Kathmandu (finally updated!)

sorry, will need more time to write this... its been a busy (and expensive few days).

But i leave to start my Everest trek tomorrow, starting with a 13hour bus ride to the village of Jiri. From there, its 2 weeks or so till Everest Base Camp, and then another 2 weeks back down, as i hike out to the east of the mountain, via Tumlingsar, and then back to the Indian border.

So no more updates for a month, but plenty to write about after that i am sure.

UPDATE
I am still alive, and currently in Sikkim in Northern India. As i get home in 2 weeks, i decided i would wait to update, as then i can attach pictures as well..so another 2 weeks of waiting i am afraid!

UPDATE UPDATE

I am back in sunny England, so can finally get around to updating the blog, and sorry about the wait!

If you remember, i arrived in Kathmandu aboard THE BUS FROM HELL, and to make the bloody thing worse, i left my hat aboard (and i would manage to leave the sunglasses behind at the guest house in Jiri - both things i had gotten in Japan)

 Finding a new hat proved to be a nightmare - every hiking shop, of which there are many in Kathmandu, only stocked polyester hiking hats, with many insisting cotton ones were not made. Took me over an hour to find a tourist one that was affordable, and while rather hot and heavy for hiking, it had to do (and it served me very well).

Something that i have wanted to do for a long time is bungy-jump, and Nepal boasts the tallest one in Asia, as well one of the cheapest, so i booked myself onto a two day retreat at http://www.thelastresort.com.np/ and tried to convince myself i had made a good decision. The prospect of a quiet place to stay, eating good food, 15km near the Tibetan border, and a bungy as well was promising.

I am glad i did it, but at the same time, i dont think ill go bungy jumping again any time soon. It just wasn't very comfortable, especially the jolting after bounces (after the initial leap). When i jumped off, i clearly remember the thoughs going through my head - first few seconds i was regretting doing it "I just jumped off a bridge, im going to die", followed by "im flying!", then "ahhh, hanging upside down is uncomfortable, my head hurts". I did however, look at the bridges i would cross during my trek rather differently, and on one or two i was worryingly tempted to jump off!

 Back in the city, much of my time was spent organising trekking permits and posting as much stuff back home as possible to save me carrying it. So i didn't get to spend as much time sightseeing as i would have liked. While Kathmandu is a hectic place with a huge traffic problem, there is plenty of history in the valley, and lots to see apparently.

Treated myself to a dinner of organic beans and tofu - one of the advantages of being back in a major tourist town - and finished my book about how terrible and dangerous Everest is. It will be nice to return to Nepal one day, and see what i missed, but the focus for me was Everest Base Camp, and i was ready!

On a side note - after taking careful note of my daily expenditures, i decided to stop in Nepal. Partly because it wasn't really necessary (i had to take cash out of the ATM every 2 weeks anyway, so budgeting wasn't so important) and also because i was spending too much of my time thinking about money - thinking more about enjoying the trip seemed like a good idea!

Nepal - getting in, and to Kathmandu

Its so hot at the moment, that instead of going to Pokhara for a few days, i decided to head straight to Kathmandu, which is higher, and get my Everest hike started earlier. While this is clearly a great plan, if i do say so myself, it was hindered rather BY THE BUS FROM HEEEELLLLLL. Not only was it the most expensive transport i have taken so far, but it was the worst. I took a video that will eventually get added. I had a seat at the back, with literally 1/2foot of legroom, meaning i had to have both legs in the isle, and sitting at an angle...for 19hours. The speakers for the bus were just above my head, the road was terrible AND the driver was going around 100km/h on it.. just a horrible horrible bus.

Which was a shame, as the border crossing had been such a pleasure - friendly and relaxed guards on both sides.

Haridwar

I didn't spend as much time looking around as I would of liked - in that i spent no time looking around. After getting the local train down to the city.for 4rs!! i discovered there was a bus leaving for the Nepal border in 30minutes, so i got a ticket and waited to leave.

3 hours later we left, but i spent that whole time on the bus, as there was no clear idea of when it was actually leaving. Oh well

Rishikesh

After getting to Haridwar, it was straight on another bus, this time thankfully just a 40min trip, up to Rishikesh, the 'Varanassi of the north'.

And I have to somewhat agree. Its just like Varanassi If you removed the dead bodies, 3/4s of the people, the heat, most of the buildings, many of the cows and most of the beggers.....and there were mountains surrounding it, and the river was actually clean enough to swim in.

It is the center for yoga in India, and much of the space is taken up with giant ashrams , mainly Indians, spending their days getting into awarkward positions i guess. I was there mainly to warm up a bit from Manali, and to swim in the Gangies without dying.

A short walk north of the town, following the river, and its a very differnt place - beaches, rapids, trees! The river is clean and inviting, albeit bloody cold, but i managed to swim 3 times while i was there and loved it. Lots of groups of young middleclass indians rafting down the river - its a driveable distance from Delhi - but not something that the foreigners seemed that interested in doing.

Also managed to go for a rather strenuous hike- ostensibly to look for while elephants, but also just to get some practice in for Nepal. Found elephant poop, and heard them in distant valleys, but of course no sightings. Havent had much luck in India with wild animals.

Drive to Haridwar

The bus left at 3pm - on time for once - meaning I was able to see the Kullu Valley as we drove down it. It really is a beautiful part of India, mainly due to its (until recently) remoteness. The landscape changes the further down one goes, with a notifiable increase in Hindu temples, and the addition of palm trees amongst the blossoms and pines. And people. The terraced hills look more like tiger stripes than the horizontal lines of other Asian countries, whether this is due to the terrain, or Indian design I dont know, but it looks rather nice.

Vashisht

Across the river from Old Manali is the competing village of Vashisht. A far busier place, but that might have been due to the festival taking place. I wasn't sure what was going on really, but it involved the local 'gods' - small palanquin with a number of silver faces on it - being marched around the town square, lots of loud trumpets and drumming, and a few people being possessed. It was a novelty anyway, and look a bit of video, so you will be able to see it, sometime in the future.

I walked over to a holy waterfall, which means no shoes for the last stretch near it, and was lovely to get close to such a large one. If there wasn't a group of school kids there, it would have been very peaceful, and i would have gone in for a swim, but alas, it was not to be.

The main draw of the village though, is its hot springs, and it was my first soak in one since Japan- such fond memories! Its done somewhat differently here, namely that people wear clothes (well, underwear), and its very Indian - noisy, frantic, and not in any way peaceful. Still loved it though. It was also inside the main temple complex, which made it rather special, although the decoration made it look more Aztec than Indian (photo sometime i promise). Was interesting to see the Brahmin (highest caste) bathing to one side of the pool, while the rest of us were on the other. This didn't seem to be anything official, just natural decorum. It did make me wonder how long they had had to share the pool at all - most probably it was high-caste only until quite recently.

Ate my most expensive meal in India - 160rs.. 2 pounds! While in the mountains I thought I would have some of the famous trout, and it was nice, although for the price of 3 of my normal meals, I still felt rather hungry- bloody typical.

I tried hiking up to a mountain lake, but despite a 7am start, banana honey porridge for breakfast and a dip in the hot spring, it was not to be! I was foiled by the snow still present high up, as it covered the trail and made navigation impossible. Trails aren't marked here, so its hard enough at the best of times - it also didn't help that I saw bear prints in the snow. Spent a nice while reading in a mountain meadow, before heading back down.

Memories from the Kullu Valley - Apple blossoms, waterfalls everywhere, silly hats, peaceful place, tradition still intact.

Manali

Manali (well, Old Manali, up the hill, not the new monstrosity around the bus station), has managed to retain alot of its natural charm, and architecture, and its a lovely place to just walk around. Wooden houses with stone roofs, women working on looms infront of the house, cows and goats tethered to the side of the house, AND APPLE TREES EVERYWHERE! Blossom season, not ripening season unfortunately, but still great to see. People still wear local dress as well, women more than men, but also adds to the charm. For women, its a woolen esque sari, in very bright colours contrasting with a main neutral one, coupled with a gypsy style bandanna. The men wear a strange little woolen hat that doesnt seem to offer much in terms of warmth or sun protection, but its certainly unique.

The season hasn't started here yet, so easy to get a bargain for a room, and choice of hotels. It also means its so much quieter here than McLeodganj! Different type of people as well- more of the hippy, sit around and smoking, Israeli group - no yoga classes or volunteering here. Still has cake shops though!

I have realised that when people say 'its snowing in the hills there', they are neglecting to say, 'it is therefore raining in the valleys'. Manage to get half of the day to be dry, but rain the other half- seems to alternate between mornings and afternoons. Rather a shame as it limits exploring, but i guess thats why the season hasn't started here yet, so wont complain.

McLeodganj

The home of the Dalai Lama - a mini Tibet in the foothills of the Indian Himalaya. It was was a shock compared to Muslim Kashmir, as I have managed to travel between two ethnic minority areas without experiencing 'India' in between. There are also MANY foreigners here, of the hippy/yoga/Buddhist variety, many seem to live here full time. Which means the streets are cleaner, there are lots of bakeries selling great cakes, and Tibetan food is heavily featured on menus (unlike the Indian tourist dominated Kashmir where the local meat based food was very hard to find), there are volunteer groups/street cleaning/yoga classes everywhere, and people have the most irritating conversations, aarrgggg!!!

The one volunteer organization i knew about before i arrived - mountain cleaners - which tries to educate the locals about littering, and organises clean ups of the mountains, leave on Mondays at 10am...which i found at at 10.30am when i turned up. Bloody typical! But I actually ran into them the next day while climbing in the hills, and was able to help out a bit, although as i ended up leaving my bottle of water behind somewhere, i am not sure how much help i was! The climb was great though, in some parts through wild rhododendron forests, and for some reason, the entire mountain was covered with lady-birds.. i have never seen so many!!!! It rained on the way home though, but know i know to but my day-bag under my waterproof jacket and so nothing was too soggy.

I did manage to find some volunteering to do though, and I am very glad i did it. There are a number of political prisoners who have managed to escape from Tibet, and they are looked after for a year by the Gu Chu Sum Movement (which also has a great Japanese restaurant attached, with all profits aiding the movement). They run daily English conversation classes, and I attended two of them. It was nice to be able to finally use some of the skills I have picked up - they are learning English both as a means to get employment, and to help tell their messages to the world. First guy i spoke with now had no use in his left arm after being shot at a protest, and forcing him to spend a year hiding in the mountains with no medical help. He finally made it to Nepal and then India, and his two daughters were smuggled over as well, although he had to leave his wife behind.

Tibetan food is rather simular to Chinese food (well, the stuff here anyway), the stable being Momos - a small dumpling type dish - as well as lovely but SPICY noodles.

Visited the museum, attached to the main temple complex - where you can see Tibetan monks debating theology every day, very interesting (it involves clapping and stamping feet) - and it was suitably sobering. Especially the video documentary that had footage of current Chinese abuses in the country. It also made me realise that i know very little about the situation, and i will certainly read up more about it, along with Kashmir, when i get home. At least one of them will probably come up on my course.

Had a disappointing Udon at the Japanese restaurant, but the custard doughnut made up for it! I cant stop shopping here, but its all stuff i need, its cheap, it conforms with my goal to only wear natural fabrics AND it helps Tibetan refugees.

The town looks down upon the Indian plains, and watched a storm happening down there...first time ive seen a storm from above before..the lightning looked like fireworks, very cool.

I really enjoyed my time here - everyone seems busy either learning or helping, and did i mention the food and shopping is great?! I could see myself coming back here for a longer time to do some more constructive volunteering.

Road to McLeod ganj

A full 24hours of travel were the result of wishing to get to McLeod ganj without having to spend the night in Jammu - it was long but worth it! I hate Jammu.

A 13 hour bus from Srinagar to Jammu (slower than a Jeep, and not really any more comfortable, oops), then a auto-rickshaw to Jammu railway station, 1 hour wait until getting on a local train to Pathankot, where another 2 hour wait before getting onto the toy-train to Kangra, 6 hours away (but only 16rs- 30p!) then a bus to McLeod ganj.

Srinagar 2 - and Kashmir summary

Staying at the apartment rented by my tailor - saves me having to find somewhere in town, and its the same price. Also means i get local food instead of restaurant stuff. Just spent 18400rs on everything, including postage, which is pretty much a months travel budget - but it IS very nice, and as i currently dont have a suit, it will be of use. It also conforms with all my ethical views concerning clothing - 100% natural materials.

I had the strangest experience so far in India today, nothing negative, but certainly had me thinking of escape options while it was going on. After visiting a beautiful new park (well, a redesigned ancient one), a thrice baptized (Catholic, pentecostal and Lutheran apparently), former Sikh (while still looking like one- turban and beard) invited me to his house for lunch. It also turns out he is a part time dealer (and full time smoker) of weed, and his father is also a former Sikh, now unfortunately a very melancholic alcoholic following his wifes death. Conversations with both of them were certainly interesting! I am reading some Paul Theroux, and he always seems to find interesting local people to talk to, with such regularity that they seem rather impossible sometimes, but this has brought home that fact that the more people you speak to, the higher the change of meeting interesting people!

Kashmir as a place is beautiful and I would recommend anyone to visit. There seems to be no current fear of violence - indeed, the Indian government seems to have placated (or just imprisoned) much of the tension and anger that caused the earlier violence. While i dont see Kashmir getting its Independence any time soon, the improving economic situation has made some of the arguments less pressing, and as long as tourists keep coming here, I think it will remain peaceful. That being said, the Kashmiris have a genuine argument for their gaining Independence - it was promised by the first Indian prime minister. The problem is, is that it has become a pawn in the India-Pakistan tensions, and will most likely remain in that position.

Aru

A short (well, 12km) walk from Palagam, is the village of Aru - even more remote and thankfully not on the Indian tourist trail - I think i was the only person staying in a guesthouse. I only spent 1 night, but the extra peace was great, and it really was beautiful. The village is much more traditional, and I ate with the family who runs the guesthouse, which meant I got to try some of the - rather spicy - local foods. Very simple but a nice change.

I went for a long solo hike, despite the warning of 'bears, tigers, lions, panthers and terrorists' that apparently roamed the area - despite there still being snow on the ground and all of them most likely still being asleep. I was 20mins from the peak i had aimed for when it started to snow, and then thunder, and I beat a hasty retreat back down to the village. What was snow on the hills though, was rain further down, and I was glad for my waterproof jacket and thermals - first time they have been used since i got to India. The cheap jacket managed to keep most of the water out, but the Californian designed day-bag is most certainly NOT waterproof. Will have to treat it when i get back to England.

Had a conversation about wrestling with the village kids, something i know nothing about, but by all accounts is the most popular thing to watch on TV.

Palagam

2 hours from Srinagar, and I am up in the mountains - it is very alpine here, both in terms of the scenery (pine trees, snow capped mountains etc) and the architecture features the odd steeply pitched roof. It is also full of Indians here - all from the newly increasing middle class - spending money on pointless things and trying to keep the kids/wife happy. It means all of the resturants serve veg Indian meals - nothing local - and there are horse rides to get to all of the easily walkable local sights.

I stayed in a small guesthouse by the river, and the sound of rushing water at night reminded me of the canoe trip in Canada i took in my gap year. Walking in the woods is lovely, as being off the main horse route, there is no one!

Climbed 2000ft along a 15km road, which is still covered by snow and therefore closed to traffic. It forms part of a very important Hindu pilgrimage that will see the whole area chocked full of people in 2 months. Very hard to imagine at the moment!

Srinagar part 1

Sorry, i know its been over a week, so lets see how much i can write in 30mins. I have so much to say about the place!

It is a surprisingly big city, especially having passed nothing but villages for the previous 250km drive. Indeed, the lake, the centerpiece of the town, seems to be being swallowed up! (its not, the development ON the lake has been there for many years- the houseboats and floating gardens (reclaimed land used for farming)

Found a guesthouse to stay in, while i debated the pros and cons of staying in a houseboat. While they are one of the main draws of Srinagar, they are very much tourist traps, and having seen a few, didn't seem worth the money - why pay 1000rs for a floating version of my 200rs room)

I climbed the main - only - hill in the middle of the city (it is surrounded by snow capped mountains though, reminding me somewhat of Ljubljana in Slovenia) where there is a very old Hindu temple. Given the nature of the violence in the city - a massive muslim majority meant it was aimed at Hindus and Sikhs (with vicious police/army responses) means that there is a LARGE army presence at the shrine. In fact, given its location, it is the main communication base. Which means no photos, which is a shame, as the shrine was old enough to be of interest - made of unpainted and roughly cut stone, rather than the bland white buildings of most modern ones. I did have a lovely conversation with one of the para-military police officers though. She had been a call-center worker in a previous life, and had genuinely good English, in fact she was often sent to high level meetings to act as interpreter for her bosses. It was interesting to hear about the policing situation from her side, as everything else i heard was from the locals - (houseboat owners happy that the violence was over as tourists were coming back, others less happy with the political situation, and while not condoning violence, then at least sharing some of the anger).

Hardly any foreigners here though, due mainly to the fear of trouble - most western governments tell citizens not to come (including England- sshhhh), but there has been nothing big for 2 years, and while the police/army presence is very heavy, it doesn't feel like a dangerous place. That being said, I followed the advice of the locals and stayed away from the Old Town on friday- It is heavily muslim, and the scene of many of the problems. So i went for a walk around the lake instead, or at least tried to, but it was hot and sunny and only got halfway round (thankfully there is a pathway in them middle). Saw one of the old Mughal gardens- not much remains from that period of Indian history - and it will be very beautiful next year once they have finished the renovations. At the moment though, it looks like a building site, not helped by the fact that 2 of the ancient trees blew down in the storms that had hit the area a few weeks ago. My walk took me back through the 'floating gardens', an area which apparently gets no tourists, given the reaction by the locals to my presence. The kids came running from 100metres away to say hello and demand photos be taken, while adults all wanted me to stop and chat. It was very far away from the bustle of the other parts of town, and if i had been able to walk around in peace, i would have loved it. As it was though, being a celebrity was too tiring, and i headed back to my room rather quickly.

The faces here are an interesting mix of Pakistan, and central Asian - there are some blue eyes, freckles and ginger hair mixed into the olive skin and large noses. The language is Kashmiri, the writing is based on Sanskrit and there is nothing local that feels Indian- apart from the driving. If it wasn't for 95% of tourists here being Indian (and demanding Indian food and shops), it would really feel like a thousand miles away from India. Hindu is only spoken by those involved in the tourist trade, with English being the language of choice in talking to others - it has been rather nice not to have to practice my Hindi for a while.

The blossoms are out here - almond, cherry, apricot and walnut mainly - and it made me miss this season in Japan. But the lovely smells (combined with the fresher air) were hardly something to feel bad about!

I was convinced to stay in a houseboat, only by price (found something for cheaper than my guesthouse), and stayed two nights on the water. It was nice to be slightly further away from town, and was able to get a better look at the classic ones (built for the British, in classic Raj opulence) and they were lovely, but totally out of my price range. Took the opportunity to take two different boat rides out onto the lake - one in the evening, and again the next morning to see the floating vegetable market. The main thing i remember about the evening trip was some of the names of the houseboats. It is not clear if they were given by the original British owners, or newer owners with a grasp of literature/humour, but i think the 'Argonaut' was my favourite for literature, and 'Titanic' for humour. The experience did make me want to take a holiday on a houseboat in England - where they actually MOVE, and is something i will look at doing when i get back! The morning vegetable market was let down by the weather - bloody cold and windy - and the fact that the houseboat owner insisted we start while it was still dark, meaning I spent 30mins barely able to see what was going on and making photos impossible. However, it was very interesting to see something that has clearly been taking place, unchanged, for 100's of years. Both the farmers and the wholesalers paddle out into a corner of the lake and business takes place on the open water. The flowers sellers though, were there solely for the tourists (only 3 of us, so they were rather annoying).

Decided to head up into the mountains for a few days, and that will be the focus of the next update! (I am back in 'India' now, just to keep you up to date)

Going back to the police presence, i have seen some of them wearing cricket pads on their legs (painted khaki though), and just saw a group going past wearing motorbike helmets. While India is the largest importer of weapons in the world, it seems they still have a limited budget!

The train that will join Srinagar to India will certainly make the journey more comfortable - but i cant help thinking that for the locals, the negatives will outweigh the positives. It will allow many more Indians to visit here, especially those who cant currently afford the taxi/bus/plane and will no doubt see an influx of beggers seeking to take advantage of the current low numbers. I wonder if it will have a simular effect that the train had on Tibet, with a rapid increase in the 'Chineseing' of the area. It will also allow Indian (and chinese) products easier access to what is still a rather traditional commercial scene. There are still tailors on most street corners instead of clothing shops etc. Speaking of which, I had a suit and waistcoat made while I was here. The tailor was an interesting man, who had seemingly made clothing for just about every foreigner who has ever visited the city (he has kept all of the letters of recommendation and loves to show them off). While the postage costs eventually made the whole thing rather expensive, the experience was a novelty, and the clothing is all very well made of wool and silk.

Food wise, being a muslim town, there is meat everywhere, although seeing it hanging up by the side of the road has meant i have kept to my veg diet! The focus on real bread though, is a welcome change, and reminds me of the hot fresh bread we had in Kazakhstan. Certainly makes a great way to start the day - hot bread and local honey.

The old town is, suitably, still full of old brick and wooden buildings that lend it a charm lacking in much of India these days. And the local mosque designs are really rather unique. Made from wood, and with towers looking more like rural Russian churches than anything Islamic, they were something that was not covered in my Islamic Architecture course, and were a pleasant surprise. At the sufi tomb of Maqdoom, the Persian who brought Islam to the area, I met a local who had many complaints against the 'Indian occupation', and indeed his was the first voice of dissent I had heard- the houseboat and guesthouse owners welcomed the presence of the soldiers. He listed the beatings/detentions and rapes apparently committed, sounding more like an occupying force than they would seem. He was certainly a passionate individual and the conversation was interesting.

Found a great local bakery that makes the most amazing walnut and honey slices - both local ingredients - and helped me realize that i MUST start baking when i get back, as i love eating all this stuff so much. Mum- shortbread and flapjacks will be regular again!