My Spiritual Indian Trip

I took almost 2000+ pictures whilst I was in India and it took me ages to sort them thru and have compiled the best together to make these videos to dedicate my Spiritual Trip to Rajasthan.

Part 1


Part 2


Part 3

Day 20 Delhi - Singapore - Perth 21st Nov 07

Goodbye Delhi and may we soon meet again in the near future. Arrived in Singapore and had a look at the Christmas decorations at Changi airport and goodbye hugs to Leanne and Princess Magic as I head off to Perth and the duo heading home off to Sydney.

I can't wait to get home and see my three babies again. I betcha they must have missed me heaps and me too. What an experience and what a adventure I had in India. I must definitely go back there again and next time will explore the southern part. So I better rest for a while and my next big trip will be ANTARCTICA in Febuary. Penguins and seals here I come!!!!

Day 19 Delhi 20th Nov 07

Today is our last day in Delhi. We visited the Laskmi Raya temple which was the first temple we saw when we arrived in Delhi 19 days ago. This time myself and Leanne went in to say goodbye to the Goddesses Laskmi and Darga. Before the India trip, I gave each other an Indian goddess's name. Mine was Laskmi as I am into having a wealthy lifestyle and prosperity in life and Leanne is named Darga as the protector of children and mother of the gods and goddesses.

Then to the National Museum and I came across this rock ancient inscriptions. Then we went to the Garden of the five senses. It was a lovely walk and stroll to pass the afternoon before we head off to the airport.
I came across this swing in the garden and I wished I could have this in my garden back in Perth. Though I think my three babies will be sitting in it all day long and there might not be enough room for all four of us on it!!!!!

Day 18 Delhi 19th Nov 07

Today we visited Dr. Manju who is a Indian midwife/lecturer that Leanne had kept contact with back in Australia. The purpose of this visit is to exchange ideas between Australian and Indian midwifery issues and organisations. I just tagged along to keep Leanne company but found the visit and the topics very interesting indeed. We also met up with 2 government officials from the CEDPA society and advocates of safe motherhood. Leanne conducted an interview with them whilst I videoed and took pictures. Checkout the website http://www.whiteribbonalliance.com/

We bid Manju farewell and endeavour to keep in touch from time to time.

Then we went to a market to look for a Tibetan singing bowl. It took me ages to find the right one that reasonates with me. I went to about nearly 10 shops when the owner of one caught my eye. He has such a gentle winkled face and a warm smile. I felt a connection there and as I was walking into his shop he had a Tibetan Chant CD playing and it really soothes the soul. We spent about 1/2 hour trying all the bowls he had and finally found one that I liked. The energy and vibration from the bowl as I am working it, is really awesome!!!! This had defiinitely made up my mind to go to Nepal/Tibet in my future global adventure.

Day 17 Delhi 18th Nov 07

Had a fairly relaxing day today and visited Rahul's home and met up with his lovely mother and she showed us how to cook up some indian food.

That night we just visited the local market close to our hotel. I bought lots of indian music cds and a few bollywood movies to take home.

Day 16 Udaipur - Delhi 17th Nov 07

We had a guided tour to a local village from Kristian, our receptionist from the retreat. There were so many smiling people. They are so friendly and loved their photos being taken and all had a giggle when I showed them their digital portraits. They don' have much in the material sense but spiritual and humanitarian and community sense they have lots.

We then had a goodbye lunch with the owner of the retreat as he was celebrating his birthday. Champagne and dancers and dancing were abundant. The dancers were wonderful and the weather's sunny and beautiful. It was a relaxing afternoon and later we have a connecting flight from Udiapur to Delhi and the rest of the group are flying back home to Spain, Australia and Bali. Leanne and myself are staying back for 3 more days at Delhi.

Air India was delayed and most the girls missed their connecting flights overseas so had to stay a day or two before they can get another flight out. There were riots at Indira Gandhi International Airport as alot of travellers were stranded for 2-3 days.

Day 15 Udaipur 16th Nov 07

We had our lake cruise to the Lake Palace situated in the middle of the lake. This was once the exclusive summer residence of Udaipur's maharajas and now an equisitely a romantic 5 star hotel. The palace has been reserved for the night as there was going to be a big wedding there. We were lucky to have permission to come over during the day to spend a hour then and watched the preparation of the wedding reception.

The palace is so beautiful and the preparation for the wedding was in full swing. What a fairytalk wedding reception it will be for the bride and groom.

Next was the Jagdish Temple and the marble carvings and sculptors is magnificent!!!!

This is our last night in Udaipur and we had an early dinner at a roof top restuarant overlooking the Jagdish Temple watching the sunset and listening to the arti chants of the temple. This is so relaxing and mediative.

Day 14 Udaipur 15th Nov 07

Udiapur is one of the most romantic cities in all of Rajasthan and also better known as the City of Lakes. This beautiful city is built around the shores of Lake Pichola and is full of temples, palaces and havelis. The Palace Retreat is the most beautiful haveli we have been so far. There are so many paintings and antiques all throughout the Retreat. One of my discoveries is the kama sutra pictures all over the wall next to the staircases. Wow!!!!!! This is definitely an artform.

We did the City Palace tour first up and it is the richest palace museum in Rajasthan. Lots to see.

This is the view of the city from one of the windows of the City Palace. We then proceeded down to the markets and the place definitely have a hippy type feel to it. Elephants roam thru the tiny streets and I even got offered hashish here!!!! as if I look like a habitual smoker!!!!! There a lots of roof top restuarants here. Myself, Leanne and Shari had a beautiful meal and admiring the view over the city. What a relaxing afternoon.

Day 13 Mt Abu - Udaipur 14th Nov 07

Checked out from Jaipur House and we had a few hours to explore the town in daylight before we head again. Most of us felt like celebrities as the Indians all want to take our photos and to shake our hands and say hello. I still think they must have mistaken me as Lucy Liu (god knows how...but..)

Leanne and I discovered beautiful wooden stamps and had our palms design stamped with henna.

We wondered off to a Brahma Kumaris Meditation Museum. Beautiful pictures and sculptures depicting all different religions as originated from one source.

I bought a few literature booklets from the bookshop and one was called "Thought for Today" One page stands out for me and here is an except:

It may seem almost useless to talk about peace when all around us we see a continued state of "peacelessness". It is this state that forces on us the necessity of finding our source of peace to draw upon and live from.

Consider the flowers. They too live in this peaceless environment. They too have to endure the pollution and decay of the world of nature. Yet, wherever they are found - by the congested roadside, near the swamps, in the desert, amid the thorns and sometimes even on the dung hill - they are eternally beautiful, gay and fragant. It is not by chance that flowers are given for every occassion, even the most sorrowful. Flowers call forth images of peace and tranquility. It is their nature.

We are also like flowers. We are the flowers of the garden of God. In this worldwide garden of everyday hustle and bustle, we too are threatened with pollution and degraded circumstances. Being flowers, we are expected to live in our natural state of peace and spread our fragrance all around us.

When we realise that the original nature of our soul is that of peace, we can combine with God who is the Ocean of Peace and so become embodiment of peace....a living, thinking flower. .....

Wow !!!That was so beautiful!!!!!!!!!!!! felt so humbled after reading that booklet.

Then we visit the Delwara Jain Temple which is dated back to 11 century. This is such a beautiful temple and unfortunately we couldn't take any photos as a form of respect but I got some postcards and this is how the interior looked like:

Words just couldn't described what I was seeing right before me. Left me quite breathless indeed. Magnificent!!!!

Day 12 Puskar - Mt Abu 13th Nov o7

Goodbye Pushkar!!! Whole day was spent on the bus towards Mount Abu, Rajasthan's only hill resort. This is pretty popular with the honeymooners!!!!!!!! We arrived late in the night and after a quick dinner, Leanne and I ventured from Jaipur House to check out the town. Up from our hotel the view was spectacular as we can see lots of holidaymakers paddling on the Nikki Lake and lights were everywhere as people are still celebrating Dewali. The air up here is fresh and quite cold. I had to search out for my Kathmandu jacket and long pants to keep warm!!!



Everyone was so friendly and wanted to shake hand and say hello. We only staying for a night here as we will be heading off to Udipur tommorrow. Another long day on the bus....Urrgh!!!

Day 11 Pushkar 12th Nov 07

Not far from Pushkar is Ajmer. There we visited "Dargah Sharif" a sufi mosque and last resting place of Sufi Saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chiti. This is India's most important shrine for the Muslim. The day we visited the place was packed!!!!!. People come here for all religions for healing, peace and spiritual growth. The energy on this temple is extremely powerful.

I felt crushed and a wee bit claustrophobic when I was in the shrine as there were so many people inside. I said my prayers and asked for my wishes to be granted. As the story goes, the shrine has granted almost 99% of all worshipper's wishes. So stay tune to see if my wishes will come true. Whilst I was inside, I must admit that there definitely was an electrifying energy and powerful aura in there. I did shed a few tears whilst I was circling the shrine and getting blessed by the priests. What an experience and I am so glad that I am here in person to witness this.

We were the only Western foreigners there and what stares we got from the locals. No one could believe me when I told them I am Australian. I got called Korean, Japanese and one even called me Italian....belisimo bambino....Made in China???...No.. no.. made in Australia..yes.. yes??

It was back to Pushkar for the afternoon and more shopping at the bazaar. Leanne and I went back to the gnat on Lake Pushkar to see the place in daylight. We were there on the first night when we arrived. There we met up with another Brahman priest and this time we did a personalised blessings each.

Today is definitely a day of blessings and may all our wishes and dreams come true. May we all have a fullfilling and enlightening life.

This is our last day in Pushkar as we have an early start tommorrow to head south-westward to Mount Abu. I really loved Pushkar and rest assured that I will be back here again soon.

Day 10 Pushkar 11th Nov 07

We had a free morning to explore the township and also the markets to do more power-shopping!!!! People were all getting ready for the Camel Fair and more and more tourists are pouring into the quaint town.
Saw this loveable character all dressed up and had to take his picture. Apparantly he is supposed to be the God of Business and Wealth. He is a cheeky little fellow!!!!!!

The camel ride at last!!!!!! This is event that I have been waiting for a long time.

Of all the camel booked, I chose thisone as I like the decorations on him. Only when I saddled did I find out his name is "Black Cobra"..ooops...apparantly he is quite fiesty and like to go up front and take charge. Hmmmm....

It was smooth riding though there were a few moments Black Cobra went full throttle forward. It was fun. I must say this has been the best ride I ever had for a long time (take it whatever meaning you want!!!). The journey was almost 3 hours long and we were heading towards a desert venue for Valerie's 72nd Birthday Party. We passed several villages and the kiddies waved and smiling as we passed through. Dusk quickly fell upon us and it is such a tranquil experience to be on a camel and riding in the desert and the quietness and the stillness of the place. I was quietly mediating but gotten interrupted when the mobile phone of my camel handler started ringing. Talk about damn technology even in the desert!!!!!!!!.

Day 9 Jaipur - Pushkar 10th Nov 07

We left Jaipur this morning and heading westward toward Pushkar. Pushkar resembles a pearl droped in the desert. It is a very peaceful and interesting town with a smooth spread of white-domed houses and temples reflecting the Pushkar lake.

We all gathered in one of the gnats surrounding the lake to get our blessing from a Brahman priest.I felt so peaceful and serene at this location. Whilst getting blessed and following the chants by the priest, I really felt a strong pull to this place expecially at the edge of the lake. The blessing translated " Washing our sins and guilts away, Have a healthy life and long life, Prosperity, Family life be sweet and prosperous and make our auras stronger and brighter."

Has my life journey brought me to this place for a special reason? Time will indeed tell. I most definitely felt more joyful and playful during this trip. It is almost like letting my inner child come to life. As the song goes "Don't worry, be happy" definitely resonates here.

The lesson I learn here today is: The more you learn, the more you know, the more you understand."

The air here is much cleaner than Delhi and Jaipur. There doesn't seems to be much motorised vehicles here. Camels are everywhere. The town is preparing for the annual Pushkar Camel Fair but unfortunately we are only here for a few days and will miss the event. Being here in the desert really has a romantic feeling about it. I feel recharged, refreshed and ready to face more life challenges.

Day 8 Jaipur 9th Nov 07

Today is Dewali day!!!!!! Our driver Ramesh and his assistant Sanjay had decked out our bus with garlands and garlands of flowers and tinsels.Agenda for the morning is a quick visit to the City Palace to view the museum of paintings and textiles and then its off to the local cinema to view the international release of the Bollywood movie "Saawariya" ("The Lovers"). It was really a hoot and the whole experience is very interactive. Audiences singalongs, whistling, mobile phones going off and clapping and catcalls throughout the cinema. The girls and I enjoyed ourselves immersely and this was our very first introduction to a real Bollywood movie.

The Jaipur Times also did a front page feature of us today.

It looked a bit hazy. Hopefully Terezka will have a copy of the paper and do a scan and emailed it all of us so I can replaced this picture but in the meantime it will have to do. I am on the second row third from the left and Leanne is up the front, first from the left. We had to do all sort of hand poses.

We had the rest of the afternoon off to get dressed up for the Dewali fireworks celebration tonight and Leanne and I can't wait to wear our saris!!!!!!

Don't we both looked stunning??!!!!!! It was fun playing dress-up with all the makeup and jewellery. Notice the bindis on our foreheads?

We all went to the Lakshmi Temple to pay respect for this auspicious day and for the new year. The temple was built entirely out of white marble and it is so beautiful. There were lots of Indians there and they looked really happy to see us dressed up in their tranditional clothes and joining them for prayers.

Dinner was at the Singpura Haveli. We all had our hands henna as it was a auspicious occassion. The artwork looks so intricated.

There were lots of fireworks going off everywhere around us. It was awesome to watch and the whole skies lit up with so many colours and glitters sparks everywhere. The fireworks went on and on for hours and when we went to bed around 2am-ish, it was still going on. This is definitely event that I won't forget for a long time.

Day 7 Jaipur 8th Nov 07

The Amber Fort is next up on our tour. It is perched up high up on the hills. We have to ride up to the top by elephants. Our elephant is No.114 and he is so gorgeous and colourful. Leanne, Princess Magic and I having our self portrait on top of the elephant. Check out the view behind us.

The fort was awesome with lots of corridors and rooms. It was like a maze and Leanne and I got a wee bit lost in it.

When we got back to the haveli a couple of hours later, a newspaper reportor was waiting for us to take our picture and we will be feature in the local Jaipur Times tommorrow as a group of Australian belly dancers holidaying and celebrating Dewali with the locals. Apparantly it will be front page new. How exciting.

Then Leanne and I rushed out in a tuk tuk to visit a vocational centre for abused, orphaned and destitute girls. Unfortunately because of the Dewali preparation the centre was closed when we got there. Bit of a bummer as this was one of my pet project to visit an orphanage and I wanted to see what I can do on my part for this organisation. Check it out http://www.ladli.org/

This was our only chance to visit it as the next day is a public holiday and we will be on the road again the day after that. Well I did try. Maybe I will visit them again when I come back to India next time.

The night program was a drive up on the highest lookout of Jaipur to view the city lights and watched the fireworks going off at different location thoroughout the city.

Day 6 Jaipur 7th Nov 07

Early in the morning, myself and Leanne went to visit the construction site next to the haveli. Yesterday morning we saw a lady making breakfast and waved at us and we organised for her to show us how to make naan bread but we really just want to visit with her and her family. They are really gorgeous people and though living in squalor and poverty in a little hut at the site, they are always smiling and seems proud and very hard working family.

They are really a smiling bunch. We bought wheat flour for the lady and lots of lollipops for the kids and didn't the kids just love it!!!!!!

The rest of the day was free to do our own thing. We all went to the local market/bazaar and shopped til we dropped. There were so much to see and we had to get a outfit each so we can wear on Dewali night which is in 2 days time. Shopping is pretty exhausting and we were loaded up to the hilt. Leanne and I had to take a tuk tuk back to the haveli and what an experience it was. My time in Bali and Thailand battling the traffic has nothing over this at all!!!!!. The road was chaotic, grid lock, exhaust fumes fallouts, noises, honking, people milling around like ants, lots of near misses with other tuk tuks, buses, cars, trucks, bikes etc.... but what fun we had. We just couldn't stop laughing and screaming at the same time. Thank god for insurance and our risky natures. My nose was pretty clogged up and my throat perched and our skins felt so grimey from the exhaust fallout and dustiness. I won't trade today for anything!!!!!