Greetings From The Road To Jodhpur

We're writing this post four hours into a grueling all-day drive to Jodhpur. It's becoming clear to us that if our car has shock absorbers at all, they -- like so many of India's beautiful temples and monuments -- are made out of stone.

For relief, we've pulled over for a snack at a roadside restaurant. Thus do we find ourselves at the Motel Maharana Tourist Complex. A more appropriate name for this restaurant might be the Twilight Zone Food Bunker. Turns out there's no motel here, no complex, no maharanas -- and we're the only tourists dumb enough to step across the threshold.

In a dining room as cozy as a Jiffy Lube, we're shown to our a table. Our eyes strain to pierce the gloom. The waiter is pointing at our menus and making lip-smacking noises -- nice touch, garcon. We're being watched by a man across the room who is standing like a sentinel by a door marked "toilet." He's the bathroom attendant, and he's holding some neatly folded toilet paper in his hand, ready for distribution. This make us apprehensive. I mean, how quick on the draw do you need to be with the toilet paper around here?

Bon appetit!

We decide not to take our luncheon at the Motel Maharana Tourist Complex.

So, how stoked will we be to finally get to Jodhpur? Pretty stoked.

But we aren't going to starve today because Abby spotted a roadside stall selling bags of Lays potato chips, which she bought, dusted off, and ate.

Scarfing down Lays while bouncing along Indian roads is asking for trouble. And trouble is what she got, in the form of a massively violent hiccups attack. Everyone can agree it's funny when someone gets the hiccups. But it's less funny when you're sitting right in front of the hiccuper and it sounds like the hiccups are about to graduate into full-blown ralphing on the back of your head. Guess who wasn't laughing: Our driver Naresh.

Let the record show that she had a full recovery and didn't ralph.

Speaking of Lays, you may be interested to know that Indian Lays come with a recipe for Pudina Dip printed right on the bag. We can't wait to get home and try the recipe ourselves. But if you're hungry and want some Pudina Dip right now, it's easy to whip some up. All you need is curd and some pudina. Mix well.

It's midafternoon as we pull out and say "goodbye" to the Motel Maharana Tourist Complex. Jodhpur, an ancient fortress town and former princely state, is still hours away. But on the bright side: If Mom's pants fall down again, there's not a better town to be in.