I Like to Ride my Bicycle

I have been skipping breakfast recently, I don’t normally have it at home and while I’m travelling I tend to prefer the extra half an hour or so in bed. Stu, my roommate, has the same mentality. But today I find myself up and in the hotel restaurant for breakfast. I still opt to stick to a pot of black tea, not wanting to be bloated for our bike ride.

Speaking of, after a quick tea/breakfast, we head out on our bus to a random road where there are bikes waiting for us. They are all Giants, which I have been told is a pretty expensive brand for a bike tour in India. The tour is amazing, easily one of the favourite things I have done on this trip and not just because I was in desperate need of some exercise but also because of the beautiful views and amazing leader. The bike ride in total was roughly two hours and took us all over the place. We started by coasting along Lake Badi (known locally as the Tiger Lake) – a beautiful lake surrounded by nature reserves of vast greenery and hill sides. The guide tells us about the many different types of wildlife here including, you guessed it, leopards (the tigers were hunted to extinction by rulers and the upper classes of times gone by). But with six leopards in the surrounding areas it is still an important ecological area.

After the bike ride we are off to a tour of the Jagdish Temple and City Palace. Anuj asks if we want to pay for the audio tour or if we are happy to listen to him. We of course opt for him, and I am glad we did, this temple and the palace are massive. There is an art gallery, armoury, museum as well as an array of colourful and intricate rooms and walkways. Although my favourite part is watching Will, who is a six foot five giant, having to duck under every single doorway we pass. There is also a section displaying different traditional musical instruments, held by statutes to show how they are played, I am thoroughly impressed as it is an incredibly smart way to display instruments in my opinion. Once done with the palace we head for a quick trip to the local temple, to be honest although it is beautiful and I do love learning about the culture and religion I am starting to be a little templed out.

Jagdish Temple entrance

We have some free time before dinner and Holly, Esra and I opt to get a palm reading and astrology chart done. I am going into this as a non-believer but the man does say some things that I can’t help but agree with. I apparently have a strong sense of family, my father is a multi-talented man who I should look up to and my brother, although having a different personality to me, is someone who I should trust deeply and whose advice I should listen to and respect, for he will be a massive force for good in my life. So far so good! He also tells me that I am going to live to at least 98 years old, probably will reach 100 and I will have a long, easy, happy life. Also, I am at the prime time to meet my life partner and will be married at 32 and have two daughters. So I guess we will see. As the group meets up to head to dinner, Esra, Holly and I are discussing our readings with everyone and Stu gets fomo and decides to get his done while we head to the restaurant. Once he joins us for what is another amazing meal we all continue the talk about our readings, Stu’s reading is a lot less accurate than the rest of ours; maybe my scepticism was correct.

As I lay in bed after dinner I can’t help but question the timeline I have been given to find my true partner – it ends a month after I get to Australia. Sorry mum, looks like I might not be coming back; my true love is apparently gonna be found travelling! But, hey, guess you will all just have to keep reading to find out if it comes true ;)

PS. I wouldn’t normally do this but I was so impressed with the bike tour that I wanted to give him a shout out just in case any readers find themselves in the area:

www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g297672-d10341080-Reviews-Nature_Trail_Rajasthan-Udaipur_Udaipur_District_Rajasthan.html

The next stop is a Hindu Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. It is a beautiful temple. Unlike the others we have been to, there wasn’t grand halls or amazing architecture, it was more of a natural oasis with a beautiful garden with awe-inspiring trees and flowing fountains. There is also a drum machine with appeals immensely to my child-like brain.

Lake Badi (known locally as the Tiger Lake)

Once our bodies and souls have been fed with the pakora and chai we are back on the bikes heading for the city. We enjoy the sights and sounds of the villages all the way back to Udaipur. At one point we stop to watch locals doing what I initially think looks like spear fishing. I wasn’t far wrong, they do have spear-like pikes but they aren’t fishing, they are cleaning out the lakes of all the natural water weeds; it makes great fertiliser once dried and helps maintain the ecosystem in the lakes. Then the tour ends once again on what seems like the side of a random street.

Overlooking Udaipur from City Palace

Knocking it for... six?
(click on the top right hand icon)

Hanuman regarded as the spiritual son of the wind-god Vayu

After the temple we continue on into local villages stopping at a farm to have a go picking fresh coriander with the beautiful family who lives there. Our next stop is a special one; it’s our guide's home. We are welcomed in by his amazing family stopping in the court yard for a couple of bowls of cricket with his two children. We are then ushered, a couple of us at a time, into the kitchen to see how pakora is made as well as some chai. This is the best chai I have had so far by a long way. Not too sweet not to earthy it is just right and is a welcome break from the cycling.