This will be a very short entry because I am about to leave for the mountains... Only one more day to pack, explore the city with the group and off we go! Manaslu is the destination, not on top, but around it, and also in another valley that is very rarely visited by westerners. I am extremely excited! My time in Kathmandu was interesting, a realize how this city changed in 12 years, it is quite modern in THamel, the tourist area, and you can really find all kinds of things, and all kinds of food, and the book stores are still my weakness and my favorite place to waste my time. But I have very little time to waste now, as there is a lot of things to do to get ready for the trek ... read more

After 2 weeks of sedentarity, it is time for a new adventure! Tomorrow, I leave Rishikesh and by the end of the next day, I should be in Lumbini, Nepal, on my way to Kathmandu. I will be joining a group of trekkers as an assistant-guide for a canadian company. I really look forward to seeing this country again, after 12 years... I am sure a lot of things changed. It will be great to see the Himalayas again. Around Manaslu is the trek. Leaving India.... It sounds very strange, as everything feels so familiar now, like I always lived here. As I was eating a thali on a roof top overlooking the Ganges yesterday, I was thinking this is probably the last thali I eat for a while! 2.5 months went by very fast but ... read more

Still in Rishikesh, still enjoying it! It is almost like being back home... Very small yoga shala with only 5 students for now, and quiet hotel, almost like being in my cabin in the Yukon! Louise is very nice, very gentle, I really liker her. The shala is on the roof of a big hotel, and in the morning the wind is really blowing down the Ganges valley, so it creates a special atmosphere. Much colder than Goa was, but not as cold as Whitehorse!!! OK, not to much to add for now (other than the food is great!) but I have a good computer so will add some photos that I took a while back in Rajasthan... Enjoy!... read more

My attempt to do nothing in Pushkar failed. Pushkar is a great place to meet people, Indians and travellers, so I ended up doing a few things... The first day I was in Pushkar I met Mono alias Johnny, a very nice young priest that offered to show me Pushkar and told me a lot of things about this holy place. I was supposed to meet him the next day but I got lost and never made it to the meeting place on time. But Pushkar is very small, so small that FINALLY, I can find my way around without any trouble (must be time to go to a different place now...) and it also means that I ran into Mono again, and we set another time and meeting place and today was the day.... So ... read more

Jaisalmer, beautiful fully romantic city. Amazing fort, amazing views, and amazingly tiring camel safari market! I arrived here about 6 days ago now, after a night choking in new Jodhpur (the air in New Jodhpur is extremely polluted) and a few hours on the train. Again the train ride was an adventure, not kowing if I was on the right train until about 3 hours later... I boarded in the dark, everybody was sleeping my berth was taken, so I really had no idea if I was in the right train... Mostly military people, we are close to the Pakistan border and we went by many army vehicles, it was really a strange experience, this military atmosphere... Arriving in Jaisalmer, I met an Eglishman, Craig, who became my travelling partner in the desert. Very pleasant gentleman, ... read more