Sambhar, Rajasthan, India

Drove out to the middle of nowhere on the Sambhar salt flats. Did donuts, drag raced, played cricket. Quickly undid all the work the mechanic performed on our tuk tuks yesterday. Possibly the best day yet.

Drag Race Results:

Ghand Warhol 2

The Mighty Tuks 1 

Marc beat Simon 

Sean beat Kristian

Jarryd beat Robbi.

Jaipur, Rajasthan, India

Medical Update: Kristian got toilet paper stuck in his ear. After many unsuccessful attempts to dislodge it he had to go to the hospital to have it removed by a professional (I promise I did not make this up). Also, Jarryd has been sidelined by a nasty case of "Dehli Belly", or in this case "Jaipur Belly." Both are expected to make full recovery.@

Jaipur, Rajasthan, India

Rest day in Jaipur. At Hotel Arya Niwas if any other teams would like to join us for a beer tonight.

Map of our Progress

Here is the link to the map of our progress: http://www.theadventurists.com/the-adventures/rickshaw-run/teams/the-mighty-tuks

You can also click adventure map at the top to see where the other teams are.

Day 4-8: A catch-up post

Due to lack of wifi access we have only been able to update via text. Here is a quick recap on the past 4 days:

Day 4: Taxi down from Darjeeling to Siliguri. Went to the train station to try and negotiate with the station manager again to get our tuk tuk on the train to Moghulsarai. Trainstations have been the most grim places we have visited, but the train station at night was really rough. Some of the worst poverty we have seen during the race. We failed yet again at securing a spot on the train for our tuk tuks, but were able to get our tickets confirmed for the six of us. Rather dissapointing as we could have stayed in Darjeeling another night if we had know... miss the tea there already.

 Day 5: Showed up to the train station early to continue the negotiations. We had an 1130 train, so we showed up at the station at 830 so we would have time to get things sorted... barely enough time. We, along with Team Ghandi Warhol, drove our tuk tuks over a pedestraian bridge inside the trainstation, and then had to drive them across the tracks multiple times. When we showed up we saw 2 other tuk tuks on the platform to be loaded on our train. The teams had left them and taken a train a day earlier to Varanasi. We  were told there would not be room for ours, but after some very heated conversation we took the spots of the other 2 tuk tuks (sorry guys). Getting them in the cargo train car was a serious hassle, as they are about an inch wider than the door's opening...so the fenders were smashed in in the process. With tuk tuks on the train we proceeded to our train car, which turned out not to be 3rd class, but 3rd tier AC class, which was pretty nice. We used our 15 hour ride and 6 person cabin to have a few drinks, eat some samosas, and socialize with other travellers. Definitely a highlight of the trip.

 Day 6: Arrived in Mughalsarai and proceeded to drive directly to Varnasi, along with 2 japanese travellers we met on the train who joined our teams for the day. Varanasi lies the Ganges River is considered holy by Hindus, who come to bathe in it as well as have their bodies creamated on its banks and push the ashes into the river. `while it is a very holy place to Hindus, it also happens to be one of the dirtiest rivers in the world. It has 1000 times the allowed amount of fecal mater in the water than the Indian Government deems safe. People regularly swim and bathe in the water, which looks a bit like chocolate milk. The river was flooded so we could not see any of the Ghats (riverside open crematoriums). Only being able to stomach the smell and grim sights for the morning, we hopped in the tuk tuks and headed to Allahabad.

 Day 7: Our biggest day yet. We drove non-stop from Allahabad to Agra in about 13 hours. The appearance of a well-built highway allowed us to max out the range of the tuk tuk. Ran late, and hit nightfall 10 miles outside of Agra. Driving at night in India is a terrifying/exhilirating expeience, one which we were happy to have be over quite quickly. Once we reached our hotel we were notified there was a suspected terrorist attack in the city which was not the warmest welcoming. With everyone safe and sound we set out to celebrate Kristian's birthday, which was quite successful.

Day 8: Went to the Taj Majal in the morning, which is unbelieveably impressive. it is a bit of a tourist mess, but worth a vist to Agra just to see it. Set off for Jaipur about mid-day, and arrived at nightfall, just in time for a huge meal. Based on the Rickshaw Run Live Map, we are the 2 teams that are in the lead. I am sure there are other teams in front of us that just havent been updating...but the being the first over the line in Jaisalmer would be pretty great. Taking a rest day here in Jaipur tomorrow to and will be back on the road Tuesday morning. Finally have reliable internet and will be uploading a bunch of pictures tomorrow morning for everyone to see. Until then...

Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India

Saw the Taj Mahal, a bit over indulgent really. But well worth a look. Moving on to Jaipur. In to Rajasthan we go.

Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India

Security Update: There has just been a suspected terrorist attack at a hospital in Agra. We are all fine and will be leaving first thing tomorrow morning.@

Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India

Allahabad to Agra in 13 hours. Broke the cardinal rule of driving in India... Drove at night. Absolute insanity. Most cars driving without headlights. We had a headlamp, LEDs, and a maglite. Caravanned nose to bumper with Team Ghandi Warhol at full speed, swerving through traffic like we were driving an American diplomatic convoy through Baghdad. In other news, its Kristian's birthday tonight, and we are going to celebrate Agra style... Not sure what that means yet but I'll report back with a full update on the past 3 days in the morning.

Uttar Pradesh, India

Having a water fight with Team Ghandi Warhol on the highway leading to Kanpur. Running out of water to throw, might start chucking oil...@

Uttar Pradesh, India

After a couple yelling matches the rail station guys tried to split our two teams up and attempted to impound our tuk tuks. Simon ended up paying a "bond" to allow us to leave the station. We added two Japanese girls we met on the train to the two tuk tuks for the day. The more the merrier right? Headed to Varanasi to see the Ganges River. Most disgusting water on earth. A chocolate milk colored mix of excrement, cremated bodies, and trash.... With tons of people bathing in it. Marc from Team Ghandi Warhol put his leg in, we will report back as to how quickly it falls off. Now off to Allahabad to shower and change after wearing these clothes for 2 days. Rumor has it lots of the hotels there have pools... Maybe a few mango lassies poolside?

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