The first time I went to Antarctica was in January of 2011. At that time, my friends thought Mike, Greg and I had completely lost our minds. “WHY in the world would you want to go THERE?” was the most frequent comment we received from friends and family.
Although Mike was retired, Greg and I were employed, so we were limited to a 15 day journey, 10 days with the National Geographic tour and 5 days on our own traveling to and from Santiago via Lima.
THIS time I’m retired, going solo, so I am able to spend 24 days traveling beyond the Antarctic peninsula to the South Georgia and the Falkland Islands. Instead of meeting the group in Santiago, I’m traveling to Buenos Aires. As with last time, however, we are flying to Ushuaia where we will board the ship, then sail through the dreaded Drake Passage. (Yes, my doctor gave me an adequate supply of seasickness patches. They worked well last time for me and Greg, not as effective for Mike.)
Photo from 2011, taken at the end of our voyage Another view of Ushuaia
So why in the world am I going again?
Where else can you experience creatures so unafraid that they follow YOU?
Where else can you see so many different shades of blue and white?
Or learn about the different seals and penguins living in this frozen wonderland?
But won’t it be cold?
Yes, sometimes it is cold, but National Geographic’s trip cost includes matching parkas for those times. (Laura,one of my trip leaders said “there is no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing choices”.)
Sometimes it’s warm enough to have a cookout on the back deck wearing just a sweater (and a smile) over your tee shirt.
The best part was traveling with National Geographic experts: Photographers, naturalists, geologists, penguin and whale experts. We would gather in the bar every evening for presentations by those experts, showing us how they spent their day.
The walls of the bar/lounge were covered with big screen TVs so no matter where you sit, you still would have a great view.
Fifteen years ago, our ship was the Explorer. This time, I’ll be sailing on the Endurance, a newer ship serving 126 passengers, with 8 cabins for us traveling solo. I’m not sure how effective the internet is at the bottom of our planet. 15 years ago, I didn’t have a smart phone or a blog so it wasn’t an issue.
I hope you’ll join me on this adventure; I’ll be posting when the spirit moves me and the internet grants me connectivity.
I’ve had several friends ask me to compare and contrast these two travel companies.
Full disclosure: I have only taken one Tauck tour, to India, in late October, 2025.
I have taken over 20 OAT tours, to every continent except Antarctica, with the most recent one being to Costa Rica. Obviously, I’m far more familiar with Overseas Adventure Travel.
Having said that, BOTH are excellent companies, and you won’t go wrong choosing to travel with either. It was either Socrates or Elvis ( maybe both) who said “Know thyself”. And that’s the most important factor in determining which travel company to select. It all boils down to what kind of experience will make you happiest.
Let’s start with what BOTH companies have in common.
Both offer small group options. OAT’s maximum is 16; Tauck’s is 25, however I have been on OAT trips with only 9 travelers. There were 17 on my only trip with Tauck.
Both offer large group options: OAT uses its sister company, Grand Circle, which maxes out around 44. Tauck’s big groups are similar sized.
Both have excellent trip leaders, whose job is to oversee all aspects of your experience. They choose the local guides, the restaurants, and add additional experiences that are not on the published itinerary. If an OAT trip leader doesn’t get high ratings on the customer survey, they are not rehired. Not sure whether the same applies to Tauck.
Both allow for free time and meals on your own, with the trip leader available to offer suggestions.
Both include cultural activities.
Both take care of tipping, except for trip leaders. Tauck also takes care of tips for hotel housekeeping; OAT does not. OAT tips the bus drivers, Tauck does not if you have the same bus driver for most of the trip.
Both will handle airfare, however both will allow you to make your own flight arrangements. OAT includes the cost of the flight in their quoted prices on their website, Tauck does not. If you choose not to use OAT for your flight, you simply deduct the airfare cost from the total price.
So what’s different? The biggest difference is the cost of the trip. Tauck is significantly more expensive. However if you only take one or two trips per year, and you want to have your every need taken care of, Tauck is an excellent option.
I’m not at that point yet. My preference, RIGHT NOW, is more trips, less luxury.
PRE-TRIP INFORMATION
I really like the booklet OAT mails out a couple of weeks before the trip starts. It includes helpful hints, the full itinerary, the hotel names and addresses, and a list of the group participants.
With Tauck, you won’t know how many are traveling with you until you get there. At our introductory meeting, our trip leader gave us a piece of paper with the names of our fellow travelers and would email (and print out) info about the following days. I strongly prefer having the booklet because all of the info is in one place, which makes it handy for taking notes.
Being slightly obsessive compulsive, I like being able to plan in advance for free time.
The trip leaders from both companies send travelers a welcome email, full of helpful information but OAT travelers who have taken more than 3 trips, also get a phone call from the trip leader who can then answer any questions one might have.
WEBSITE
Although both companies offer websites from which you can print out your itinerary, I find the OAT website far easier to use. I thought it was because I was more familiar with OAT’S website, but Joann, one of my favorite fellow travelers, said she felt the same way about Tauck’s website—that it wasn’t easy to find what you were looking for.
ARRIVAL
If you buy your airfare from OAT, you also get transfers to and from the airport included. If not, you can either pay OAT for transfers or arrange your own.
With Tauck, transfers are automatically included in the price of the trip. Because I made my own flight arrangements, I can’t comment on flight services Tauck provides, but I CAN say that they do everything possible to make sure your arrival goes smoothly.
HOTELS
Both companies select clean, safe, comfortable hotels, but with Tauck, replace the word “comfortable” with “ luxurious”, at least that was my experience in India.
OAT and Tauck, however, were using the same hotel during my stay in Halifax. For the Egypt trip, both used the exquisite Aswan’s Cataract Hotel.
On the whole, however, I believe Tauck tends to use the best hotel in the area, generally 5 star, while OAT usually choose hotels by location, normally within walking distance to restaurants and sights.
I think the best comparison I can come up with is Four Seasons (Tauck) versus Marriott or Hilton, except OAT tends to choose local, non chain lodgings. Because I have taken so many trips with OAT, I know that the hotels vary greatly from one country to another. In Morocco, for example, the riads were over the top gorgeous,
While in Costa Rica, they were more rustic.
FOOD
Based on my sole experience with Tauck, I would say that the food on their trip is truly outstanding. The buffet breakfasts offered an amazing array of choices,
while the OAT breakfasts tend to offer the basics, with little variety.
Tauck, like OAT, had some included meals at which we were all served the same.
Generally for OAT, there are lots of buffets.
For some of Tauck’s included meals, on the India trip, at least, we were offered a choice of restaurants, and were able to order whatever we wanted from the menu.
Although OAT’s included meals offered limited choices, the group always dines together at the same time and at the same restaurant. For solo travelers this could be a huge plus, particularly if the other travelers prefer to dine with their travel companion(s)
BEVERAGES
Both companies offer some included alcoholic drinks, but you are free to purchase whatever you want.
LOYALTY PROGRAM
This is an area in which OAT excels. People who have taken multiple trips with OAT are recognized with pins, gifts, and special perks (which vary by trip leader), plus a host of other financial incentives.
FINANCIAL INCENTIVES – OAT
All travelers get a percentage of the cost of the trip if they take another OAT trip within the following two years.
If you recommend OAT to someone who has never traveled with them before, you each get a $100 credit. The friend saves $100 immediately, and the “recommender” gets $100 toward a future trip.
After 10 OAT trips, if you take more than one trip in a given year, you save $350 per subsequent trip. Before your 10th trip, you save $250 per subsequent trip in a year, but I have forgotten if you need to take a minimum number of trips for that credit to kick in.
It all adds up. Especially for someone like me, who LOVES to travel.
OTHER TRAVELERS
The group on the sole Tauck trip I’ve taken was wonderful! That was also the case with most of my OAT trips. (As one would expect, occasionally you get one or two clunkers, when you take over 20 trips with the same company).
If I had only taken the Costa Rica trip, I would be exclaiming how outstanding OAT travelers are.
That’s all I can think of. Feel free to correct any misconceptions and add your experiences with either company in the comments section.
Our farewell dinner took place at L’Olvio, the Italian restaurant around the corner from our hotel. The food was great, but this is definitely not a restaurant to frequent if you are in a hurry. It was an hour before our food started to arrive, one dinner at a time. But the food was very good, and luckily, we were not in a rush.
Randy managed to get everyone (except himself) into one photo,
so I fixed that by taking this photo of him with his lovely wife,Cindy. I’m so glad that they are coming on the post trip, along with Mike and Jo-Lynne, Jolene and me.
The start of OAT’s post trip was a little sad, because we had to say goodbye to Esther, Cindy, Edwin, Lee Fa, Phil, Marianne, and Lester.
We will miss them all greatly, but especially Edwin’s superb translation skills, and Phil’s excellent photos. At least we still have Malo, who is an amazing photographer. I’m sure he will miss Edwin the most, because Malo will now have to do ALL the translations…no breaks for him!
Before we posed at the airport, I told Randy I’d hang all over him so he looks like he travels with TWO chicks. Is it my imagination, or does he look a little worried? Cindy was rightfully unconcerned.
I’m glad the 7 of us were the only passengers because the plane was TINY! So how many times do you think I bumped my head?
Our boarding pass was almost as big as the airplane!
Here’s what Mike and Jo-Lynne think about our flight. They were in the second row. Now how did THEY get to be in business class?
Because we were flying so low, we were able to get a spectacular view of Costa Rica, starting with the arial view of San Jose,
and ending with the Caribbean Sea.
We still had another leg of our journey, because you can only get to Tortuguero by boat. No cars or buses are allowed on what is essentially a sand bar and yep, I bumped my head yet again climbing into the boat.
We had just enough time to watch a short video about the efforts to save turtles from extinction and walk into town before we checked into our lodge.
One of the walls of the local school
Where did our group end up? In a bar, overlooking the river, of course.
Mike and Jo-LynneRandy and CindyMe and JoleneOur very cute waitress
Malo told us that Tortuguero’s nickname is “the little Amazon” because of the abundance of wildlife along the river. That was also the case by our lodge’s pool. For those of us willing to get up early, (Jolene and me) Malo offered to take us on an optional tour starting at 6 AM. Our reward? Rare footage of a spider monkey pooping,
There guys were EVERYWHERE! Yes, that’s poop
and having the jungle (and pool area) all to ourselves.
The pool at 6AM The pool at 3:30PMGorgeous treeOne of the jungle paths
Because weather has always been somewhat unpredictable in the tropics, and now even more so due to climate change, we were very grateful we were given ponchos for our morning cruise.
It’s impossible to show how hard the rain came down!
Despite the poncho, I still got soaked, but the wildlife we saw made the intermittent showers inconsequential.
Tonight is our last night at the Pachira Lodge. Our return to San Jose is first by boat, then by bus. We spend the night in San Jose and fly home the next morning.
My last afternoon in this paradise was spent by the river, with a tropical drink, catching up with some of the important people in my life and writing this post. The perfect ending to a wonderful trip!
Up until day 7 and 8, we had been incredibly lucky. Although it rained periodically, it seemed to happen only when we were on the bus, in a restaurant, or back in the hotel. Until La Fortuna. That was where our fortunes changed.
It was impossible to see the Arenal Volcano during our morning hike,
but I took pictures when Mike, Augusta and I were here in February of 2007. Back then, it was quite active. We were even able to see the bright red lava flows at night from our hotel room.
When we walked in the National Park, it was raining so hard, even my underwear was soaked, despite wearing a rain jacket. These days, if it’s not fun, I ain’t doing it, so halfway through the hike, 5 of us returned to the bus.
Marianne got creative. She took a black plastic shopping bag and with Edwin’s help, made holes in the sides so she could stick her arms through to keep her red jacket dry.
Those of us who chose to forgo the hike DID get to see Lake Arenal from the bus as we were leaving the park. Sorta.
Here’s the 2007 view.
Some brave souls decided to go zip lining despite the rain. Having ziplined twice before, I opted to return to the hotel. Had I known about the Tarzan swing, I might have made a different decision. But probably not.
Les, on the zip line.
Marianne, channeling her inner Tarzan. Jane??
Costa Rica has micro climates, so although it was pouring a few miles away, it wasn’t raining at our hotel. I walked the grounds, where I discovered multiple private hot tubs. Oh, to be with that special someone on a sunny day!
On our second day in La Fortuna, we cruised the Rio Frio, to search for wildlife.
I briefly regretted not bringing my camera, but I was very grateful for my binoculars.
Even with binoculars, it was NOT easy to spot the wildlife.
Were you able to find the “Jesus Christ” lizard in the first photo? For the second photo, I used my phone’s zoom, which is clearly not as powerful as my camera’s.
Why Jesus Christ lizard? Because the basilisk lizard (official name) looks as if he can walk (run) across water.
Check out the difference in quality of these monkey photos. The first was taken with a phone, (by one of the other travelers); the second is from the 2007 trip with my Panasonic LUMIX, way before cellphones had cameras.
Our guide posted photos of the birds we saw in WhatsApp. Of all the birds we observed, the kingfisher was my favorite.
Before our cruise ended, we made it to the Costa Rica/ Nicaragua border, where Malo took this photo of our wonderful group.
My very favorite highlight of our time in La Fortuna was our dinner at Selva Rustica. Raul, our bus driver, offered to take us to and from the restaurant, which was a very good thing because it was raining heavily ALL evening.
We all agreed that this was the best meal of the entire trip, so far. Sorry, Malo. From now on, we are going with Raul’s restaurant recommendations. Although we each ordered something different, we were all very happy with our choices. My grilled tuna atop vegetables and potatoes was heavenly.
Have you ever had a flaming margarita? With a blue Jell-O shot in the bottom of the glass? Neither had I. This was definitely a video worthy experience. Thanks to Phil for capturing the moment.
Remember how everyone tells new moms “once you see your new baby, you forget all about the pain of childbirth”? Yeah, well for me, THAT never happened — which is one of the reasons Greg is my only child.
The pain of getting to a trip, now THAT’S a different story. Once I arrive at my destination, any flight challenges — delays, cancelled flights, jet lag—all those “minor inconveniences” are instantly forgotten. (Thank you, Joann)
Our first day in Sarapiqui was picture perfect. The accommodations were a bit rustic, but comfortable, wildlife was abundant, and the location was ideal. I was able to walk to the nearby Sarapiqui River, which was FAR calmer than upstream, giving me a false picture of what our raft trip was going to be like.
Not too bad, right?
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Our morning began at 6AM with birdwatching and listening.
It made me regret that I hadn’t brought my camera, because a cell phone just doesn’t do it—unless, of course, you are as prepared as our guide, Malo was.
After breakfast, we were ready to start our rafting adventure. We expected to get wet, so I stored my cell phone with the change of clothes I brought. Not a problem, because the rafting company had photographers stationed along the river.
At the start of our trip, the water was moving fast, but the “rapids” certainly looked manageable.
That quickly changed! The following photos were taken by the rafting company from their vantage point on dry land.
Yes, we were on that raft. Here’s proof.
We were quite pleased with ourselves that we had made it thru. What we DIDN’T know was there were many, many more rapids before our journey ended.
Across from me is 83 year old Esther, who was a trooper, smiling even though during our 1.5 hour journey, she almost fell into the river.
Her daughter Cindy is in front of me. We had quite a rhythm going, even after our helmets smashed together during our transit thru one of the rapids.
Although you can’t tell from the above photo, we were all completely soaked. We are smiling because we knew that dry clothes were waiting for us.
That was quite enough adventure for me, so I spent the afternoon hanging out by the pool, with Randy and Cindy, instead of touring a pineapple plantation.
This will give you and idea of what our second day in Sarapiqui will be like.
On to two days in Chachagua, where Malo tells us we will be able to enjoy the hot springs.
Remember when I said yesterday’s travel challenges were a minor inconvenience? Well, my new friend, Betty, experienced a MAJOR inconvenience. Last night she fell, broke her right wrist, is having surgery today, and has to return home tomorrow. It’s unfortunate for her, very sad for me, because I liked her instantly.
MY luck began to change as soon as I arrived in San Jose. I was able to join the group for the 3 PM tour of the National Theater because Alex, my wonderful taxi driver, was able to calculate how long it would take to bring me to the hotel (in bumper to bumper traffic), allow me to check in and drop my bags in my room, and drive me to the theater. I arrived 3 minutes before the theater tour started.
If anyone is ever in San Jose, and needs a driver, here’s Alex’s contact info.
Alex’s phone number. I highly recommend him!
Along the way, Alex pointed out interesting buildings. He also confirmed my memory of San Jose as being a city without high risers. These skyscrapers were all built within the last 8-10 years.
Our group is super friendly and welcoming. THEY all had to learn ONE name, but I had to learn 13. Yes, originally our group numbered 15, but one person canceled before the tour started, But I digress. Back to the Theater tour.
Our National Theater guide explained that this statue was originally on the roof of the theater, but was brought inside to protect it from the ravages of weather, which was causing the marble to become discolored.
The top floor houses this salon, where the rich and famous hung out after enjoying the evening’s production. It isn’t obvious from the photos, but the marble on this interior statue is pristine and glowing.
The National Theater was built in the 1800’s when Costa Rica was rolling in coffee profits. Back then, rich coffee growers sent their offspring to be educated in Europe. When their children returned, they brought with them memories of the art and culture they had experienced. These memories culminated in the creation of the National Theater.
Our second day began with a tour of a small coffee finca (farm). To be honest, after staying at the Colombian coffee plantation for three nights, I wasn’t as interested in the production aspect, so instead I took photos. Here’s a shot of two members of my group picking beans
Mike and Jo-Lynne
Edwin was born in El Salvador, but grew up in LA. Because Malo was up most of the night helping Betty, Edwin stepped in and translated for us.
Edwin is on the right. This is an “antique” piece of equipment
We are lucky to have Edwin with us. He and his wife, Cindy are much younger than the typical OAT traveler. That’s because Cindy’s mom, Esther, invited them to accompany her.
After lunch at the finca,
we headed to Sarapiqui, which gave us the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful Costa Rican countryside. It is impossible to capture the grandeur of our drive, but that didn’t stop me from trying.
Supposedly, it was a three hour drive, with a couple of stops, but the time went by very quickly.
One of our stops was for a photo op by a waterfall.
This one’s for YOU, Jean.
I’ll end with a video of our other stop where we enjoyed sampling Agua Dulce while we watched the birds.
It’s a beautiful morning in Managua, Nicaragua. What, you don’t see Managua on the map atop this post? That’s because some of the best laid plans often go astray. (Like some women I know).
Normally when I do a group tour, I go in a day early to allow time for things to go wrong. Not this time, which pretty much guaranteed that everything that could go wrong, did.
I kept channeling my friend Joann, who I met on my recent India trip, by repeating “ it’s just a minor inconvenience”. I said that a lot!
The minor inconveniences started with an hour and a half delay at Newark airport because of electrical problems. Then, we were unable to land in San Jose because of poor visibility. After circling long enough to necessitate refueling, we flew to Managua and sat on the plane hoping for a break in the weather in San Jose. We waited long enough for the flight crew to surpass their maximum working hours, and no other crew was available, so the flight was canceled.
The crew handed out immigration paperwork that had to be completed, plus a list of hotels with phone numbers, but no other information. I tried to do my own search, for hotels near the airport, but the internet wasn’t working. ( I wasn’t the only one with cell phone challenges!) when my phone wouldn’t work, a very kind man sitting behind me handed me his phone, already dialed to the Hyatt, and he told me they had available rooms.
Because the plane was full, I had gate checked my bag in Newark. It was my act of kindness for the day. BIG mistake. I suspect the luggage handlers translated “priority” to mean “grab me last”. And they did.
Although The Best Western was across the street from the terminal, United didn’t put it on the list or provide its phone numbers, so instead I took a taxi to the Hyatt, which was about 20 minutes away. Before we left , we were told repeatedly to arrive at the airport 3 hours before our 10 AM flight.
One of the positive aspects of having sleep problems is my body has figured out how to get by on much less sleep. By the time we (yes, “we” because by then I had a companion. Little Kayla was looking lost, so I invited her to hop into my cab), it was 2 AM local time, 3 AM my body time when I finally got to bed. I awoke at 6 AM, just in time to enjoy the included breakfast.
Upon arriving at the airport I discovered our flight was delayed until 12:20. No one was at the United desk, so I found myself a seat, and reminded myself things could have been far, far worse. Noise canceling headset with music loaded onto my phone drowned out the screaming kid and allowed me to mentally transport myself to my happy place.
No, this is definitely NOT my “happy place”. Don’t worry, no one will be getting a gift from here!
I’ll miss the first day of the trip, including the welcome lunch and a tour of the National Theater because I won’t arrive into San Jose until a little after 1 PM. That is, if everything goes according to plan, which it hasn’t so far.
Luckily, I’ve been to Costa Rica twice before this trip. The first time was in February, 2007, with Mike and my friend Augusta. We traveled with Elderhostel, which is now known as Road Scholar. I’ll be trodding over familiar ground – in 2007, we started in San Jose, then visited Poas, Sarapiqui, La Fortuna and Arenal. It will be interesting to see the impact time has had on the areas I’m revisiting. Of course, that’s assuming that I REMEMBER what it was like in 2007, which is a pretty big assumption indeed.
Poas Volcano from 2007 visit
The second time was in January of 2010, which is when Mike, Greg and I cruised through the Panama Canal with Oceania. We only were in Puntarenas for one day, so we hired a guide who took us for a walk through a forest, then we went zip lining. That first platform was REALLY far away and I will admit to being terrified that I would get stuck midway, and have to rely on my upper body strength to pull myself the rest of the way. Fortunately, that didn’t happen, because back then my upper body strength was non-existent.
Practicing zip liningOn my way. I was NOT moving slowlySuccess! I couldn’t even SEE the landing zone.
This itinerary includes zip lining, horseback riding and rafting. Although not specifically mentioned in the itinerary, I’m assuming we will have a chance to take advantage of the hot springs near the volcanoes. I’ll admit, if I was missing one of these activities, I’d be thoroughly bummed.
August thru October is traditionally the “rainy season”, with November being the transition month leading to December’s dryer weather. ThIs year’s 10 day weather report is predicting rain almost every day. Perhaps the rain will be gentle, cooling us off when the temperature soars into the 80’s. We shall see.
Time to see if anyone is at the United desk.
Next post will probably be from Sarapiqui. And yes, despite all the minor inconveniences, I still feel pretty damn lucky to be on this trip!
Our trip ended with a three night stay in Mumbai, which up until 1995 was known as Bombay, the name the Portuguese gave it.
I always thought that Mumbai was the Indian pronunciation of Bombay. Shows what I know. In fact, the city was named for the Goddess Mumba Devi, whose image appears on the wall of Victoria Station.
Here are some other photos of Mumbai’s beautiful train station.
Victoria StationDetail on roof
Our stay is at another Oberoi, and to tell the truth, I’ve gotten extremely spoiled. Although certainly more than adequate, this room isn’t over the top breathtaking, like the other hotels in the chain. It DID, however, have an amazing outdoor bar, from which we could watch the sun set over the ocean.
With Gloria, Sue and our fantastic trip leader, Jennifer
I hope that this blog helps dispel any preconceived notions about India. Yes, it can be crowded and dirty, and the traffic is CRAZY!
Our local guide (whose name I have forgotten) said that to drive in India you need three things:
“A good horn, good brakes and good luck”
India is also pretty damn magnificent. I am so very grateful that I was able to experience its wonder and grandeur. Take a look at how Mumbai’s airport puts many American airports to shame.
During our stay, we had a delicious lunch at the Taj hotel, which was one of the locations where the 2008 terrorist attack occurred.
The “new” Taj Hotel has a memorial in its lobby. Beside the waterfall are carved the names of everyone who lost their life at the Taj during the attack.
Our lunch was on the top floor of the new Taj, from which I was able to take this photo of the Arch (known as the Gateway of India) that was constructed for King George (whatever number he was—maybe George 5?) and Queen Mary’s visit.
Our boat ride to Elephanta Island gave us a a different view of the arch, plus the old and new Taj hotels.
Initially, what is now Mumbai was comprised of 7 islands, until the East India Company took possession, and decided to fill in the water between the islands, thus creating what has become today’s city. During our tour, our local guide pointed out areas that had been reclaimed from the sea.
Other interesting sights included the Dhobi Ghat, where laundry is done in the open air. Our guide told us the water is only changed at the end of the day. Yikes! These days, many Indians have washers and dryers, so commercial enterprises are the ghat’s chief customers. I suspect that the Oberoi’s linens are NOT laundered here.
Other sights included Jeff, Tom and Whitney all trying their hand at cricket.
Head of a BuddhaOur local guide showing a “sky” burialBombay high court mercy statueJust in case this cat is a reincarnated relative, it’s fed.
Some of the pews in St Thomas Cathedral were adorned with metal plaques identifying famous butts that were placed upon them, such as Mother Theresa and King George & Queen Mary. Guest preachers, however did not get similar recognition. But they certainly SHOULD have.
One of the most fun activities was feeding the “good luck” cow. Supposedly Indians who did so, would be guaranteed good luck. Their next stop was to the nearby stock exchange.
OUR next stop was to this jazzed up Starbucks, where we tried our luck at finding a clean bathroom. We were successful, so maybe feeding the cow does work.
My final stop for the day was to watch the dabba wallahs decode which lunchbox gets delivered where. As you can see from the photo of one code, it is quite an elaborate system.
We asked why workers don’t simply take their lunchboxes with them when they leave for work.
The reason is the husband leaves work before his wife has cooked his lunch. It isn’t ready until around 10:30, which is when the dabba wallah picks it up. It gets delivered to the office before 1 PM. The dabba wallah returns later to bring the lunchbox back to the wife, arriving many hours before her husband returns home from work. That allows her to clean it so it is ready for the next day.
After lunch, most of the group visited the Dharavi slum. When in Nairobi during the summer of 2024, I had visited the Kibara Slum, which was a glorious experience, one that would have been difficult to replicate, in my opinion. I’ve also stayed in some rather humble lodgings while working on global volunteer projects. What I haven’t done is stay at many five star resorts, so I returned to the hotel to enjoy its rooftop pool.
Everyone who visited came back impressed by the work ethic of the residents of Dharavi.
I mentioned Elephanta Island earlier in this post. Only seven of us chose to spend our last morning in Mumbai visiting this temple dedicated to Shiva.
Although it looked like the temple was constructed in an existing cave, that was not the case. The temple was carved out of a huge block of basalt, working from the top down, and the outside in. The columns that you see in the photo above are purely decorative. They are not needed to support the temple. Check out the ceiling and floor of the temple.
The 10 members of our group that chose to forgo the excursion did so because they were concerned about making it up the 126 steps to the temple.
For about $35, you could make the trip the way royalty did in the past, by hiring four men to carry you in one of these chairs.
Good thing Allison is slim, because Tom depleted his cash buying a beautiful ring for his lovely wife earlier in the trip. Being creative, Tom came up with an alternative method.
Others were turned off by the thought of a one hour boat ride each way, preferring instead to shop. In India, there is always an abundance of shopping opportunities, some for articles whose purpose was a mystery, at least to me.
The train took us to from our boat to the start of the climb.
As with the other cities in the north, trash was everywhere. Despite the signs on receptacles exhorting people to “use me”, people obviously preferred to drop their garbage on the beaches where it was carried into the ocean.
I found the boat ride delightful, mainly because Joann and I chatted the entire way, which made the one hour journey whip by.
Tom, Allison, Jim, Sherrie, me, Joann and Don
Our guide did a terrific job explaining the meaning of the wall panels. We learned, for example, that before they were married, Pavarti was always depicted on Shiva’s right. After they wed, she moved to his left. Why? Our guide told us it was because Shiva kept his wallet on his left side. “No money, no honey”. Later she told us being on the left side made Pavarti closer to Shiva’s heart.
So can you tell who is married and who is still dating? Remember the photo is a mirror image. Hmmm, Joann is on MY left. In the photo atop this post’s heading, she got it right
The photo below is of the wall panel showing the combination of male and female aspects of Shiva. If I had been viewing this panel on my own, I never would have gotten the significance. On the photo’s right, the top hand of Shiva is holding a mirror, which symbolizes beauty and is the emblem for Pavarti. On the photo’s left you can see Shiva’s hand resting on his trusty steed, Nandi the bull. There was a whole lot more that our guide told us, but the jet lag induced brain fog has caused me to forget what it was.
Our farewell dinner produced mixed emotions for me. I was sad to say goodbye to my new friends, but I was also happy to have spent the past two and a half weeks enjoying their company. What a magical group!
I couldn’t fit everyone at the big table into one photo, so I took two from different vantage points. Clearly the waiter did a better job than I.
If I have the time and the energy before I depart on my next trip, I’ll talk about our experience flying from Delhi. It was an adventure! Fortunately I got to share it with Joann and Don, which made it memorable, and almost fun.
Next trip is to Costa Rica, with OAT, in the beginning of December.
What an incredible hotel! I know, I know, I have been saying that about every hotel on this trip, but every time I say it, it’s the TRUTH and I have photos to prove it.
I’m running out of adjectives to describe how grand the Oberoi hotels are, so you’ll just have to see for yourself.
I’m so glad we are staying here for three nights because that gives us the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful pool area,
fully appreciate the interior of the hotel,
and stroll along the magnificent grounds by the lake.
We had fantastic outdoor dining at the hotel two of our three nights in Udaipur.
Dinner on our last night in Udaipur was at the home of the grandson of a former prime minister. The grandson is a chef, who prepared a selection of wonderful Indian foods, mostly vegetarian, but including mutton and chicken dishes.
The Drawing Room of our host’s home.
Prior to dinner, we were dressed in saris and turbans. Yes, we HAD to be dressed by an expert, because none of us would have been able to master the tucks and twirls on our own.
Our entire group
These are my new friends from Naples, Florida. You can see we each have been wrapped differently.
When we arrived in Udaipur, we immediately headed for lunch at the Lily Court, which was also an art gallery and sculpture garden. This was my favorite piece.
Next stop was the Nagda Temple, which was constructed in the 11th century, and partially destroyed by Muslims who objected to the erotic wall decorations.
This complex, dedicated to Vishnu, is known as the Sas-Bahu Temple.
On our second day, we strolled through the market, then headed for the garden constructed for the king’s harem.
We were so very lucky that the rain held off until we were back in our rickshaws. I shared my rickshaw with Jennifer, our trip leader, so I heard her talking to our local guide as they tried to figure out whether the downpour would continue, requiring them to cancel our walk through the garden.
Magically, the rain stopped, so we were able to enjoy the gardens with their beautiful fountains.
A very small part of the gardenThe gardeners
Each couple got their own rickshaw, so as a single, I got my own. The driver would take us wherever we wanted to go. We could choose to shop for jewelry, textiles, cashmere, or go to lunch, to an ATM, or back to the hotel.
Believe it or not, I was able to do all of the above, probably because I had zero interest in fine gems. I DID find a cashmere wrap that was different from anything I’d ever seen.
While in Udaipur, we enjoyed a cruise on Lake Pichola. It has some naturally occurring “islands” that are now sites for incredibly gorgeous hotels. Doesn’t it appear to float on the water?
After our boat ride, a tourist train took us to the city palace entrance.
Of course, the palace was richly decorated, with mosaics covering the walls.
The rooms were interconnected by very narrow winding passages, with head smashing doorways for the taller people in the group. (Bet you’ve figured out how I know that!)
What struck me was the distance between the Kings and the queen’s bedrooms.
I had assumed that the KING was making the journey along the dark passages to get to the Queen. Wrong. When I asked, our guide told me the king would SUMMON the Queen, and SHE would have to find her way along the dark, narrow passages.
In my defense, I thought the queen’s bedroom was far more interesting. I had no trouble imagining the king taking full advantage of that swing. Sorry. That’s just how my mind works.
Elephants were an important part of defense. This statue commemorates how they “worked out” every day.
We leave this wonderful location for an all day journey to Cochin, also known as Kochi, which requires two flights connecting in Bangalore.
Just when I thought “this trip couldn’t POSSIBLY get any better”, it does!
Our hotel, the Oberoi Rajvillas is even more magnificent than the Leela Palace in Delhi. How is that even possible? Well, check out my room.
That’s nothing. The bathroom is even more spectacular.
I was the only woman who chose to return to the hotel rather than shop for jewelry during our free afternoon.
Display at our hotel—a bit too ornate for me
Why? So I’d have time to take a bath and use the pool.
Although it LOOKS like a maharajah’s palace, the Oberoi Rajvillas is actually a luxury hotel that was built to resemble a palace.
The Rambagh Palace, where we had dinner, was the REAL deal. Built in 1835, it became the principal residence of Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II and his wife, Maharani Gayatri Devi. After India became independent in 1947, the Maharaja converted Rambagh Palace into India’s first luxury “palace hotel”.
Check out how we were greeted and escorted in for dinner.
As one might expect, dinner was incredible. The wine flowed freely, so freely that when Jennifer asked for a volunteer to dance with the professionals, I rose to the occasion, thinking other members of the group would join in. They didn’t. Instead my friend Bill, took this video.
This style of dancing is called Kathak and it is extremely difficult to follow, because the foot stomping pattern changes unexpectedly. I gave up trying and instead decided to go “free style”. At least my travel companions were amused.
Jaipur was noisy, crowded, chaotic and beautiful.
Crossing the street was even more hair raising than crossing in Hanoi, because in Vietnam the streets are not as wide.
I’ll confess to being challenged to find just a few photos of the many incredible things we experienced. This is my attempt to give a feel for the wonder of Jaipur without posting so many photos that your eyes roll back into your head.
Before our dinner at the Rambagh Palace, we took a jeep to the Amber Fort.
Every time we went over a bump, Jeff and I hit our heads on the jeep’s ceiling. We were glad it was made of cloth instead of metal!
On our way, we visited this water source.
The Amber Fort is a popular site for wedding photos. This was actually a “practice shoot” pre-wedding, to make sure the real thing turns out perfectly.
The “fort” contains a gorgeous garden with fountains.
Check out the mirrored designs on the fort’s walls.
You could get a panoramic view of Jaipur from the fort.
We toured the Jantar Mantar Observatory and the City Palace Museum on our second day in Jaipur. The photo atop this post is of the throne room in the palace.
Our lunch at the Raj Palace was extraordinary. My only regret was that I didn’t know the names of these wonderful dishes so that I could order them again.
We ended the evening by visiting the 18th-century Shiva temple, where this group photo was taken.
Destination NOW 