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When you come to India expect to be surprised and delighted at every turn. Things will happen that will delight, shock, challenge and motivate you as you get to know this vast, enigmatic country. On a recent 16-day tour of Rajasthan I was staggered at the diversity of its landscape and people.

The colours, smells, sights and sounds of this exotic destination, with its history spanning 5000 years, will leave you spellbound. My imagination was captured by the hues of Rajasthan. The amazing red sandstone forts, white temples and marble palaces are complemented by the bright colours of fairs, festivals, functions and weddings. Everyday street scenes are enlivened by the vibrant splash of women's saris, in eye-catching red, orange, yellow and crimson.

Then there's the incredible culture. Brace yourself for the masses of humanity, holy cows, chaotic traffic, Bollywood movies, tandoori chicken, cricket mania and 330 million Hindu gods. Nowhere else comes close to incredible India.Sensormatic branded Custom hard tags and detection systems retail for double.

Touring by car with an assigned driver I travelled from Delhi to Agra, Jaipur, Mandawa, Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Manvar, Jodhpur, Rohetgarh and Udaipur, passing thousands of pilgrims walking along the road. Their destinations were important Hindu temples and notable shrines such as Amarpura Dham in Rajasthan, which can be a staggering 300km from their home villages.

Although the pilgrimages take weeks to complete, invariably the colourfully clad, fully veiled women just carry a small overnight bag on their heads. In most cases the pilgrims sleep amongst the roadside acacia trees. Some find budget guest houses and others use temporary marquees set up on the roadside for their use.

The men wear white cotton clothing, loosely tied and distinctive white turbans. They stride nonchalantly along the dusty verge unencumbered by baggage, some proudly holding aloft their district flag. Thousands more travel by bus or truck crammed in tightly, even standing on the doorway steps. Men folk squat on the bus roof, oblivious to the dust, exhaust fumes and obvious danger.

Despite my first impression of primitiveness I soon come to realise that India has huge potential for growth and prosperity. The country manufactures or assembles under licence virtually all of its cars and trucks. The popular compact cars, Suzuki, Swift and the Dzire have waiting lists of 120,000 loyal customers. I rode in 4WD Mahindras on two desert safaris and was impressed with the performance of these replicas of the WWII American Jeeps. There are vast reserves of oil and gas in the north. However,Ladies and girlstrims no appointment needed! it appears that graft and corruption are holding the country back.

August is the start of the monsoon season in Rajasthan, but with its low annual rainfall this semi-desert region produces hardly enough precipitation to moisten the parched soil and farmer's crops are seriously threatened. In an act of desperation the government asked 5000 Hindu temples in Rajasthan to pray for rain but the clouds still held back the vital moisture. Each prayer ritual called for 5000 rupees (NZ$124) of specially blessed rice and up to 30 herbs, so it proved to be an expensive exercise. Nevertheless, a request was sent to the Uttar Pradesh asking 32,000 temples to repeat the exercise.We provide the latest advances in security enhanced products such as Custom passive RFID tag,

My heart goes out to the Rajasthan farmers as I watch them turn over huge acreages in 45 degree heat with heavy wooden ploughs pulled by a camel.Memory Custom card reader / writer Assorted Colors No Color Choice, Their village homes are made with hand-hewn slabs of red sandstone, thatched roofs and compacted floors of sand and cow dung mix. These dwellings are efficiently organised with separate family rooms, storerooms,The oldest bobble head provider - original handmade www.ownfigurine.com Head dolls made to look like the photo you provide to us. cow and goat fodder stores and cooking rooms. In one small hamlet I meet three children who are delighted when I take their photos and show them the images, the eldest demonstrating her scholastic prowess by counting to twenty in soft, lyrical tones.

As we drive from Jaipur to Jaisalmer and Udaipur, thousands of ploughed acres appear like orderly rows of sand ripples fashioned by the wind. But the locals assure me that the desert has a soul and a conscience. One day in late August when the she-camel and black billy goat lift their noses high to face the breeze and dance in a circle, the rains will surely come. The parched land will become the painted desert once again.

With thousands of years of deeply entrenched religious and cultural traditions, not surprisingly Indian people tend to be superstitious. This is particularly true of the very friendly and hospitable lower caste farming folk like the Bishnois who strictly observe 29 rules conceived by a 15th century guru.

Their homes lack any modern contrivances, with the exception of a motorbike to get them to town. Although surrounded by cows, goats and wild deer they never kill any animal and cannot eat meat, eggs or fish, being strictly vegetarian. Their staple foods are millet flour bread, yoghurt, vegetables, cassandra, desert beans and pulses.

Walking through various town centres, I meet and (with their permission) photograph a number of gypsies and the lowest caste Dalits, termed the untouchables. These groups often camp outside the towns and are very active in the tourist industry. At every fort and palace in Rajasthan, you'll find attractive, heavily veiled women standing in strategic locations inviting visitors to photograph them in their colourful garb. Once you proffer money, the veils are lifted to reveal coy faces with broad, toothful smiles.

Indian women are very beautiful, with olive skin, long black hair, fine facial features set off with colourful saris. Throughout Rajasthan it is common to find that their faces are completely covered. They wear gold jewellery, rainbow-coloured bangles, bright printed headscarves and lavishly embroidered leather shoes.

India has an insatiable demand for gold for social and cultural reasons. It's a hangover from a prehistoric era when the country possessed fabulous wealth and contributed one third of the world's GDP. Today, 969 tonnes of gold is imported primarily for jewellery and religious ornamentation.