POEMS FROM TRAVELLING TO BHUTAN AND INDIA

HANS

Hans is like a father to Leo.
With his mother they make a trio.
Together they seem merry.
But Shelley he won't marry,
Says he can't get along with she, oh.


KOLKATA

To Kolkata first we went --
The seat of a commie government.
Though she has no coliseum,
She boasts the Indian Museum
And the Victoria Monument.

'Twas for the poor of this city
That Mother Teresa showed her pity.
An auction house for teas
And three universities
Has India's former capital city.

On the banks of the Hooghly River,
She grew in three centuries of endeavor.
Though short must be our look,
According to my book,
Kolkata has much to deliver.

In the West Bengal state
Ninety-four percent are literate.
Of religions there is quite a mix
With Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Jains and Sikhs.
Booksellers downtown proliferate.

We saw the temple of the Jains,
A religion our guide explained,
The Queen Victoria Monument,
Mother Teresa's little convent,
And other attractions main.


BHUTAN

Bhutan, a mountain state,
Has changed a lot of late.
While still a monarchy,
It's now a democracy.
Their new king they venerate.

Also we found out
The people are right devout.
In this land of not much size
That sees fit to modernize,
Tourists fly in and out.


THIMPHU

In this little mountain town
We had a look around.
No one's in a hurry.
About crime you need not worry.
It's here they keep the crown.

We saw the memorial to King Three
And some marvelous archery,
The fortress and the takin
And, while in our stockin's walkin',
The Buddhist nunnery.

We visited the library where they store
Their many treasured books of yore.
We were in the museum of textiles
And the arts and crafts school for a while.
In both were weavers sitting on the floor.


DOCHULA PASS

Of mountain roads this is the mother
With more curves than any other.
On the summit at ten thousand feet
We saw a hundred supras neat,
And Punakha proved worth the bother.


PUNAKHA DZONG

Our ride grew tedious and long
Er we visited the Punaka Dzong.
It sits along a river.
Its equal you'll see never.
Beautiful, big and old it is and strong.


PUNAKHA

At eight thirty, forth we sallied,
Then cruised a gorgeous valley.
We found green birds and a monkey to like
When we did our nature hike.
Lunch at Village Restaurant was right up our alley.

After but a mile of walking,
We visited Temple Chimmi Lhakhang.
Nor was it any hassle
To tour Wangdu Castle
Where Dorji did the talking.


ON TO PARO

Lucky to have a perfect day,
To Paro we made our way.
No way could our spirits sag.
At the summit we hung our flag.
There at Dochula it will stay.

Pleasant were our stops, --
Right nice photo ops.
Good it was to see 'um --
The old things in the museum
And the snowy mountain tops.

The Watch Tower was top rung.
Likewise the Castle Rinpung.
The rehearsal dance was interesting.
Likewise the instruments with strings
And the songs by the ladies sung.


TIGER'S NEST

In my senility
I'm short on agility.
So I chose to abort
While a long way short
Of the Tiger's Nest facility.


WINNERS

At travel no beginner,
I know what is a winner.
It was the visit to the home
Of Dorji's aunt and grandmom.
And likewise the farewell dinner.


ON TO DELHI

At Himalayan peaks
We were treated to a peek
Er Katmandu
We passed on through
And on to Delhi streaked.


DELHI

Hinduism is no wise simple.
We got an intro at the temple.
Delhi has some residences
That are extremely expensive.
Som showed us some examples.


INDIA'S ARMY

Eleven lakh has the Army Corps.
With their families they make a crore.
At the polls they'll have their say.
As for the amount of their pay,
They wish it were somewhat more.


DELHI'S DOGS

Though not her problem sole,
Delhi's dogs are hard to control.
Of a program not haphazard,
Reduction of this hazard
Is the worthy goal.


LOTUS TEMPLE

Beautiful it is, oh my –
The Lotus Temple of Bahai,
A faith of a attractive kind
Stressing unity of mankind.
And you don't kiss your old faith goodbye.


RICKSHAW RIDE

A rickshaw was our convenience
As old Delhi we experienced,
Riding on its chair, oh,
Through streets so very narrow,
With humanity packed so dense.


JAMI MOSQUE

One of the things we did
Was visit the Jami Masjid.
Twenty-five K muslims in can hold.
The reason for the shawls, we're told,
Is to keep ladies' shoulders hid.


RAJ GHAT

We visited the samadhi
Of Mahatma Ghandi.
Like a god, he is worshipped.
With love and charisma equipped,
He was the father of his country.


INDIA GATE

We stopped at India Gate,
Completed circa twenty-eight.
In the first world war
And the Afghan wars
Many an Indian met his fate.

A canopy that stands nearby
Housed George the fifth in years gone by.
(At the museum
You can see him.)
It's empty now, and a big debate is why.


GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS

Buildings to be admired
From the British were acquired
For ministries of the government
And a coliseum for the parliament
(Its members by the people hired.)


QUTUB MINAR

Came invaders like old Qutub,
And temples went down the tubes.
Materials from them they borrowed
To make their mosque and tower
To convert infidels they saw as rubes.


RUG STORE

Carpets made in Cashmere homes.
None better anywhere you roam.
Cottage Industries Exposition
Makes you a good proposition
If you want to take one home.


BANGLA SAHIB TEMPLE

In Delhi our Sykh temple
Was my first example.
The music was loud.
Thick was the crowd.
Good job we weren't trampled.

The crowd made me nervous.
Our head scarves well did serve us.
So we were properly dressed.
And I was well impressed
By their community service.


FAMILY GOYAL

You'd think that we were royal
From our reception by family Goyal.
It was great with them to connect.
Their artistry made me suspect
They're descendants of Mr. Goya.


FARMERS

It made our day complete
A farming couple to meet.
'Twas a window on their life
To see how, with but a knife,
They were harvesting their wheat.


CHOMU PALACE

The Palace of Chomu
Is a great place to eat stew.
It's full of charm and grace.
To dine in such a place
Was an experience new.

The service fit the scene,
The food the best we've seen.
'Twas more than enough to fill us.
Yet, outside the palace
Was quite a different scene.


SNAKE CHARMERS

To dance and play the flute
For not a lot of loot,
They must be nuts
In their mud huts
With cobra snakes to boot.


AMBER FORT PALACE

Up in a jeep we rode.
Elephants in the fortress strode.
It's impenetrable as a fort,
With too many luxuries to report.
('Twas an info overload.)

With sights, its environs are replete.
It's really quite a treat.
There's the Sun Temple
And a Jain Temple
And cows and pigs in the street.

And no matter who you are,
You'll enjoy the Fort Jaigarh.
Best time I ever had!
But I am very glad
I'm not driving my own car.


JEWELS EMPORIUM

They showed how gems are polished.
Their skill we all acknowledged.
They're designing jewels as well,
And jewels they'll gladly sell.
Their salesmanship is polished.


STREETS OF OLD JAIPUR

Many scooters, single- to-quintuple-loaded motorcycles,
Push carts, horse carts, single- and double-loaded bicycles.
Cars, jeeps, not too fast, rarely stropping, scads of rickshaws,
Buses small, buses large, small trucks, lots of autorickshaws.
Walkers, honkers, sacred cows, and cart tricycles.


SHOPS OF OLD JAIPUR

Products there is galore.
Some you've never seen before.
Though I didn't see a fur
In the shops of old Jaipur,
There's every other kind of store.

The beggars are insistent,
And the foot venders are persistent.
On those crowded, gritty streets,
They ask and they repeat,
And you have to be resistant.


FAMILY SINGH

Gracious and traditional are family Singh.
They don't want for anything.
Smriti supports orphans at her expense.
Surendra works for the government.
Marksmanship is their daughter's thing.


WEDDING PROCESSION

Friends, horses, camels, elephant up ahead,
Two wealthy bothers grandly riding to be wed.
After the wedding and the party,
These young men hale and hearty
Will start to know their brides in bed.


JANTAR MANTAR

It's really quite a story
How the Maharajah in his glory
Not only built a palace and a town
With wide streets for driving round,
But designed and built an observatory.


PALACE MUSEUM

The inlaid mirror hall,
The royal audience hall.
Clothes the royals wore.,
Weapons used in war.
Art works on the walls.


THRESHING

Threshing they've mechanized
With a thresher miniaturized.
Their thresher is, in truth,
Like I knew in my youth
But very much downsized.


NAHARGARH

Like Chomu, it's a splendid palace
In which to drink from a chalice.
It's been great to know 'em.
When I get back home,
Ill sadly have no palace.


RANTHAMBHORE 1


Monkeys and deer we saw and parakeets and pea fowl
And cranes, two crocs, a blue bird, a vulture and an owl.
But, as our Rover lurched,
Hard in vane we searched
For a lion on the prowl.


RANTHAMBHORE 2

A great day it has been,
For a tiger we have seen,
And that was a lot of fun.
You seldom get to see one,
But a tiger we have seen!


VILLAGE SCHOOL

We visited Adarsh Vidya Mandir
And met its superintender.
Students were being tested.
OAT has in this school invested
To augment its budget slender.


THE SAINIS' HOME

For us it was truly dandy
To visit the home of Narayan Saini
And there be privileged to
Learn how Indian folks make do
Who are no wise blessed with plenty.


DASTKARI KENDRA

To the park right next door
At Daskar Ranthambhore,
We made a short stop
So that we could shop.
It's a coop crafts and textile store.


LUNCH

Somewhere far from any town
In a colorful tent we chowed down.
Contrary to my surmising,
The John was right surprising.
'Twas just like downtown!


CAMELS

Farmers with camels happily abide.
Their value cannot be denied.
Working camels are males.
This rule never fails.
Females are herded through the countryside.


CHAND BAORI

Because he thought he oughta,
A ruler made a step well for water.
If you're fit and able,
Walk down to the water table.
If not, then send your daughter.


CAMPING

To the farms convenient,
We're sleeping in a tent
On a bed and not a cot.
Though roughing it this is not,
It wouldn't do for permanent.


CAMEL RIDE

We went riding on some camels,
And past farmers' huts they ambled.
This I can say for sure:
These folks are very poor
And by birth control untrammeled.


CULTURE SHOW

A culture show we watched then.
Performers there were ten
Who afforded us the chance
To enjoy their song and dance,
All local farming men.


CERAMICS DAY

We visited a man by trade a potter
And later some sandstone cutters
And, this being the day for ceramics,
Some folks engaged in making bricks
And their sons and daughters.


FATEPUHR SIKRI

Few rulers have been or are
Quite as great as was Akbar.
I wouldn't call him frugal,
This emperor of the Mughals,
Who left this shining star.


TAJ MAHAL

A beautiful sight to see
Is this ultimate luxury.
It truly is a marvel,
All done in Makrana marble
And perfect symmetry.


AGRA FORT

Lavish it was and large
And home of the man in charge.
And you can be sure
It was very secure.
(No enemy could in there barge.)


INLAID MARBLE

The technique is highly refined.
The workmanship is fine.
If you're smart,
You'll buy this art.
Would you like a floral design?


ON TO KHAJURAHO

We took the fast train to Jahnsi.
And learned of a heroin from Jahnsi
As well as the Bandit Queen.
And saw a water pump like you've never seen,
Ox-driven and no wise fancy.


KHAJURAHO

Here is sculpture exquisite
Of love-making explicit --
Thousands of examples
In thousand-year-old temples.
It's a fun place to visit.

Eighty-four ways to get it on,
Several shown the walls upon.
These folks had the loving knack.
Press the middle of her back
To turn the lady on.

In a method most outstanding
The couple do it standing.
She bends low as this point he's pressing,
While her from behind he's addressing.
Not shown is her stool for standing.

In the position most repeated,
While the man is properly seated,
His lady to him is clinging.
Great pleasure to them it's bringing
Ere the task is completed.


BUDDHISM IN INDIA

In Buddhism's birthplace today
You'll scarcely find Buddhism per se.
Hindus are telling you
Buddha was a visit by Vishnu.
And the philosophies are the same, they say.


ELECTION DAY

Elections were held in India today.
Strict security was in play.
On the streets you couldn't drive.
This was the first phase of five.
Outcome knowledge is a month away.


CEREMONY

Was the ritual to Lord Shiva?
We watched if from the river.
Don't know much about it.
But there's no doubt about it:
It's special to every believer.


HOLY SWIMMERS

We conclude our India surface skimming
By watching holy swimming..
Can you imagine
Swimmers in the Ganges,
All with Karma brimming!


FLYING HOME

A great trip we've had.
To be going home we're glad.
Goodbye to Sikhs and Jains.
Long time spent in planes.
Wanting home food so bad.


FROM JFK AIRPORT

A clue we were without
As to how to get about
On the trains of New York City.
The Schardts on us took pity,
And they helped us out.


Bernie the Bard