Monday 28 November 2011

Trains, Trains and More Trains...


Hello!  After a week of not really doing too much & keeping it low key, the fatigue we were feeling when John last wrote the blog has gone & we are once again super excited to be here. That's not to say there isn't still the daily hassles and constant bartering needed, but having rested a while we're enjoying the challenge once again.  Phew!!!



After the busy days in Jaipur, we shortened our Rajasthan plans somewhat and decided to just visit Pushkar and Udaipur, both smallish city's and on our route south.  Unfortunately this meant we didn't get to ride on a camel through the desert, but having spent half an hour on one in Morocco when I was 19, I'm glad to have escaped the saddle sore. 



Udaipur was beautiful, probably the nicest place we've been to so far and we managed to bag a great hotel right on the lake with superb views. 









Quiz time for all you James Bond fans out there – which 007 film used Udaipur as its backdrop??  The answer is Octopussy – lots of it was filmed there & so every night it was shown on a big screen at most restaurants in town.  Probably very annoying for the waiters who had to watch it over and over but great for us.  It reminded me of the days when James Bond was shown on ITV every weekend, we used to watch it as a family and I think my dad secretly wished he was Roger Moore....



It's wedding season in India and so even Udaipur's City Palace was being decorated for an upcoming wedding as we were looking around – it looked amazing.  So colourful & extravagant, we wish we could have stayed for the party.  Less than 3 weeks left in India but we're keeping our fingers crossed that we get a wedding invite before we leave – with most weddings hosting hundreds, if not thousands of people, a couple of extra guests won't matter, right?!



So our mission recently has been to travel south and over the past 4 days we've spent 3 nights on trains, 42 hours in total, travelled 2356 kilometres and been in 4 different states.  Not bad for £13 each.  I think it would have taken us a year in the van given the state of Indian roads.  It was actually quite fun and although we didn't have the best nights sleep we ever have, the snoring men were at bay so we did manage a bit of shut eye.   



There does seem to be a general lack of consideration for other travellers here though and any hopes of a lie-in were dashed when the family sharing our compartment decided they wanted to get up at 6.30am, turning on the lights and generally being as loud as they possibly could – seemingly normal behaviour here.   



The scenery from the train as we headed further south was beautiful...the deserts of Rajasthan became the lush green palm trees of Goa and Kerela. 



The Indian railways are obviously so important to the country, and the people too...it's the biggest employer in the world for a start, and the amount of people that use the trains every day is incredible.  What I wasn't expecting to see so much of was how many people live on the railways – either in the stations or alongside the tracks, whether it be in tents or out in the open under blankets.  It's pretty harrowing to see whole families huddled around a fire as you whiz past on a train.   



We broke up our train marathon by spending one night in Palolem, a beach town in south Goa.  The first day was a bit of a daze  - I accidentally managed to fall asleep at a restaurant and John kindly got the waiter to take a photo of me, er...thanks John!



We did go on a wonderful boat trip though, just us and a local with loads of dolphins swimming alongside us. 





It was great to be by a beach and the pace of life immediately felt 10 times slower than the hectic north.  Our hut was a stones throw from the beach and so allowed plenty of time for lazing around and swimming in the sea.



We're now in Kerela, the most southerly state and are staying in the city Kochi for a few days.  It's a lovely town although almost feels more European than Indian – it even has traffic lights and street signs!  There's definitely a post-colonial feel here and the change in religious preference is evident with  churches and synagogues much more plentiful.  The large picture of Jesus in our guest house room is just slightly unnerving.


We've been pretty much t-total since being in India, having one beer a week or less, so last night we decided we deserved a treat and went on a mission to find a watering hole.  The lack of pubs in India means restaurants and hotels are the place to go, although you may find yourself drinking beer from a teapot as many places don't have the right licence.  As we approached one restaurant, John asked the fella's outside whether they served beer.  The guy quietly muttered under his breath that they didn't do beer but that they did serve cocktails.  This seemed to totally baffle John as when we were inside he gave the waiter a sly wink and said “I'll have whichever cocktail is a beer.”  I think he'd been watching too much James Bond – unfortunately the confused waiter once again stressed that they don't do beer and so he had to settle for a Pineapple Fizz, which he said was rubbish.  Better luck next time!!x

Sunday 20 November 2011

Marble Magic

hello again fans-
well, a lot has been happening and right now we are sat on a rooftop cafe place (not as glamorous as it sounds) waiting for our food and feel about the most tired we have for as long as we can remember...

Back in Rishikesh, we had our last Hindi Lesson.  It was really nice to get a little  headway into the language, and one day further down the road maybe we will be able to say more than "This is not a train" and "this room is big, but dirty" etc.  Our teacher though, said we were "very gifted" and that it was a shame we couldn't stay and do more.  Eat that Whitley Bay High School german class!  Here is me and teach hanging out in his study.



From Rishikesh on the river Ganges, we made our way to Agra, via Delhi - a confusing one night stop over in our old faithful first hotel right next to New Delhi station ("Right past the men's street urinals, follow our noses, it'll be easy!") - a pity we were stupid and got a train ticket to Old Delhi station - the other side of the city.  Not a nice mistake to realise on arrival at 11pm, Delhi in the daylight is hard enough work to deal with.

Modelling my new tailored trousers...

So yes yes, Agra.  Home to the mighty Taj Mahal, and I was pretty excited about seeing this.  Laura not quite so! But I'll stand by saying it is one of the most incredible buildings/sights/things I have ever seen. Laura was won over and later said that it was 'Marble-ous'. Geddit?  :)  Its relatively expensive to visit in Indian terms, about £10 (25p if you're an Indian national though!), and so we got to stand in the queues marked 'High Value Ticket Holders'. Yeah!!  Arriving at the west gate at 7am ensured we got to see the morning sunrise over the white marble, and over the next 3 hours, the light gradually warmed, shadows appeared, and the mist burned away. I really was bowled over.  Here's some nice photos of the Taj, as well as the adjacent Mosque and Mausoleum (built of distinctive red sandstone), which are to the left and right in the grounds.






We didn't pay extra for a guide, of which there a lots (never an opportunity missed to scam/help a tourist here in India!)- though we did overhear one guide saying to a white couple "See how it gets bigger and bigger the closer you get..".  Now that's some good guiding!  Anyway, it was amazing and I'd recommend anyone to go and see it if they get the chance.


Agra itself is generally considered "Bad", and gets its own chapters on Scamming and aggressive hustlers which we had first hand experience but I wont go into that!  So we left Agra asap to its tenacious touts and bison and headed onwards to Jaipur.


Our train was a 4 or 5 hour 2nd class journey, and over the hard bench seats we got chatting to a family on the same trip to their home in Jaipur.  After several hours of pleasant chatting (Praveen was a scholar and had just finished his PHD in LED technology, which i was v interested in), we were invited to their home for some 'honest Indian hospitality and cooking'.  We jumped at the chance since they were certainly sincere with their kindness, and so the next night we caught a bus (a challenging mission / right pain) from the Pink City out to a suburb and their family home.




What followed was one of the best travel experiences we have ever had.  Neighbours from 3 directions came over to meet us and sat sheepishly grinning while we both drank chai and ate biscuits on their rooftop, feeling a bit scruffy and under-dressed.  Praveen and his family treated us like royalty, and proudly showed us around their home.  Laura was asked to sit with the women and I don't know what happened with that, though since none of them spoke English, I bet it went smoothly.  I went with the men which was much easier  and finally to the main event- The Meal.


Obviously we had presumed we'd all be eating together, so terror set in when we saw the table, with just the two places set and an array of dishes to sample.  And so, we both ate till we burst, while the family sat and stood around watching us and wondering how we were enjoying it, with Praveen translating.  They would eat after we left! An amazing evening! Praveen dropped us back at the bus stand on his motorbike, and we raced back to the city and our hotel.  A very memorable evening, with such kindness and sincerity. We were the first foreigners in their house, and it was the first Indian household we had been in. Laura had found a new friend in the young neighbour though- when explaining that she had once lived in Oxford, he replied "Yes yes! I have the Dictionary!"


In Ranthambhore national park, we were on the hunt for Tigers, and signed up for a Safari trip.  There is little else in Ranthambhore, so took the opportunity to use the TV in the room and the comfy bed for some proper R&R and general laziness.  Just what the doctor ordered!  The safari itself was an early morning trip out in a 16 seater 'Canter', which is sort of like an off-road flatbed truck with seats on, weighed down with tourists with cameras (in our case, Italian. Ciao!). There are 6 seater jeeps (Gypsies) too, but they are booked up until march next year apparently(!??).  We were really excited about this, especially Laura, who got out of bed faster than I think i've ever seen, outside of Christmas morning.


Unfortunately, our Guide was probably friends with the one from the Taj, and had very little info, other than pointing out what a deer was or what a crocodile was.  Still, riding in the Canter through the park was fun, and as it rattled and bounced along, we saw a lot of deer, some antelope, 2 crocodiles, an owl, a Vulture and some green birds.  And also a toilet block, inexplicably lost out in the bush.  Sadly no Tigers, who are clearly the star of the show.  They were having their Frosties probably, it was quite early.  We met a Swedish girl in our hotel, and I was very relieved to find I could still hold a half hour conversation in swedish, which has put me in a good mood and erased some doubt.



The last few weeks have been great, but we are both now feeling the fatigue of being in India.  We go from loving it to hating it, sometimes several times a day.  Its hard to convey on this blog, but we now mentally rate places we visit by how Easy or Hard they are to be in, which is what it has boiled down to.


Backpacking here can just be so difficult and frustrating.  It's generally like a Saturday afternoon on Oxford Street x 1000, the second you step out of your door.  The total lack of information / misinformation about transport, the noise, traffic, heat, the pollution, touts and hassles in the cities, the smells of food, petrol, urine, burning, litter, cows (all in one whiff sometimes) take their toll.

Despite all of this and that, we still see mind bending and wonderful scenes everyday; things which create those confused-grins across our tired faces.  I think we are learning that this is what India is all about, and once you get past the bad stuff, it really is an incredible place to be. So we are surviving- but just having to look after ourselves a bit more than normal.  If I slip on any more cow crap im gonna lose it man.

Our tickets from Jaipur to Pushkar were bought from the queue in the station marked for "Tourists, Senior Citizens and Freedom Fighters".  I think that is us, right??

We are Now in Pushkar, which is very relaxed and calm.  Hurrahh!

Not many pictures on us today, but see more from this post here

Wednesday 9 November 2011

A Few Hundred Thousand Hindu's and The Ganges....




Hello!  After nearly a month we have decided to head on with our journey and finally leave McLeod.  We were sad to say goodbye but ready to move on and experience new adventures.  Our last week in McLeod was lots of fun, somehow involving not 1 but 3 trips to the local watering hole...it took us 3 weeks to find so I think we decided to make up for it.   Last weekend was our friend Jennifer's 30th birthday and so to celebrate we went on an overnight hike 1000m up a local hill/mountain – Triund.  


Our friends Jen & Jules....

I tend to favour flat walks lasting no more than 20 minutes but as it was Jen's birthday I was happy to oblige.  Reports of how long it would take us to get to the top varied greatly – some saying 2 and half hours, others saying more like 5.  We definitely fell into the 2nd category....  It was nice and relaxed though with plenty of chai stops along the way.  It was a beautiful walk, made quite mysterious with the cloud cover creeping up as we got to the top.  



Once on Triund (alt 2800mtrs), anyone staying overnight can rent out a tent, sleeping bag and blanket – perfect, or so we thought.  The man even put the tents up, so we didn't think twice about them until heading off to bed in the dark and realising that neither end of our tent zipped up.  That, the very cold temperatures and the group of barking dogs kindly keeping guard outside meant that none of us got more than an hours sleep.  That said, we had a great time – spent the evening round a campfire sipping whiskey to keep warm and chatting to some Indian folk.  When the cloud cleared and the sun rose the next morning we realised it was definitely worth the hike – the scenery was stunning.



Our last teaching class was on Friday so we played lots of games, drank chai and ate cake with our students.  It was a lovely last lesson and made all the more special by the fact that one by one our students pulled out Tibetan scarves for us as good luck gifts for the rest of our journey.  It was so unexpected and generous of them and made us feel quite emotional afterwards.  Unfortunately we couldn't justify carrying all 20 scarves around Asia and so have had to post all except 1 each home.


Us and our class...

Quite a lot of our last week in McLeod was spent trying to figure out how to move onto our next destination, and until you've tried to book train travel in India I don't think you quite realise how complicated it can be....we certainly hadn't, and trips to 3 different travel agents as well as numerous hours on the internet didn't make it any easier.   

For starters, the website only tells you direct train journeys, so you have to figure out whether trains actually go to your destination.  Then you have to pick one of up to 6 different types of seats, ranging from 1st class A/C to the general sleeper car.  Once you've figured that out, you then keep all fingers & toes crossed in hope that there are still seats.  Not that that really matters mind, as up to 400+ people book tickets on the 'waiting list' in hope that some people will cancel their bookings.  There's also the 'foreign quota' option but only available from certain stations, and also the 'tatcal' seats which are an extra 30 tickets on some journeys released  48 hours before the trains departure.  I think you need a degree from Oxford to figure it all out.  Today we've tried to book tickets to Varanasi, but it turns out all trains are full until December...     



Eventually we managed to plan our onward journey from McLeod, and 2 scary buses, an overnight train with lots of snoring men, a 3 hour wait, 2 mile walk, 2 rickshaws (holding 13 people each) and 30 hours later we arrived in Rishikesh – famous for its yoga, meditation and general 'new age' hippiness.  Once again our knack for gatecrashing religious festivals didn't fail us and we turned up in Haridwar, 1 hour south, along with hundreds of thousands of Hindus celebrating the birthday of their particular guru.   



The city was covered in yellow and orange, seemingly the colour of their particular sect, and although the crowds were pretty overwhelming it looked beautiful along the banks of the Ganges.  The sheer number of people meant that all onward buses were cancelled and unfortunately we've since heard that 20 people were killed in a stampede that afternoon.



Now further up the river in Rishikesh, things are much calmer yet still exciting with plenty to see and do.  We've found an okay hotel, finally got hot water and even came downstairs to find a cow in the lobby - only in India!  



Tomorrow we begin our Hindi lessons – much needed as we're somewhat embarrassed at only being able to say 'namaste'.  John's hoping he can learn the Hindi for 'I'm allergic to....' or 'no butter/cheese/milk/cream/eggs please' as no matter how much gesturing and explanation you try and give in English, every meal seems to contain at least one of the above.  I've already managed to have a dress made at the local tailors, a bargin at just £4 and needed to counter the depression I've been feeling at not even being able to fit into XL clothes. :-)



Our plan is to stay here until about Saturday although it could be longer if we can't book an onward train.   We're also setting time aside to figure out or destination after India – although we had planned on going to Thailand we're a little concerned after reading about the floods.  Less than 7 weeks till Christmas though (sorry to bring that up!) so we have to get on the case.  Suggestions on a postcard please... 
     



Thursday 3 November 2011

Monkeygeddon




Hello reader(s)!
We've now spent 3 weeks in Mcleod ganj/Dharamsala, and are quite acclimatised to the tea drinking, cake eating, cafe lurking, reading, early bed times and altitude- its been a rough ride.  There are 15 pieces of cake / 3 dogs / 0.2 cows, 1 Buddhist monk,  0.4 monkeys, and 10kg of sugar for every traveller/citizen here.



Our english classes have been a lot of fun, and has given us a nice routine to each day (see above activities).  Its great to get to know the students better now, and the lessons seem productive enough for 2 unqualified teachers (whats a gerund??).  Many have their stories of fleeing Chinese occupied Tibet by walking accross the himalayas and Nepal and into India, and are just incredible survival stories and very humbling.  

  

There are plenty of courses to get involved in, from various types of yoga to cookery and wood work.  I took myself on a cookery 'Momo' class (a tibetan steamed dumpling) in 'Mamas Kitchen', which have quickly become my favourite street food/snack/main meal/supper :) 


I was sat at our desk in our hotel room last week when quite a large monkey come in through the window.  It is so very true how human their faces are (though with bigger teeth). I have watched a lot of nature programmes in my time (its impossible not to isn't it) and so knew what to do.  I stood up slowly and put my arms in the air like a pantomime monster, which sent him quite casually back out of the window. He didnt wink or anything, but he would have done if it were in a film.  





Diwali came and went with quite a bang.  The picture at the top of this post shows our route home across the 'main square' blocked by a spontaneous unregulated and totally frightening fireworks 'session' with drums and dancing.  I watched a man on a motorbike ride through the launching area at one point (the roads through it were not even closed and i guess he needed to get somewhere) as rockets and bangers were blasting up from coke bottles and bean tins and excited childrens hands.  It was insane, and forged a new dimensions to the 'get on with it' / 'itll be fine' mentality here. Heres some photos, but they dont convey anywhere near the full picture or atmosphere.  It was amazing - in the 'oh jesus' sense of the word.








Here comes a cop car to turn a blind eye...


Every so often, the Dalai Lama is requested to do some teachings here, this time by a Korean group, and  so we had the opportunity to go and listen to him read some Buddhist teachings and explanations.  It was in Tibetan, but all foreigners (in 6 languages maybe) had a live radio translation from an unseen man, struggling to keep up.  Together with the celebrations at the Sikh Golden Temple, it was another huge privilege to be a part of. We were sat cross legged in amongst a huge number of smiling and friendly monks and nuns, listening and tucking into Butter Tea (it has salt, butter and milk in it, and laura got saddled with a huge bowl full, "this is disgusting"- my fault, sorry laura) and bread and dahl and rice (much nicer), brought out to the people by a troop of monks with the biggest pots and kettles i have ever seen. There were 3 days of teachings, a lot of it hard to understand, but being here we've learned a lot about Buddhism.  Dont worry mum, it is NOt a cult or anything like, and we are still same old us :) Richard Gere even showed up on the last day.. they are good pals apparently, Who knew.  Security was ever so tight - pity they got everyone's names wrong...



The food continues to be a big part of our time here, and eating out 2 or 3 times a day is a new experience for us and is very lovely.  Its the first time in a long time that every meal we eat is made by someone else, which is quite a thing. This has meant i inadvertently end up eating ghee/milk/egg sometimes, which does no good for my eczema, but i think ive got the clamps on it now.  Although english is widely spoken in india, the concept of no eggs or dairy is not always understood. We've moved guest houses to a very nice place, at the bottom of a big set of stairs, below the town.  Its the same price (£3 ish), but has a huge balcony, nice bathroom and what looks like an alsation crossed with a dalmation - it looks very sci-fi.



We've found the best internet connection in town, which is a lot more reliable i think.  They also advertise 'Paragliding & Lamination' - wouldnt want to get those two mixed up.  

Once again we've added some photos to flickr which you can check out here!

That's all for now!
John