Day 11

Me and dad were up early. I wanted to see Udaipur before going on our cooking session. Plus I wanted to get out of that room.

We were both up and ready by 7.30am, the hotel we were moving to was about 200m down the road so we walked down to ask whether or not we were able to check in early and park our rickshaws up.

Afterwards we walked around the block, went into the side streets where the vendors were making their lollipops in metal containers and putting a thin wooden stick in them. Not sure where they were icing them but it looked cool, i think they were milky ones too.

The only thing bad about this city is the open sewers running downside the city, they get awful smelly now and again.

Uncle terry and Ross were just about up and ready when we got to back, Ross’s bag had exploded again. Don’t ask me how but he gets stuff everywhere, every night.

We moved over to the next hotel, managed to check in. Moved our rickshaws about to try and fit them around two other shaws that were there and went for some breakfast by the pool. Ooo it was a bit nice there I must say. We bumped into the welsh lads team and the two Norwegians, they mentioned that one team had to pull out because the boy slipped in the shower and dislocated his knee, of all things that could happen on this trip and they had to pull out because of slipping in the shower. Such a bummer.

We walked over to the city palace, it was lovely. We had a tour around, our guide could barely walk mind but he was 75 and was very witty.

We found out that the cities and towns that end with ‘mebad’ were founded by Muslim rulers and the ones ending with ‘pur’ were founded by Hindu. ‘Pur’ means poor mans town.

The castle was so pretty! After the tour and a lovey view of the city and lake, where we could see the big white hotel in the middle of it where octop**** James Bond was filmed. We headed for the cooking session, uncle terry sat upstairs and had a chat to the brother whilst we cooked with downstairs. We were learning the basic curry for all curries and how to change the taste of it with different veg/chicken/milk etc. The kitchen was filthy, it turned my stomach a bit but we ate here last night and we were okay so nothing to worry about?

The cooking session was good, we learnt quite a lot of different tricks but still very dirty. The bit that got me was the wooden chopping board, we sliced veg on it and chicken. He scrubbed it with water and I think that was about it, and then chopped out naan bread on it that we made. I’m gagging at the thought of this now even. But we are he last night so it must be okay?
We ate the food that we made, it was delicious to be fair but I still couldn’t believe it.

The brother of the owner there got talking to uncle terry whilst we were cooking and was saying how he got married when he was 12 and his wife was 7, then they moved in together when he was 16 and now, 32 and 28, they have a daughter together. He went to work at a young age to pay for his eldest brother to go to school. But with not going to school and being married at 12 he now speaks 5 languages and owns a business with his brother. Anything IS possible in India.

After food on the rooftop and curry in our bellies and of course some special chai tea (kingfisher) we headed out to get them a barber cut on the beard, they all looked like homeless men. They hadn’t shaved their beard since we left Kochi, that was 11 days ago! I’d never seen them like this t was weird! They got in the chair, they looked like different people after it was all gone. They kept stroking their faces, haha.

Back at the hotel for a much needed dip in the pool and a catch up with some of the rickshaw runners whilst it decided to thunder and try to rain. Marvellous timing Udaipur, marvellous. We all stayed in the pool... you could tell we were welsh. I’m on holiday, ‘this is where I should be regardless of the weather!’

We went to the palace for the 6pm boat ride on the lake and a stop off at one floating hotels for a drink. It was lovely! When we got off the we all went to find a rooftop bar to have a drink - of course!

Expectations did not disappoint, Udaipur is a beautiful place. It’s so tranquil and unique to everywhere else. The lake is gorgeous with the mountain background drop. What a stop!! 10/10 from the tikkas.

The bars by the way, are ridiculously huge. Without exagirating they’re probably as big as an eagle. And there were hundreds of the things, we couldn’t see the sky for them. The racket they were making was nuts, I thought I was in their cave they were so loud!

We managed 6 of us in a rickshaw and went to the Natural lakeview ‘hotel’ restaurant. We put it up on the whatsapp group that the 7 welshys were having a drink. Soon enough 7 became 28 people with lots of laughs and stories, and then we drank the bar dry of kingfisher so we had to take the spirit route. Phil was on the order, bloody loonatic as he is. We were all well and truely piled on the way home. We couldn’t get a rickshaw so we walked, good for some giggles as Phil stepped in cow s*** twice! Haha. Fresssssh. He was tamping. Lol.

Tomorrow’s gunna be a hard start I can see it coming on!

Plus, my tummy is feeling a little weak...

0km covered today