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Published: November 2nd 2006
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India 5
Recreating the 'Diana' pose in front of the Taj. Cheesy? -not even slightly! Hey people of all genders and race,
My apologies for the lateness in this our third correspondence as we endeavour to venture out around the great expanse that we call mother earth and learn a little of other cultures and no doubt ourselves into the bargain, enough of the mush, I can barely sit beside myself as I write, turning my own stomach. We just didn't get around to it, and are also having problems with uploading our pictures, life is indeed hard!
First off let me say that it would be a fair ascertion to make that we had a quite an extensive list of apprehensions before we set out for India, as we'd read a number of negative articles on the internet as well as received many warnings from Indian nationals on the likely scams we'd encounter(most involving some what less than desirable folk acting as pick-ups at airports and train stations in the hope that they can prize you from your Ruppee's in a likely unsavourvory fashion).
So I'm sure you can understand when we arrived at our first destination stop, Varanasi airport, we were somewhat perturbed to be greeted by a Gollum like creature
India 1
View from our hotel room over the Ganges - not bad once you got the monkeys off the cage outside the window! holding what appeared to be a used piece of tissue with Mei's name on it. Being the brave spirits we are, we duly followed our middle earth friend to his mode of transport, but our now suspicious minds were eased none when he opened the clearly smoking boot for us to deposit our bags, we parted with the largest(we, or Mei had decided we should take just the one rucksack, mine, as we where only going for two weeks and to bring the surplus clothes would be foolish and it would make more sense for me to carry just one heavy bag instead of two, love the way she looks after me !), just to satisfy his grunts. Two minutes down the road, we added a fourth member to the crew, what seemed to be a hitchhiker(the reports mentioned they might bring a friend along to help carry away their loot and dispose of our bodies!), although our driver mumbled he was from the hotel, this did not quell Mei who at this point was gripping the remaining bags in our direct possession.
We agreed we should sit tight for a bit to see how the situation played out, after
India 4
Sunrise over the Ganges -worth waking up at 5 for! all if the worst came to the worst I could run to get help and Mei has sharp nails with which to defend herself (she can be vicious with those if at all inclined). So after a hair raising journey of 10 minutes(more like 40, but I spent most of the time trying to duck out of the way of the oncoming trucks that bore down on our side of the road(no such thing in India) every 200 metres) or so towards the main city(I was watching the signposts on the way(those in English anyway's) to ensure we were headed in the right direction, I'm clever like that!) it was announced we had arrived.
No sign of the hotel on the main street front but our hitchhiker assured it was only a short walk(we'd gone this far, might as well walk to the killing ground, save's him dragging us, kicking and screaming like a couple of disgruntled kids). We shuffled behind our foe as fast we could, all the while trying to remember the route back, in case the unbelievable should happen and we manged to evade our capture and the certain death that awaited us. Without any indication of
India 9
Anto has a wash riverside, in the Holy Ganges such, our faithful journey came to a sudden conclusion, in the reception of the Hotel Alka, our desired hotel.
To me, this was much how the early part of India played out for us, trying to get over our preconceptions of India enabling us to fully expierence what the country and the people are about for ourselves. On the whole I think we achieved that in our short time there and we have many memories of India, both positive and negative but I believe we are much the better, wiser for visiting india on the way to South East Asia.
Memorable moments
-Taj Mahal - as it say's on the tin absolutley breathtaking structure and to think it's merely a tomb, built by a grieving husband for his wife, a nice simple headstone would have sufficed if you ask me, but hey, each to their own and you can't question love. Honestly, worth the trek to India alone.
-Jaipur - Mei hitting the big screen back home (ok sky sports but that will do!) watching England v Australia in the ICC Champions trophy (cricket for those who aren't sure). Oh, and the 'you're going home in the
India 3
Just cleaning the steps down into the Ganges, I'll never complain about swimming in Dublin coastal waters again ! back of a tuk-tuk' chants to the rowdy local crowd - tickled me anyway.
-Varanasi - River Ganges. Few dead bodies floating down the holy river - not pleasant but definitely sticks in the memory and makes you think about the culture, religion and beliefs of the ancient nation.
-Delhi - Actually liked it and enjoyed my time there, for all the groans we heard about it from other travellers.
-Food - Apart from the Dosa's and occassional Uttaphams, somewhat of a let down, no bacterial diseases to speak of though, always a bonus.
-People - a mix of good and bad. I tried to give everybody the time of day, which for those of you that know me is probably more than I do back home, but more often than not their intentions were on my ruppees rather than how I was enjoying their vast country. Will more than likely keep the good memories though !
-Scams - there are quite a few people who will try it on, but as long as you remain calm and stick to your original intentions you should be okay. You'll only fall prey if your overly trustworthy, which is a sad thing
India 2
Indian Holy Man to say !
-Photo's - there are only a few pictures as we dropped our camera down a flight of stairs before we hit Delhi, will upload more once we've sorted out our memory cards.
-Hitting pavement - it seemed like everytime I dropped my foot, it appeared to have landed in shit(not sure whether animal or human, especially in Varanasi), so I was somewhat delighted to get a clear run of pavement whenever I could. Now I know it's supposed to be lucky or so some say, but surely who among us needs so much luck as to trod in it ten times daily.
-Delhi Hawkers - having sat down in the center of Delhi I was proffered the below in the space of five minutes. Back Massager(got an uninvited demonstration, free back rub is always nice though), Ear cleaning(probably needed), Fold away sports bag, Obligitory rickshaw offer, Sun glasses, Postcards(too expensive, that's why I haven't sent any), Shoe shine(wearing flipflops) and a Cuddly toy. All declined I'm afraid !
-Birds of Prey - which hover around Delhi skies in particular picking of smaller birds(actually seen this happen to a not so small crow) and the many skunk squirrels
India 6
Not so Holy Irish Man, but a fair handsome one all the same, guess who wrote the caption for this pic ? inhabitating India
-Holding Hands - there is what appears a large surplus of the male gender in India and only this lack of female companionship can explain the reason why so many young men feel it necessary to hold other young mens hands - what are they like, I'm starting a campaign, "Send your unwanted daughters to India campaign" - any applicants can apply by leaving a message on the blog
Summation, we definitely agree that we would like to go back to India, perhaps in a more relaxed environ, we felt we probably spent too much time in the main tourist haunts, but again we only had a short time there and had specific places and structures we wanted to see - perhaps trekking in northern India or Nepal (maybe when Ping next goes!)
Take care and remember one foot forward is no use unless followed by the other,
Manto
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Guru Parnell
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First on your bring daughters list should be Donna!
Hey guys, Great to hear from you. Sounds like a mad trip. I think Matt saw Mei on TV during the cricket which is pretty cool. Make sure you ask Donna about Dave from next door and why she's now called Laura. Andrew