Opulent India
March 3, 2009
Panama City, Panama
PLUS:
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- Best Airfares...
AND:
- More On Renting In A Spanish-speaking Country...
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Dear Overseas Opportunity Letter Reader,
"Indian Railways is the world's second-largest employer, with 1.6
million employees on its payroll, 40,000 miles of track, and 7,000
stations," writes Correspondent Paul Lewis.
"Moreover, the Jewel in its Crown, known as the Palace on Wheels,
offers the best way to see India's
major tourist sites in a single week of comfortable travel.
"The Palace on Wheels (www.palaceonwheels.com)
is a luxurious private train that pulls out of Delhi's Safdarjung
railway station on a Wednesday evening at 6:30 p.m. Not out of the
bustling, overcrowded public part of the station, but from the more
refined and tranquil Purdah Platform, where once the private trains of
India's Rajahs stopped with their cargoes of veiled maharanis and
other ladies from the princely households who were kept from the sight
of unrelated men.
"No veils these days, however, only the gorgeous turbans, frock coats,
and white jodhpur trousers of the Khidmatgars, or personal attendants,
who assist travelers for the fit-for-a-king ride around the fortified
city states of Rajasthan where opulent maharajahs once held sway.
Endlessly fought over by their quarrelsome rulers, these statelets
were the scenes of unimaginable opulence and grandeur, as well as
ferocious battles and terrible jauhurs, or mass immolations, when,
once their last man had fallen, the palace women leapt into fires
rather than face slavery and enforced prostitution.
"Arid and flat, with areas of pure desert, Rajasthan is dotted with
these impressively fortified cities, topped by splendid palaces and
bearing some of the most famous names in Indian history, including
Jaipur, Jaisalmar, Jodhpur, and Chittorgarh. Throw in a slight
diversion to the Taj Mahal at Agra on the return journey, and a week
riding the Palace on Wheels offers you a generous helping of the best
India has to offer.
"Travel and dine by night, sight-see by day. That's how a Palace on
Wheels excursion works. Each carriage contains four private sleeping
cars equipped with two single beds apiece, fitted carpets, and its own
bathroom. The carriage also has a lounge, where breakfast is served.
"Night falls quickly in the tropics, and, shortly after leaving Delhi,
the dinner gong sends passengers trooping into the paneled dining and
bar cars, all generously staffed with turbaned servants. The menu
offers a choice of Indian or European dishes, or you can try a little
of each--roast chicken and lamb rogan josh, say.
"India's outrageous import taxes leave little alternative to drinking
the local wines, but these are respectable these days.
"Arrivals are also at Purdah Platforms, where you are welcomed by a
painted elephant and a committee of saried Indian girls ready to put
blobs of colored paint on your forehead and festoon you with
marigolds.
"The most exciting thing about the first stop at Jaipur is the
elephant ride up a steep track to the enormous mountain-top Amber
Palace, where the mahout expects some rupees and Jumbo puts his trunk
out for a banana--so have one ready.
"Earlier you've seen the House of Winds, a cleverly built palace harem
that captured the breeze on hot days while allowing the wives to watch
street life without being seen. Nearby is the maharajah's collection
of astronomical inventions, including a giant sundial that tells the
time to the nearest second. Unfortunately, there is no escaping a
visit to the local carpet factory, though you don't have to buy.
"The second stop is Jaisalmer, the most spectacular of Rajasthan's
fortified city states, protected by massive stone walls and entered
only through four successive gateways. Inside lies the palace, the
beautifully decorated vavelis, or mansions of rich merchants, and a
famous Jain temple.
"Jainism is a small, ancient Indian religion, similar to Hinduism but
stricter and with the Swastika as its most sacred symbol. Inside the
temple, white-robed priests wear surgical masks so as not to inhale
insects, while constantly sweeping the ground in front of them with
little brushes to avoid crushing ants and beetles as they walk.
"This slows the pace of living, and many Jains have fled overseas to
become successful businessmen. Some will likely be among your fellow
passengers returning to see the old country again like other
'N.R.I.'s,' or non- resident Indians, as the Indian Diaspora is
officially termed.
"A proposed camel ride in the nearby desert is not advised, as
passengers are seated two to a beast with the second in danger of
slipping off over its tail. Dawn visits to tiger and bird sanctuaries
seldom yield even a glimpse of a tiger or an interesting bird.
"Jodhpur is another city-state on a hill with fort and palace. From
its battlements you can see that the houses of the common people at
the foot of the hill have all been painted blue, because the Indians
believe this deters mosquitoes. I don't know if this is true. The
Palace on Wheels is air-conditioned.
"Lunch is the main attraction when the train gets to Chittorgarh,
because it is served in the stupendous state banqueting hall of the
new palace the Maharadjah built himself in the 1930's as a thoughtful
gesture to reduce unemployment among his subjects.
"That meal, with turbaned servants outnumbering guests, offers a taste
of a Maharadjah's life in the days of the British Raj. The present
Maharajah still lives in a wing of the palace but has turned the rest
into a hotel and given up his private train.
"When you tour the ruins of sprawling hilltop fort nearby that once
surrounded the finest palaces in Rajahstan, insist the guides show you
the site of the jauhars that occurred here, which they don't like
doing.
"Then on to Udaipur for another memorable lunch at a palace in the
middle of a lake that has almost dried up and a glimpse of the rings
where elephants once fought each other to entertain the Maharadjah.
"Then Agra with its Taj Mahal, the most photographed building in the
world that needs no further description. And back to Delhi by early
morning."
Kathleen Peddicord
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"You should tell your other readers about the place," offered a friend
and longtime reader over a glass of sangria the other evening.
"We're in Panama for about three weeks. Mostly, we're
working, checking in on different projects and investments here in
Panama City and then out in Santiago and on the Azuero Peninsula.
"But we're taking a couple of days in between to relax at Los
Mandarinos (www.losmandarinos.com).
It's a boutique hotel and spa in El Valle, and it qualifies as one of
the undiscovered gems of this country. No question, it's the nicest
place to stay in the area. An extraordinary setting, a beautiful
property, and top-notch service.
"Rooms are about US$150 a night and up. Not super-cheap but not
expensive, either, considering what you get for your money."
"Thank you for your excellent information. You are helping us plan our
life step-by-step.
"Unless I missed it in your write-up about
things to know before renting in a foreign country,
I want to mention that, unless contracts (including rental agreements)
are in Spanish, they are not considered legal and binding."
-- Wendy L., Mexico
That's what we thought, too, dear reader. We had reason recently,
though, to address this point of law with our local legal eagle (
Rainelda
Mata-Kelly), who explained that this is not the case, at
least not in Panama.
As Rainelda clarified, any contract is legal in Panama, no matter the
language. However, if a dispute arises, the contract must be
translated into Spanish for purposes of addressing it.
Therefore, in practice, most people in this country write contracts in
Spanish, then translate them into other languages, as appropriate, for
the convenience of the parties entering into the agreement.
"Do you have info concerning how much a flight for one would be from
the United States to Panama in time for your
conference
in May?"
-- Dean H., United States
"My travel site has middle of May as one of the best (that is,
cheapest) travel times for flights from the U.S. to Panama City,"
offers young Marketing Manager Harry.
Harry's travel site is Kayak (www.kayak.com).
"Continental flights are usually the best deal," continues Harry, who
travels back and forth between the U.S. and Panama every month to
visit his girlfriend on the East Coast.
"Round-trip U.S.-to-Panama flights are regularly less than US$400.
However, in May, they're even lower. Depending where you're flying
from, you might be able to make the trip for US$300."
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