High on a Hill

Over the weekend, we took part in the annual faculty retreat to Neemrana Fort Palace in Rajasthan. While it sounds exotic - and it kind of is - it's sort of like taking tourists visiting Maine to DiMillo's. But the nearly three hour bus ride away from Delhi was a feast for the eyes and the 24 hours at Neemrana a nice escape. We spent most of our time in the pool, and also enjoyed some good food, hiked around the fort, and saw some cool animals including parrots and monkeys.

India has some outrageously comical signs. This one lists who does not need to pay at the toll plaza:


The cow herder, guiding his charges along the highway:


Once at Neemrana, we found a lot of stairs:

Which led to nice views:


The pool area is where the umbrellas are, above the amphitheater:


In the evening, there was a "cultural show" which included music, dancing and various fire tricks that we really hope the kids won't try at home. The real highlight was Jonah getting picked from the audience to join the star of the show for a dance. Funny that this also happened on our honeymoon ten years ago....and for the second time, I failed to capture the scene on video. Lucky Jonah.


In other news, Liam made huge strides in his swim skills over the weekend. He just does not give up, and swam the width of the pool doing his signature frog stroke.

Asa taking a leap:


Leaving Neemrana, to walk back through town to catch the bus:


Camel we saw in town, all dressed up to bid the tourists farewell: