And We're Off

My mother and I took the early express train to Bombay too. (Don't let 'express' fool you; it still takes three hours to traverse 220km.) On the plus side you don't have diesel fumes bothering you, so it is better than the expressway.

After arriving we spent some time at the house of a family friend--which was memorable because Mr. M said "How old are you", paused and then said "OK I'm not going to ask you the next question: when are you getting married." We left for the airport at about 1.50 which was plenty of time for the 3.30 flight. And we got the airport and checked in for our 3.30 flight. And we sat near the checkin counters for a while because we figured we had plenty of time before our 3.30 flight. And then my Mom noticed that our departure time on the TV screen was 2.30. AAAARGH! Why does Indian Airlines not email people when they change their schedules. Well we got on the flight in time, although we were paged and it was extremely cringeworthy to hear my mother and me referred to as Mr. and Mrs. Martin.

Now we're in Jaipur at this place, which is quite comfortable although my Mom has found about fifteen things to complain about in the last two hours. We stopped at the Birla Temple on the way to the hotel. The Birlas are the Indian equivalent of the Rockefellers, and they sponsored this temple. It's unusual not only for the stained glass but also because in one corner of the exterior they have statues of non-Hindu figures including Jesus and Socrates. Somehow Confucius ended up next to the Madonna and Child.

Tomorrow we're off to see the City Palace and other Jaipur sights.