July visit to Ladakh for my birthday, but not whith the current conditions), and who even knows what shape the world will be in 2021, I decided to put a posting up of images I've never shown from 2012.   

These assorted images are selected from a couple of days in Bundi, in western Rajasthan, one of my fave places to visit....and the home of the best chai in India! (Krishna's Tea Stall)  Bundi is a small-ish town for India, so fairly easy to walk through most of it.  Apparently it gets quite green during the monsoon, but I've only been to the town in the winter, when the hills and plains are mostly dry and brown.  Some weird internal politics between the Royal brothers that own the overlooking fort and residence.  Both weird places but well worth the visit....though to walk up to the fort one should take a big stick (for rent near the residence entrance) because of the monkeys roaming around in the hills.

Please click on the pic to embiggen!

Checking out the foreigner from the safety of a second floor balcony.

Walking along the streets taking some pics of  street music machines, this guy asked me to take his picture.

Selling unrefined sugar (gur) in blocks on the side of the street. 
Gur is pretty unrefined, so has a lovely rich flavour.

Fellow making tin and bronze water jugs.

This weaver made the shawls and drapes from scratch himself.
I bought a number of these sheer ones.  Easy to as he's right across from Krishna's Chai Shop.

Taking a short break from slinging sacks off of a truck.

Typical walls around town.

I wonder what this guy has caught sight of while hanging around next to a holy rock.

Brass maker.

Watching the world go by.

A bit of a conference going on in the street.

Street sweepers.

Krishna of the famous Krishna's Chai Shop.  

Quite a nice guy with a nice family.  Lots of fun to hang with.

Krishna making chai....mmmmmmm.....