Jodhpur, India

Andy and I returned from Jodhpur, India, last Thursday...and we are still suffering from jet lag after circumnavigating the earth in eight days. We accomplished my primary objective.

Meeting Rani..."the Rani Sahib of Jodhpur", aged 81, the widow of His Highness Himmat Singhji, Regent of Jodhpur, was such a sweet experience...an honor and a privilege. She was so gracious. She remembered my father Allan Robert Wegener (known to as Pops) with fondness and shared stories with us for two hours.

Rani then connected us with Kishor Singh, aged 80. My father mentioned Kishor many times in his memoirs. This meeting was completely unexpected and particularly poignant...because Kishor obviously loved my father...and said so many times. We talked
for two hours...and plan to keep the
communications open.

And we had dinner with the current Maharaja Gaj Singhji which was a memorable experience.

But our success was facilitated by Ann Newton Holmes, whom I have mentioned previously in this blog. None of this would have happened without Ann. There was no way to adequately thank her. But what was not expected...and really not totally revealed until we got home, was that Ann's husband Fred R. Holmes was possibly the world expert on Hindu architecture. it was not until I got into the book on the Umaid Bhawan Palace, authored by Fred and Ann that I discovered the depth of their knowledge and understanding of Hindu architecture.

Unfortunately Fred passed away last September, leaving Ann to complete arrangements for the publishing of their next book, which is about Chattris...Hindu Funerary Memorials. And it was Ann who led us on tours of the Umaid Bhawan Palace and the Mehrangarh Fort Palace. I really had no idea at the time, that there was no-one in this world better prepared to lead such tours. The same may be said about the Suttee, which my father witnessed, along with Rani and Kishor. No westerner knows more about Suttee, or is more respectful of the act, than Ann Holmes. Again...it was a privilege to have Ann invite us to India at this time and to have her take four days of her valuable time showing us around Johpur and introducing us to special people who knew my father.

Yes there were elements of our travel experience that I would not want to share with Kathie, but in general the trip was fabulous...and mission accomplished. The full report of our Indian Odyssey is available upon request.