I wonder where they are now....?

STATS: Day count=115; Current Illness count=0.5 (still not 100% after previous illness); theft count=0; rip-off count=1; tourist screw-up count=3; Chris’ photo count=1180; Emma’s photo count=51 As we prepare to leave India, in true Jerry Springer style I will leave some final thoughts and opinions. First though, a run-down of our last week… A week of contrasts, much like our entire time in India.  After a couple of days in Pushkar, we had originally planned on travelling to Bundi, but altered our plans to head instead to Chittor, as the fort there is reputedly excellent. So we hopped on the local bone-rattler bus for the 5 hour journey to Chittor. Unfortunately the bus was full, and we had to struggle with fitting ourselves, our two large rucksacks and our two daypacks on a double seat. It wasn’t comfortable. Even when the bus cleared a little after a few hours, and we were able to spread ourselves around a bit, it wasn’t helped when some guy decided he wanted to sit next to me...

STATS: Day count=107; Current Illness count=2; theft count=0; rip-off count=1; tourist screw-up count=3 (up!); Chris’ photo count=1123; Emma’s photo count=51 Travelling around India by train, on journeys of anywhere from 5 to 20 hours, we keep being reminded of the theme tune from ‘The Littlest Hobo’ – the colour version, not the black & white one (I’m not that old!). Still, it’s better than having Sir Cliff’s Mistletoe & Wine revolving round your head for days, I guess (thanks to an electronic birthday card from Iain, that was a risk). After proclaiming in the last post that we were all (including Laura) in fine health, we must have annoyed someone on high as first Laura was hit by some illness or heatstroke that wiped her out for a day or two, then both Emma & I were hit with the usual food poisoning or similar, taking us out for days, and we’re still recovering even now – in a country where the food is so varied and interesting, and most of it able to be eaten by u...

STATS: Day count=95; Current Illness count=0 (All three of us in full health at the moment); theft count=0; rip-off count=1; tourist screw-up count=2; Chris’ photo count=1038; Emma’s photo count=51; Laura's photo count=~20 Apologies for the length of this post – it has been a little while since the last one (less internet access around here) so there’s quite a lot in it! Read it in instalments – you’ll get less bored that way! A few words on our perception of the fashions out here, especially where they differ from those in the West. ‘Gingers’ get a hard time of it in the UK (some would say deservedly so ;-)). Out here, although natural redheads or gingers are, I would guess, unheard of, it seems a fashion for men to dye their hair red. Young men use red dye to ‘tinge’ their hair colour whilst elderly men snub ‘just for men’ hair colouring, and any form of subtlety, in favour of dying their hair, moustaches or beards (or any combination of the above) a bright orange colour as s...