I tell you, this escapading around India’s Golden Traingle with my delightful fellow blogger, pretty young Charis Bhagianathan and our long suffering, ever patient PR guru, Anchal Ghosh, is such fun, and I could do this forever.
Eating, shopping, more eating, visiting, staying in fab hotels, meeting TV celebrities – it doesn’t get much better.
So there we were, last night, relaxing on the terrace overlooking the pool at the ITC Rajputana in Jaipur, music floating up, warm breeze…you get the picture ? The whole wonderful Indian 9 yards, when who should walk past but one of Charis’s serious idols, the TV celebrity chef David Rocco,
He couldn’t have been more charming, and chatted and posed for photos and (I know it) quite bowled Charis over.
And thus another exciting action-packed day drew to a close.
Today, we visited Amber Fort, which everyone here pronounces “Amer” and then when I looked at the Devnagari signs…sure enought, there it was… “Amer”.
You see, travel really does improve the mind.
The fort was surprisingly crowded for such a hot morning, but was as spectacular as ever, and as for all those darling elephants, plodding their way up the steep approach to the fort – utterly wonderfully OTT-ly Indian.
From Amber, we went shopping, as in “Do not pass go, do not collect 100″ – we went straight for the bazaar where we shopped for the iconic Jaipur bandhni fabrics and fun jewellery :
We are staying at the ITC Rajputana, in amazing style and pamperedness (and if that’s not a word, it now is).
In this property and the previous one in Agra, the ITC Mughal, we have been spoiled rotten with our own butlers, Ila in Agra and Vivek here in Jaipur.
Fresh coffee? Forgotten key? What to have for breakfast? Carrying too much luggage? these wonderful young people were there in a flash, unobtrusively sorting things out, and my only dilemma is how to smuggle them out of the hotel and home to Delhi.
Such pampering.
In every hotel, and in every restaurant within the hotel, the chefs have come and sat with us and chatted, and asked what we wanted to eat, what we liked and don’t like, and they have all been smilingly aware that Charis and I are both not drinking for Lent (quite unplanned, but makes temptation easier to resist!)
We have tried our hand at cooking – well, Charis more than yours truly, and she may just have a future in the designer jalebi business. I have video clips but can’t seem to upload properly onto my iPad so will share those with you once I am back in Delhi…when the escapade is over…oh no…
LOVE LOVE LOVE the post. Designer jalebis indeed. Waiting for you to make me famous, Christ! Hugs!