Riding my bike through India?

Well, I've done a bit of research and I'm thinking about doing a bike tour with Intrepid Travel. Here's the intinerary for the trip

Day 1 Delhi We walk through Old Delhi's labyrinth of intriguing narrow laneways and bazaars, which has fed this crumbling part of the city for hundreds of years.


Days 2-3 Udaipur Fly into the most romantic of Rajasthani cities, Udaipur. Prepare to fall in love with a captivating place where artists, musicians and dancers have converged harmoniously through the ages.


Days 4-10 Rural Villages Pioneering cycle explorers by day, we spend our magical nights relaxing in style within Rajput forts and heritage castles, which give a royal flavour to the adventure. Mounting our saddles at the magnificent Kumbalgarh Fort, a ride through a wildlife sanctuary and lunch near the beautifully carved Ranakpur Jain temple proves delightful. The Aravalli Ranges make a stunning backdrop to our travels through colourful tribal Rabari hamlets and grazing camels in Jojawar. After traversing the dry and rocky Thar Desert, set up tents in time for a gorgeous sunset and barbeque under a blanket of bright stars. Acacia bushes offer shade while cycling along salt tracks beside the Kharda Dam, keeping an eye out for the elusive and unusual blue bull. A chance to dive into a cooling pool at the end of the day will have you racing on to our Rohet Castle oasis. En route to Jhalamand, learn about the fascinating Bishnoi tribes native to this region. Possessing unique traditions and a fascinating history, they fiercely protect the herds of black buck and sacred khejri trees we see on our path and make our last two days of cycling truly rewarding.


Day 11 Jodhpur Towering proudly above the 'blue city' stands the majestic Meherangarh Fort. Meander through its vast collection of royal treasures and venture down the cobbled pathway into Sadar Bazaar as it teems with spices and local delicacies, including the best lassi in India!


Days 12-14 Pushkar Kick back and enjoy the mellow atmosphere in one of the rooftop cafes dotted throughout the bazaar and watch the sun set over the holy lake. Taste the life of a nomad astride a camel for a safari into the surrounding area.


Day 15 Delhi A mouthwatering farewell breakfast awaits us following our overnight train into Delhi.

Planning for vacay!

I've been thinking a lot about my trip, which should be in March, to Asia. At first, I was planning to go to Thailand for a multitude of reasons; it's cheap, accessible, and safe. But I've been talking to a few friends who say they really enjoyed Thailand but that it's overrated. Never being one to do the conventional, it made me rethink where I might want to go.

Now, of course, I really want to experience Bankok. I hear it's worldly and authentically cultured. I also love the whole backpacker scene. Do I want to relax and sit around at the beach? No, because I work on a boat that follows the summer and therefore always have access to beaches. I have been Diving at the Great Barrier Reef and I have surfed in South Africa. Obviously I want to do something adventurous. I'm not going for Rest and Relaxation. After spending a lot of time on the water, perhaps I want to go a little further inland.

My goal someday is to own an eco-hotel. I always use my trips for informational purposes to gather ideas of places that I like so that someday I may incorporate those ideas into my own place. So, I'm thinking I'll go to an eco-lodge in the mountains. I want to do yoga for like 2 weeks. However, the big catch is that usually places like those attract older crowds and I want to avoid a place like that. Here are my requirements for my vacation to India.

• Beautiful natural surroundings
• Clean, nice place to stay
• Affordable, but not economy cheap
• Young Crowd
• Yoga

I'll keep you updated on my research. I'm going to look at igougo.com, lonelyplanet.com and various other internet sites.

Losing Identity in St. Thomas

We've been in St. Thomas for about a month now and it's about 3 weeks longer than I would prefer. I'm having a difficult time finding things I want to do here other than go to the beach and go to bars. Since I don't like bars that much and I get bored after about 3 hours at the beach, I've been bored out of my mind. Usually I would workout to get rid of the boredom, unfortunately I can't run around here as I like to run at night. It's dangerous to run in St. Thomas at night. I'm not sure if that's a rumor, but I'm not taking a chance. So I'm unhappy because I'm unhealthy. And the more unhappy the more unhealthy I get. It's cyclical. Luckily, we're FINALLY leaving for Antigua on Tuesday. Less touristy there and more yachts meaning more new friends. I'm becoming obsessive about meeting new people. I love hearing where people are from and what they do.

In other news, my flight and trip to Thailand was supposed to be on January 10th. I'm hoping that I'll make it in March when I have time off from work. I will not be 25 yet, so I may still make my goal. Well, I'm depressed now thinking about it. So I'm going to go to bed.

http://www.bolt.com/JerriBean/photo/1712338