udaipur

On Friday morning (July 15) we got on an all day train to Udaipur in Rajasthan. It was a pretty long train ride but we passed the time with movies, talking and card games. This was the mid-summer excursion trip for the SummerLINK team and it was a great time to get away, rest, spend time as a team studying and talking, and visit a new city/state. I know what you are thinking... really? a break after only 3 weeks? But trust me, it was needed. Our team was pretty exhausted from going, going, going hard since we got here. It has been very draining. Physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually... so it was very refreshing and it recharged us for the rest of the summer.

View from our hotel window. Udaipur is known as the city of lakes and it is often called "Venice of the East".  

entrance to the hotel we stayed at

 I just love the architecture and details!

 On Sunday night we went out to dinner as a team and then we walked around a lake. 

 the girls

 On Monday night we went shopping at a market and then to dinner.

whole team... thanks for the picture Jenna :)

 We were able to buy some things for our home. We bought a bed cover from this shop. Do you see the pile of stuff on the floor? They pull out tons of different items to show you. It is time consuming but fun to look at everything. I had looked in a lot of little tapestry/fabric shops before finding one I liked. 

 Chad outside the shop. 

 This is the Lake Palace that was built in the mid 1700's. It is in the middle of Lake Pichola. It was built as a summer palace but now it is a nice hotel. It looks like it is floating on the lake but it is on a small island. You have to take a boat to get to it. 

 Some of the cities in Rajasthan are known for their color. Jodhpur = the blue city. Jaipur = the pink city. Jaisalmer = the golden city.  Udaipur is known as the white city. The buildings and palaces are all white. 

The guys before dinner. We had a great view! We sat outside and the weather was so pleasant.

 the girls 

 As we ate dinner it got darker and darker. Look at all the bats in the sky!

 On Tuesday after some team time and reflecting time, we went to a few markets. First we went to Jagdish Chowk. Then we went to Hathi Pol Market (Elephant Gate). The streets were lined with lots of different shopping stalls with all sorts of handicrafts. We bought some fun decorations for our home. 

We headed back to the train station on Tuesday night and took the night train home (it took around 12 hours!) Now we are back in action in our city but it was a great time to get away and recharge.