Monday, September 18 Sanchi, Udaigiri Caves
Although the hotel tonight was the least prison-cell-like of all, the owner locked me in the compound, and I had to yell to him to open it. I walked up a hill to Sanchi at the crack of dawn, and bought a ticket for 25 times the Indian National price. I get the idea that no one visits Madhya Prad
esh. The log book averaged one group (including Indians) per day. There are empty government lodges everywhere, and I was able to get my hotel room for 100 Rs per night. I got to the top of the round hill, overlooking Sanchi and the central Madhya Pradesh verdant fields. Sanchi features an array of Buddhist stupas, or circular mounds topped with a spire, containing relics. The stupas at Sanchi were built in the 3rd century BC by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka. He chose Sanchi because it was close to his wife’s birthplace, and it was peaceful enough to meditate properly. I have to admit, although I have studied these structures, they weren’t all that impressive. The ornate gateways with carvings of warriors, elephants, lions, and women led to the large semi-circular stupas. They looked more like alien spaceships to me. As a World Heritage
Site, they were being touched up by teams of laborers restoring the bricks and stones. I don’t know what “World Heritage” really means, because there were also priceless ancient rock carvings strewn about the site, and weeds have overgrown the wall in many places. There was a small shrine, which contained Buddhist statues, probably the likes of which were worshipped by Ashoka himself. At every Buddhist monument I have visited, there has been a Mahabodhi Society of Sri Lanka. All of a sudden, 100 Sri Lankans wearing white fabrics and large “Sri Lanka” identity cards on tour turned up. I sat under the one of many benches in the perfect weather, just eyeing the stonework of the stupas and their gateways. However, once I get back into the sun, I was burning up. I walked back down to the town, containing a cross-street and nothing more. I had a lunch of Pathak Restaurant and talked to the owner, a Brahmin who shares Snehal’s Hindu last name. 
After resting a bit, I took the bus to Vidisha, and caught a rickshaw from a young mulleted Indian, blasting Hindi tunes the entire way through the dusty town and down deserted dirt roads lined with eucalyptus trees and farmland. We passed a river, with a Hindu temple where boys were bathing themselves and their motorcycles. We also passed a massive gathering of people, bicycles, and water buffalo. It was a cow bazaar, where people brought their livestock to buy and sell. Small, strong, weak, fat, skinny, old, and young shimmering black buffalo and Brahmanic cattle were all on display and people inspected and sold them on the spot. 
We reached Udaigiri Caves, a national monument. It was a series of Hindu man-made caves cut into a steep sandstone hill, dating to the Gupta Period, 1700-1400 years ago. The cave carvings were weathered away, and not as impressive as the towering views of green sea of farms, palm trees, and plains of Madhya Pradesh. Small villages dotted the otherwise fertile farmlands. Atop the mountain, it was extremely hot, and there were protruding rocks, which reminded me of the Lion King. I went back via bus and rickshaw, and then saw the sunset over Sanchi again. After this, I went to go eat, and then I went to bed. This is a tourist’s paradise; a plethora of deserted sites, there are no souvenirs to spend your money on, and nobody is hassling you.
esh. The log book averaged one group (including Indians) per day. There are empty government lodges everywhere, and I was able to get my hotel room for 100 Rs per night. I got to the top of the round hill, overlooking Sanchi and the central Madhya Pradesh verdant fields. Sanchi features an array of Buddhist stupas, or circular mounds topped with a spire, containing relics. The stupas at Sanchi were built in the 3rd century BC by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka. He chose Sanchi because it was close to his wife’s birthplace, and it was peaceful enough to meditate properly. I have to admit, although I have studied these structures, they weren’t all that impressive. The ornate gateways with carvings of warriors, elephants, lions, and women led to the large semi-circular stupas. They looked more like alien spaceships to me. As a World Heritage
Site, they were being touched up by teams of laborers restoring the bricks and stones. I don’t know what “World Heritage” really means, because there were also priceless ancient rock carvings strewn about the site, and weeds have overgrown the wall in many places. There was a small shrine, which contained Buddhist statues, probably the likes of which were worshipped by Ashoka himself. At every Buddhist monument I have visited, there has been a Mahabodhi Society of 
After resting a bit, I took the bus to Vidisha, and caught a rickshaw from a young mulleted Indian, blasting Hindi tunes the entire way through the dusty town and down deserted dirt roads lined with eucalyptus trees and farmland. We passed a river, with a Hindu temple where boys were bathing themselves and their motorcycles. We also passed a massive gathering of people, bicycles, and water buffalo. It was a cow bazaar, where people brought their livestock to buy and sell. Small, strong, weak, fat, skinny, old, and young shimmering black buffalo and Brahmanic cattle were all on display and people inspected and sold them on the spot. 
We reached 
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