On the road again

I (Aaron) just arrived home today after four days on the road and over 1,380 km (858 miles) of driving. The roads here are not very good and many of the areas where I was traveling are not even shown on a map. I was able to stop at a few very interesting places but I will only mention one now.

Yesterday morning I woke early and met a friend who was going to take me to see a village in the remote area of our state. This would entail a three hour drive through some of the most remote areas I have ever been anywhere in the world. For about two thirds of the way, the roads were barely wide enough for two vehicles to pass without one moving onto the shoulder. Fortunately, we encountered very few vehicles (a couple of trucks, a car, a few motorbikes and lots of camels and camel carts). The area had very little vegetation and was predominantly sand dunes. The dunes were massive in some areas and there was sand blowing quite regularly. In some areas the sand would blow across the roads and I would have to aim for the middle and pray that I was able to make it through without slowing down and getting stuck. I grew up in northern U.S. and drove in snow quite often, I had no idea that it was preparing me for driving in the desert. It was interesting to see that driving, maneuvering and even getting stuck in the sand were nearly identical to that of snow. The one advantage is that you were hot not cold.

We were less than 20 miles from the border of Pakistan and the only thing in the area was the Border Security Force (BSF) and farms. You may be wondering (as I was) what a farm would be doing in the middle of a desert...growing tumbleweeds? No, there are many types of wheat and beans grown here. One hundred years ago, there were no people living here, the conditions were too harsh for subsistence living and very few ever ventured out this far. After partition of India into India, West Pakistan and East Pakistan (modern day Bangladesh) in 1947, there was unrest between India and Pakistan. There was border security force posted on the respective sides of the border. The remote BSF post was the only thing in this area until the Maharaja of the state decided to irrigate the land via a canal. This is a good idea but where would the water come from? The answer was the Himalaya mountains! The water travels over three hundred miles via canal and is released into tributaries for irrigation. The result is a drastic contrast of shifting sand dunes against green fields, a very odd sight indeed. After the canal was built brave souls from the surrounding districts and even states came to farm the land, many of the farmers are sharecroppers working the land and giving 50% of the crops to the landowner.


Here is a picture of the canal. The area on either side was very green from the moisture but any further than a few hundred feet from the edge of the canal and the land was very dry and sandy. This picture was taken looking upstream towards the Himalayas hundreds of miles away.


This is a picture of one of the fields which had just been planted. It was a type of wheat and can be seen just poking through the ground to the left. The sand dunes were just feet away on the right.


When we stopped for lunch, I parked about fifteen feet off of the road and promptly became stuck. In a matter of minutes the bumper of the truck was against the sand. Six of us shoveled with tools, sticks and our hands to dig the truck out, back it up five feet and dig some more. It reminded me of New York in the winter, I realized that I did not miss the weather at all.


Here is a picture of the truck after we dug it out of the deep hole and before it dug a new hole a few feet further back. The brush and twigs were placed under the tires for traction. One thing that was different than getting out of deep snow was that throwing some sand under the tires would not help traction this particular situation. Good times...good times.


This is the view from where the truck was parked the fields are on the right and left side of the path and the home is at the back of the picture just left of center.


That afternoon as we sat drinking chai (tea) on a sand dune at another farmer's home, it began to sprinkle. We got in the car just as a heavy thunderstorm began. I had not seen rain in months and it was exciting to feel the temperature cool and the dry, dusty air become moist. We made it home about three hours later.


Here is a picture of the landscape. This was taken about fifty feet from the edge of one of the fields which had just been planted. The family's home where we had chai is on the horizon just left of center. We had to park the truck and walk into the homes since there are no roads.


In the next few days, I will post about what is perhaps the most unusual place I have ever seen; it was one of the stops which I made on this trip. I will not tell you what it is yet only that it is one of a kind and has been featured in books, internet, radio and television around the world.

Pushkar Fair (Camel Fair) Part 2

I just wanted to put a few more pictures on this site and tell you (who actually are interested) a little more about the fascinating camel.

This picture is of two buds just hangin' out eating some grain out of the back of a camel cart. I liked the arrangement of them and the way they were standing. Notice how there is black on the back of their necks below their heads. This is a blackish tarry discharge that is released when the males are in rut. This is the time of year when they can be very aggressive, unpredictable and dangerous.


Here is a picture of an adult male with a small male (about one year of age). For work such as riding and pulling carts, only male camels are used; the females are not large or powerful enough to do most of the work. Male camels have the good life for the first three years of life. They eat, sleep, chill out and travel with the pack. At the age of three they are finally big and strong enough to work and begin their new occupation as a career man; this is generally when they get their nosepegs. Camels are indispensable for those living and working in the desert; they are affectionately called "the ships of the desert".


Here is a picture of the bottom of a camels foot. I realize that this seems somewhat strange but it is amazing that something so massive as a camel has legs that look like broomsticks and feet that look like big bags of jello. There is nothing on the bottom except a pad similar to a dog (except one large pad rather than several small ones). There is no protection for the bottom of the foot and even though they are calloused they are still sensitive. Camels have problems with their pads cracking similar to humans having their heals cracking. Camel feet can be very large, sometimes they will be as large as a dinner plate. The wide flat bottom helps them to keep from sinking into the sand as they are sailing through the desert.


Here is a picture of a camel with his best and brightest clothing on. This is not so he can pick up some babes, it is so the tourists will take a picture (like me) and take a ride. There was a picture in the paper the other day of the camel who won the "fanciest camel" award at the fair. It was simply amazing, you could barely recognize a camel below all of the bells, ribbons, straps and eye popping colors.


This picture took me by surprise. I had no idea that ice cream was made from camel milk. They had a really nice booth with fancy signs but nobody seemed to be very interested in what they were selling. I fear that you will not be able to find any camel milk ice cream in a supermarket near you any time soon.


I could write more, such as the fact that a camels normal body temperature is 101-105 degrees, has a water retaining capacity of five liters (about 1.3 gallons), the hump on this type of camel (known as dromedary) is actually fatty tissue that can be metabolized in times of need (to the point that the hump will nearly disappear), have an average lifespan in our state of 40-50 years and camels are used not only for work but they also provide milk, meat, wool, leather and fuel (from their dried dung) but I will not bore you with such random and fascinating facts.

Pushkar Fair (Camel Fair) Part 1

This past Friday (23 Nov) I (Aaron) had the chance to spend the day at the famous Pushkar Camel Fair. I left our home at 05:30 and arrived in Pushkar at 07:30. It was already busy as people were gearing up for the day. Since I was there so early, I was able to drive through the roadblocks and maneuver through the sandy back alleys, eventually reaching the camel section of the fair grounds.

Pushkar is a town of approximately 10,000-14,000 people and you can drive through it in less than 10 minutes. During the Pushkar Fair, the number of people in the town increases to a massive 200,000-250,000 people! Not only is there a massive influx of people, there are also about 50,000 animals brought in to show, buy, trade and sell. The vast majority (about 90%) are camels and the rest are mostly horses. The event is one week long and is held the second half of November each year. It is famous throughout the world and is the largest event of its kind to be found anywhere on the globe; google "Pushkar Fair" and see what pops up.

Here is a view looking one direction. This was early in the morning so it was not in full swing but as far as you could see, there were camels, cart and camel drivers.


At about 09:00 the crew from Help In Suffering (HIS) (see past articles on HIS 1 and 2) arrived and were ready for the days work. HIS was able to provide all treatment and medications free of charge thanks to the central governments financial backing as well as donations from around the world. I was there to not only partake of the days activities but also to lend a hand with the medical care of the camels. It was exciting to be able to work on such a large animal, one which most vets in the U.S. have never been able to treat. I assisted with injections for mange treatment (one man came in with his whole herd of about 14 being affected), antibiotics via I.V. for infection, wounds which needed cleaning, dressing and medication (as well as removal of maggots in some wounds), replacement of nose-pegs (see picture below) and replacement with longer plastic (provided free of charge by HIS). Camels are so large and powerful. We would have to have them kneel to reach their heads; a full grown male is so tall that I could not jump and touch the top of his hump and their heads just tower over everything. It was an awesome experience to work on such a neat and unusual (outside of India) animal.


Here is a picture of our vehicle (silver SUV) next to the HIS trucks. The HIS tent is in front of the vehicle. Notice the camels on every side of the truck as well as in the background.


Since I arrived early, I was able to walk through most of the fair and get a lot of good photos of camels and the camel wallahs (drivers/ owners). Not only were your senses bombarded with the sights of thousands of camels, many which were brightly decorated with saddles, bells, ribbons and fur shaving in interesting designs, there was the smell of so many animals, fodder, poop, food cooking on dried dung fires, ringing of bells, and the many noises which camels make. It was a truly unforgettable experience. There were food vendors, ferris wheels, but more than anything, there were vendors selling all the accessories needed to customize your camel.

This is one stand selling camel accessories. You could buy bells for the ankles, head, saddle and neck. You could also buy harnesses, saddles (riding as well as for pulling a cart), pads, nose pegs (for steering the camel, see picture below), and furry balls for placing on the nose of the camel.


Here is a picture of a camel with his nosepegs in, bells and decorations on his neck and also the furry balls on his nose. The camel in the background had a large flower on his nose. The males are very powerful and are dangerous and difficult to control when in rut. The drivers put a wooden peg in each nostril (the most sensitive area on the camel) and attach the reigns to the pegs in order to steer and control the animal.


At noon, I went with the HIS office manager and two of the Doctors to visit with one of the Doctors friends who was in Pushkar for the fair. This man and his colleagues run horse, jeep and ATV safaris throughout Rajasthan. We drank chai and then they took us through the fair and into the desert on ATVs. There were three 330 cc Polaris 4wd ATVs which the man had imported from the U.S. It was a blast and all of us had a chance to drive and be crazy. I was the only one other than the owner who had ever been on an ATV let alone drive one. When we stopped at the fairgrounds when we were through, there was a huge crowd surrounding the vehicles, nobody had ever seen one. I thought that it was ironic that the westerners came to look at camels and the locals thought the most amazing thing was an ATV.

This is a picture of me on one of the ATVs. The vehicles in the back right side are camel drawn carts with white covers to keep the tourists from getting burned.


I will post the second half of pictures as well as more details on the Pushkar Fair and animals tomorrow.

Catching up on a few recent adventures

Melanie's parents (Rick and Regina) spent about six weeks with us and we have been busy. I (Aaron) will catch you up on a few of the adventures that we have had over the past month.

Ajmer

On 01 November, Rick and I took a day trip with Naeem to Ajmer and Pushkar. We made our first stop at the famous Muslim shrine in Ajmer known as the Dargah. The Dargah was built for Khawaja Moinuddin Chishty (also known as Gharib Nawaz) who lived from 1141-1230 A.D. He is known for founding the Chishtiyya Islam order of South Asia (particularly India). He is said to be a direct descendant of Muhammad (founder of Islam). He was a sufi and recognized as the most famous sufi saint ever. Sufism is a mystic tradition within Islam that encompasses a diverse range of beliefs and practices dedicated to Divine love and the cultivation of the elements of the Divine within the individual human being. This particular Dargah is one of the most famous in the world. People from all over Asia as well as abroad make there way here for blessing. I have read and been told that seven trips to this Dargah is equal to one trip to Mecca; this ensures salvation and an eternity in paradise. We were there just three weeks after a bomb went off inside the complex on Thursday 11 October 2007 evening killing three persons and injuring 17 others as thousands of Muslims were breaking their day-long Ramzan fast.

After the blast, we were not allowed to take a camera inside, hence no pictures to post except the street looking towards the entrance of the Dargah at the end of the street. The entrance is through the huge archway.


Pushkar

After we left Ajmer, we left for Pushkar to see the Brahma Temple. This is said to be the only one in the world. Some say that there is a second one although there is dispute if it is for Brahma or for others in addition to Brahma and therefore not a true Brahma temple. Brahma is known as the creator in Hinduism and responsible for the creation of all that is. He is one of the three members of what is called in Hinduism the "trimurti" The trimurti is formed by three gods; Brahma (creator), Vishnu (preserver) and Shiva (destroyer). This trimurti is seen as keeping balance in the universe.

This is the main temple inside the temple compound.


This is the inside of the main temple. A statue is Brahma is seated in what appears to be a silver box. The man in the orange shirt with orange paint on his forehead is the priest.


The lake at Pushkar is also very famous and the water in it is second only to the Ganges river. The lake was said to be formed when Brahma dropped a lotus flower, the result was that this holy lake formed. People make pilgrimages here to bathe in the water in order to gain merit.

This is a picture of part of Pushkar Lake. I was not able to get a good picture because as I took this the man in the picture began yelling at me. He along with another man told me that unless I offered a flower to the lake and prayed, I was not allowed to take a photograph. He stated that failing to do this would surely bring a great deal of bad karma upon me. When I told the man I was a follower of Jesus and that I would not pray to the lake or any other god (politely), he became angry; I thought that he was going to beat me and my camera. I knew that this was a scam in which he would gladly walk me through the blessing and worship ceremony, once complete, he would then ask for some baksheesh (cash). I told him that I would not betray my faith and walked back to my car.


Agra

Rick and Regina really wanted to see the Taj Mahal while they were here. On 07 Nov I drove them to Agra and we spent the morning walking around the Taj Mahal, taking pictures and imagining what it would have looked like during the time of the Moghul Empire. It is truly an amazing site. Since I have other pictures to post, I will not show any of the Taj, I am sure most of you have seen plenty of pictures of it. For more information on the Taj Mahal and pictures, you can check out my favorite website http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taj_Mahal . Another good website with information as well as great pictures is http://www.taj-mahal.net/.

Before we moved overseas, one of my professors (Dr. McDaniel) in graduate school told me about his great...great...great...grandfather who was buried in Agra. Dr. McDaniel asked me to take a picture of the grave if I was ever in Agra. Since we had the whole afternoon free, we decided it would be fun to track it down.

We were not sure where to begin looking except that the man's name was Sir John Mildenhall. He was one of the first, British to be buried in the early 1600's.
Sir John Mildenhall is famous because of his contribution to the British Empire. In 1599 the Dutch, who held control of the whole of the East India trade, raised the price of Pepper in England twice, nearly doubling its original price. The direct result of this action was a combination of London merchants who formed a venture and dispatched Sir John Mildenhall as their ambassador to the Emperor of Delhi (Akbar the Great) in order to obtain trading facilities and privileges. Thus was laid the first stone of the British East India Company. It turns out that he is very famous and his grave is a landmark in Agra. The only problem is that he is famous among westerners and nobody (Indian) whom we talked to or asked was familiar with him.

I called one of my friends who lives in Agra and he and his driver joined in the hunt. Both parties searched for about an hour around the city, asking in churches and talking with people we thought might know. Eventually we joined forces and visited a graveyard. The graveyeard was in disrepair and there was thick brush everywhere. After about an hour we discovered that there were no graves from the 1600's or 1700's anywhere to be found. We were told that there was another graveyard at St. Peter's Cathedral across town and that we should check it out. When we arrived, we were told that the graveyard there only dated back to the mid-1700's but the oldest section was across town in the church's annex cemetery. The problem was that the cemetery had just closed for the day (5pm) and it would soon be dark. The man at the church called the caretaker and asked him to return and unlock the gates for us.

After 30 minutes, we finally arrived at the cemetery. The cemetery was very well maintained and contained only Christian graves. It was interesting to see how the Moghul Empire influenced the architecture of the mausoleums and grave stones. The Moghuls were Muslims and were famous for their domes (Taj Mahal) and scalloped arches. At first glance it looked as though this was a Muslim yard until we realized that there were crosses incorporated into everything (windows, inscriptions, carvings and decorations). There were even crosses on the top of the domes. The Muslims would never use a cross for anything since they do not believe Jesus is the Son of God. After about ten minutes and just as it was getting dark, we found the grave! It took a collective ten people and several hours but we finally did it.

This is the eagerly sought after grave. The epitath reads "Here lies John Mildenhall Englishman who left England in 1599 and traveling to India though Persia reached Agra in 1603 and spoke with Emperor Akbar. On a second visit in 1614 he fell ill at Lahore, died at Ajmer and was buried here through the good offices of Thomas Kerridge Merchant. R.I.P."

We were so excited, everyone was cheering, even the gatekeeper who had no idea what was going on. We took pictures and looked around the area for a little while before leaving. We were sure to give the gatekeeper some rupees for his effort; he was very excited and thankful. That evening I called Dr. McDaniel and gave him the news. He was very pleased and he said we made his day. The funny thing is that I think that the adventure of looking for and finally finding the grave was the highlight of our trip.


Well Kept Secret

This past week we were able to go somewhere that is not even known to exist by most people in the area. It is kept secret in order to keep people away. We were very fortunate to have a friend get us in. After driving about 20 minutes from our home, we pulled onto a seldom used back road and soon came to the end. I was told to pull through a gate with a sign stating that entrance was strictly forbidden. We drove through a wilderness area for a short time until coming upon a concrete walled compound. The gatekeeper would not let us in until our friend called the head Dr. of the compound on her cell phone. The Dr. told the gatekeeper to let us in. We were instructed to leave the cameras in the car before entering. Upon entering, we were in a compound surrounded by cages which opened into very large enclosed pens containing natural wilderness areas. In the individual cages were about 60 tigers, 40 lions and 1 animal called a tigeron. The animals were kept here by the central government and all were rescued from abuse or dangerous habitats (human poaching). The facility also does some breeding in order to maintain the species. They are well kept and well fed (approx 16.5 lbs of buffalo per animal per day). The animals were in wonderful shape and some were actually quite friendly. I have never been so close to a lion or a tiger (I was able to pet some of them!). They were all within a couple of feet from us. The handler had some of them stand, growl, roar and one even rolled over on his back like a cat. It was an awesome experience. The one thing that seems like something out of Napolean Dynamite was the Tigeron named Simba. Simba's mother was a tiger and his father was a lion. The face and fur were like a lion. The paws and growl were like a tiger. The fur also had what looked like broken stripes but not quite spots. The Dr. told us that there were only two of these which have successfully been bred in the world.

That is enough for now. Be looking for an update on the some more exciting and wierd adventures and trips in the coming weeks.

Turtle Slippers and Funny Beliefs

Grammy (Aaron's Mom) sent Josiah these adorable turtle slippers. It's finally starting to get a little chilly here in the morning and evening. Although it's in the 70's during the day, we live on the outskirts of the desert and it gets down in the 30's at night. Our floors are marble and our apartment is concrete so you can imagine that it gets pretty cold. All that to say that it's finally cool enough to get his little slippers out for him to wear. What do you think Grammy?



Against the wishes of all our South Asian friends and neighbors, we did it. We let Josiah look at himself in the mirror!! I know, I know...we're horrible parents!! You see, we were told not to let Josiah look at himself in the mirror before he turns one as it will cause him to have "loose motions," (aka: diarrhea). Well, I figured that since he's still nursing and his fecal matter isn't exactly on the solid side, I'd defy their advice and let him have a look. Wow, does he enjoy looking at that cute little baby!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving day. Josiah had a great first Thanksgiving. He even rolled over for the first time today!! Enjoy his pictures from today.

I'm SO hungry!!

I'm ready for my first Thanksgiving meal!


Dad ate how many pounds of mashed potatoes?!?!?!?!


I ate WAY too much!


Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!!

Changing

I really can't believe it but Josiah turned 3 months old on the 15th. In some ways the last three months have flown by but at the same time I can't believe we've only had him for three months. It's really fun to watch him now as he's more aware of what's going on around him. He's already experiencing many "firsts" now too. On the 15th he blessed Nani with his first giggle (and yes, I was so jealous that she got the first one!). Yesterday when I went into his room to get him up from his nap, he had rolled over on his side. And to top it all off, my boy is already teething!! Wow! They really do grow up too fast.

To Tide You Over

Well, we're packing once again and will be gone for about a week. We will not have access to the internet so I'm posting a few Josiah pictures to tide you over until we get back home.


Josiah and Papa


Dressed like a little man.


Josiah loves being in this wrap. It's the most comfortable carrier I've found. If any of you are looking for a baby carrier, I can give you the name of the lady I bought it from.


Now tell me that doesn't look comfortable!! (He's covered up because it was in the evening and we have to keep mosquitoes off him when we go out. Dengue fever season is here!)


Our good friend Mickey gave Josiah this traditional kurta and dhoti. Now he really looks Indian Wayne!!

Josiah, Nani and Pawpaw

Nani and Pawpaw have been here for three weeks now. It's been fun to see them with Josiah. He's their 5th grandchild but you'd never know it! By the way they act around him you would think he was their first! Here are some pictures of them together.

These are two of my favorite recent pictures. Josiah found his fist about 1 week ago and it's his favorite toy now - I can't keep it out of his mouth!