Gallivanting the globe 2019 - RTW and then some

[RooFlyer]

With it, an introduction to Indian wine, which was very good.

Can you remember the Sula? I tried it again in my recent trip to India and, liking Sav Blancs, i was hopeful.

Tipped it out!

 

[JohnM]

Can you remember the Sula? I tried it again in my recent trip to India and, liking Sav Blancs, i was hopeful.

Tipped it out!

That certainly wasn't my experience. I tried it on a few different occasions and it was always very good. Good with food, as it was not too floral/tropical fruity.

Maybe yours hadn't been stored very well. How old was it?

 

[drron]

That meal looks a lot better than the stuff the Geologist eats.

 

[JohnM]

That meal looks a lot better than the stuff the Geologist eats.

But Rooy does palatial hotel rooms waaayy above my level...

 

[JohnM]

Next day was mostly used up with an afternoon flight to Aurangabad, inland of Mumbai. The following day was an early start to drive to the Ajanta Caves (Ajanta Caves - Wikipedia). It’s only a little over 100 km from Aurangabad but very slow going over a very pot-holed road, although well worth it.

The extensive sequence of decorated and rock-carved caves dates from about the 2nd century BCE-6th century CE.

As we neared Ajanta, my driver made a ‘coffee stop’ to put me in contact with a local ‘guide’ (not official) which had me a bit sceptical to start with, but which turned out to be inspired. Instead of going to the main entrance, my driver took us up to the high viewpoint and the ‘guide’ and I then walked down into the valley. Most people enter at the bottom of the valley and must climb up a lot of steps to the viewpoint. It would have been a PITA in the very hot and humid conditions.

So, I started with the panoramic view of the horseshoe-shaped cliff that contains all the caves and then essentially worked backwards to the main entrance. It’s a day of sensory overload.

 

[JohnM]

 

[JohnM]

 

[JohnM]

 

[JohnM]

Next day, it was off to the Ellora Cave Temples (Ellora Caves - Wikipedia), only 30 km from Aurangabad and a good road. They are Buddhist, Hindu and Jain monuments, 34 caves in all. Another sensory overload day.

First glimpse of the Kailasa Temple highlight, which sits about central, before veering to the right (S) to start at the beginning of the Buddhist Group and systematically working back N through that and then the Hindu Group, to the Jain Group that is somewhat separate on the other side of a small river at the N end.

I realised after visiting Ajanta and Ellora that it would have been better to use my phone for pics inside the dimly-lit caves. The phone has better low-light sensitivity.

Everything is carved in situ out of the solid rock.

 

[JohnM]

Kailasa Temple is just too big to get into a single frame.

 

[JohnM]

 

[JohnM]

And moving to the Hindu and Jain sections to finish.

 

[JohnM]

On the way back to Aurangabad a visit to Daulatabad, a 12th century hilltop fortress, and which I had photographed from a distance in the morning.



Tower of the Moon, 60 m high, was built in 1435.



After a stopover that night at BOM, it was on to Amritsar in NW India for the next part of the trip. Amritsar is the religious centre of the Sikhs in India and the area is an extraordinary experience in more ways than one.

As an aside, I had four Air India domestic flights. I just bought el-cheapos online. I found their online booking system easy and efficient and the flights very inexpensive. The aircraft interiors may have been a bit grubby at times, but otherwise it was all pretty standard.

But here’s today’s factoid: which country has the highest proportion of female airline pilots? Well, the answer should be obvious, given the context, but it is indeed India with about 13% of pilots being female. Of my four AI flights, one was captained by a woman.

India is indeed a land of immense contrasts and curiosities. It is an amazing place that everyone should experience at least once IMO.

After an excellent curry for dinner, an evening introduction to Amritsar and its spectacular Golden Temple, Sikhism’s holiest shrine.

 

[JohnM]

Reputedly, 750 kg of gold covers the temple (Golden Temple - Wikipedia).



The Guru Granth Sahib is decorated and ceremoniously transported back and forth along the causeway to the temple twice a day.

 

[juddles]

Reputedly, 750 kg of gold covers the temple .....

Hmmmmm.... you are bringing out the pirate in me ...

 

[juddles]

Let me think this through.....

Those 750kg of gold is worth very roughly 50 million aussie bucks these days.

Given that it is a thin veneer (cladding / foil covering) then the best method would be spraying the entire structure with mercury after making a containment wall with which to collect the dissolved gold in Au/Hg amalgam. To get a decent liquidity (to facilitate rapid collection and escape) I would want to use roughly a 4 to 1 ratio - ie about 4 litres of mercury per litre of gold. So, adding in some margins to make sure I am not stuffed by delicate science, I would need about a 44 gallon drum of mercury, which would weigh very roughly 3 tons. Ambient temp there is optimal for such an exercise, so simply need to sneak that drum in with appropriate pump/spray gear (not hard). It will run rapidly to a collection point, then need also enough fast boats to quickly escape with the now 3 tonnes of liquid amalgam (yes, have suffered losses of 750kg over all due to those irritating unknowns - uneven ground, etc. Even modern pirates get the concept of "unforeseen" variables in their detailed business modelling )

With a clever ruse to vacate everyone from the site (it would be MIND-BOGGLINGLY toxic during the op!!) this is very doable.

But is $50 million enough for the inevitable arousing of an eternal Jihad by such as the Sikhs?? Pacific enemies can actually be the most fearsome and dread-inspiring when truly poked.

No way. I will continue looking looking for a smaller ship....

 

[juddles]

Just a side note in case fellow professional scoundrels visit this website, yes (*sighs*), I already know the simplest attack on the plan and maths - as anyone who has ever touched gold would know.

To the average citizen, 750kg of "gold" means just that. The common folk do not get the concept that almost all gold in use in jewellery etc is a mix - ie it is not pure gold. Hence the notions of carats - only 24 carat gold is pure gold - very important to us buccaneers when we have to offload it to savvy buyers :0)

But I actually suspect from the colour of the building, and the fact that the higher the real gold content the more malleable the cladding, (ie you get far more metres squared per ounce of gold) that it is actually quite high carat.

 

[juddles]

Descending into a wide valley. Interestingly, a cereal production area. And big stocks of hay for winter.

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A stop at a monument, the name and purpose of which now escapes me.

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And then on along a valley to arrive at the picturesque village of Kyzul Oi and our homestay digs. Lovely place. The traffic light for such a tiny place was intriguing.

School was coming out. As always, the kids are sharply dressed. The white hat is characteristic of Kyrgyzstan.

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Hay and dried dung stockpiled.

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The usual suspects returning from (successfully) foraging for the staples of life in Kyrgyzstan.

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Horse-drawn hay-mower.

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Loving the detail on Kyrgyzstan. A backward place, people with funny hats, poverty, the use of dung in every day life. After looking at this and adjusting to a different reality, I feel so much more prepared in confronting the horrors that soiling myself by visiting Tassie will no doubt bring.

 

[JohnM]

Next morning it was back to the Golden Temple to see it in daylight and to take in the amazing spectacle of the Guru-Ka-Langar, an enormous dining room where as many as 100,000 pilgrims come to eat each day after praying at the temple.

A key principle of Sikhism is selflessness, community service and charity. This is particularly demonstrated in the Guru-Ka-Langar where Sikhs of all economic stations in life come and rub shoulders to volunteer to prepare meals, cook, serve and clean up. It is truly the most astounding sight, and on a massively larger scale than the similar dining area at the large Sikh temple in Delhi.

A few street scenes walking to the temple. Amritsar is very clean.



Shoes off and head covering must be worn by everyone. Nothing elaborate is required and it’s easy to buy a cheap simple orange kerchief from street vendors. It is required to wash hands and pass through a shallow foot bath before entry.

Entry to the temple is possible, but the queue is very long. Reputedly, the interior is not so spectacular as to make the queuing worthwhile. I didn’t bother.

The complex is chockers 24/7/365 and the vibe is totally chilled. It’s worth finding a corner on some steps and just sit and contemplate what is going on.



There are screened enclosures for women to bathe in the waters that are regarded by the devotees as sacred and having healing powers.

 

[JohnM]

Another foot bath before entering the Guru-Ka-Langar area and collecting a plate on the way, if you wished to eat.



This large group was peeling garlic!



And into the kitchen areas. An absolute hive of activity on a massive scale and over several floors.



I had a moment to take in the view from the elevated bread-baking hall window.