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.