A Quiet Hike and a Small Fire!

I moved over to the village of Manikaran in the Parvati Valley of the Himachal Pradesh area of the Himalayan Mountains. The bus ride was long and slow, full of dusty, steep grades that give the buses some trouble. Much of the road was very narrow so that each time we passed a vehicle or truck, one of us would have to slowdown and dive into one of the numerous shoulder pull outs. Fortunately, the bus is the biggest thing on the road, so most times we had the right of way and just keep barreling along on some scary little roads and hair-pin turns.

The town, hugged up against the river in a very narrow valley, has about 1500- 2000 residents and is a pretty sleepy little place. The bulk of the village sits across the river from the main road and there are two pedestrian bridges at either end of town. No cars pass through the city, which is essentially one long, narrow bazaar with an open square. This place is famous for its natural hot springs, some hot enough to boil rice. In the main square is a very, public bath full of sadhus and extremely hot water. Also in town is a Sikh Gurdwara or temple with baths that have been diluted to tolerable levels. I plan to sample the therapeutic waters later this evening.

I was out on a little hike this afternoon and I noticed some smoke up above me in the valley. I thought there was probably a small house up above me that I couldn't see for the slope, but when I turned the corner there was a small grass fire burning the hillside. I surveyed the fire for a few minutes and then returned down hill. On my way up I had passed one man who was coming down and he must have flicked a cigarette but into the grass. About 300 meters down the trail from the fire was a large house and the folks there were outside and had noticed the smoke and fire. The man of the house was on the phone and he dialed up some help as about 7-8 men showed up within 20 minutes. Together they gathered up some old blankets and dunked them in buckets of water then swiftly went up the hill to fight the fire. I followed along.

The wet blankets worked good on the grass and weeds and the fire was out within 30 minutes. Fortunately, the area had a fair amount of rocky patches and the wind was blowing it up hill towards a steep summit. When the fire crested the ridge it kinda burned it self out and then we just had to put out the downhill, down wind side with the wet blankets. Exciting, but nothing too dangerous. The locals were quite worried though until they saw it was just a small fire. Afterwards we all shared a chai and tried to communicate with the most basic Hindi and English, but the conversation didn't get very far.

The mountains and the valley are very similar to Central California (reminding me especially of the valley I camped in outside of Yosemite National Park). Most of the hill is covered in dry grass, while the shady sides of mountains and wet areas are full of pines. Supposedly there are a lot of bears in the valley, they are especially pesky when the local corn is being harvested and dried. The bears love to come down and eat up the ears or ripe corn. In the distance you can see the snow-capped, jagged peaks of the true Himalayas, but here in the valley it is pretty warm still during the daytime. No snow here at all.

Tomorrow I will be taking a taxi further up the valley to the town of Tosh. I believe the road stops before you get to this place and you have to walk the remaining 1 km across the river and up a hill (Truly, I don't know how it will be, you get so much bogus information from people around here. Just yesterday I spent 8o rupees and a few extra hours and bus rides to avoid a bridge that was "closed." After going back and forth all I had to do was walk 2 minutes across the bridge, as it was only closed to car traffic. On the other side I caught a bus within 10 minutes going exactly where I wanted to go. The jerks who told me it was closed just wanted to charge me some extra money to take me in their taxi the long way around). I plan to stay in this town of Tosh for a few days, and will be off the grid for a little while. I doubt they have internet. Life is good and the view is amazing. Take care everybody and I hope you have a Happy Halloween!

Holiday Plans...

Hello all! I know the holiday season is a long way off, but I just purchased some plane tickets and will be in Paris for Christmas, New Year's, and my birthday. The plan is to leave Delhi on December 9th and stay in France until January 27th. After that I will return to India and hopefully get a job (ha ha)!

I am excited about the trip. It will be a nice reprieve from India and I am really looking forward to spending some time with Faustine again. This will be my first Christmas away from the family (sorry mom & dad) and I hope they can forgive me. Once in Europe we may take a few short little trips to go visit a friend from school who lives in Belgium and possibly we could link up with some fellow travelers I have met while on the road. Maybe a Castile Castle or Swiss Chalet is in my future???

Lazy, Lazy, Lazy... and Sometimes on a Rant!

Well, I have been in Dharamsala now for a little over a week and I haven't done anything. It is awesome! All I have been doing for the past several days is sleeping, reading, eating, and drinking chai. It has been so nice and relaxing I am actually a little put off by having to get back on the road. In the past few days I have been averaging about 250 pages a day and I have finished several books since arriving here. That, my friends, is the ONLY productive thing I have done. I did a few little short hikes, but nothing of note.

I have not been trying to get in touch with my mystic side by signing up for any self imposed silence during ten day meditation retreats, haven't attended any crystal magic teachings, didn't even think twice about tantric yoga, avoided palm readings and the tarot, laughed at one day reiki body energy courses, and could care less about aligning my chakra. A nice book and a cup of hot tea in the sun is way more therapeutic than some sort of group session where we "rebirth."

Honestly, I think most people that come to India seeking the mystic, attach themselves to gurus, or fall headlong into a new religion or belief system are doing something dangerous (and not at all too culturally aware). And if you come here and you think India is all "Shanti" (Hindi for peace) then you have your head up your ass! Nationally and locally there are a ton of problems that everyone knows about and yet everyone refuses to address. Women's rights, child abuse, sewage, drinking water, starvation... 600 million Indians survive on less than $2 a day! What is so just and merciful and shanti about that!?!?!

There are a lot of new-age types in this town and it is almost absurd to see a couple (probably from Boulder, CO) decked out in bright colored Goretex with a $700 camera taking pictures of a woman washing laundry or a "guru" taking tea. Their outfits alone far exceed her annual income. Another thing just as absurd was seeing a woman haggle down 10 Rupees on a pair of socks at a charity shop that supports local villagers, especially women. I mean, sure, we all want a good deal, but good God, 10 Rupees is 20 cents in the US- I think you can afford that!

In perspective it just seems so ludicrous sometimes and it must be offensive to the locals. After seeing the neon yellow woman snapping close ups of the holy man and his morning tea I imagined a scene in my head. Imagine yourself, on your way to work in the morning, having a quick coffee at a local cafe. A group of Indians walk up, beam smiles at you and start chattering in a language you don't understand. They pull out a huge camera, point it right at you and start taking photos. In broken English they tell you that you look like a most beautiful American and that you are a fine specimen that their friends back home will love to see your strange outfit and funny hat. Huh? Is that really what we want to do to these people? Maybe I am a little too cynical for my own good, I admit, but after being here a while it just makes me laugh at how clueless some people are about their fellow human beings feelings and emotions.

I don't want to give the impression that I am having a bad time in India or anything like this because the opposite is true and I am really having a wonderful time here. I just think some western tourist's here need to take a step back and look at the big picture instead of paying some instant guru to shake crystals and gems at them while chanting something they will never, ever understand.

Teachings from the Dalai Lama...

After a few days in Delhi I returned to the Himalayas. Delhi is not my cup of tea... at least as a traveler. I think the city would be pretty good to live as an expatriate, but there is a whole economy based on ripping off tourists in the city! Their network is vast and sophisticated! And after spending all day outside your nose and throat hurt from the pollution... the worst pollution I have ever seen in my life!

But enough about Delhi because I am back in Dharamsala. Today I attended some teachings given by His Holiness the Dalai Lama himself! You, the Dalai Lama, hordes of monks, and a thousand devotees all sitting outside in the sunlight on the plush grass beneath some evergreen trees. A cool autumn breeze is blowing as clouds bump up against the mighty Himalayan range in the distance and occasionally the shadow of a hawk dances across your face. There is something magical, something moving, something organic about a hundred Tibetan monks chanting and reciting mantras. It does something to you. You feel it in your soul. You get goosebumps and your hair stands on end.

Such a nice experience and it is all free of charge. He is giving a series of lectures on his faith over the next ten days and so I plan to attend each day that he is holding sessions. Might just be a real Buddhist the next time you see me. I'm a vegetarian now and who would have seen that one coming?

Also, I finished a really good book this week called White Tiger that dealt with the some of the realities working in India. In a similar vein as Slumdog Millionaire, this book portrays a more accurate picture of the reality that most Indians live and die in.

Cricket Mayhem!

I had the chance to attend a cricket match last night while in Delhi. There is a short tournament between multiple nations going on in India right now and this gave me opportunity to see a double header. I have been seeing a lot of cricket on TV over here (it is practically the only sport that matters in India), but I still didn't fully understand the rules, scoring, and terminology. It was still a lot of fun, and I think I pretty have it figured out now after watching about 5 hours of it yesterday. Fortunately I got to see the home team, the Delhi Daredevils, play and so the crowd was packed out and fully engaged in the match.

The Daredevils batted first and their batsmen really crushed the oppositions' bowlers (pitchers). Along the way there were some exciting wickets, which is their term for an out when the bowler nails the pins behind the batsmen or when one of the team members catches a ball before it hits the ground.

All in all the sport is kinda similar to baseball, but a little slower and maybe a little less athletic. On TV it is kinda boring! That said, there were plenty enough activity to keep me entertained at the stadium including dancing, screaming, cheering Indians all around and lots and lots of fireworks. The stadium didn't skimp on the sound system either and I think I will have permanent hearing loss from last nights matches. Every time there was a lull in the action or a decent play they were blasting music and everyone would cheer and dance in a frenzy. Everyone was in a good mood because the home team really walloped 'em. And there were lots of cheerleaders around that would dance to the music and it was hilarious to see how these Indian boys go crazy for white women with blonde hair and short skirts. Every time the girls were performing there must have been 10,000 drooling boys staring at them and nearly as many cell phones taking pictures or capturing videos. The young men and boys here act like 14 y/o Americans when it comes to women. They have no clue! All in all the cricket was good, cheap fun and I would be willing to go back and catch another match should the occasion arise.

Northern Update... Narrowly Escape Jihad

While in the north of India I almost (stupidly) headed into prime Jihad territory. I was planning on heading to Srinigar in the Kashmir region and I had heard from other travelers that it was nice and what not, but then I got myself some news via the ol' internet and found out otherwise. The most damning report goes as follows:
Britain's Telegraph reported-
[Indian officials] alleged 60 Taliban fighters captured in the Pakistan army's offensive to re-assert government rule in the Swat Valley earlier this year had accepted the deal and were now waiting with an estimated 300 jihadi fighters to cross into Kashmir.
Indian officials are now braced for a series of incursions and border battles in the next two to three weeks as the militants make their move.
Officials said the militants were offered a "jail or jihad" choice by senior officers of Pakistan's ISI intelligence service and that the plot had been discovered in a series of intercepted telephone conversations.
In addition, I found articles describing among other things a grenade getting thrown at a police vehicle in Srinigar last week and a bus getting attacked at a military police checkpoint on the road I was ultimately going to travel down.In a nearby town, which I had zeroed in on while breezing through my travel book is now a terrorist hot bed with lots of insurgents. Sounds like a nice place, huh? I was literally two hours from getting on the bus to Srinigar when I found out the news. So I was stupid and lucky. I got a refund for my ticket and then caught a bus going south and I am now in Delhi. Yesterday I spent 18 out of 24 hours on a bus! And the bus ride to Delhi is kinda a funny story too.
Normally, on a sleeper bus you have your own berth. You get a narrow little bed and it has a window and a little ladder down to the seats below. Well, last night I had a "double" sleeper berth which is maybe a little bit wider than a single and is in no way cheaper. "Double" means I shared it with a Sikh man for 12 hours. We were literally spooning at one point in the night. Most of the time we just laid there ass to ass like some human lovebugs. It was not enjoyable.
However, I am now in Delhi which is a big, nasty city. I will probably be here for about a week or so and then head back north to Dharamsala and some other mountain communities (although far, far away from Pakistan). The Dalai Lama will be delivering some teachings and lectures from his home abode in the Himalayan foothills and I hope to get my enlightenment on with his spiritual nurturing. Plus, it is a lot cooler, less noisy, less trashy, and all around more enjoyable up there than down here in Dirty Delhi. All is well and I actually have to meet someone this week about a real job opportunity in India. That will be quite the change of pace for my unemployed ass!

Hello there!

I have just arrived in the northern city of Dharamsala. This is the home of the Tibetan Government in exile and also the Dali Lama's abode. It is very nice here because the weather is finally cool and the town is quiet and very green. There is less noise and pollution here than in any other Indian city I have visited thus far. Also, there are a ton of western tourists here and I am sharing a room with a man from Amsterdam whom I met on the bus yesterday. I think I am going to stay here for several days as it seems to be a very relaxing place. May get some massages, go for some hikes, and listen to some lectures on meditation and Buddhism. Unfortunately the Dali Lama is out of the country right now, but he will be back in a few weeks and will be delivering some teachings in English. I may travel around for a bit and then return in two weeks time to hear what the master has to say. In the mean time I hope to do some more traveling around this Himalayan region and hopefully squeeze in some long hikes, some whitewater rafting, and maybe even a few horse rides through the mountains.

I was in Amritsar the past few days and enjoyed my time there. This is the holiest city for followers of Sikhism and is the location of the Golden Temple. The Golden Temple is a beautiful structure that appears to float upon the middle of a man made lake at the center of the complex. Each day tens of thousands of Sikhs visit the temple to pray and ceremoniously bath in the water. As part of the complex, the Sikhs have made it very easy for all to access the site by providing meals and dorms open for all faiths and all visitors. So I joined the hungry masses in the dining halls where they serve 30,000 meals a day and stayed in the foreigners dorm. All of these services are provided free of charge, but a small donation is accepted. I think this is a testament to the inclusiveness of the Sikh religion which is an amalgamation of Hinduism and Islam. I don't quite understand the religious philosophy, but they are a hard working lot and very friendly and I would recommend that everyone take a trip to the Golden Temple of Amritsar if ever given the chance.

Camel Safari!

While in the deserts of western India I had the opportunity to go on a camel safari. It was a great experience and something everyone should do if they ever get the chance. Check out the video below!

A group of us went out into the desert for two days and one night- so it was just a short trip. Some trips go for as long as 15 days. Afterwards, I was glad that I went for just two days because I was sore. The camel is a rough ride and they don't give you stirrups for your feet. When I got off the camel at the end of the trip I was walking around like an old man! I hope you liked my desert get-up. I later gave the turban to one of the camel drivers as a gift.

These poor desert people have very little opportunity and there really isn't much development that far out. Most people just become sheep herders as farming has proven too difficult as the region gets drier and drier each decade. They said they had about 2 cm of rain this year and it was the sole rainstorm for the past 3 years.

The communities have electricity, but all of the well water is brought in by truck. A common sight in all the mud hut villages are groups of women dressed in bright saris and jingling, dazzling jewelry all delicately balancing silver pots of water on their heads as they return from the village well. These women are very beautiful and their stares can be arresting. They work so hard and are beautiful while they do it. I have a lot of respect for these village women.

The dwellings are very simple and often have thatch roofs, no doors, and no glass for the windows. When you stop in the villages, groups of young children run out to great you and will follow you into the desert for a short distance before tiring and heading back towards home.

Amazingly, you can get a cold beer on the desert dunes. The villagers know how to make a buck and truck out to meet the tourists with a sack full of cold drinks and other "necessities" like whiskey and cigarettes.

The guides cooked us lunch and dinner and we sat in the shade and napped through the hottest part of the day. Temps were well over 100 degrees though. At night it was nice and cool and we slept on blankets under the stars. There were tons of dung beetles crawling around and more than once I woke up in alarm as a beetle was crawling across my body or up my pant leg.

In the video I showed you a short clip of the camels with tied up legs. Just to clarify, that is what they do to the camels when we stop for lunch or for the night. They hobble the animals so they can't get to far and so they can't run away from the camel drivers.

It was a great time even though it was hot and it is something I would love to do again.

Rat Temple!

Check out the video below... It pretty much explains it all!

This was surely a memorable experience for me. The rat and the elephant headed god Ganesh are good friends. Actually, Ganesh rides around on rat-like creatures. This gives the rat some credence in India and people come from all over the country to pray and pay homage to rodents at this small temple.

As I said in the video it is good luck if the rats touch you and especially good luck if you are able to see the white rat. I received both honors, so I should have good luck for quite some time. It seems that I am getting a life time of good karma in the span of just a few weeks. So, who would have joined me in the rat temple, and who would have avoided the place like the plague???

The India/Pakistan Border Crossing Pep Rally!

I witnessed a very weird event last night... The official closing of the India/Pakistan border. Each night just before sunset the soldiers of both India and Pakistan ceremoniously parade around for awhile and then officially shut down all cross-border traffic. Cutting off inter-country transit is not unique, but what is unique about this particular event is the amount of pageantry and ceremony complete with fancy uniforms, coordinated marches, and huge numbers of spectators who come to witness their countries cocky display of military might. The event draws so many spectators, on both sides of the border, that large grandstands have been constructed to give visitors a view of the narrow road and iron gates where most of the action takes place. Check out the video below.

As you can see from the video there is a lot of yelling, staring, shouting, crowd cheering, foot stomping, and a lot of macho marching- all part of a decades old tradition and puffed up display of nationalist bravado. It was interesting to see and I thought the whole event to be rather comical. The whole ordeal takes about 45 minutes to complete and it ends with both countries slowly lowering their flags in unison (so that neither country's flag is higher or stays longer). I think it is really funny that this huge event takes place each night and always in front of a packed crowd of avid supporters.

You can barely see quick shots of Pakistan (which would be at the far left end of the road where the men kept marching towards), but they had eerily similar uniforms, shouts, marches, and stomps. The crowd was smaller on the Pakistan side (surely a sign of pride for the Indians) and their cheers were quieter. Also on the Pakistan side the men were on one side of the stands and the women were on the other and there was no mixing. As far as I know, this is the only border crossing where this type of ceremony takes place.