So...still no photos yet...coming soon! Promise Jakers! However, at least now the picture is somewhat relevant! In Jaipur we took a heffalump ride up to the fort! It was AMAZING!!

However, to fill you in up to date...we spent a couple of days in Udaipur after we left Jodhpur, and a very nice place it was too! There is a big lake with a dead fancy hotel on it, but sadly the closest we got was a boat ride past it! The hotel is 'famous' as it is in a James Bond film...Octokitty or something...

We spent an afternoon in the city palace complex which was very nice but also a little sad as the only places to eat were waaaay out of our budget, so lunch became a bottle of water!! Asia diet, love it. Our hotel had a nice rooftop restaurant, there are lots of them here and it's a good idea, perhaps if global warming ever kicks in England should consider them.

So on from Udaipur to Pushkar, or as it should be called, 'Sad old Hippy - ville', and yes Mike, we were overlooking the lake! Can't say we were overly impressed with it however, although apparently it is very sacred as it is where Brahma did something or other...worshipped perhaps. Time to impress you all now with my Hindu knowledge, Brahma is one of the 3 main Gods in Hinduism; Brahma the creator, Vishnu the operator and Shiva the destroyer...there are temples everywhere but only a very few Brahma specific ones so this was a big deal....obviously we were impressed. To be fair to Pushkar, our time there was very limited and we couldn't actually be bothered to explore much (or at all) and the most memorable moment was talking to a weird old hippy who described something as 'groovy' - and was serious about it. Tres amusant!!

Then to Jaipur, which was a pleasant surprise as I expected a not so nice big city but it was actually quite clean and modern which makes a change. We visited the Amber Fort, and took the aforementioned hefalump ride, and Nick made a rather nice purchase of a hand made rug with 2 elephants on it (can you sense a theme with this blog??), it is for our imaginary house! I had some trousers made, but the less said about them the better - bloody awful!! Think we went to the worst tailor in the world, oh dear, they are not quite what I had in mind! Might take them somewhere else to be rehashed...

Can't believe it is 2 weeks gone already, but at the same time it seems forever ago that we were in Heathrow waiting to leave! Thanks for all the messages, it is great to read them. Next report from the Taj Mahal!!

Having let Katie guide you through the last couple of days due to my frankly terrible memory not allowing me to recall at first where Udaipur was etc, in the immortal words of Magnus Magnusson, "I started, so I'll finish..."

I think it's been summed up pretty well...just a quick note to Lucy, actually no, no bald patches to cover, so there!

Also, while I didn't think of roses, I did have a card for my Cooper on the 14th (much to her surprise!!)

It's odd that as I write this, we have left Rajasthan now (we're in our hotel in Agra reminiscing...) It has been an incredible two weeks, and I know tomorrow will be a fabulous day, seeing one of the greatest monuments in history, but there've been so many experiences already; camel and elephant rides, all the forts, temples and palaces not to mention the things that weren't on our itinerary; the funny little towns, the incredible landscapes, the views, sunsets and the wildlife!! Just driving down any town's roads (especially in Jaipur actually) you're likely to see: dogs, camels, elephants, monkeys, cows, goats, sheep, chipmunks, pigs, horses and people! Lots and lots of people going about their daily business...or not. Then in fact yesterday we went past a number of wedding ceremonies. Now, both Cooper and I think these are excellent and look an awful lot of fun! Our driver has said that if we want to, he'll arrange for us to have one when/if we return...we'll see...

All the above in mind, I can't wait for the peace and serenity of the beaches in Kerala! Though we are both thoroughly enjoying ourselves, looking after each other and, AND!!! NOT SQUEEZING THE BOX!!! (Cooper family joke!)

Love to all

Hopefully the next post will be sooner and therefore 'less epic' says Cooper

Nick and Katie

xxx