Last few days in India. Very sad to be leaving but understand I cannot run away forever. At some point I have to face the music and return to my life. Choosing to stay at another Oberoi, this time in Gurgaon, was the right idea. This is a beautiful property and I was able to go today to a tailor to get my saree blouses made and they will be ready tomorrow before I head to the airport. Having a glass of champagne to celebrate my journey (not that I need a reaso...

There are so many things about India that are enchanting and endearing. One of the first things you cannot help but notice is the commitment to security. Starting with the airport, there are very visible military presence everywhere, all toting machine guns. The airports are also off-limits if you are not carrying a paper copy of your plane ticket/reservation. As you approach the door to the terminal, an armed guard is waiting to see your print out and passpo...

I GOT IN!!! One of the things I really wanted to do in India was to get into the holy river Ganges. I am not a Hindu but I think their beliefs and rituals with mother Ganga are beautiful. When I was in Varanasi, it was pretty easy to change my mind about getting in, as it's basically a giant Petri dish! However, up here in Rishikesh, very near the origin of the river in the Himalayas, the water is much more clean (and extremely cold!) I had an opportunity to...

There are so many wonderful things about coming to a beautiful spa retreat in the mountains. During the past month, I have questioned the wisdom of being here during the monsoon. I have not been able to enjoy lazy afternoons poolside/beachside as it's either been WAY too hot or raining . So I'm basically as white as when I left home in March, instead of coming home brown as I had expected. The trade off is having afternoon spa treatments, listening to the rai...

Coming down from Ananda to Rishikesh and the Dehradun airport, I was treated to a wonderful monkey turnout. At every turn of the road, there were families of monkeys, mostly resus macaques although there were some groups of common langurs too. It was as though they were all coming out to say goodbye to me!! Driving through the national park, I was scanning the forest for the elephants that live there, although, due to the heat, there were none out in the day. ...