samforest

Two street kids I'd seen around, he about 9, cocky and wild, she maybe older or just bigger, a sister? come into the restaurant while I'm having lunch. I notice 2 or 3 of the staff approach them, known obviously, but not welcome. Dirty hair, ragged clothes. Then the kid starts flashing bills about, Mr. Big Spender, and the waiters look at each other, unsure. They sit at my table. I suppose some people would think I was paying. The boy starts giving orders, pani, meals, clean this table. Pretty soon half the restaurant is chuckling to themselves, not wanting to encourage his insolence, but also enjoying his few minutes of fantasy land. He is particularly rough on the youngest waiter, still a boy himself, more rice, more sambar. Hurry! The meal was prepaid, but they ... read more

RE: Say hello to each other I may have inadvertently given a wrong impression of my true regard for someone in that blog. So. in my tradition of telling you way more than you need to know, f you would kindly go to the third last paragraph, the one that begins "Saving..., please change the word "good" to"Great" Cheers Back in Chennai!!!... read more

I see there are 22 people, plus partners sometimes, who read, or at least are invited to read this blog. I thought it would be fun for you to get to know each other a little, and find out who you are exactly, that I would inflict this burden upon. Let's go chronologically, from people I've known the longest, which means that Louise, you are up. Born a year after me, I've known her all her life. Louise is a fiery vegan Leo woman, looks after Aids patients in a hospice. Used to be quite the party animal. Kind of girl I would hit on if I met her in a bar. Actually....ah, that was a long time ago, I was drunk, and I think she's forgiven me. Janet is the next in line, the only ... read more

Something you don't see every day....from the bus I see 2 trucks with a kind of bamboo improvised crane that hangs out in front of the driver, and suspended from these cranes are men, two on each truck.. They are hanging there with 4 large hooks through the skin of their backs. They don't seem too unhappy about it., although just being in the noon day sun would be torture for me. There is a small procession with them and a few drums, but quite low key, not like Good Friday in the Philippines or anything like that. Apparently they do this in gratitude for a prayer answered. Their gods have some strange tastes. These are Hindus. ( Tamils) Buddhists (Sinhalese) tell me that photos showing this were sent to western media by the rebels, with ... read more

So there's a specific bird I'm looking for this day, and I take a little dugout canoe across a shallow river, and start walking. First through the village, a scattering of concrete, mud and plywood and bamboo huts and houses, lots of palms everywhere, dirt paths going through people's gardens, everyone very friendly, we all say hello all day long. Then leaving the houses behind and into more serious jungle, real tropical rainforest. I'm following a river more or less and occasionally the path crosses it, a chance to get naked and find a rock pool in the rapids. After an hour I come into a bit of a clearing and a house straight out of hollywood's idea of a jungle retreat, on the river's edge, packed earth front yard, lots of shade, the word verdant ... read more

A liitle ashram news. Osho Ashram turns into a fortress Published on : Sunday 14 Feb 2010 15:04 - by IANS Pune, Feb 14 : A day after a bomb ripped through an eatery killing nine people here, Pune's best known landmark, the Osho Ashram, turned into a veritable fortress. Police commandos were deployed at the main gate of the sprawling ashram, which is hugely popular with foreigners and came up in 1974. The Osho International Meditation Centre, as it is officially known, was founded by Osho Rajneesh. He taught at the centre until 1981 when he moved to the US. The two adjoining houses and six acres of land form the nucleus of the present day Ashram that attracts a large number of foreigners every year. Most of them come from the West. Police say ... read more

India continues to be a crazy place, today's news being the bombing of the German Bakery in Pune, killing 9 women.including foreigners. For those not familiar, German Bakeries are coffee shops geared towards tourists all over the main tourist places in India, although the Pune one is very popular with young locals as well. Only 200 meters from Osho Commune, this is a big blow by the bad guys, and it seems, predicted. Just shows that they can strike anywhere, anytime, so, in my opinion, nothing to do as a traveller but get on with it, and don't disturb unattended packages, which it seems this one was. Can't help but be shocked though when a place that I'm familiar with, like the Taj and Leopolds in Mumbai last year, is targeted and it could have been ... read more

Me again. I seem to write when I'm hangdog about something or other, so on a day like today when I feel really great, thought I should enter your inboxes. After last night's entry, went out to eat and discovered every place I could have eaten was closed for Pongal. Suddenly decided I'd had enough, having seen the Broad-billed Sandpiper I'd traveled thousands of kilometers to see, and in 2 hours was on a bus to Chennai(Madras). Realizing that one of the things that makes my heart sing is the ability to do spontaneous things, and travel certainly gives me that. Face it, when was the last time you decided all of a sudden, to get on a night bus and just go? Try it, I dare you. Long night, but careful driver, I got some ... read more