India IXX - Rajasthan

Finally, 
I had the chance to return to India for the first time since November, 2019 !!

First thing I noticed, is the "air routes" have changed...again.  Prior to 2014, the invasion of Crimea and the shoot-down of the Malaysian Airlines Flt 17 over Ukraine, a New York-India flight would make a long, smooth arc, over Iceland, across Finland, and down along the Russia-Ukraine border.  Then in 2014, we needed to edge further north, over Russia and Moscow, avoiding Ukraine.  But now, with the war going on and Russian airspace restricted, we need to edge farther south.

So, we swing low, under Ukraine, skirting across the Black Sea, avoiding Crimea, and then do a few more gymnastics when we get to the border of Pakistan.  India and Pakistan have a tense relationship, and so airlines must follow specific flight paths across Pakistan, avoiding the zones of tension.

Of course, this route takes a bit longer than it used to, close to 16 hours from NY to Delhi, and because of winds, a bit longer on the way back.

After meetings in Delhi, we flew to Jodhpur, in Rajasthan (in western India) and drove down to visit the site of a recent delivery.  Not far away from us is a small town where a large number of (avian) cranes spend the winter, flying down from the Himalayas.

I had the opportunity to get out in the pre-dawn to see what I could find to photograph...one of my favorite pass-times.

Got a new self-portrait in the reflection of the glass garage doors housing the Raja's collection of vintage automobiles.

In Jodhpur, the former palace of the Maharaja is built in a mountaintop fortress.

Looking up from the lower gate...

I'm not certain, but I think this centuries-old rotating wheel, mounted high on the castle wall, is likely a "running windlass" (a kind of winch).  Proof that crane salesmen existed long before the existence of electric motors !

One of the main gates.  Its construction makes an attacking army take a hard, right turn to attack the gate, making battering rams and war elephants less effective.

Amazing place, now managed by a trust that keeps it maintained and opened to tourists...now that the Maharaja has moved on to more modern digs.

And, oh yeah, huge fruit bats... flying foxes...

Ah, India...

Go see sometime.

-Mark