Mon. Oct. 13, 2003 - Looking out from Fort Madhogarh

Intrepid, the tour company, did a good job of trying to show us the "real India," not just the hotels and tourist traps. We drove two hours on crumbling roads to reach the village of Madhogarh, where we stayed in the fort palace — where we were guests of the raja and his family. They greeted the arrival of our truck by encircling us with leis of marigolds and sprinkling flower petals in our hair. Strange to think that, somewhere in a small village in India, I can be royalty. Here is the view from the palace where we stayed.