Namaste from Udaipur

We have been in the city of Udaipur for two nights. There was a problem with our room reservation, so we don't know where we will be from night to night, it hasn't been very restful! Since we are still in the middle of the Diwali holiday, rooms and transportation are a bit of a problem for tourists who just bumbled into the middle of it and didn't realize the impact of so many Indian families all traveling at once!

The lakes in Udaipur are very pretty and peaceful looking, but the little streets still have that frantic traffic and feeling of chaos. Shawn described India as a "beautiful disaster". The hardest thing for me is that there are constantly piles of trash burning and the plastic (or something?) feels so toxic in my throat. Sinus and sore throat problems hit me for the first time on this trip this week.

Not sure where we are headed next, but we all would love to tour one of the national parks in this part of the country and try to get get a glimpse of a tiger! We will stay two more nights here though because Baylie found an animal shelter that takes care of the huge problem of street animals here that need medical attention. We spent some time talking to the founder today and Baylie is commited to going back and spending several hours tomorrow giving baths and helping to exercise some of the crippled dogs. The donkeys were my favorites so I may find myself doing a little shoveling or something in their area. Give it a look - www.AnimalAidUnlimited.com

We have a great rickshaw driver that attached himself to us yesterday. His name is Dream. He has made it his personal responsibility to show us ALL of Udaipur. Very nice guy, and the rickshaw ride doesn't even seem as terrifying anymore!

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