Alternative India

Three huge bangs on the door awake me from my slumbers. I peel my eyelids open just enough to see that it's still dark outside. The purpose of todays task comes rushing into my head, and the trial begins - the Devil on my right shoulder whispering "Go on, go back to sleep, it's 6am! You don't have to get up now, you can always do it tomorrow", while the Angel on my left shoulder is saying "You know you gotta get up. If you don't get up now, you'll never get it done, and then there'll have been no point in coming here....."

Unusually, the Angel won this time, and I blindly throw some clothes on, make my way downstairs, and somehow manage to negotiate a rickshaw ride, more from instinct then anything else. For today, I have 3572 steps to climb, not something to be done in the mid-day heat, even in December.......

The size of India is staggering. It first hit me looking out from Bundi fort across the surrounding countryside. A country of over 1 billion people, yet vast spaces of wilderness still to be found. And, despite the huge amount of tourists that arrive every year, massive areas of the country, the majority in fact, remain relatively unvisited.

Take a look at the map - the whole centre of the country, from Gujarat in the west, across Madhya Pradesh, east to Bihar and Orissa, and south through Maharashtra, and Andhra Pradesh and (much of) Karnataka, are off the tourist track. And then there's the seven north-east states, tucked away beyond Bangladesh. It was my intention in the 4 weeks I had until Christmas, when I wanted to be in Mumbai, to get a little taste of some of India's hidden gems, in the states of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.

Heading south from Udaipur, the first major city is Ahmedabad, a huge, busy, and typically polluted city, whose one redeeming feature is a little Muslim quarter where I filled up on all the meat I had been missing throughout Rajasthan. That's as far as it went with Ahmedabad though - one night was enough to convince me to move on, quickly.

My destination was Palitana, a small town about 6 hours away, that exists for the sole reason that it lies at the bottom of a hill, on top of which is the amazing Shatrunaya temple complex, one of Jainism's holiest sites. I'm not too well-informed about Jainism - Jains are most noted for their strict vegetarianism, and sacred regard for every living creature - they even shun vegetables that grow in the ground, as these can bring harm to insects. They certainly like their temples though - over 850 are perched on top of the hill, above 3572 steps, overlooking the surrounding area. I started my ascent at dawn, already accompanied by thousands of pilgrims.

It was an incredible morning - as I huffed and puffed my way up the steps, little girls carrying their weight on their heads danced passed me, while skinny little dholis struggled to haul their loads up. About the dholis - these guys are paid for carrying lazy/fat/elderly pilgrims all the way up the steps on a seat hanging off a long wooden pole. Moslty they do it in two's, but for the really heavy pilgrims, four dholis are required. And I thought I already knew the meaning of a hard days work......

Climbing up that hill, I definately felt a kind of envy at these people for the faith they had, particularly when I finally reached the top, and started poking around all the temples, watching them pray, sing, donate, etc. After the 2 hour ascent, I ran back down in about 45 minutes, and went to the bus station.

Rail is the travellers preffered mode of transport in India, but I'm developing a likeness for the short (4/5 hour) bus journeys that connect many small towns. Such was the journey from Palitana to Diu - as you pass through little villages off the map, you witness a side of India invisible from the train. And you have a new friend at almost every village, as no one is going all the way to Diu.......

Diu has become a new hot-spot for travellers wanting a break from India. The islands appeals are obvious - cheap beer (less than half the price of the mainland), no traffic, no hassle, a few beaches, and some good seafood (if that's your thing). All these assets hide the fact that Diu is really just like a tacky English seaside resort, a place for natives from the 'dry' mainland (Gujarat has a ban on alcohol) to come and wet their whistle. The island is a former Portuguese colony, with a few massive churches, and plenty of old colonial buildings still present. But there's nothing to do.

So why did I stay 8 days? I'm convinced the reason people come here and stay so long is because of the hassle involved in getting here and away. I know I put off leaving for 4 days cause I wasn't ready for whatever bus journey lay ahead.

My first few days were spent mainly in the hotel watching Premiership football. Finally, I got my act togather, and hired a moped to explore the island. What I found were beaches no better than one not 15 minutes from my own home in Dublin, a weird little fishing village at the western end of the island, and an airstrip surrounding by palm trees in the centre of the island. After suffering the novelty of sun-burn in December, I decided that Diu must be one of the most over-rated places in India, but by then it was too late.

Diu had messed up my plans to see more of Gujarat - foolishly, I had already bought my train ticket to Indore (in Madhya Pradesh), and as the days passed on that island, so did my chances of seeing anything else in the state. I ended up leaving it so late, that I had to take an 11-hour night(mare) bus back to Ahmedabad to connect with my train.

First stop in Madhya Pradesh was Mandu, a small village nestled on top of a plateau looking over some beautiful countryside. The plateau is dotted all over with ruins of the former Afghan kingdom which was established here after the Mughals kicked them out of Delhi. I spent 3 days cycling around the countryside, having the odd look at the palaces and mosques which are mostly still in excellent condition, and messing with the kids, whose greeting, worringly enough, was 'bye-bye' rather than 'hello'.

As much as I should have enjoyed Mandu, I'm starting to think that 'sight-seeing' just doesn't do it for me. The Aya Sofia in Istanbul somehow disappointed me, and as cool as Imam Square was, I couldn't get away from the fact that there was a traffic-lane running right through it. And so it was with Roman ruins in Plovdiv, the Red Fort in Delhi (but we'll blame the British for that one;), and a few other sights I can think of.

I then headed east to the state capital of Bhopal. Bhopal is most famous for being the site of the wrolds worst industrial disaster - on the nights of December 2nd and 3rd, 1984, toxic gas leaked from the poorly maintained and understaffed plant owned by Union Carbide, killing up to 20,000 people and leaving 120,000 chronically ill. Saftey systems designed to prevent such a disaster at the plant had been shut down to save money, and 21 years on, families are still waiting for compensation, while Dow Chemical, the company which bought Union Carbide in 2001, refuses to take any responsibility for the company which it purchased.

Surprisingly enough, I found Bhopal to be one of India's more appealing cities, which a few great mosques, a couple of nice lakes, leafy pars, and old bazaars that brought Lahore to mind. I didn't see a single other tourist here, and the friendliness and hospitality of the people reflected that - as in Lahore, I found myself sitting down to free chai and conversation with shop-keepers, getting dinner invites, and getting smiles and questions wherever I wandered.

Last stop in MP was Omkareshwar, a little holy town sitting at the confluence of the Narmada and Kaveri rivers. The main town lies on the mainland, while the holy part, with the main temple, lies on an island accessible by two bridges, or a short boat ride. Omkareshwar is the new Pushkar, and is no secret. The guest-house was almost full when I arrived, the dread-lock factor being particularly high here, and I saw a few of the tourists had adopted the styles of the native sadhus, good luck to them.

It should have been a fascinating place, but as in Pushkar, my visit was ruined by those priests. Naively, I followed one into the temple, thinking that as this was off the tourist-trail of Rajasthan, it'd be OK. Soon enough, I found myself backed into a corner by two priests, who said a few prayers for me, and then demanded a donation "as you like, 300, 500, 1000 Rupees". As I like, eh? Luckily I've got short arms and deep pockets. But 20 wasn't good enough for them, so with that, I stormed past them, evading their grabbing hands, and shouted a few choice phrases to describe their attitude.

I don't whether it's just me, or India, or whatever - so far in this country I've visited the Sikhs holiest site, the Golden Temple, and eaten and slept for free. I've visited one of Jainism's holiest sites at Palistana, and had a hassle-free time. On this entire trip, I've visited countless holy Islamic sites, and being welcomed at most of them. But so far, at the two holy places of Hinduism that I've visited, Pushkar and Omkareshwar, I've been hustled for money - and that's not so surprising in itself (this is India after all), as the fact that no one else seems to give a shit - all the locals just turn a blind eye to the scam that's operating out of their place of worship.

I travelled back to Indore the next day to catch my train to Mumbai - here I am now!!! We're having a bit of a Christmas do here tonight (Christmas Eve), with carols and cake, and in 4 days, I'm meeting my girlfriend before heading down south.

So Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all who read this!!!!!

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