Well, not too much has changed or happened in the past few days that I've spent on the beach in palolem, goa but I feel like I have so much to say, probably because real life conversations (and not just the ones in my head) have been few and far between as the antisocial European couples on romantic holidays continue to dominate. It's okay though, a lot of relaxation trumps a little bit of lonliness.
First of all this is the only beach I've ever been on where there are cows. And piglets for that matter. Just chilling in the sand, sometimes even under an umbrella. There are plenty of beach dogs which makes me so happy. I think between the resort restaurant's leftovers and all the dog loving tourists, they have a pretty decent life. Right now, my hotel's dog, Dolly, is having a snooze on the porch of my beach hut. It seems she has adopted this as her new home. The local cat has also warmed up to me and even jumped into my hut through the open window the other night demanding some love (just like another cat i know!) The dogs are so sweet though. They like to sleep under people's beach chairs and dig themselves little holes in the sand to stay cool inbetween improptu swims in the ocean. They are also very territorial. It seems that each dog considers a hotel/restaurant and a few beach chairs as their own turf. If another dog gets a little too close you start to hear the cacophany of barks to let them know to back off.
Yesterday I embarked on a real indian adventure traveling through rural goa on local buses for three and a half hours (and then another three to get back) to get to GAWT which is goa's animal welfare centre. I helped out with all the dogs and cats for the day which was amazing but enough to break any animal lover's heart! They had kittens who were literally one twentieth the size of Spike. And the dogs! Oh my god the dogs! I gave them all as much love as I could and I even got to walk some of the puppies they had. I also had a real Ceasar Millan (aka the dog whisperer) moment. They had this really aggressive and scary dog named Bobby who no one could get near because he would bark and growl and show his teeth. But I figured he was just unhappy because he needed some exercise after being cooped up. So I stared him down and let him bark at me for a while while staying completely calm and eventually he calmed down enough for me to put a leash on him and I took him out for a but of a run around. It was like he was a whole new dog afterwards! Happy, panting, and wagging his tail. It was really great to see. The shelter is doing great work. Everyday they take in strays and neuter and spay them. They also run camps at local beaches and in towns where people can bring their dogs to get vacinated and can adopt dogs and cats. It's really amazing. The dogs just broke my heart though. They're so nice and lovely and so many people don't care about them. I think I've decided that I hate people that don't like animals. Like honestly! I wish I could have adopted all of them! If you're interested in learning more about what the shelter does, please check out their website and think about donating. It's a really great charity.
Just google GAWT Animal Care Centre
Because I'm not connected to the net right now and don't have the website handy.
I didn't know when coming here that all the kids are on school holiday. They must be on the same school schedule as Kenya. And this makes for a beach full of Indians who all swim fully clothed. So bizarre! It also means that trying to book trains anywhere is a nightmare because everyone is traveling and on holiday. It just took me about an hour and a half to book a train out of here for Sunday morning (I'm not taking the bus because a couple in the travel agency told me they just got off it and it was full of cockroaches. I can deal with a lot of things but cockroaches scuttling over me during the night is just too much!) So, I'm staying a day and a half longer than I had planned which is fine because who can complain about sun, surf, and sand? I can also finish the new book I'm obsessed with called One Day. It's so good! Such a frivilous beach read. I know they've already filmed the movie version with Anne Hathaway as the lead, so I'm excited for that. I just finished an indian novel that won the Booker prize in 1997 called The God of Small Things. It's set in Kerala which is the southern most state here and where I'm headed for my last week in India. It was really good, but incredibly depressing, so I'm glad to be reading something light and fun now.
Speaking of light and fun, I'm going to try and watch the royal wedding tomorrow somewhere if they'll turn off the cricket for long enough. Seriously, I asked at the one place I eat dinner at everynight (on account of the free wifi) and the guy straight up refused saying they will only show cricket. Crazy! I'm sure I'll figure something out. All the Brits I've talked to said they couldn't care less about it (except for darling Jeni who has already given me her predictions on what Kate will wear) but as dumb as it may seem, I'm rather excited about it. I kinda wish I was there, or at least at home so I could follow all the smut on tv. Anyway, go ahead and judge me if you will, but I'm excited! I think this is a once in a lifetime event! And I cannot wait to see what she's wearing! Did you know they banned beer and liquor from the reception and are only serving champange and wine? And also that Pippa, Kate's sister, wants to decorate Buckingham Palace like a disco for the after party? Loves it!
Hope the weather in Canada and elsewhere is getting nice! A couple more days on the beach and then off to Hampi, Bangalore (the silicon valley of India where hopefully I can post some pictures), and then probably Cochi in Kerala. I can't believe it's almost May!
P.s. Don't forget to VOTE!!!!!!!!!! I'm Sending my positive energy to Paul Dewer in Ottawa and Peggy Nash in Toronto and the rest of the NDP.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Udaipur, Mumbai, Goa
I almost thought that I would never get here because it's been such a long time coming, but I am finally in southern goa, on a beach called palolem. As I sit here typing, under my dingy mosquito net in my little beach hut, I can hear the sound of the ocean crashing on the shore. I think that is the best sound in the world.
Last time I wrote, I was cranky in udaipur and behaving irrationally (but really that could be any day on this part of the trip). I've been thinking lately that I am the absolute worst version of myself in India: closed off, judgemental, short tempered, paranoid. And haha, I can see where this is going in all of your heads-"isn't that you everyday?" But seriously, there is something out in the universe that does not want me and India to be friends (I would settle to be mere aquaintances at this point). But just two and a half more weeks to soldier through and then kenya. Im hoping the beach will help.
Anyway, udaipur turned out to be a really nice place. Lots of tourists there, the most I've seen in anyone place since I've been in India which must sound strange, but it's true. All the tourists around me started to make me feel a little bit like a loser though, the kid who didn't get invited to the birthday party, because I've been finding it really hard to meet other travelers (with the exception of the 40something guy from Texas who introduced himself on the overnight bus by saying "I'm called Mills.") But I did thankfully make a friend on my first night in udaipur-a nice Irish girl named Sarah.
Sarah and I exchanged horror stories from our travels and blew off steam over a couple of kingfisher beers (my first drink in India) and partook in some classic friend activities. We went to a ridiculous yoga class which I laughed all the way through and got the crappiest pedicures of all time. We also ate cake, went shopping, and did a lot of chatting (if you threw in a makeover and a 90's soundtrack it would have been the movie Clueless). It was so nice to have a friend, even if it was temporary We met another girl, Karen from Denmark, who turned out to be on the same train as me to Mumbai, and she invited us to go and see a cultural dance/music show with her. I am so glad we went because it was the best thing I've seen in India! Just amazing the way the women were dancing and everything else that was happening. It was the first time I actually saw an indian woman genuinely smile and love life. It was amazing. I couldn't wipe the smile off my face!
Then it was off to the train station where I met/tagged along with a 23 year old German guy named Goeran for the 18 hour train ride to Mumbai. Me and Goeran ended up spending a few days together out of pure cheapness and convinience. We didn't get along that well and I think he might have hated me, or maybe he was just really German and I didn't know how to talk to him. So serious! Karen was on the train too, but in a much better class with air conditioning whereas I sweat it out in lower class with all the Indians. When we arrived in Mumbai we met up with Karen's indian aquaintance Felix who met us at the train station but then got into a fist fight with a slew of taxi drivers. It was very strange. After an hour in a sweaty taxi we arrived in colaba which is the tourist part of town. Almost immediately I was spotted by a Bollywood casting agent who offered me a role as an extra in a film for the next day. I was really tempted but didn't end up doing it. Mumbai is a really cool city. It has fantastic architecture left over from the Raj and it is the kind of place where you can walk around and almost be anonymous. People don't bother you too much and no one pays you much attention. You can buy almost anything on the street (including dildos-so much for trying to keep my shoulders and knees covered.) Also, there isn't as much garbage because poor people collect and recycle it and others sweep up. There are so many cricket stadiums and in the centre of the downtown there is a big grass oval for people to casually play. Cricket is so huge here. I see men and boys playing it and watching it everywhere: along the Ganges in Varanasi, in the desert in Rajisthan, and here on the beach in Goa. You would almost think that it is a requirement of the Hindu religion!
My second night in Mumbai I went to chowpatty beach which is a beach in the middle of the city where indian families go to hang out. It was really cool, minus the fact that the ocean there is toxic from the pollution and that there is garbage strewn across the beach. People swim regardless. There were places to buy ice cream and cotton candy, ring toss games, and kids building sand castles. From the beach you can walk all the way down the water front back to colaba on marine drive which is what I did. You see loads of young couples sitting and holding hands which was really cute. Also, there are lots of people going for jogs and power walks which is rather endearing because for the most part all the women are still in their saris and the men in their work clothes, but they're all wearing bright white sneakers. I saw people walking their dogs too which obviously made me very happy. On the way back to the hotel I stopped in at a movie theatre to try and see scream 4, but unfortunately they were having technical difficulties and the only other English movie offered was that god awful Jennifer aniston Adam sandler rom com, and even in my desperation for air conditioning and American cinema I just couldn't do it. So I settled for speed which was on cable at my hotel. It actually made me irrationally happy (my family knows about my deep rooted obsession with that movie and with Keanu reeves.)
My last day in Mumbai I went to Dharavi slum, which is the slum in slumdog millionaire. I took a tour run by this incredible NGO that puts almost all of the money right back into the slum and runs an elementary school, kindergarden, and community centre in Dharavi. Seeing the slum and everything going on in it is probably the best thing I've done in India, and I think it'll be hard to beat. Despite similarities to other slums I've been to (both Kibera slum in Nairobi and Dharavi have over 1 million inhabitants in a small geographical area. Dharavi is only 1.7km squared and is twenty times denser in population then Mumbai which has the greatest population density in the world) dharavi is so inspiring. The people really work with what they have and are some of the happiest and friendliest people I've encountered in this country. They run their own recycling system for plastics and uluminum, they manufacture and export pastries, soap, leather, and clay pots among other things. Annually, they do 250 million dollars worth of production (and that's only the people that report their income). Anyway, it was an incredible experience and I'm so glad that I got to visit and witness the wonderful things that are happening there.
I took the local train back into south Mumbai and got to ride on the "ladies only" car which was awesome and totally packed. After dinner and some loitering in an air con cafe (I think Mumbai is the hottest place I've ever been with the exception of Dubai) it was off to the train station for another overnight train.
Goa feels like a diiferent country all together. The landscape is so different: lush, green, and tropical. I swear I could be in costa rica. It also has such a different vibe. The same as southern Thailand or the coast of Kenya or Zanzibar, just relaxed. It's a nice change. The only not so great thing is that I haven't met anyone yet so I'm feeling a little lonely. There are loads of people here but most are on romantic holidays and don't want to be my friend. Oh well, I do have a couple of books I can just escape into if I can't find anyone to talk to.
I'll be here for a while soaking up the sun and working on my tan before moving on to a place called Hampi and then maybe Kerala. Happy Easter!
Last time I wrote, I was cranky in udaipur and behaving irrationally (but really that could be any day on this part of the trip). I've been thinking lately that I am the absolute worst version of myself in India: closed off, judgemental, short tempered, paranoid. And haha, I can see where this is going in all of your heads-"isn't that you everyday?" But seriously, there is something out in the universe that does not want me and India to be friends (I would settle to be mere aquaintances at this point). But just two and a half more weeks to soldier through and then kenya. Im hoping the beach will help.
Anyway, udaipur turned out to be a really nice place. Lots of tourists there, the most I've seen in anyone place since I've been in India which must sound strange, but it's true. All the tourists around me started to make me feel a little bit like a loser though, the kid who didn't get invited to the birthday party, because I've been finding it really hard to meet other travelers (with the exception of the 40something guy from Texas who introduced himself on the overnight bus by saying "I'm called Mills.") But I did thankfully make a friend on my first night in udaipur-a nice Irish girl named Sarah.
Sarah and I exchanged horror stories from our travels and blew off steam over a couple of kingfisher beers (my first drink in India) and partook in some classic friend activities. We went to a ridiculous yoga class which I laughed all the way through and got the crappiest pedicures of all time. We also ate cake, went shopping, and did a lot of chatting (if you threw in a makeover and a 90's soundtrack it would have been the movie Clueless). It was so nice to have a friend, even if it was temporary We met another girl, Karen from Denmark, who turned out to be on the same train as me to Mumbai, and she invited us to go and see a cultural dance/music show with her. I am so glad we went because it was the best thing I've seen in India! Just amazing the way the women were dancing and everything else that was happening. It was the first time I actually saw an indian woman genuinely smile and love life. It was amazing. I couldn't wipe the smile off my face!
Then it was off to the train station where I met/tagged along with a 23 year old German guy named Goeran for the 18 hour train ride to Mumbai. Me and Goeran ended up spending a few days together out of pure cheapness and convinience. We didn't get along that well and I think he might have hated me, or maybe he was just really German and I didn't know how to talk to him. So serious! Karen was on the train too, but in a much better class with air conditioning whereas I sweat it out in lower class with all the Indians. When we arrived in Mumbai we met up with Karen's indian aquaintance Felix who met us at the train station but then got into a fist fight with a slew of taxi drivers. It was very strange. After an hour in a sweaty taxi we arrived in colaba which is the tourist part of town. Almost immediately I was spotted by a Bollywood casting agent who offered me a role as an extra in a film for the next day. I was really tempted but didn't end up doing it. Mumbai is a really cool city. It has fantastic architecture left over from the Raj and it is the kind of place where you can walk around and almost be anonymous. People don't bother you too much and no one pays you much attention. You can buy almost anything on the street (including dildos-so much for trying to keep my shoulders and knees covered.) Also, there isn't as much garbage because poor people collect and recycle it and others sweep up. There are so many cricket stadiums and in the centre of the downtown there is a big grass oval for people to casually play. Cricket is so huge here. I see men and boys playing it and watching it everywhere: along the Ganges in Varanasi, in the desert in Rajisthan, and here on the beach in Goa. You would almost think that it is a requirement of the Hindu religion!
My second night in Mumbai I went to chowpatty beach which is a beach in the middle of the city where indian families go to hang out. It was really cool, minus the fact that the ocean there is toxic from the pollution and that there is garbage strewn across the beach. People swim regardless. There were places to buy ice cream and cotton candy, ring toss games, and kids building sand castles. From the beach you can walk all the way down the water front back to colaba on marine drive which is what I did. You see loads of young couples sitting and holding hands which was really cute. Also, there are lots of people going for jogs and power walks which is rather endearing because for the most part all the women are still in their saris and the men in their work clothes, but they're all wearing bright white sneakers. I saw people walking their dogs too which obviously made me very happy. On the way back to the hotel I stopped in at a movie theatre to try and see scream 4, but unfortunately they were having technical difficulties and the only other English movie offered was that god awful Jennifer aniston Adam sandler rom com, and even in my desperation for air conditioning and American cinema I just couldn't do it. So I settled for speed which was on cable at my hotel. It actually made me irrationally happy (my family knows about my deep rooted obsession with that movie and with Keanu reeves.)
My last day in Mumbai I went to Dharavi slum, which is the slum in slumdog millionaire. I took a tour run by this incredible NGO that puts almost all of the money right back into the slum and runs an elementary school, kindergarden, and community centre in Dharavi. Seeing the slum and everything going on in it is probably the best thing I've done in India, and I think it'll be hard to beat. Despite similarities to other slums I've been to (both Kibera slum in Nairobi and Dharavi have over 1 million inhabitants in a small geographical area. Dharavi is only 1.7km squared and is twenty times denser in population then Mumbai which has the greatest population density in the world) dharavi is so inspiring. The people really work with what they have and are some of the happiest and friendliest people I've encountered in this country. They run their own recycling system for plastics and uluminum, they manufacture and export pastries, soap, leather, and clay pots among other things. Annually, they do 250 million dollars worth of production (and that's only the people that report their income). Anyway, it was an incredible experience and I'm so glad that I got to visit and witness the wonderful things that are happening there.
I took the local train back into south Mumbai and got to ride on the "ladies only" car which was awesome and totally packed. After dinner and some loitering in an air con cafe (I think Mumbai is the hottest place I've ever been with the exception of Dubai) it was off to the train station for another overnight train.
Goa feels like a diiferent country all together. The landscape is so different: lush, green, and tropical. I swear I could be in costa rica. It also has such a different vibe. The same as southern Thailand or the coast of Kenya or Zanzibar, just relaxed. It's a nice change. The only not so great thing is that I haven't met anyone yet so I'm feeling a little lonely. There are loads of people here but most are on romantic holidays and don't want to be my friend. Oh well, I do have a couple of books I can just escape into if I can't find anyone to talk to.
I'll be here for a while soaking up the sun and working on my tan before moving on to a place called Hampi and then maybe Kerala. Happy Easter!
Monday, April 18, 2011
(some) pictures
Some of my Nepal pics are up. You can check on facebook, or click the link below:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?fbid=963311189627&id=13604583&aid=2475248&l=e8322e7f8a
This just took an hour and a half to do, so I may wait before posting more India pics!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?fbid=963311189627&id=13604583&aid=2475248&l=e8322e7f8a
This just took an hour and a half to do, so I may wait before posting more India pics!
Rain in the desert?
I often get that 1990s song "Miss You" by Everything But the Girl in my head and quote from it obnoxiously. You know the one: "and I miss you...like the desert missed the rain..." Well, just so the world could prove me wrong, the Indian desert did not miss the rain! Leave it to me to get rained on in the desert during the dry season. According to my camel guide who has lived in the desert for all 32 years of his life, it has never rained in April. So I guess I'm pretty lucky (or unlucky depending on how you see it) to have seen that.
Anyway, a few days ago I left jodhpur and took a god awful boiling hot bus out to Jaisalmer. Note: Alex, I had someone put their hand on my head to balance themselves on the bus just like in NYC! I talked to this nice Indian guy who said he could arrange a hotel for me in Jaisalmer so I took him up on his offer. I should have known better, but overheating and annoyance will make you agree to almost anything. When I arrived, there was not one, but two different men holding signs with my name on it, both claiming to be the person to take me to the hotel. What I am desperate to know is, whoever the "fake" person was, how on earth did they manage to get my name? It's not like it's a popular one. Anyway, the scene got so ridiculous that I just hopped into some guy's rickshaw and let him take me to a shitty hotel. I almost let him book me on a camel safari as well, but I thought I should check out some other prices and places first.
I ended up going with a place called Thar safari which is in the guide book and seemed a little more legit. The only crappy thing was that b/c it's low tourist season, I had to go on my own instead of with a group, which I wasn't too sure about at first. I asked the man who runs the safari company if he knew a good place for textiles, and of course he had an uncle who owns a shop-everybody and their mother here has an uncle who owns a shop! But in all honesty, the shop was great and the service I got was wonderful. The shop is a cooperative and they work with women who live out in the tiny villages in the desert. All the embroidery is done by hand and a lot of the material is reclaimed from old wedding saris. I ended up spending A LOT of money that I blatantly don't have on a few wedding presents for people. If you guys are reading this, I hope you like what i got you! The man in the shop also gave me a free turban for my camel safari and we had chai together on the roof so I could take some pics of the jaisalmer fort.
The next morning, I left for the safari. I was driven out to the desert and met my guide, Buddia, and our two camels, David and Jessul, and started the trek. I discovered over the next three days all the wonderfully bizarre things about camels. I actually feel quite a kinship with them because like me, they have totally disastrous digestive systems. They spend almost all their time farting, pooping, and regurgitating their food. They also make the strangest sounds when they see other camels. Male camels are apparently very competitive with each other. Riding on a camel feels sort of like being on a mechanical bull in slow motion. I remember my brother Soren telling me once that it feels like having sex, and despite that bring too much information for me, and now for you too, he's totally right.
We rode for about two hours before stopping under a shady tree for lunch. My guide Buddia cooked up some veggies and chapati and we ate, sharing our food with a shepard who was walking by. Then we just lay around and waited for it to get cooler. Obviously the desert is hot, but the level of heat is so intense that you can't do anything. I dumped water over my head and clothes about five times, but each time it dried in two minutes. It's so hot that you don't even really sweat. It just feels like someone pre-heated the oven for 350 and put you in to bake. Even the camels are hot.
We finally got going again around 4:30 as the sun was coming down and rode until we reached the sand dunes. That's where I slept the first night, right in the middle of a sand dune, under a full moon and loads of stars. The wind gets so intense in the middle of the night that you actually get cold and need a thick blanket. I found it really difficult to sleep that first night and suffered some sort if anxiety induced panic/paranoia attack. I don't know why. Maybe just the strangeness of being in the middle of nowhere by myself, with only a camel driver I don't know and absolutely no lights or sound. I never felt unsafe. Just a little uncomfortable if that makes sense. All I can say (again) is, thank god for my iPod and especially the musical stylings of Neil young b/c I think that's the only thing that kept me sort of okay.
The next morning, I woke up with a desert dog curled up and sleeping beside me. I decided to share my breakfast with him and we then made fast friends. He ended up staying with me more or less for the rest of he trip. I called him DD (for desert dog). I had serious day dreams about how I could adopt him and send him home. My brothers were quick to point out that spike doesn't make friends though, and unfortunately they're right.
Despite the desert being so barren, there is lots of life around, if you look for it: sheep and goats, some cows and camels, dogs, desert mice, dung beetles, birds, lizards, and even some deer. We ended up going to my camel guide's village and I got to meet his family. He has five sisters, and the youngest one is four which means his mother had her in her late 50s-crazy!! They just don't stop having babies here- it's awful. We then set off to find a shady tree for lunch and this is when the weather got crazy. I experienced a total wind/sand/rain storm and Buddia and I had to sit under a tarp for a while and wait for it to calm down. We rode off in the rain back to some sand dunes where there was a little grass hut for shelter and this is where we, and DD of course, spent the night. I slept in the little grass shack and woke up a few times in the night to DD hopping onto my little cot. When I woke up in the morning a little bit cold, I realized it was because DD had snuck most of the blanket off me and created his own little nest of a bed on the sand next to me. This makes me think him and spike might get along after all! I love how no matter where you go in the world, animals are the same. They just want food and affection and comfort. This makes me so happy.
I was happy to see day 3 come (and so were my groin and bum muscles). The desert was so cool, but not as much fun as it would have been with a friend or a group. Oh well. My guide was a good sport and took pictures for about an hour while I tried to perfect a handstand on the dunes. Right before we got back to where I was getting picked up, I spotted a whole bunch of peacocks hanging around in the shade of some bushes. I tried to steal a few pictures which proved to be very difficult. I think they are very weary of people, and fair enough if someone is always coming after your feathers. Anyway, it made what I can imagine a very funny scene as I was sneaking from bush to bush like a total idiot trying to chase a bird who was more clever than I am.
After I got back to Jaisalmer, I took the overnight bus (shudder) to Udaipur and that's where I am now, totally exhausted with a bad case of the crankypants. The bus was pretty brutal but I managed to book a "sleeper" seat which meant that I got my own coffin sized compartment that shut with curtains for privacy so that I could avoid all the stares from the men. I will stay here until tomorrow night when I'll grab the overnight train (double shudder) to Mumbai. The train was all booked so I'm in the shitty class car again which is going to be terrible. Until then, I'll take in some of the sights here. Udaipur is supposed to be the most romantic city in India. I don't know about that, but it does have a nice lake and I'll probably get to watch Octopussy a bunch of times (it was filmed here and is apparently the only movie that plays in all the restaurants and guesthouses.)
Three and a half weeks and then I'll be in Kenya. Is it bad that the countdown has already begun???
Will be posting all my pictures of India and Nepal later today once I've taken a much needed nap! Tata!
Anyway, a few days ago I left jodhpur and took a god awful boiling hot bus out to Jaisalmer. Note: Alex, I had someone put their hand on my head to balance themselves on the bus just like in NYC! I talked to this nice Indian guy who said he could arrange a hotel for me in Jaisalmer so I took him up on his offer. I should have known better, but overheating and annoyance will make you agree to almost anything. When I arrived, there was not one, but two different men holding signs with my name on it, both claiming to be the person to take me to the hotel. What I am desperate to know is, whoever the "fake" person was, how on earth did they manage to get my name? It's not like it's a popular one. Anyway, the scene got so ridiculous that I just hopped into some guy's rickshaw and let him take me to a shitty hotel. I almost let him book me on a camel safari as well, but I thought I should check out some other prices and places first.
I ended up going with a place called Thar safari which is in the guide book and seemed a little more legit. The only crappy thing was that b/c it's low tourist season, I had to go on my own instead of with a group, which I wasn't too sure about at first. I asked the man who runs the safari company if he knew a good place for textiles, and of course he had an uncle who owns a shop-everybody and their mother here has an uncle who owns a shop! But in all honesty, the shop was great and the service I got was wonderful. The shop is a cooperative and they work with women who live out in the tiny villages in the desert. All the embroidery is done by hand and a lot of the material is reclaimed from old wedding saris. I ended up spending A LOT of money that I blatantly don't have on a few wedding presents for people. If you guys are reading this, I hope you like what i got you! The man in the shop also gave me a free turban for my camel safari and we had chai together on the roof so I could take some pics of the jaisalmer fort.
The next morning, I left for the safari. I was driven out to the desert and met my guide, Buddia, and our two camels, David and Jessul, and started the trek. I discovered over the next three days all the wonderfully bizarre things about camels. I actually feel quite a kinship with them because like me, they have totally disastrous digestive systems. They spend almost all their time farting, pooping, and regurgitating their food. They also make the strangest sounds when they see other camels. Male camels are apparently very competitive with each other. Riding on a camel feels sort of like being on a mechanical bull in slow motion. I remember my brother Soren telling me once that it feels like having sex, and despite that bring too much information for me, and now for you too, he's totally right.
We rode for about two hours before stopping under a shady tree for lunch. My guide Buddia cooked up some veggies and chapati and we ate, sharing our food with a shepard who was walking by. Then we just lay around and waited for it to get cooler. Obviously the desert is hot, but the level of heat is so intense that you can't do anything. I dumped water over my head and clothes about five times, but each time it dried in two minutes. It's so hot that you don't even really sweat. It just feels like someone pre-heated the oven for 350 and put you in to bake. Even the camels are hot.
We finally got going again around 4:30 as the sun was coming down and rode until we reached the sand dunes. That's where I slept the first night, right in the middle of a sand dune, under a full moon and loads of stars. The wind gets so intense in the middle of the night that you actually get cold and need a thick blanket. I found it really difficult to sleep that first night and suffered some sort if anxiety induced panic/paranoia attack. I don't know why. Maybe just the strangeness of being in the middle of nowhere by myself, with only a camel driver I don't know and absolutely no lights or sound. I never felt unsafe. Just a little uncomfortable if that makes sense. All I can say (again) is, thank god for my iPod and especially the musical stylings of Neil young b/c I think that's the only thing that kept me sort of okay.
The next morning, I woke up with a desert dog curled up and sleeping beside me. I decided to share my breakfast with him and we then made fast friends. He ended up staying with me more or less for the rest of he trip. I called him DD (for desert dog). I had serious day dreams about how I could adopt him and send him home. My brothers were quick to point out that spike doesn't make friends though, and unfortunately they're right.
Despite the desert being so barren, there is lots of life around, if you look for it: sheep and goats, some cows and camels, dogs, desert mice, dung beetles, birds, lizards, and even some deer. We ended up going to my camel guide's village and I got to meet his family. He has five sisters, and the youngest one is four which means his mother had her in her late 50s-crazy!! They just don't stop having babies here- it's awful. We then set off to find a shady tree for lunch and this is when the weather got crazy. I experienced a total wind/sand/rain storm and Buddia and I had to sit under a tarp for a while and wait for it to calm down. We rode off in the rain back to some sand dunes where there was a little grass hut for shelter and this is where we, and DD of course, spent the night. I slept in the little grass shack and woke up a few times in the night to DD hopping onto my little cot. When I woke up in the morning a little bit cold, I realized it was because DD had snuck most of the blanket off me and created his own little nest of a bed on the sand next to me. This makes me think him and spike might get along after all! I love how no matter where you go in the world, animals are the same. They just want food and affection and comfort. This makes me so happy.
I was happy to see day 3 come (and so were my groin and bum muscles). The desert was so cool, but not as much fun as it would have been with a friend or a group. Oh well. My guide was a good sport and took pictures for about an hour while I tried to perfect a handstand on the dunes. Right before we got back to where I was getting picked up, I spotted a whole bunch of peacocks hanging around in the shade of some bushes. I tried to steal a few pictures which proved to be very difficult. I think they are very weary of people, and fair enough if someone is always coming after your feathers. Anyway, it made what I can imagine a very funny scene as I was sneaking from bush to bush like a total idiot trying to chase a bird who was more clever than I am.
After I got back to Jaisalmer, I took the overnight bus (shudder) to Udaipur and that's where I am now, totally exhausted with a bad case of the crankypants. The bus was pretty brutal but I managed to book a "sleeper" seat which meant that I got my own coffin sized compartment that shut with curtains for privacy so that I could avoid all the stares from the men. I will stay here until tomorrow night when I'll grab the overnight train (double shudder) to Mumbai. The train was all booked so I'm in the shitty class car again which is going to be terrible. Until then, I'll take in some of the sights here. Udaipur is supposed to be the most romantic city in India. I don't know about that, but it does have a nice lake and I'll probably get to watch Octopussy a bunch of times (it was filmed here and is apparently the only movie that plays in all the restaurants and guesthouses.)
Three and a half weeks and then I'll be in Kenya. Is it bad that the countdown has already begun???
Will be posting all my pictures of India and Nepal later today once I've taken a much needed nap! Tata!
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Ghorepani, Poon Hill, and India Take 2!
Well folks, I am back in India. It is Round 2. It started off not so great yesterday but today is good. I'm now in Rajisthan, Jodhpur to be exact, but I'll get to that in due time. First I want to talk about my trek!
The trek was awesome, and it kicked my ass big time. My calf muscles are dead, and it is very difficult to walk both up and down stairs. I started the trek by taking a local bus from Pokhara to Nayapul. We sat three to a seat (clearly) and I had this little Nepali boy on my lap who was so cute, until he started vomiting into a plastic bag! Thankfully I had Johnny Goldstein from my Wiretap podcasts to keep me somewhat sane. When the bus drove through Nayapul I jumped off and headed through the little town to where all treks start: across a suspension bridge in a little town called Birithani. As I was crossing the bridge, I saw 3 trekkers about my age up ahead, so I booted it to catch up with them, thinking it would be a lot easier hiking for three days straight with some company. The three were: Vicki: an American from Minnesota working for the state department in Afghanistan (she informed me that she drinks Tim Hortons coffee in Kandahar-how weird is that?, Emmanuel: a French Canadian jingle writer from Montreal, and Malcolm: a journalist/bartender from Georgia. We all bonded, and I decided to do my trek with them.
The first day wasn't so hard. We only had about 4 hours of walking, and only increased our altitude by about 600m (Nayapul is 900m and Tikkedhunga, where we spent the night is 1500m). Walking through all the little villages and with ponys and donkeys carrying loads of stuff, while the bells around their necks ring, was so peaceful, and a nice change of pace from the craziness I've experienced over the past weeks/months. A lot of the scenery was rolling hills and leveled land for farming, which I saw a lot of when I was trekking in northern Thailand 3 years ago.
Day 2 was a killer. It took 3 hours to get to the very next town because it was basically straight up about a million stone stairs (more like 2800 I think) to Ulleri which is at 2000m elevation. Malcolm wasn't sure we were going to make it all the way to Ghorepani that day, but my stubborn brain told me that not getting there wasn't an option. Of course it started raining, but thankfully by that time we had made it to the part of the day that wasn't as steep and was covered by a lot of greenery and trees (lots of waterfalls too!) This was also where we saw a lot of the rhododendrons blooming on the trees which was amazing. We finally rolled into Ghorepani (2800meters) around 5:30pm, after a good 9 hours of walking. It was cold too! Once you get that high, and the sun goes down, it isn't that pleasant. We all had a big dinner of dal baht which is the Traditional Nepali meal of a big platter with dal, rice, curry, pompadam, and something they call pickle. Delicious! We also had apple pie (or the Nepal version of it) for dessert and then it was off to bed at around 9pm bundled in all the clothes I brought, plus some of Vicki's clothes and as many blankets that I could muster up from the staff.
We got up at 4:30am the next morning to make the brutal trek up to Poon Hill (3200meters) for sunrise. It almost killed me, and about 15 minutes from the top, I almost threw in the towel because I was finding it so hard to breathe, but I rested for a few minutes, got it together, and finally made it to the top just in time to watch the sunrise over multiple snow capped peaks of the Himalayas. It was really specially, but cold as hell, so I didn't stick around for too long before heading back down and having a leisurely breakfast with my three pals while listening to The Black Keys (we hooked up my ipod to some old speakers the guest house had, and it was awesome!). Then it was time for us to part ways, as the guys were heading further up to get to Annapurna Base Camp, and Vicki and I were headed down because we both had to get to Kathmandu the next day for flights the following day. Well, you would think that walking down a mountain would be a piece of cake after walking up it, but actually it is so killer on your knees that it doesn't go much faster. Vicki hurt her knees, and it made for a very long day. We didn't end up back in Nayapul until 6:30pm (just 14 hours after we started climbing for the day, no big deal). Took a taxi back to Pokhara, and the next morning, a bus back to Kathmandu.
I spent my last evening in Kathmandu buying copious amounts of bootlegged DVD's (Project Runway Seasons 1-7 anyone?) and bartering for some beautiful pashminas, before having dinner with my nice Maritimer friend Jessie. The next morning I headed to the airport to catch a flight back to Delhi, and then Jodhpur, but clearly the flight was delayed, so I missed the 2nd flight and ended up having to stay in Delhi for 1 night which is exactly what I was trying to avoid. Now, I won't go into all the sorted details of what went down at the airport between me and about 30 Air India employees, but I will tell you that at one point I asked a security guard with a gun to shoot me. I'm glad he didn't understand enough English to know what I said. After first attempting aggression, then reasoning, and then finally just bawling my eyes out like a child, the surly manager of Air India took pity on me (or just wanted to get this crazy white girl out of his face forever) and gave me some vouchers for a pretty nice hotel. I spent last night watching Dexter and Community on cable. Nice.
I finally managed to get on the plane today to Jodhpur, and hopefully leave Delhi behind forever. That is one city that hates my guts, and the feeling is mutual. I have to tell you that on the plane I watched a Bryan Adams concert, and THEN, an episode of Juste Pour Rire gag real straight from Quebec. So puzzling, but I appreciated the Canadian content.
When I stepped off the plane, it was 34 degrees. Hot as hell. But, the awesome thing is that I immediately felt the chiller vibe of Rajisthan. People here are nicer, and a lot more relaxed. Thank god. I will take crazy heat over harassment any day of the week. After finding a decent hotel, I took a rickshaw to the biggest palace built in the 30s by one of the Maharajahs. It was beautiful, and the inside is preserved in the Art Deco style.
Tomorrow morning I'm heading further west, almost to the border of Pakistan, to Jaisalmer, to hopefully do a couple days in the desert on a camel. Lawrence of Arabia styles.
For some reason, this computer won't let me upload multiple photos (isn't India one of the major leaders in IT? How does this make sense?) So, you will have to wait to see more than just 2 pics from the trek.
Hope everyone is well. I hear that Canada is warming up now, thank god. Until next time...
The trek was awesome, and it kicked my ass big time. My calf muscles are dead, and it is very difficult to walk both up and down stairs. I started the trek by taking a local bus from Pokhara to Nayapul. We sat three to a seat (clearly) and I had this little Nepali boy on my lap who was so cute, until he started vomiting into a plastic bag! Thankfully I had Johnny Goldstein from my Wiretap podcasts to keep me somewhat sane. When the bus drove through Nayapul I jumped off and headed through the little town to where all treks start: across a suspension bridge in a little town called Birithani. As I was crossing the bridge, I saw 3 trekkers about my age up ahead, so I booted it to catch up with them, thinking it would be a lot easier hiking for three days straight with some company. The three were: Vicki: an American from Minnesota working for the state department in Afghanistan (she informed me that she drinks Tim Hortons coffee in Kandahar-how weird is that?, Emmanuel: a French Canadian jingle writer from Montreal, and Malcolm: a journalist/bartender from Georgia. We all bonded, and I decided to do my trek with them.
The first day wasn't so hard. We only had about 4 hours of walking, and only increased our altitude by about 600m (Nayapul is 900m and Tikkedhunga, where we spent the night is 1500m). Walking through all the little villages and with ponys and donkeys carrying loads of stuff, while the bells around their necks ring, was so peaceful, and a nice change of pace from the craziness I've experienced over the past weeks/months. A lot of the scenery was rolling hills and leveled land for farming, which I saw a lot of when I was trekking in northern Thailand 3 years ago.
Day 2 was a killer. It took 3 hours to get to the very next town because it was basically straight up about a million stone stairs (more like 2800 I think) to Ulleri which is at 2000m elevation. Malcolm wasn't sure we were going to make it all the way to Ghorepani that day, but my stubborn brain told me that not getting there wasn't an option. Of course it started raining, but thankfully by that time we had made it to the part of the day that wasn't as steep and was covered by a lot of greenery and trees (lots of waterfalls too!) This was also where we saw a lot of the rhododendrons blooming on the trees which was amazing. We finally rolled into Ghorepani (2800meters) around 5:30pm, after a good 9 hours of walking. It was cold too! Once you get that high, and the sun goes down, it isn't that pleasant. We all had a big dinner of dal baht which is the Traditional Nepali meal of a big platter with dal, rice, curry, pompadam, and something they call pickle. Delicious! We also had apple pie (or the Nepal version of it) for dessert and then it was off to bed at around 9pm bundled in all the clothes I brought, plus some of Vicki's clothes and as many blankets that I could muster up from the staff.
We got up at 4:30am the next morning to make the brutal trek up to Poon Hill (3200meters) for sunrise. It almost killed me, and about 15 minutes from the top, I almost threw in the towel because I was finding it so hard to breathe, but I rested for a few minutes, got it together, and finally made it to the top just in time to watch the sunrise over multiple snow capped peaks of the Himalayas. It was really specially, but cold as hell, so I didn't stick around for too long before heading back down and having a leisurely breakfast with my three pals while listening to The Black Keys (we hooked up my ipod to some old speakers the guest house had, and it was awesome!). Then it was time for us to part ways, as the guys were heading further up to get to Annapurna Base Camp, and Vicki and I were headed down because we both had to get to Kathmandu the next day for flights the following day. Well, you would think that walking down a mountain would be a piece of cake after walking up it, but actually it is so killer on your knees that it doesn't go much faster. Vicki hurt her knees, and it made for a very long day. We didn't end up back in Nayapul until 6:30pm (just 14 hours after we started climbing for the day, no big deal). Took a taxi back to Pokhara, and the next morning, a bus back to Kathmandu.
I spent my last evening in Kathmandu buying copious amounts of bootlegged DVD's (Project Runway Seasons 1-7 anyone?) and bartering for some beautiful pashminas, before having dinner with my nice Maritimer friend Jessie. The next morning I headed to the airport to catch a flight back to Delhi, and then Jodhpur, but clearly the flight was delayed, so I missed the 2nd flight and ended up having to stay in Delhi for 1 night which is exactly what I was trying to avoid. Now, I won't go into all the sorted details of what went down at the airport between me and about 30 Air India employees, but I will tell you that at one point I asked a security guard with a gun to shoot me. I'm glad he didn't understand enough English to know what I said. After first attempting aggression, then reasoning, and then finally just bawling my eyes out like a child, the surly manager of Air India took pity on me (or just wanted to get this crazy white girl out of his face forever) and gave me some vouchers for a pretty nice hotel. I spent last night watching Dexter and Community on cable. Nice.
I finally managed to get on the plane today to Jodhpur, and hopefully leave Delhi behind forever. That is one city that hates my guts, and the feeling is mutual. I have to tell you that on the plane I watched a Bryan Adams concert, and THEN, an episode of Juste Pour Rire gag real straight from Quebec. So puzzling, but I appreciated the Canadian content.
When I stepped off the plane, it was 34 degrees. Hot as hell. But, the awesome thing is that I immediately felt the chiller vibe of Rajisthan. People here are nicer, and a lot more relaxed. Thank god. I will take crazy heat over harassment any day of the week. After finding a decent hotel, I took a rickshaw to the biggest palace built in the 30s by one of the Maharajahs. It was beautiful, and the inside is preserved in the Art Deco style.
Tomorrow morning I'm heading further west, almost to the border of Pakistan, to Jaisalmer, to hopefully do a couple days in the desert on a camel. Lawrence of Arabia styles.
For some reason, this computer won't let me upload multiple photos (isn't India one of the major leaders in IT? How does this make sense?) So, you will have to wait to see more than just 2 pics from the trek.
Hope everyone is well. I hear that Canada is warming up now, thank god. Until next time...
Thursday, April 7, 2011
And a trekkin' I go...
And a trekking I go...
Thank god that the past two days have been better than the past two weeks. I'm finally finally starting to feel like myself again and have been reaquainted with the feeling of happiness one should feel when traveling. Honestly, my first week in India was brutal and then getting really sick was just so awful, it was starting to feel like I was being punished. But now things are on the up and up. Nepal, I like you a he'll of a lot!!!
And before I forget there is something I must say about Bryan Adams. As some of you may already know, Bryan Adams is my guilty pleasure. I have all of his albums on my iPod and I sing run to you and summer of 69 every karaoke opportunity I get (remember I even won a contest for it in NZ?!?). I like to blame this on my brothers for listening to reckless and waking up the neighbours in the 80s when I was an impressionable child. Anyway, just a few weeks ago, Nepal had their very first international concert in Kathmandu and it was none other than Bryan Adams! There are still billboards all over the place that say Bryan Adams is Nepal. I will post pictures.
I left Kathmandu a few days ago bc I was going completely stir crazy and headed to pokhara on a long windy crazy bus journey. Pokhara is really nice. It's touristy but much more relaxed than Kathmandu and it's on a lake and right by the Annapurna region. I met a nice British couple, Claire and Phil, on the bus here and have been hanging out with them the past few days. I must have been British in a past life because I jive with Brits so well!!! Like, hanging out with British couples might be my new hobby.
My first full day here I did a walk up to the world peace pagoda which was difficult but still really cool. I met this nice local Nepali man named pipi who walked with me. He has four sisters and six daughters and one grand daughter. I told him he was lucky to be surrounded by so many women! Pipi didn't understand that I'm not married and don't have a boyfriend. He kept saying "I don't believe. I don't believe." I'm telling you there is nothing like coming to a third world country to get a confidence boost and some marriage proposals. It reminded me of my first night I ever spent in Kenya and I had a Masai offer me cattle to marry me. Wild!
This morning I woke up at 5am and went to a village in the hills to watch the sunrise. Can't really complain. It's definitely a nice way to spend a morning. Tomorrow morning I leave to go on a three day trek up to poon hill. Gulp. I hope I survive!
Am really starting to love Nepal and would definitely love to come back and spend more time here in the future. The people are pretty wonderful. Tonight the owner of our little hotel invited us to have dinner with him and his family and friends. A real Nepali meal. It was really special. He told us that Nepal stands for: Never End Peace And Love. Someone pointed out that India could stand for: I'll Never Do It Again!!!
I will write when I get back from my trek and head back to Kathmandu before I go for India round two. I decided to go to rajistan after all. I figured, I can't come all this way and let my hate for indian men ruin everything!!
Until then, pray that the altitude doesn't bother me!!!
Thank god that the past two days have been better than the past two weeks. I'm finally finally starting to feel like myself again and have been reaquainted with the feeling of happiness one should feel when traveling. Honestly, my first week in India was brutal and then getting really sick was just so awful, it was starting to feel like I was being punished. But now things are on the up and up. Nepal, I like you a he'll of a lot!!!
And before I forget there is something I must say about Bryan Adams. As some of you may already know, Bryan Adams is my guilty pleasure. I have all of his albums on my iPod and I sing run to you and summer of 69 every karaoke opportunity I get (remember I even won a contest for it in NZ?!?). I like to blame this on my brothers for listening to reckless and waking up the neighbours in the 80s when I was an impressionable child. Anyway, just a few weeks ago, Nepal had their very first international concert in Kathmandu and it was none other than Bryan Adams! There are still billboards all over the place that say Bryan Adams is Nepal. I will post pictures.
I left Kathmandu a few days ago bc I was going completely stir crazy and headed to pokhara on a long windy crazy bus journey. Pokhara is really nice. It's touristy but much more relaxed than Kathmandu and it's on a lake and right by the Annapurna region. I met a nice British couple, Claire and Phil, on the bus here and have been hanging out with them the past few days. I must have been British in a past life because I jive with Brits so well!!! Like, hanging out with British couples might be my new hobby.
My first full day here I did a walk up to the world peace pagoda which was difficult but still really cool. I met this nice local Nepali man named pipi who walked with me. He has four sisters and six daughters and one grand daughter. I told him he was lucky to be surrounded by so many women! Pipi didn't understand that I'm not married and don't have a boyfriend. He kept saying "I don't believe. I don't believe." I'm telling you there is nothing like coming to a third world country to get a confidence boost and some marriage proposals. It reminded me of my first night I ever spent in Kenya and I had a Masai offer me cattle to marry me. Wild!
This morning I woke up at 5am and went to a village in the hills to watch the sunrise. Can't really complain. It's definitely a nice way to spend a morning. Tomorrow morning I leave to go on a three day trek up to poon hill. Gulp. I hope I survive!
Am really starting to love Nepal and would definitely love to come back and spend more time here in the future. The people are pretty wonderful. Tonight the owner of our little hotel invited us to have dinner with him and his family and friends. A real Nepali meal. It was really special. He told us that Nepal stands for: Never End Peace And Love. Someone pointed out that India could stand for: I'll Never Do It Again!!!
I will write when I get back from my trek and head back to Kathmandu before I go for India round two. I decided to go to rajistan after all. I figured, I can't come all this way and let my hate for indian men ruin everything!!
Until then, pray that the altitude doesn't bother me!!!
Monday, April 4, 2011
pics, finally
Have finally mustered up the energy and patience to post a few pictures from the past 10 days. Make sure you scroll down to the older posts to check them out!
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Gingernuts in Kathmandu
Well friends, it was bound to happen. I got the infamous "Delhi belly" and have been dilleriously bed ridden (but at least with wifi) for the past 36 hours.
I unfortunately have not experienced much of kathmandu since I arrived Wednesday night but perhaps it's not such a bad thing as my body and mind needed a bit of a rest.
On Friday I met my friend Jessie and headed out to see some sights. We took a taxi to a place called pashupatinath in the north east part of the city to look at some Hindu temples. Pashupatinath was sort of like a mini version of Varanasi as the temples were around a holy river with ghats and cremations. Not sure if there is a worse smell than the smoke coming from bodies being cremated. Just like the Ganges in Varanasi, the river here was very polluted. And so were the temples which made me sad. I thought that because we had to pay a whopping 500 rupees to get access to them, that perhaps there would be some sort of system in place to keep the area clean. More of my wisfull thinking. I saw some of the monkeys, who are all over the place, eating garbage like freezie wrappers. Sad. The monkeys were awesome though, and had red bums! In Kenya, many of the monkeys have blue bums. Weird eh?
From pashupatinath, Jessie and I walked about 2km to a tibetan temple called the bouddha stupa. It was easy to tell that I was in Nepal and not in India just from this walk. Dirty, polluted, and crowded, just like India, but unlike india, with women and no leering from men. For the most part, I've noticed that the Nepali don't pay you much attention. They go about their business and let you go about yours. You still get haggled to buy things and to go trekking, but get none of the gross attention from men. Why is that? Is Nepal less sexually repressed than India? It can't be a religious thing because most people here are Hindus also. Who knows, it's a mystery.
The stupa was cool. Lots of Buddhist prayer wheels and flags and lots of people praying which looked like a type of yoga. People would be set up on wooden mats with cloth in their hands that they would slide down on when praying. The stupa (like all stupas) is in a circular formation that must be walked around clockwise. It also has a dome and a steeple-esk formation at the top with eyes painted below it. Apparently each stupa is built with the same elements, each element representing a different aspect of the Buddhist faith. I do promise to post pictures when I have the energy and will power to leave my bed.
Jessie and I then went to a roof top restaurant to eat dinner and get a better view of the stupa. I should have known, as the restaurant we went to was called "paradise," that things were about to go south. At 3:30am I woke up with the Kathmandu version of Delhi belly and have been lying in bed since then. All I can say is thank god for my iPod touch and the kindness of maritimers.
Most of yesterday was spent listening to wiretap podcasts from CBC radio 1. Honestly, if you haven't listened to this show, you must do so immediately! It's basically a mélange of monologues and phone conversations between this Jewish 40 yr old montrealer named Jonathan and the myriad of bizarre friends he has. Kind of like the Canadian radio show version of Seinfeld. I can't remember a time when I laughed so hard! Thankfully Jessie came by yesterday as well and brought me sick supplies: water, Gingerale, advil, rehydration salts, and gingernuts! For those of you who don't know, gingernuts are British Ginger cookies that basically helped me survive my 9 months in Kenya!
So that's it for now. Sorry this blog has been a bit of a bore as of late. I'm going to rest up and try to head to pokhara on Tuesday to organize a few days of trekking in the Annapurna region before booking a flight (!!!!) back to India (thanks mum for knowing I can't do that two day local bus journey again!!!). Thanks also to Katherine, tim, Jenny, and Peter who have sent me very encouraging and kind emails the past few days- it's really helped!
I unfortunately have not experienced much of kathmandu since I arrived Wednesday night but perhaps it's not such a bad thing as my body and mind needed a bit of a rest.
On Friday I met my friend Jessie and headed out to see some sights. We took a taxi to a place called pashupatinath in the north east part of the city to look at some Hindu temples. Pashupatinath was sort of like a mini version of Varanasi as the temples were around a holy river with ghats and cremations. Not sure if there is a worse smell than the smoke coming from bodies being cremated. Just like the Ganges in Varanasi, the river here was very polluted. And so were the temples which made me sad. I thought that because we had to pay a whopping 500 rupees to get access to them, that perhaps there would be some sort of system in place to keep the area clean. More of my wisfull thinking. I saw some of the monkeys, who are all over the place, eating garbage like freezie wrappers. Sad. The monkeys were awesome though, and had red bums! In Kenya, many of the monkeys have blue bums. Weird eh?
From pashupatinath, Jessie and I walked about 2km to a tibetan temple called the bouddha stupa. It was easy to tell that I was in Nepal and not in India just from this walk. Dirty, polluted, and crowded, just like India, but unlike india, with women and no leering from men. For the most part, I've noticed that the Nepali don't pay you much attention. They go about their business and let you go about yours. You still get haggled to buy things and to go trekking, but get none of the gross attention from men. Why is that? Is Nepal less sexually repressed than India? It can't be a religious thing because most people here are Hindus also. Who knows, it's a mystery.
The stupa was cool. Lots of Buddhist prayer wheels and flags and lots of people praying which looked like a type of yoga. People would be set up on wooden mats with cloth in their hands that they would slide down on when praying. The stupa (like all stupas) is in a circular formation that must be walked around clockwise. It also has a dome and a steeple-esk formation at the top with eyes painted below it. Apparently each stupa is built with the same elements, each element representing a different aspect of the Buddhist faith. I do promise to post pictures when I have the energy and will power to leave my bed.
Jessie and I then went to a roof top restaurant to eat dinner and get a better view of the stupa. I should have known, as the restaurant we went to was called "paradise," that things were about to go south. At 3:30am I woke up with the Kathmandu version of Delhi belly and have been lying in bed since then. All I can say is thank god for my iPod touch and the kindness of maritimers.
Most of yesterday was spent listening to wiretap podcasts from CBC radio 1. Honestly, if you haven't listened to this show, you must do so immediately! It's basically a mélange of monologues and phone conversations between this Jewish 40 yr old montrealer named Jonathan and the myriad of bizarre friends he has. Kind of like the Canadian radio show version of Seinfeld. I can't remember a time when I laughed so hard! Thankfully Jessie came by yesterday as well and brought me sick supplies: water, Gingerale, advil, rehydration salts, and gingernuts! For those of you who don't know, gingernuts are British Ginger cookies that basically helped me survive my 9 months in Kenya!
So that's it for now. Sorry this blog has been a bit of a bore as of late. I'm going to rest up and try to head to pokhara on Tuesday to organize a few days of trekking in the Annapurna region before booking a flight (!!!!) back to India (thanks mum for knowing I can't do that two day local bus journey again!!!). Thanks also to Katherine, tim, Jenny, and Peter who have sent me very encouraging and kind emails the past few days- it's really helped!
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