Hurrah for Finishing!

Today was a bit bittersweet as we were so close to the finish line, but also aware that we would have to give back our rickshaws:( We have grown quite fond of the beast and decided that, since it hadnt given us any trouble along the way, that we would do a bit of off roading, drag racing etc etc. We found some very beautiful rest stops, carpet shops and other rickshaw teams on our way to Jaisalmer. We successfully water bombed passing teams, and it was a very tight last stretch (our competitive streak came out against Steve and Este). Since they sent us in the wrong direction, Steve and Este beat us to the Palace (only by seconds) and we ended up being the 32nd team to roll in (but who ´s counting!)

The palace is amazing, and after battling it out with the receptionist for our reservation, we were shown to our rooms. The roof is falling down on to our bed, but other than that its great! So much fun to be staying in a palace!

We spent the rest of the day by the pool , drinking beer and catching up with other teams that had finished, hearing all the horror stories of the past two weeks.

Nearly there!

Ok so I think the heat of the desert is affecting my short term memory (seriously) as I am struggling to remember what happened today...hmmmmm.

We left Naguar at 7ish and headed west along the oh-so-pretty desert road. Its much easier to stay awake at the wheel as there are lots of things to swerve for (unlike the NH2). We pulled over under a thorn tree to eat a paw paw (the scurvy is setting in...) and as we carried on, we literally nearly ran in to a Springbok lookalike (Indian version?) - we thought it was a good sign and are hoping the Springboks are doing well (no rugby in these parts). Our exhaust was doing the usual rattle rattle and we had to stop a couple times to tighten it. I think Steven and Este are secretly happy as this might mean they will beat us over the finish line.....NEVER!!!! moooo ha haaaaa!

We continued into the desert, sand dunes and all. We were drowned in a sea of sari's on another rest break - a huge group of indian women walking in the desert happened to pass us on their way. Made for good photos, if only my camera was working! (Luckily Steve and Est are our backup!)

We rolled in to Phalodi, a sleepy little town only 170km from Jaisalmer. To finish or not to finish? Well, we didnt really want to give up our rickshaws just yet, so we opted to spend the rest of the day relaxing at Hotel Lal Niwas, a really great place hidden in the middle of a thousand alleyways that make up this small town. The hotel is the most fascinating building - an elegant red facade with moulded stone and secret passageways. Our room is fit for a king! and in fact, we are the first adventurists to ever stay here! The hotel manager was absolutely delighted to see us!

We spent the afternoon on the terrace in the desert heat and had a late lunch (veg curry - another vegetarian town) before a little afternoon nap.

Only 170Km to go to the finish! Cant believe its gone so fast.......c all you adventurists tomorrow:) 

Losing our Nuts

Getting up at sunrise is not difficult to do as there is an increased amount of mosques in this state. We wer pretty relieved to see our tuk tuks where we left them (in the narrowest, stinkiest alleyway), and after saying goodbye to our adoring fans, we went to check out the fort. The tuk tuks probably wouldnt have made it to Jaisalmer if we decided to drive them up, so we decided to walk. We got to the top and enjoyed the breathtaking views of the countryside whilst trying to fend off an overly-eager tour guide who couldnt speak english. We were down at our vehicles after an hour or so, and stopped in at the same restaurant we were at last night for some brekkie (our new rule is to eat in the morning as we all get too indecisive when we are hungry). We filled up with petrol, and after driving off relised our tuk had lost power. It was only driving 40km per hour at max throttle:( it was only after 5 or 6 Kms that I realised I hadnt taken the handbrake off! Ooops! Anyway, 20kms into our journey, we started to squeak and clank a bit, and pulled off just in time to save our exhaust from falling off. Nothing serious, we only lost a nut, but theres nothing that a spotlight and a spare tyre cant sort out (who needs those anyway!) Pity about the anthill we parked on, made for a very itchy repair stop!

We raced through Didiwana, and went past a tented market in the middle of nowhere. Sabres, swords and carpets for sale - very exciting! We hit another rough patch of road, and everything started to get a bit rattly in the rickshaw after choosing this route! We braved a llittle river and made it to Naguar a little before 5pm, did the usual and got a local to take us to our hotel. We happened to be staying in a vegetarian town, so it was paneer for dinner, and a littel gander in the narket afterwards. We were hustled by a couple of rickshaw drivers on the way home and had a bit of an arguement in the street (no one could understand anyone really) but eventually made it back in one piece.

I cant believe how close we are to the end - so sad! Just another 300 - 400 k's and we are done! 

Dune Buggy (Day 14?)

Today was definately one of the best days we've had so far!We got up (not too early) and had some breakfast before attempting to get out of the city of Jaipur (FAIL). Its a very sprawled out city, and we eventually got on to the road that would (hopefully) take us to Sambhar. We got there and noticed very few tuk tuks (bad sign?) on the roads. After not being able to find the huge salt lakes by ourselves, we were directed by some friendly locals down a little path. Yes! We found the big white salty desert! After a few power slides and wheel spins and a little pushing out of the sand, we flagged down a motorbike to show us the way out. This route is DEFINATELY not on google maps and was NOT designed for auto rickshaws. Anyway, we made it, and after being offered food and water by our new-found guide, we were on the "road" to Kucheman - only to discover that it was, on fact, the worst road in India. It took us 3 hour to do 30kms, launching over ravine-like potholes, realising why rickshaws are not popular around here.

Ecstatic to see the main road again, we raced to the small town of Kucheman, nestled under a huge fort on the mountain. This is obviously not a tourist area as our rickshaws were swamped with locals donning beetlenut-stained smiles. An enthusiastic man took us to Hotel Krishna where we decided to stay the night (not quite the radisson, but beggars cant be choosers in the middle of nowhere...) After having a bucket at the hotel, we took a walk around the marketplace, taking in all the colours, people and craziness before heading to a local restaurant to eat dosas, my new favourite dish...mmmmmmm! 

IL, USA

made it to Philodi, thinking of kicking back in the pool with a G and T before we take a leisurely drive to Jaisalmer tomorrow! Wooo!

Rajasthan, India

well we didn't get too far before we had to pull over as our exhaust was about to fall off. Good thing we stopped! We only lost a nut so nothing the wing mirror can't fix (well, holding thumbs...) Just a bit sad we stopped on top of an ants nest.

Rajasthan, India

so taking the pink roads on the map is definately easier said than done! We have ended up here in this town and its awesome! Hitting a street festival tonight and celebrating the survival of our rickshaws after possibly the worst roads yet!

Naguar, India

definately had the best day today going off the beaten track. Raced across the salt pans and are on our way to Naguar. So impressed ** some text is missing **

Rahjastan awesomeness.

Today was the first day we actually decided to "sleep in" and eat the hotel breakfast we paid for before shooting off again! We really look classy walking in and out of hotels carrying a jerry can of fuel and a funnel, especially when we filled up ourselves right outside the hotel this morning, spilling petrol everywhere. As usual, the maps all lied and it was rather complicated getting out of Agra, doing a few circles, cow fiving a few animals here and there. We eventually found the N11 and were once again heading west. I took the wheel for a couple hours, and nearly killed dave and myself whilst swerving for a street dog. Turns out these things dont really hug the road vey well during an emergency swerve. Anyway, we carried on, smiling and waving through all the toll booths (we arent even considered a light vehicle so we dont have to pay! Hurrah!) 

Its definately getting more deserty and the scenery is really beautiful in this region. Too bad Im having a bit of a camera failure at the moment (that, and my high speed photography leaves much to be desired) so we will have to rely on Steve for the pictures. We made it to Jaipur with little effort (we love easy days on the highway even though its a little boring) but ofcourse struggled to find our hotel. We drove through the city gates and stopped numerous time for directions, once stopping at an ice cream stand where we all got a delicious treat without even having to turn off the engine. We moved off before a cow ate our car decorations and continued to drive around in circles. Luckily we found the Indian version of Father Christmas who led us to our hotel in his tuk tuk. The hotel Arya was a serious hit (in the hit and miss game) and is definately recommended to fellow rickshaw racers. After this hard blog work,  I think its only fair that we go and drink a g and t on the grass (in our pith helmets) and grab a little curry.Yes!

Day 12 (of the Indian experience): The Taj!

After an amazing air conditioned sleep, we set off at 5.30, cheese sandwiches in hand (we thought ahead for once) and headed for Agra to see the great Taj Mahal.

TYoday was pretty uneventful as we were still on the NH2, just kicking it to the other side of India. Roadsigns (in English) are more frequent in these parts , which is always so useful and saves ever so much time.

The landscape is becoming increasingly more arid, which tells us we are heading towards the desert (heaven help me and my inability to handle this Indian heat) so we are obviously on the right track! We passed the usual buffalo, pigs and cows (got some great cow 5 shots) and ofcourse some camels. We also took a couple of scenic rest stops as there is a slight decrease in the amount of people hanging out on the side of the roads. The usual stares are somewhat more brazen around here, and we may have caused some near collisions on route (some people cannot fathom a blonde woman actually driving a tuk tuk!) The usual high speed conversations between us and passing motorbikes took place, and everyone was slightly worried as there was a bomb blast in Agra just a day ago. We decided we couldnt let a small act of terrorism get in the way of seeing the worlds most beautiful building, so we soldiered on.

We got into the city pretty early (around 1pm) and found a hotel with minimal effort - the Taj Inn (funny that.) We hit the shower and then walked up the road to the Taj Mahal west gate to see what we could see. The hustlers were out in full force, and after fending off dozens of them, we reached the mighty Taj Mahal. It really took our breath away! Its sheer scale and symmetry made it better than anything we would have ever imagined. It really is impossible to describe - incredible!

We headed back to our hotel, as I was (as usual) melting in my shoes, and had an early dinner (curry) whilst plotting our next move. We reckon we need to go off the beaten track soon, and where better to do that than in the desert! WOOO!