End of the Ireland Trip

Our final day in Dublin was a bit warmer than our first day there, thankfully. We spent part of the day doing our last-minute souvenir shopping. Aside from that, we visited both Christ Church and St. Patrick's cathedrals. Both have a lot of historical and architectural significance. We had a nice lunch at a bistro near the Jameson's visitors center, and then spent the early evening packing.

That evening we walked to the Temple Bar area for dinner, crossing the Ha'penny Bridge over the Liffey on the way (pictured). After dinner, we went to the Friends Meeting House for a rehearsal of Gloria, Dublin's lesbian and gay choir. This group is larger and much better established than the men's chorus we visited Monday. The sounded great as they prepared for a very busy week. After rehearsal we went next door to the Ireland Film Institute for drinks with some of the members, and we had a great time getting to know them.

We had a fairly short night, as the cab for the airport came at 5:45. That was about 1/2 hour earlier than we needed, but we had plenty of time at the airport to check in, get breakfast, clear security, request our tax refunds, and go through customs.

We boarded the plane and left a few minutes early, taking off just after the sun came up. I watched the patchwork fields and lakes get smaller as we rose in altitude until we finally passed the west coast. Then the captain told us there was a problem with a redundant safety monitor of some sort, which didn't cause any problems, but they didn't want to cross the Atlantic without it. So we headed back to Dublin, landing an hour and 45 minutes after we left. Once on the ground, we learned that a replacement part was en-route from Amsterdam. About three hours later, the new part was installed and we were ready to go again.

We were re-booked on a flight out of Atlanta, about four hours later than our original connection. We landed at O'Hare just before 9:00 Central time. By the time we got the bags, picked up the car, and drove home it was 3:45 am, 27 hour after we began the journey.

It was a long and exhausting journey, but we saw and experienced a lot, met some great people, and had a wonderful time. We haven't been able to identify our favorite part of the trip, but we have discussed places we would visit again if we ever get a chance to go back. This trip  was a life-long dream for Barry, and we're so glad we got to make the trip together.

And we've already started discussing ideas for our next trip together!

Finally in Dublin

We've had a busy couple of days. Woke up yesterday in Larne and headed out for Islandmagee, once the seat of the Magee clan. It was a beautiful morning, so the drive was great and we took our time exploring some cemeteries and coastal areas on the peninsula. Interestingly enough, we found no Magees in the cemeteries - only a McGee ans some McKees  - but we found many graves with Jim and Gywen's family names.

Leaving Islandmagee, we took a beautiful drive through Carrickfergus amd Belfast toward Dublin. Unfortunately, the weather got worse the farther south we went. We stopped along the way and caught the last tour of the day at Newgrange, a 5200 year-old Neolithic burial site. It was pretty cool, and it's amazing to imagine how the people moved all of the rocks to the area and built these massive strictures.

After Newgrange, it was of to Dublin and the home of our good friend Orla, who cooled a wonderful Irish meal for is. It was great catching up with her and learning more about her life here in Dublin. After dinner, we spent a good amount of time returning the car to the airport and finding the eight bus to take back to our guesthouse.

This morning we took the complete 90 minute bus tour of Dublin, then jumped back on the bus to go to Trinity College. There, we had a nice, colorful tour before seeing the Book of Kells and the long room in the library. After a quick lunch in the student union, we hopped on the bus to the Guinness Storehouse for the tour and complimentary pints at the amazing Gravity Bar, which features 360 degree views of the city. It was a great place to relax and watch the sunset.

After catching the bus back to the area of our guesthouse, we headed out to a rehearsal of the newly formed Dublin Gay Men's Chorus. It was fun listening to them prepare for their Christmas concert, and after rehearsal we joined about 10 of them for drinks in a nearby pub, The Flowing Tide.

It's difficult to believe we only have one more dull day here.

Belfast Update

We've had a good time in Belfast. Yesterday began with a taxi tour of the city, which wasn't quite what we expected. Rather than a comprehensive tour of the city and its key sites, we got a tour of only the working-class  neighborhoods and murals. We learned a lot about the history of the political troubles, but the story seemed a little one-sided. I still have a difficult time understanding the depth and passions behind the different factions and why there hasn't been more progress to unify the city.

After the tour we went to the Public Records Office to do genealogy research.

Very interesting, although we didn't find much. From there we went to the Ulster Historical Foundation where Barry had an appointment with a researcher. Again, we didn't find much. While he was there, Jim explored part of Queen's University on foot.

Yesterday evening we headed to Ulster Hall for the annual Belfast Beer and Cider Festival. Dozens of drinks on tap to try, with live music and lots of people. As we drank, we met and chatted with a new friend Alan and his wife.

After that, we met Gywen for supper. We wanted to eat at the famous Crown Bar, but they didn't have room to seat us. We found a nice French restaurant instead.

This morning we spent nearly three hours at the Titanic Experience. The museum opened earlier this year, and it's fantastic. Very high tech and high touch, it covers the early industrial history of Belfast, the ships construction, its launch, fittings, maiden voyage, sinking, aftermath, pop culture references, 1985 discovery, and underwater exploration. We certainly could have spent more time there.

Soon we're off to Island Magee and Larne!

Ireland, Thanksgiving Edition

This morning we were up early to visit Giant's Causeway on the Antrim coast. There is a nice new visitor's center which explains the geologic feature and some of the surrounding mythology (Finn built it, you know.) The weather was cool and breezy, but dry so we enjoyed walking around the site.

Soon we were off to Belfast. We arrived in time for Barry to spend about an hour and a half looking into family history at the Presbyterian Historical Society. We didn't find much, but we got some leads on things to look for during our research tomorrow.

The historical society is around the corner from our hotel, so we checked in, and them we had a few hour to explore. We're in the neighborhood of Queen's University so we walked past some of the university buildings to the botanical garden. Also nearby is the very nice Ulster Museum, so we got to spend about an hour there.

After changing at the hotel, we went to dinner at the Grand Opera House (yum) followed by a very funny show "One Man, Two Guvnors." It is a big farce, with elements of a minstrel show and some improv. Quite a good time. Tonight we stayed in the hotel and made plans for tomorrow. There is a lot to do here, and we've got to cram a lot into a day!

First Day in Northern Ireland

The Derry Travelodge wasn't the best accommodation in the world, but we weren't there long and it was cheap. Following a basic and rather plain breakfast, we set out to walk around the city for a couple of hours. We went to the Bogside, the traditional Catholic neighborhood just west of the original walled city of Derry. The Bogside was, during the civil rights struggle, known for a time as Free Derry. We went to the Free Derry museum to learn more about the oppression of the working class people, the civil rights movement, and the Bloody Sundy massacre which happened at this site. Here along the street there is a series of murals commemorating those times and other similar struggles for civil rights.

From the museum we walked up the hill to the city wall (built in the 1600s) and into the city centre. We saw the Diamond, billed as the only square roundabout in the world. I don't want to tell the locals that we have at least one in Indiana (see: Paoli). We grabbed a takeaway lunch and soon headed up the coast to Bushmills.

In Bushmills, we took a tour of Bushmills Distillery, the oldest licensed distillery in the world. The King granted its charter in 1608. Unlike at Jameson, here we toured the working distillery so it was interesting to see the bro duct being jaded and the bottling line. Today, they were actually bottling Jameson's. Jameson's doesn't have a bottling facility, so they send their whiskey to Bushmills for bottling. Of course, we got a sample at the end of the tour.

After the tour, we headed toward our B&B in Portrush, passing the remains of Dunluce Castle along the way. The sun was already beginning to set, but the site was open for another 1/2 hour so Barry and Jim took the time to exploe the ruins as dusk fell. It's a very dramatic site, to be sure. I would have enjoyed a little more time there to explore more, read some history as we walked, and hike down to the cave and the shore. Unfortunately, you can only do so much when the sun sets before 5:00.

The town of Portrush is a delightful seaside resort village. Of course, in November it's mostly closed. We found a wonderful bistro for dinner, and lots of other people were there enjoying it, too. Only later did we discover the place listed in our guidebook. We came back to our spacious room to read more about the history of Northern Ireleand and post to the blog before turning in.

Sunset from Dunluce Castle, Antrim Coast, Northern Ireland

Along the coast is the town of Portrush, where we've stopped for the night.

An Adventurous Day

Yesterday we drove 30 km from Galway to a tiny airport where we boarded an 8-passenger plane to fly to Inis Mor. It was a beautiful drive a lot the shore (in spite of a slight mishap with the car) and a nice, quick flight. Once we got to the island, we found a driver who offered to take us on an island tour, which was good because we weren't sure how we were going to get around the island.

The island is 9 miles long and 3 miles wide at its widest point. Originally all limestone, the people have built stone walls all over the island, and filled the plots with seaweed and sand to make soil so they can farm and raise livestock. The main draw to the island is the prehistoric fort, dun aengus, 2500 years old, on the top of a 300 ft cliff. We walked up to the fort, which I think ins the windiest place on the planet. When Barry peeked over the ledge, hits hat blew off with amazing force and flew way outside the fort and down the hill. I thought we would never see not again, but Barry actually found it on the way back down!

We had some lunch at a small cafe and then went on to see and old, ruined monastic site before heading back to the village. We went to a pub to wait for our return flight, only to learn that the flight was cancelled due to the gale-force winds. Fortunately, there was a ferry returning about 1 1/2 hours later, and the seas were calm enough for the ferry to run. We got back on shore about 2 hours later than anticipated, and then had to go back to Galway to pick up our laundry. Finally we were on the road for our 3 1/2 hour drive to Kerry, arriving at 11 pm. The Kerry Travelodge isn't fancy, but it felt good to get in the beds.

On to Galway

This morning we left our friendly hosts in Ennis and headed to the Cliffs of Moher. We spent some time in the gift shop and visitors center before heading our to see the cliffs. It was mostly overcast, with gale-force winds, but foe the moat part the rain held off. The views were dramatic and constantly changing due to the weather. While the wind was challenging, we did enjoy a few minutes of sunshine.

Next we drove on the very curvy road to Galway. The weather limited our views along the way, but by the time we reaches Galway Bay we could see some beautiful sites, including castles along the way. In Galway, we went to the busy city centre to check out a laundrette, but it was closing so we chose not to leave our laundry there. Instead, we rook it to a laundrette closer to where we are staying.

Tonight we're staying in the lovely St. Jude's B&B in Salthill. We walked down the street for dinner and had some food food and locally brewed beers. Now waiting to see if we will go out and do something else tonight...

Another Day Down

This morning we watched the sun rise over the mountains and the Atlantic as we ate breakfast. Then Gywen drove us to the top of the pass to begin our second day of riding bikes. After three hours of riding through rain and gale-force winds, we dropped of the bikes and drove three and a half hours through the rain to our B&B in Ennis. After tea and showers, we went out in the rain to get dinner. We found a nice pub which actually had live Irish music! It only took us six days to find Irish music.

View of Waterville on Our Climb to the Pass

A Big Ride

Today was our first day of cycling in the Ring of Kerry. We had a filling breakfast at the B&B in Cahersiveen and then went into town to pick up the bikes. Casey was friendly and set us up with bikes, helmets, pump, repair kit, lock, and a map.

We headed out a bit later than anticipated, but still before Noon. As we began our ride there was a gentle rain which produced a great double rainbow  - to be expected in Ireland, I suppose. We rode inland and uphill to a pass near a wind farm, then past sheep and timber forests. All along they way we paused to take in the beautiful scenery. Eventually we turned to head back toward the coast, passing some pretty lakes along a high plain. We finally went back downhill, reaching the coast at Waterville. From there we had a dramatic three-mile climb along the coast to another pass, before cruising downhill to or resting spot for tonight, Old Forge in Cahirdaniel. It's a nice setting with beautiful ocean views, which we enjoyed as we drank our tea and ate cake.

This evening we went into the village for dinner at The Blind Piper, where the Ireland v. Fiji rugby match was on TV. I got the impression that nobody expected Ireland to do well, but they won 53-0! It was fun to watch, and I think the entire village was there.

Tomorrow we've asked our hostess to prepare an early breakfast so we can get a fairly early start back to Cahersiveen. We will take a different, more coastal route, but unless we can get the bikes in the car we will have to start with that long  climb to the mountain pass.

Overdue Update

Our fourth day in Ireland is almost over. (We do still plan to hit the local pub.) We didn't have wifi last night in Cork, so this update is overdue. Wednesday night after watching soccer we went to Henry Downe's pub to to try the house-distilled "No. 9" whiskey. It was fine; soon we struck up a conversation with the local customers Ellen and Billy, and the bar staff John and Killian. We chatted about Irish slang and movies before turning to local events and politics.

Thursday morning we followed our friend Conor's suggestion and drove through the Vee Gap on our way to the seaside village of Ardmore. It was a quaint little place and we got a bite to eat there. We checked out the round tower and cathedral ruins before checking out the small "castle" and the dramatic cliffs of the southern coast. (Spongiest grass I have ever walked on!) We were disappointed that we didn't have time to do the cliff walk, but we had to get to Midleton for our next stop: the Jameson Experience.

We had a very nice tour of the Jameson Distillery. We started with hot totties and an introductory film before touring the historic facilities where whiskey was distilled through the 19th century and up to 1975. (All Jameson brands are still produced on-site, but in modern facilities.) We learned about the process and saw the largest still in the world. Our friend Brian told us to volunteer at the end of the tour, so we did, and the three of us were selected as part of they eight who got to do a whisky tasting comparing Jameson to Johnny Walker Scotch and Jack Daniels. All very different, but of course Jameson was thee best. We enjoyed chatting with folks from the tour, including a man from California, a couple from Sweden, and French students, before heading on to Cork for the evening.

In Cork, we found dinner at Dan Lawry's Pub before going to Sin é for drinks and live music (not Irish music). Barry enjoyed the locally brewed Rebel Red and Jim liked the locally brewed Murphy's.

This morning we overslept and went to check out Cork's famous English Market. The market had lots of fresh meats and fish, as well as vegetables, pastries, and coffee. We also found a camera store where we bought a charger for Gywen's camera battery before checking out of the hotel and heading to Blarney.

Blarney castle and its grounds were beautiful, and we enjoyed being there on an equally beautiful, mostly sunny say. Of course we did climb to the top and kiss that famous stone. We've got the pictures to prove it. From there, we drove on scenic back roads to get to Killarny National Park. The surrounding mountains and lakes were also beautiful. We took a horse-drawn cart tour around the grounds and up to an impressive waterfall. The forest around the falls was covered in an amazing green moss, just as one would expect in Ireland.

After dinner in Killarny town, we headed on to Strands End B&B in Cahersaveen, where tea and a warm fire was waiting. And now, we're off to the local pub!

Kilkenny to Waterford

Our second day in Ireland began with breakfast at the Kilkenny Design Center, next to Butler House and once the grainery for the Butler family and Kilkenny Castle. Then we had a nice guided tour of Kilkenny Castle, home to the Earl of Ormond, Chief Butler of Ireland and the Butler family for over 700 years. The family moved out in 1932(?) and the castle fell into disrepair until they sold it to the city in 1967. Now it is beautifully restored.

We made a quick visit to the protestant cathedral in Kilkenny, where Barry and Jim climbed the 100 foot round tower and took in great views of the city before driving to Waterford. There, we toured the Waterford Crystal production facility and got a fascinating look at that process. Did some shopping, too!

After checking into the Dooley Hotel, we walked around the city looking for a restaurant, finally finding a little Italian wine cafe. We just finished watching the Irish national soccer team lose to Greece in the hotel bar. (We were in the bar, not the soccer match.) Next we plan to head to a local bar which has been brewing it's own "No. 9" whiskey for years.

Day One

We arrived in Dublin a few minutes early yesterday morning. After resolving a couple of issues with the rental car, we headed south to Bray where Jim and Barry headed out on a 6.2 km cliff walk to Greystones. Meanwhile, Gywen drove the car to the other end to meet us, and took care of getting some cash exchanged for Euros. Along the dramatic walk (pictured), we saw seals, birds, and a surprising number of windflowers in bloom. The path was also lined with raspberries, so we enjoyed a few of those along the way. At the far end of the trail, we had planned to have lunch at the Beach House, but we were 45 minutes early for lunch. Instead, we drove down the road to a pub called the Coach House and enjoyed fish and chips and Blumers by the fire.

Next we headed to Glendalaugh, a one-time monastic settlement founded by St. Kevin in the 6th century. The name means Valley of Two Lakes, so as you can imagine it was a beautiful valley with two lakes. We walked around to look at the wonderful round tower (built about 1000 years ago), the building ruins, and the cemetery. We also took a hike through the woods and past a waterfall to the upper lake (pictured below). It was a beautiful site, but we couldn't help but wish for a little sunnier weather.

We ended the day with a drive to Kilkenny as darkness descended. We checked in to the lovely Butler House before Barry and Jim headed out for dinner and drinks at a quaint, cozy pub which was founded in 1324. We were all in bed before 9:45, which was understandable after a very short, restless night on the plane and the time change.

On Our Way!

Here we go! We got up at 3:30 this morning, in an effort to get ready for the time zone change. After breakfast at IHOP and some work and reading in the hotel room, we headed to the airport. The flight to ATL was uneventful, and now we're boarding for Dublin. We will arrive there at 7:00 tomorrow morning, so the next post will be from Ireland! This trip is a life-long dream for Barry, and we're thrilled to be going together (with Gywen!). By the way, there are a lot of Irish-looking people on this plane.

Starting Early

We've had a good first full day in Chicago. We started with some shopping at the outlet mall, followed by an awesome lunch at Carnecitas Aguascalientes in the Little Village. Then we made a quick stop to have a screw removed from a tire on our way to the Irish American Heritage Center library, where we're getting some advice on doing genealogy research in Ireland. It's like we've started our trip abroad without even leaving the U.S.

How fortunate that the library is open an hour later than we expected, and their main genealogy expert is here to help us. We could spend a lot of time here - we haven't even peeked in the museum or the Irish American hall of fame.

We're leaving here to head to Evanston for dinner with our friends Jaret and Karina.Is so easy to forget as the years go by how special someone is in your life but just a hug and it all comes back. I've [Barry] been so blessed to work with so many wonderful students over the years. 

Headed to Ireland

Our Ireland trip is almost here. We're leaving tomorrow for Chicago, where the plan was to watch the IU Men's Soccer team compete in the Big Ten Tournament. Unfortunately, they tied their last regular-season game, giving them a 4th place tournament seed instead of the regular-season championship and a first-round buy. They played their first game yesterday and lost, so we're spending three days in Chicago and the team won't even be playing. On a more positive note, we don't have to leave as early in the morning, we will get to visit friends, and we're seeing the musical The Burnt Part Boys.

We've just about completed our busy itinerary for the trip, and we created a Google map highlighting many of our stops.


View Magee/Johnson Ireland Trip in a larger map

Next Up: Ireland!

Barry, his mother Gywen, and I will be traveling to Ireland November 12-28, 2012. The complete itinerary is not yet determined, but we expect to be on the go constantly. So much to see on such a small island and in such a short time frame. We're looking forward to visiting our friend Orla in Dublin and looking more into Barry's heritage. Stay tuned...

Heading Home

Today was a fairly relaxing final day in India. I overslept, meaning I got 9 1/2 hours of sleep last night - much better than the 5-6 I've been getting every night this trip.

I enjoyed breakfast outside by the pool before heading to a brand new mall across the street. Some of the shops weren't even open yet, and although I went in a couple of stores, I didn't find what I wanted. The mall was a little odd - the escalators skip floors, so if you want to get to the odd numbered floors you have to find stairs or an elevator. Some of the stores I couldn't even find because they only had exterior entrances.

Since I didn't find what I wanted in the mall, I next went to a Bazaar store, a type of discount retailer with groceries, clothes, furniture, etc. It was a fun experience, and they had some really cheap dress shirts, but I didn't have time to shop for something that fit.

I made my way back to the hotel for my appointment at the spa. I had a sauna, steam, and 60-minute massage. The massage was wonderful - just what I needed at the end of a long week and before boarding the flight home.

After the massage, I had a buffet lunch with some of the students. There was some good food, including pesto chicken kebabs and something that looked like a little pot pie the size of a muffin. Very tasty. But the best thing was a little chocolate mouse-like dessert. It was amazing. I know people will ask me what was the best thing I ate in India. Chocolate, can you believe it?

After lunch I packed up and we loaded the bus to the airport. We're now all checked in and waiting to board our flight to Delhi. One student is staying in India and leaving us here. Another is flying from Delhi to Shanghai. We will loose more to transfers at O'Hare. It's a little sad that we're starting to split up, although everyone is looking forward to getting home, myself included.

Mysore Palace

Oops - I forgot I had a picture I could upload! This is me in front of the palace.

Long Day in Mysore

We've had a good, but long day. We had about a 3 hour drive to Mysore, where we toured the Palace. This was home to 5 kings, the youngest of whom died in 1976. The palace, which is 100 years old this year, was very ornate. There is a huge open area in the front which is where the subjects essentially met as a parliament. There was a nice rose garden outside.

After a quick lunch in a beautiful hotel, we visited the Infosys training campus. The presentation was multi-faceted and nice, but really long for a bunch of tired Americans. We then had a fun tour, on golf carts, of the Amazing and beautiful campus.

We had a quick stop for craft shopping before starting the trip back to Bangalore. While there, Ramesh arranged for some of the students to take auto-rickshaw rides. I missed out. But I did see the cow herd pass right in front of the store.

We stopped at a KFC for dinner, but Ramesh convinced me to go next door for a dinner of traditional South Indian food. I didn't eat it with my fingers like I was supposed to, but I did enjoy it.

Tomorrow, our last day, will be fairly laid back. I'll looking forward to getting an hour-long deep tissue massage.

Headed to Mysore

We had a busy day in Bangalore yesterday, with visits to the National Association for the Blind, 24/7 (a business process solutions firm), and Target Corporation. (Target has a large and growing operation in India, although there are no Target stores here.) We ended the evening with a nice Indian dinner with the executives from Target.

Yesterday was Bangalore's rainiest day this year, and it's still wet this morning. Bangalore has ongoing problems with flooding, because the storm sewage system (such as it is) is filled with sludge. Some neighborhoods flood every time it rains. We've seen flooded streets and downed tree branches. The newspaper reports one person died when a house partially collapsed.

Today we are headed to Mysore. The 3 1/2 hour bus ride provides a great opportunity to write a blog post. We will visit Mysore Palace before a corporate visit at the Infosys campus. I visited the Infosys office in London in 2009, so it should be interesting to learn more about their operations here in India.

We expect to get back to our hotel around Midnight. Tomorrow is a low-key day around Bangalore and the hotel before we fly to Delhi in the evening, then catch a 1:00 am flight to Frankfurt before the final leg to O'Hare. Assuming there are no further problems with the pilot strike.

Dilli Haat Adventure, Etc.

Oops - misspelled Dilli Haat in my last post. Then, I had technical difficulties and this didn't get posted yesterday when I first wrote it. So, now for your enjoyment:

We had quite an adventure in our hour at the open-air market. Just as we arrived, a nasty dust storm blew up (worse, and longer than the one at the Taj Mahal). So it was dark, rainy, and gritty, but part of the time we could be sheltered in the vendors' stalls.

In any case, most of us got some shopping in. I bought a kurti (shirt) for my self and several souvenirs, and, (unlike in Ghana and Chile) for the most part, I didn't pay more than I wanted to. Some of the students, I hear, were expert bargainers. We had fun.

Update: Then we headed back to the hotel for quick showers, and headed out to a very nice dinner hosted by the associate dean. Following that, the guys on the trip had an after-hours mini golf tournament at the hotel. I got a hole-in-one! It was awesome, but my team didn't win.

Today we flew to Bangalore. I wrote in my journal for the entire flight. We drove to the hotel, stopping at McDonald's on the way. We checked in and had about 20 minutes to get ready for the city tour. After the tour, we had about 45 minutes to unpack, shower, and change before an arranged 7:30 dinner with a local businessman. The dinner ran until just after 10:00(!), and then I went to the hotel business center to approve time sheets (which must be approved by tomorrow). The internet here is awful, so it took me 47 minutes to approve 3 time sheets! While I waited for the pages to load and the approvals to go though, I approved a few other documents, cleaned out email, and discovered my blog glitch.

I took care of a couple other tasks and finally returned to my room to get ready for bed around 11:45. Now that I've fixed the blog it's 1:05. My wake-up call comes at 6.

...and this was then night when I thought I would FINALLY get more than 5 hours of sleep. Guess it's just not going to happen this trip.

Gandhi Smriti

Today we are touring Delhi, after an interesting visit and presentation this morning with Dr. C. Chandra Mouli, Registrar General and Census Commissioner for India. (It's quite an operation to count 1.2 billion people!)

We visited the Qutub Minar, site of the first Mosque in India. Aside from the historic minaret, the site is primarily a ruin. But it's beautiful.

We just left the Gandhi Smriti, the memorial to M.K. Gandhi, and the house where he lived in is final days. It is also the place where he was assassinated. The photo is of Gandhi's room. Several students, staff members, and I commented on what a peaceful place it is. I think some of us could have spent more time here - there was so much to learn about Gandhi's life and the movement for Indian independence.

Soon we will spend some time in Delhi Haat, a street market (much less serene, I'm sure), before returning to the hotel for showers and then dinner with the Associate Dean.

Well, that was Agra

After a long and interesting bus ride to Agra this morning, we visited the Red Fort. It was a huge fort of red sandstone which was, for a long time, the seat of the Indian government under Moghul rule. At least 5 kings ruled from here, including Shah Jahan who built the Taj Mahal as a mausoleum for his most beloved wife (who died giving birth to their 14th child).

This fort was the real deal: moat with crocodiles, drawbridge, elevated position, high walls, and windows for guns and canons. It includes several palaces and a military barracks, as well as gardens and courtyards.

There are beautiful views of the Taj from the Fort. Shah Jahan was eventually imprisoned by his son and housed in his deceased wife's former apartment, where he could sit on the balcony and look at the Taj daily.

Then we went to the Taj. Didn't really live up to my romantic expectations of what the experience would be. For starters, by the time we arrived the sky was so overcast that the Taj nearly blended in. Almost immediately a sand storm blew up and we rushed to the mausoleum in an attempt to get inside before the rain started. (Didn't make it.)

Tourists are not allowed to walk on the marble platform in shoes, so we were issued booties to slip over our shoes. Mine didn't fit, so I had to sit in the rain and take my shoes off to put on the booties. Have you ever walked on wet marble with little flat plastic soles on your feet? Not wise. I tried for a few minutes before realizing my socks were getting soaked and I would be much safer barefoot.

After I took off the booties and socks I ventured into the mausoleum. Big, annoying cattle call. Very pushy people jostled to get in the narrow doors while guards blew whistles to keep everyone moving. Inside, where the huge dim space is lit with a single bulb, we quickly circled the tombs which are hidden behind tall screens.

Back outside, the rain had stopped and the sky cleared a little, so we were able to get some decent pictures and enjoy some view of the Taj before leaving. Nice at the end, but not the tranquil or spiritual experience I had anticipated.

As I write this, we're on our way back to Delhi, driving through a much nastier sand storm. Just now stopping at McDonald's to see how they do burgers without beef.

Day 1 Recap

We finally made it to New Delhi!

After a short bus ride from the airport, we got settled into our hotel Taj Palace around 5:00 pm. Took a quick shower before meeting in the swanky hotel bar to celebrate Justine's birthday. It was warm, but we sat outside while nearby some of our students practiced putting on the hotel's practice greens.

After one drink we went inside and had a nice Indian dinner. My friend Aashish arrived during dinner. He is a Kelley alumnus who lives in Delhi and with whom I spent time in Oxford in 2009. After dinner, he took the faculty member Ramesh and me out to the Kahn Market, a happening area for night life. We had a nice visit in a club there, discussing issues related to international students at Kelley, recruiting in India, and alumni involvement.

We got a little lost on the way back to the hotel. New Delhi is set up in a radial pattern with roundabouts everywhere, and Aashish was having a difficult time finding the road leading back to the hotel. So I got a nice late-night tour of the city, past the Parliament House, india Gate, shopping areas, a Sikh guru dwara, parks, embassies, the National Museum, National Archives, and lots of tree-lined streets.

Finally made it back to the hotel in time for about 4 hours of sleep. We're currently on our way to Agra and the Taj Mahal. We just stopped at a state border crossing to pay the taxes, and a lot of guys had monkeys to show us in hopes that we would take a picture and pay them money.

Enough time on my BlackBerry for now - time to once again focus my attention on the interesting surroundings.

Made it!

Delhi Airport

New Plan

It's shortly after 11:00 pm and we're on our way! Found out at 3:00 pm today our flight was cancelled. By 7:00, we were booked (allegedly) on another flight that leaves at 6:00 am. So I rushed home from work at 8:00 pm through the torrential rain. Finished backing, took a quick shower, and left at 9:48. Many thanks to Barry, who drove me through the flash flooding back to campus. Everyone was present and ready when the bus arrived, so we actually left a few minutes before the 11:00 departure time.

From here, we're supposed to meet an airline agent at O'Hare at 4:00 am, flight to LaGuardia at 6:00 am, transfer to JFK, then a 3:00 flight to New Delhi. Anticipated arrival 3:10 pm Wednesday, same time we would have arrived on the original flight. All this after a 10 1/2 hour workday today. I think I'll try to get some sleep now. I've slept on a bus before.

Oh Boy...

We were supposed to leave for India at 5:30 tomorrow morning - but our flight was cancelled. As you can imagine, it's not that simple to re-book a group of 31 travelers on different flight to the other side of the world. But we have a group of people working on it!

We might leave about the same time, or earlier, or maybe a day later (hope not!). We might have a layover or get a different direct flight. We might change airlines (which would be great for getting frequent flyer miles), or stick with India Air.

However, there is talk of an India Air strike in two hours.

Meanwhile, we're just hanging out in the business school waiting for details, watching Bollywood videos on YouTube. I wish we knew what's going on so I could go home and finish packing!

I'm getting a little nervous...

Permethrin Party

I'm finally getting around to treating my clothes with Permethrin, although not everything I'm taking is out of the washer yet. I just can't put it off any longer, because I don't want to pack wet clothes! It's a little misleading to call it a party, though. Kind of boring doing it by yourself.

The things we do to avoid Dengue Fever.

Blogging for Kelley

I will be posting occasionally about the India trip on the Kelley School of Business Undergraduate Blog, so I've added that link to the right.

Finally: Preparing for the Trip

While I attended class for 6 weeks, I have never quite felt like I was "ready" for this trip to India. Too many other things going on, I guess. So last night I had a dream that we were leaving - like literally it was time to go board the bus - and I wasn't done packing. In fact, I hadn't even done laundry and I didn't have enough clean clothes to take.

So today I have a little time to myself, and I've started quite an extensive packing list. I've got almost a full page of items to take, and I'm just now getting around to listing the clothing items. I also spent some time sorting and organizing my class folder, and listing the thing I still need to read, research, or prepare before we go.

I may still be not quite ready, but at least now I'm on track!

Headed to India!

Wow - it has been nearly a year since we've posted to this blog. Sorry it has been so long, but that's only because we haven't been doing any international travel. That's about to change. In 11 days I will be traveling to Delhi and Bangalore, India with 4 colleagues and 27 students as part of the Kelley School's Business in a Flat World class. Check out the link for more information about the class.

On our first full day in India, we will visit the Taj Mahal, so I'm posting a picture of the Taj which I found through Google. Image is not mine.

I do plan to blog from India, so we'll see how that works out! I'll try to post some links before I go, but I still got lots of preparation and packing to do!