Having spent five days in India, American gay couple Reichen Lehmkuhl and Chip Arndt, who emerged winners during the fourth season of Amazing Race, reveal that they fell in love with Mumbai.
Twelve teams participated in this travel adventure challenge that kicked off on AXN on May 30.
In his own quaint way, 38-year-old financial consultant Arndt refers to Mumbai as Bollywood. ‘‘Mumbai is really coming into its own and the contrast between the new constructions and the traditional buildings is fascinating,’’ says 28-year-old Lehmkuhl in a telephonic interview.
The 26-hour picturesque train journey along the coast of Maharashtra to Kerala, part of the contest, is another memory that the couple has taken back from India. And Kerala brings back memories of bull races, riding elephants and travelling in cycle rickshaws packed with chicken crates.
‘‘Yeah, there were many animals in Kerala,’’ quips Arndt. Throw in frantic hunts for clues at Los Angeles’ Dodgers Stadium that guide the teams to the next destination spot to skiing on the Austrian Alps. ‘‘But the toughest clue was when we had to eat a live octopus in Korea,’’ reveals Arndt.
Besides having won a million bucks and national recognition, Lehmkuhl landed a role in television sitcom Frasier. ‘‘I just have one line in the opening season,’’ says the pilot, who has given up a teaching job at an LA flight school to fully exploit his acting abilities.
Arndt reveals that he’s all set to get back to his risk management consulting job. And the couple is also happy to announce that they’ve turned into a hot commodity after the show was televised internationally.
‘‘Right now we’re at an advantage in the US having won the Amazing Race because several other TV producers will want us on their show,’’ says Lehmkuhl.
While Arndt dreams about a new RD bike and paying for his business school with the prize money, Lehmkuhl reminisces about how it all began. Once upon a time, at a wayside cafe in LA, the seeds of a million-dollar race were sown...