Random street sigs

There are two signs I pass every day on my way home from school and I have to say that after 8 weeks they still attract my attention. One because I am not at all sure what it means. Wait, that doesn't sound quite right, I know what it means, but I don't know what it means if you understand me. It is just a simple green sign that says "Thanks" in English and Hindi. Thanks for what? What am I missing? Who could clue me in? I wonder if one of my taxi drivers could explain it to me but just the thought of that conversation confuses me and I doubt I'd even be able to get my point across to ask the question.

The other just explains a bit about traffic here. It is a simple sign that explains what the colors of the traffic lights mean. Red = stop. Green = go. Yellow = look. It might as well say Yellow = honk and speed through as that is what happens, although I suppose the drivers do look to see if they might be hit as they try to avoid having to wait at the light. I really think it would be more appropriate if it just said Yellow = honk. After all that is what happens, despite the signs on the side of the road imploring "do not honk." - which are perhaps never going to be successful when the trucks themselves are painted with sayings including "horn please."

Neemrana Fort

A few weekends ago I had the opportunity to get out of Delhi for the weekend on the faculty retreat. A pretty fancy way to say that the school organizes a bus and helps us reserved hotel rooms so that we can spend a weekend hanging out together away from school. I, of course, hopped on board. After all why wouldn't I go somewhere if someone else is going to organize it? The destination? Neemrana Fort-Palace, 122 kilometers outside of Delhi. What makes this a cool destination is the hotel itself. Originally built in 1464 it was a hillside fort for the Chauhans until 1947. It was renovated and turned into a hotel in 1986 and staying there is a bit like taking a step back in time. I had a nice turret room, complete with raised bed, sitting area and some old furnishings. Made me feel a bit like a princess. Wandering around you could get lost in all the nooks and crannies, but the overlooks provided great views of the nearby village and of the multitude of layers in the fort itself. Some views consisted of canon ball laden roofs, others of balconies, still others of the pools or sitting courtyards. While the green pool water meant the main activity was unappealing, it was still a lovely place to relax for a weekend and get a glimpse of different area of northern India. Saturday night we were treated to the tourist show - a variety of dances including one man dressed up as a peacock (complete with feather tail fan), a flower dancer, a man and a woman who balanced pots of fire on their hands and heads, one man who managed multiple spinning bicycle wheels, and of course a pair of fire breathers who lit up the night sky around us. All in all a pleasant weekend in a magical location.