Last Days :-(

Monday:

What does one do during the last few days of a holiday? Shopping of course! I had decided that I wouldn't buy anything this trip but........ everything is sooooo cheap! So Tarun had a wonderful day taking me from shop to shop while I bought a whole lot of stuff I didn't really need. Actually he was very good natured about it and even pretended that he was enjoying it.

After shopping there was another new experience for me. We had brought a bag of wheat back from the village with us and Tarun took it to a place for grinding. It was all done while we waited.

Tuesday:

Tiredness starting to set it so today was a very lazy day hanging out in Delhi and quite a bit of driving round. Sometimes when driving on these roads I'm not sure whether I should be laughing or screaming. I did see something different today though... the traffic police pulled someone over for going through a red light. Given that most people completely ignore red lights I'd say that this poor guy was pretty unlucky.

The suburbs of Delhi are somewhat different than ours at home with much higher density housing . There are so many people on the streets till late, and of course there's the motorbikes! At 6 pm Tarun and went to a mall. At home the malls would be busy and the streets deserted but here it's the opposite. After sitting outside by a kids playground area listening to "If You're Happy and You Know it Clap Your Hands," " ABCD" and "Baa Baa Black Sheep" and watching kids for a while we went back to Tarun's, picked up his sister and wandered down the road for dinner. Still can't get used to this late eating thing here. It's an interesting time to be out watching people going about their everyday lives.

Wednesday:

My last day!

I have just had breakfast. My stomach is revolting and complaining about the very nice but very heavy breakfasts I've been having so today I gave in to it and fed it fruit. I had bought quite a bit of this at a stall on the road last night ... all for about $2. There were bananas, oranges, watermelon and papaya....all good . Tarun is still having eggs ... He needs to cook some for the dog anyway :-)

It was a day of being a tourist... temples, temples, Old Delhi and lunch at the restaurant  we ate at the first night here. Tarun is pretty clued up on all these Hindu Gods so was able to give me an interesting commentary as we went round the two temples... both very impressive but very different with one having a real commercial feel. 

Back to Tarun's house with a shopping stop on the way ... all the ingredients for the chicken curry he's going to cook tonight. If it's as good as the last one he cooked for me it'll be fantastic. This time I'm going to be standing beside him watching how much of each spice he puts in and writing it down . Recipes don't seem to be used ....they just know!

Hopefully I can repeat it at home.

I have to leave here about 5.30 am tomorrow to catch my plane home....arriving about lunchtime Friday. I have very mixed feelings . I'm pretty keen to see family and my dog, and to sleep in my own bed and eat salad and beef. However it's also the sad end to what has been an amazing 5 1/2 weeks. When I told Tarun I wanted to see the non- tourist side of India I had no idea as to what I'd get or where I'd go. Tarun I can't thank you enough. You have given me the sort of insight into your country that few tourists ever get and you have been open and honest about it all so I've been able to appreciate the good and the bad. In the time we've had together I've learned to like, enjoy, trust and respect you.  To everyone else reading this .... If you ever come to India contact Tarun ... he will  give you the best time possible. He has a level of integrity and responsibility way beyond his years and is a thoroughly likeable young man who can relate to people of any age. I have already arranged a repeat trip with him next March .

There are several reviews about his company on Trip Advisor...have a look.

http://www.tripadvisor.co.nz/Attraction_Review-g304551-d4992274-Reviews-or10-Adventure_Holiday_Private_Day_Tours-New_Delhi_National_Capital_Territory_of_.html#REVIEWS

If you have any questions please feel free to email me  nazusw@gmail.com

Covering Old Ground

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Another day in Rishikesh. This really is an interesting town with so much to see. The people here are fascinating ... Not just the Indians but the non-Indian tourists as well. They are often yoga types as this place is known as the Yoga Capital of the World and people from everywhere seem to come for it . You can usually tell them by their hair and clothes and I also got a good whiff of marihuana at one point.

We went for a drive along one of Tarun's famous back roads ... always interesting and always beautiful. 

Thanks to him I'm seeing some pretty special places that I'm really enjoying.... this drive followed the Ganges but at a height so we looked down on it. He tells me that there are a lot of Israelis in this area so I guess that was why we ended up having falafels and humus for lunch . 

An afternoon walk led us to the Beatles old Ashram... very derelict now but obviously beautiful in it's day. I was very happy not to go inside when Tarun told me there were snakes in it. 

We sat outside for a while watching the monkeys playing but that didn't last long either as people came with food and the monkeys went berserk, leaping around everywhere with no regard for anyone . We left after a couple threw themselves against me. I wasn't hurt but it did make me realise that they could actually be quite dangerous. Tarun thought they were after my bag thinking perhaps it had food in it.

Then my last night on a hotel as today it was back to Delhi via the village for the third time. I always seem to end up there at interesting times as today the people who harvested the rice the last time we were there arrived to take there cut of it. They cleaned it by hand waving a sack back and forth to blow the lighter debris away. Many hands make light work.... It was soon packed in bags as a result of some pretty good team work.

When an Indian describes the traffic as crazy you can rest assured that it's really bad. Our trip back to Delhi was beyond imagination. It seems that there was some Muslim event on and  I think everyone of them was on the road this afternoon. Most of the vehicles were overloaded according to our standards and I can never get used to seeing people travelling on a bus or truck roof. The drive took 4 to 5 hours and in that time we saw two truck accidents, which was considerably less than I would have expected given the conditions. When I get home I think I'll buy a TShirt saying 'I survived the roads of India (thanks to Tarun).' 

We are now safely back in Delhi at Tarun's house. I have three full days in Delhi then it's back home.

Kiwi fruit Mousse by the Ganges

I Back to Rishikesh today. This was a place I really enjoyed in the early days of my trip and I was keen to come back and spend longer here. This time we are staying in a different part of town with a view of the mountains ... I never get tired of them!

India has many sides and today we had a taste of a side we haven't seen very much of... the luxury side! We splurged out on a buffet lunch at one of the luxury hotels up-river from Rishikesh . It was wonderful sitting under the verandah overlooking the Ganges .... one of the nicest parts of the river before it arrives at the towns where the pollution and rubbish spoil it. The food was beautiful and it was especially nice to be able to start with a salad. When I told Tarun that was probably all I'd have for lunch at home he looked at me in horror and I could imagine him thinking that he'd best not visit NZ because he'd probably starve. To my surprise there was kiwifruit mousse for dessert.... hmmmm.... it looked like kiwifruit but it tasted like something entirely different. 

After lunch we wandered through the hotel grounds to the river where we watched a few rafters. There are many camps along the river where people can stay in tents. Some are in small groups in beautiful spots but a couple looked like some sort of military camp with the tents in rows. 

We left 5* India , probably for the rest of the trip, and explored some lesser known roads, but first there was a return to a particularly lovely spot in the Ganges where Tarun swam last time we were there. I would have been in too but stripping off isn't the done thing here, especially in the Ganges, and I had nothing to wear. 

As we walked back up the track from the river Tarun pointed out some particularly pretty large yellow spiders. A man walking past told us they were very poisonous. What with poisonous spiders and  leopards India seems a dangerous place but I'm still most scared of slipping on the bathroom floors which seem to get very wet every time the shower is used.

The road we explored next was pretty scary but absolutely beautiful. I think it could just about compete with Skippers near Queenstown. I reckon that if you went over the side you'd never ever be seen again. However the roller coaster road was well worth it and we had the added bonus of watching yet another sunset from up very high. Every one of them has been spectacular but this one would have been the best so far. I am so going to miss them when I go home.

Back to the hotel where Tarun and I did what we do so well... nothing!  But then tomorrow is always another day.

Lazy Days

I've been travelling in India for a month now and today it hit me that this time next week I'll be on a plane going home. It's so tempting to extend my time here and the only reason that I'm not is my family. However, yesterday, after so much travelling the day before, seemed like a good day to lax out and do nothing. 

The hotel Tarun found late at night on the outskirts of Dehradun has turned out to be very nice so we are staying here for three nights. We have found out how easy it is to wile away a day with a bit of walking, a bit of sitting watching the world and a lot of eating. This area is really nice and even a stroll from the hotel  is interesting. We found a little cafe with a wonderful mountain view, we pass monkeys raiding the rubbish bin, and the sunset is nothing less than spectacular. The hotel restaurant is outside and it's so easy to just spend time sitting there. 

Today has been pretty relaxed too. After a leisurely start we went for a drive to visit a waterfall. Equally interesting were the restaurants perched along the edge of the road and the cable car that took people to the bottom.

Once again the mountain scenery was stunning and this time we even got a glimpse of snow in the distance.

Going past stalls selling roasted corn cobs was a bit of a temptation and of course there was the usual stop for chai.

On the return trip we explored a little side road which led to a very beautiful smaller waterfall. I have really appreciated the spontenaity of this trip and the ability to stop where ever I like and do what ever I like. I have managed to see so much more than I ever could have travelling a different way. Tarun has gone out of his way to explore back roads and make my trip as interesting as possible.

The Himalayan sunsets are spectacular so this evening we drove to a place where we got an uninterrupted view. I could see a million of these and never get sick if them.

An evening shopping expedidition in the city to buy Tarun a backpack was interesting to say the least. I find shopping really hard here as it's so difficult to actually see what some shops sell from the road. Walking down the road and looking in the windows is not a pleasant option because the idea of a footpath just doesn't  seem to exist and I seem to spend all of my time looking at my feet to stop myself tripping. Anyway we eventually found the right shop and Tarun bought himself a very nice pack. There were people, cars and motorbikes everywhere and once again I was very happy not to be the driver.

Then it was food time ...... again!  I had a craving for something that wasn't Indian so it was Dominos for pizza.... no meat lovers here!

Tomorrow it's back to Rishikesh for a couple more days. This was a place I really liked and I'm keen to see more of it.

Things I've Learnt Since Being in India

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•  how to drink chai... I used to loathe tea
•. how to have a bucket shower

•  how to avoid a cold shower ... Turn the hot water on!
•. how to extend the capacity of my bladder so I don't need to make frequent toilet stops
•. the advantages of having a welfare system
•  the disadvantages of having a welfare system that is way too generous

• that a bed makes a very good ironing board and you get smooth sheets at the same time
•. how to pray to the Gods of every world religion while driving on the roads....especially at night
•. how  little you really need to live
•. that India is an incredibly varied country
•. that eating in food stalls doesn't mean you're going to get sick
•. that we take preventative health very much for granted
•. that I was lucky to find such a nice young guy as Tarun to show me India
•. that I really love being in India and I want to keep coming back
•. that the sheer size of the Himalayas is beyond imagination
•. how to tune out noise
•. that some military areas in India don't allow foreigners in them
•. you don't need malaria protection in the cooler weather
•. In parts of the world people still live as they did hundreds of years ago
•. that I'm not really addicted to coffee... I haven't had a problem going without it

• Indian Dominoes don't have a meat lovers pizza

• that I can be very lazy

• that it pays to keep the bedroom window closed in case a monkey decides to come in

• the sunsets are stunning

• Indians can't cook pasta

• sleeping between the sheets feels better than sleeping under the blanket

• that just because you hear cows mooing it doesn't mean that you are in the country

• just how culturally different we are

• we wear too much black

• Indian women don't hang their underwear on the line to dry

• Indian kids learn all the same nursery rhymes as ours do

• there are many quite healthy looking dogs here that never see meat or dog biscuits. They live on roti and rice

• 

Adventure Holiday Tours

Tarun's company is called Adventure Holiday Tours and yesterday they sure lived up to their name!
We left Solan just before 8 am with the aim of heading to a small but beautiful town less than 250 km away. It was breakfast on the way... The usual paranthas , curry, curd and chai for some ridiculous amount to money... Usually less than $3 for both of us. We were taking a back road so envisaged  the drive taking most of the day as travel is very slow. The road was variable, but in most cases little more than a track so it was shake, rattle and roll for most of the day. Every day we drive in the mountains I remind myself how lucky I am that I don't get carsick as it's very common to see people with their head out of the window and a stream of vomit following the bus. Maybe the rough road had something to do with the puncture we got.

A long trip never  means a boring trip as there is always plenty to see. I have been surprised at the number of people who live in these mountains - sometimes in cities or towns but most often in villages and small settlements. You can drive along seeing no sign of habitation for a long way then all of a sudden you see a school in the middle of nowhere... Or sometimes even a university. There was a lot of work going on on the roads, very occasionally with a digger but more often it was manual labour.... always in slow motion!  I was amazed at the piles of rocks that were heaped beside the road, all broken up by hand.

The people you see are always interesting. Depending on the time you see groups of school children going to or coming from school, always neatly dressed in uniform, the girls with their very long hair plaited. These kids in uniform contrast with the other people. The women are always in traditional dress. Seeing a woman in western dress in rural India or out of places like Delhi and Mumbai is very unusual. It certainly adds to the colour. You also see the people going about their daily tasks like washing the clothes by the hand pump on the side of the road, carrying stuff on their head or on their back, herding the goats along the road, drinking chai and talking with friends or working in the fields. Their homes vary but most are simple and it's easy to see inside from the road.

In one village we passed we were lucky enough to see a group of men dancing to a drummer.... Something religious Tarun thought. Tarun has explained to me just how superstitious the people of Indian still are, and this is not just village people but city people too. Yesterday I sneezed just before I left the hotel room and he told me that after doing that many people would make me wait for a while before going out.

The scenery we saw throughout the day was stunning. The early morning in the mountains is a little misty and soft and beautiful. The sky often tends to be clearer at this time so it's good to start early. We passed many different types of vegetation during our journey, often pines and other trees (some starting to change colour and lose their leaves), sometimes areas similar to the NZ bush,sometimes rocky   areas and sometimes grasslands. Often we looked down into river valleys which were beautifully terraced as there is much subsidence agriculture. Sometimes the river valleys looked similar to our South Island rivers but 100 times the size. The vastness of this mountain area is incomprehensible . I can't believe that when we were near Rishikesh I felt like I was on top of the world... It was nothing!  The sunsets are spectacular and nothing can describe them.

About 6 pm we arrived at what we thought was going to be our hotel for the night... A beautiful place in the mountains with an amazing view. It had all been booked for two nights after we both looked at the website . But not to be. It turns out that we were in a military area and no foreigners were allowed there. The man at the hotel gave us chai and toast
but was quite keen to send us on our way as it could have easily resulted in big trouble. Evidently there is a case going on in the Supreme Court at the moment about some similar incident. So I wrapped my head up and we left the place with me pretending to be Tarun's Muslim wife.... Or grandmother perhaps! We got out alive even though we passed a large group of armed soldiers on some army exercise. I know I have government connections but I'd never considered myself a threat to Indian national security before.

We drove on.... Not on the back road this time so progress was faster. I am now comfortably lying on a bed in quite a nice hotel on the edge of a big city ... Dehradun or something like that.

Out of Delhi Again

After a few days in Delhi it was time to
move on again. Delhi had been a necessary stop as there were a few things that needed to be done like a few car maintenance issues  and a visit to the dentist for me. No, not for toothache but for a consultation regarding the restoration of an implant I'd had a couple of months ago. Because it required bone grafting it couldn't be done straight away so I did a bit of research into having it done here. I easily found out that the savings I'd make in having it done here would more than cover the cost of a return airfare next March so it was a bit of a no- brainier . I looked at many dentists before coming and after a visit have decided that I'm more than happy with my choice. Tarun kindly took me and so finding him in the chaos that is Delhi was no problem. However, Tarun did tell me that I was probably paying too much and that there's a guy that operates on the side of the road in  Old Delhi who would most likely be a much cheaper option. No thanks Tarun, this time I'll go with my gut feeling!

So chores done and it was off up northwest to Yamuna Nagar where we were going to stay with his extended family. Tarun described this as a small town but I suspect there were 400,000
 or more people living there. ..... some small town! In so many countries I've looked at houses and wondered what they were like inside and how the people
 lived in them . So far on this trip I've stayed with four different families and had the opportunity to see how they all live. This has been a wonderful experience do thanks to Tarun and the various members if his family for giving me this experience.

I did several things while in this town but one of the best was going to the vegetable market with Tarun and his cousin. This was huge. I so wish I could buy so many vegetables for so little money at home. Of course when staying in a home the added bonus is that you see how some of these vegetables are cooked. 

Another highlight was driving to visit and have lunch with another of Tarun's cousins in the town where he was born. A late afternoon walk served to show me just how similar people are all over the world  when we stopped to let the children play on a mini Ferris wheel thing and roundabout. Here the mums were all watching their kids and chatting to each other as they would in any playground at home. Then there are the sunsets which are absolutely stunning here ... Probably because of the pollution but who really cares. We hadn't intended to stay at this place but there was considerable pressure to do so . We were off again early in the morning so the fact that all I had with me was a comb didn't really matter.

The next day we had planned a day trip to Chandigarh with two of the cousins. Once again we had to deal with the roads! It was a bit sobering to witness a truck crash on the way and to realise just how easily we could have been involved in this through no fault of our own. Basically as far as I'm concerned all Indian drivers are totally crazy but the roads are unavoidable and I'm very happy that Tarun is very capable and very sensible.

My understanding is that Chandigarh is a sort of model Indian city. It is very different to any other I've been in because the traffic is less chaotic, it's clean and well planned. Strangely enough  this was the only time I've been disappointed in India as to me it didn't feel Indian. We did a couple of touristy things like walking by a lake and visiting quite an impressive arty type rock garden before A McDonald's lunch and NZ Natural ice cream in the mall. I had wanted to go to an Indian mall and Tarun as usual obliged, we both thought that a trip to the mall with his female cousin would be a nice experience but it proved not to be so. It was actually quite funny as she seemed to say 'no' to everything I looked at. Turned out that she was trying to be very helpful by telling me that the things were too expensive and she could get them cheaper for me elsewhere. :-) I didn't buy much!

The next day we had planned to go and see the Golden Temple at Amritsar but I developed quite a hankering for more of the Himalayas. When I said to Tarun  'let's flag Amritsar' his response was his usual 'no problem' .  Actually I suspect he was quite pleased as he loves the mountains as much as I do so  Himalayas here we come!