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Published: August 13th 2006
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I can't believe it happened, I really can't. My foot still feels septic. I feel like one of the great unwashed. Now I know how the guy who fell down the Glastonbury long drops feels. Yup, that's right.....I fell into one of the squats....
Long story. It was hot. I was unbalanced with my daysack on my back. You know it's gonna happen, and to prolong the agony, it happens in slow motion, and you can do diddly squat about it. I felt like a weeble ( remember them?) rocking backwards and forwards, trying to get my balance, trying to stop the inevitable..... when suddenly my foot shot down the hole. Worse still, I was only wearing sandals.....
Half an hour later, with my foot still in the washbasin ( I felt sooooo dirty), my antiseptic wipe assortment exhausted and a queue of around 20 women trying to wash their hands, I decided enough was enough and if I was going to catch something nasty it was probably too late!
Anyhow, this blog is written is the slightly less sunny and exotic climes of.......Birmingham, UK after a day sailing in Sutton Park and being backdated to pretend I'm
streetkids
I love this photo!These kids had been begging at the bus station in Chandigarh. Sajad gaVe them the equivalent of 5p and they are so happy! The 2 on the left are still looking at him while he makes funny faces! still there!The cat is tarting around after food, it's drizzly outside and it feels like the whole world has got the Sunday night blues!The last two weeks since I snuck back into the UK have whizzed by so quickly, stress levels are rising again, reality is hitting home, and I find myself thinking back to the East and comparing so, so often......
Leh never materialised, I just ran out of money and felt unwell again so headed back the cheaper and less gruelling route of Shimla, Chandigarh and Amritsar to Delhi, waving goodbye to Sophie and once again on my own. Not for long!! In Shimla I re-met Sajad and quickly persuaded him the best thing in his life at that particular time would be to accompany me to Amritsar, which he did, but not without some drama ( long story!). Amritsar houses the Golden Temple ( Sikhs holiest shrine) which is one of the most amazing places I have ever visited.You can never fully describe a feeling/experience of a place in words but I will try....
Firstly, there is the worlds' largest shoe storage where a permanent queue of people take shoes off and hand to a
Sajad
(taken in Shimla) line of turbanned gentleman. The floors are beautiful white marble? and kept immaculately clean. You cover your head then wade with the others through the beautifully cool footwash and into the temple complex. The temple is surrounded by water where large fish swim and pilgrims can bathe in one corner. The music and religious chanting is loudspeakered out into the whole complex and felt truly spiritual. You can just sit and listen to it and gaze in wonder at the temple for ages, dumbstruck by the beauty of it all. People sit and recline/pray in the shade around the temple, for many come to visit and stay at the temple for several days. The sun is so scorching that you have to walk round on special matting placed down or your feet burn. There are various food and watering points where you can pick up a bowl of water or have coconut rice scooped into your hands. Feeding is very basic. We filtered into the temple and Sajad whispered that this was a very special place ; he is a muslim and this was a sikh shrine but we both could feel how special it was- there was a great
generosity - food and accomodation in massive accomodation blocks is free ( we are talking about accomodating and feeding hundreds each day). We went back again after dark and just sat by the waterside with hundreds of others listening to the prayers. If you are heading to India you must go- it was a really powerful experience!
Amritsar is right next to the Pakistani border, so I couldn't pass by a combined opportunity of watching border ceremony/scaring parents with location! This is where the fateful toilet incident took place, prior to the stomping and scowling of theIndian/Pakistani guards at the ceremony, which had a general party feel. I'm gonna stop here and post some piccies. I may have stopped travelling but there's still more updates to come! Besides, I haven't stopped travelling yet....just had news Mossie D (Alia) is flying to the UK and dragging me off to Notting Hill carnival then kidnapping me and taking me back East travelling again.......!!!!And you should see the sights around Birmingham.......!
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