Yesterday we drove from Alwar to Jaipur. It was supposed to be 2.5hrs of travel, but turned out to be 5hrs due to two snags we hit on the way. One, as we drove through the interior roads of Rajasthan we entered a path that reached a dead-end for car travel. There was some kind of construction going on that prohibited our travels. Two, as we diverted to find a plausible plan B, on the highway we were stopped by a cop as they had blocked the road as one of the politicians was passing through for a rally. The road had two lines of trucks parked on either sides of the road. It was waste of people’s time and resources for India. We, each of those traveling through the area had to find an alternate route. As for us, we ended up going in through villages with narrow roads, ditches, that could hardly accommodate one lane of four wheelers through. It was an eye opener of so much that needs to be done in India,no wonder we are a developing country.

On the other hand, the experience taught me to have patience, as well as see the interior beauty of the country. I really enjoyed it with a few moments where I was loosing a bit of patience but kept my cool.

During the drive I noticed that a lot of children in their school uniforms walking a lot of distance to go to their school and back home. It is a reminder that our parents did heck of a job of bringing us up in good environment, and gave us access to good education, clean environment, and made us experience all things like life in city in south india, village in Muzzafar Nagar, as well as the forests of Dehradoon, then in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

The drive took us through mountains of Aravali, with great views, as well.

We finally arrived in Jaipur, but only got stuck in narrow streets that are not meant for four wheelers. It added another hour delay to our arrival.

We decided to go to a place called Choki Dhani, that gives each visitor the experience of true life of Rajasthan. I danced to the beats of the local music, ate the traditional food, got pottery making experience and bought local work of an artist. It was one of the best part of the long day of drive.