Scott and Emily

We've been in a bit of a slump lately. Our last month in India was a drag. We became thoroughly disgruntled with the country, its ways, and its people. Our arrival in Singapore perked us up some. We felt the thrill of being in a new and unfamiliar place, a different culture and landscape. The cleanliness and orderliness of the place was shocking but relieving. Everything sparkled and shone; the space-age skyscrapers, the spanking new cars, the fashionable teenagers, even the pavements themselves. The people were polite, and after India, seemed cheerful and relaxed. With more than 4 million people living on an island measuring 227 square miles, Singapore is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. But it doesn't seem so, and the streets are lined with beautiful tropical trees. There are ... read more

From Udaipur we had a long journey ahead of us to get to south India, the first leg being the 6am bus to Indore. Travelling through Madhya Pradesh we couldn't help noticing a pattern in all the towns we passed through - they were all crapholes. Indore looked no different, only bigger, as we rolled in at about 6pm. We had four hours to kill before the night bus to Aurangabad. We bought our tickets, checked our luggage in the cloakroom and went out looking for something to eat. Around the bus station were a whole medley of restaurants of various styles. We picked a simple dhaba that seemed a popular choice. They served us one of the most delicious thalis we've had, and it was all you can eat too, the team of waiters constantly ... read more

The driver started doing that trick again, revving the engine, honking the horn and inching forward. But by now we knew it didn't amount to anything and after a minute or two of this he got bored and went back to snoozing behind the wheel, the engine ticking over. I sighed with self reproach as I watched yet another near-empty government bus roll by. I passed the time by observing the subtleties around me that betrayed the fact that we were back in India; the whiff of paan in the air, the distorted bollywood music being played at excessive volume, an insurmountable level of activity going on outside which made the cramped bus seat feel quite luxurious. Two hours earlier, crossing the border, we tried to prepare ourselves for the inevitable onslaught which lay beyond the ... read more

it may have been inferred that indian food surpasses nepali in a general sense from our previous writings and observations. however, there is a lot of indian food in nepal of course, and kathmandu is one of our favorite places to eat in the world. in fact, after finishing our langtang trek we have spent the last week pretty much only eating in our favorite joints around our hotel in freak street. we feel a little piggish and ashamed to admit this, but after the poor trekking cuisine, we had to stock up before starting volunteer work tomorrow. many times the promise of a delicious and cheap dinner to come at the lumbini tandoori, served by the best waiter in 5 continents or universes in fact, was the only thing that got us to move our ... read more

in india all foods are fancy foods. some look better than they taste, more often it is the other way around. one thing is sure, it will be hard to leave these wonderful foods behind, the fun of street snacks, the ritual of the thali. not to mention the addiction to the spicey and sweet chai. perhaps we will extend our trip just another month or two...... read more