i have been trying to write a blog for a few days now but the computers here are so painfully slow and unreliable that doing even the most simple thing can take 5 times longer. even having 2 windows open is usually too much to ask....
so after my last post from amritsar we traveled north to the mountains seeking a nice cool change. and we certainly found it, and also a nice change from the rest of india in Macleoud Gang, just north of Dharamsala. It is situated at about 1700m above sea level and is home to the Tibetean government in exile. the air was about 20 degrees cooler than down of the pains, we were surrounded by lush green trees and could even see snow on some of the distant mountain peaks - the beginnings of the himalayas.
it made such a nice change from the past few weeks experiences. for the very first time we felt peaceful and able to relax and enjoy ourselves. there was also a very obvious difference in the town as the majority of the population were tibetean refugees, rather than idians, which made for a lot friendlier and relaxed atmosphere. you could browse in a shop and rather than fight off the salespeople you had to wake then from their nap or look for them, chatting to their friend up the street. this was much more my style than the constant hassle and stress that had been india so far. plus there was great shopping, mainly tibetean related handicrafts, free tibet tshirts and all related things. for the first time on the trip the wallet was opend for shopping and it was a struggle to close it again!
We ended up spending 3 days there, not doing a great deal. just realxing and unwinding, goin for walks through the forest to nearby villages or lakes. from the terrace in front of our rooms (only 10 quid a night for 2 double rooms!) we and an amazing view over the valley, and surrounding mountains with snowy peaks sticking up beind them. in the valley below we could see buddhist monks walking about in their deep red robes, locals walking their goats as they climbed the trees to eat some leaves, and there were a few strnge little rooftop concerts on the top of a house lower down the valley. on the opposite side prayer flags fluttered in the trees and you could see people walking the roads around the hills to surrounding valleys. it was the most peacefull setting i had seen in quite a while. perhaps it was just the calming presence of so many tibetean monks, but even the local indians seemed to take it down a peg or two.
we visited the home of tibetean government in exile, where they were busy extending the temple where many people came to make offerings hob-nobs and digestive biscuts. there was also a small but moving museum on the chinese invasion and occupacion of tibet, with many sad stories and facts on the destruction of their culture and religion. It was a rather sombre fact to discover that tibeteans are now a minority in their own nation, now being owtnumbered by chinese migrants, who have been sent out to tibet to eradicate the tibetrean culture. tibetean children are taught mandarin in school over their own language and despite the chinese claims of advancements in healthcare, jobs and employement in the area, these manily only apply to the cinese immigrants. the tibeteans are now worse off than ever.
from there we endured a 12 hour bus trip to shimla where we are now. despite being a journey of 12 hours, the distance was no more than 300 or 400 kms. it was a very long day. we started at 7am in the morning cool of the mountains, as we headed down things started to warm up and by early afternoon we had hit dust storms and strong winds. soon the rain came and things cooled down as we again headed up the mountains, then the wind hit again, blowing about the sand and dust of the constant roadworks. all this with a window that was very difficult to open and close!
but finally, covered in dust and desperate for a shower we arrived in shimla, another old british hill station, at 2200m. all we needed was somewhere to stay. a bit of a problem as shimla is to the indians what Qindao is to the chinese, a very popular holiday town where they come to marvel at european architecture, cool air, green plants, and most importantly, clean-traffic free streets without garbage, wandering cows and the constant smell of sewerage.... the main street of the town along the ridge of the hill is closed to traffic and makes a nice change.
after about an hour and a half struggle, with seemingly half the town's touts following us, desperate for a bit of comission, we finally found a reasonable place that had room. dont think that anyone made comission from us in the end.
Shimla is a very stange place. it definatley has the feel of former glory, that has just been swamped by indian tourists. but the strange thing is, for a popular holiday town there are only a handful of restaurants and cafes. it is almost impossible to find somewhere nice to eat. we are having a rahter difficult time working this city out.
tomorrow we head down towards new delhi and then on to agra to see the taj, beofore heading over to varanassi on the ganges river. from there mum and dad fly back home and i had north to nepal to kathmandu and begin my month long volunteer program. I wont lie and will admit that i am rather excited about the idea of getting out of india.
My time here so far has not really lived up to what i was expecting of the country. Admitidly I have visited only a few places and in the middle of summer when the going is tough, but the reaccuring theme seems to be that travel in india is a lot of hard work for rather little reward. But that is just my opinion and im sure others may think the exact opposite. it may just be the timing,places i have visited and what we have done things, but i can say that so far it doesnt exactly match up the the image of india that is put up on a pedestal by so many. And it's not just that i cant handle the constant filth - many other palces i have visited have been similary bad, yet still enjoyable. in the end i think a lot comes down to the people. After staying in Macloud gang where there are many tibeteans, you are remined that people can smile, laugh and be friendly. when you travel you notice a lot about how different people all over the world behave, and perhaps it's something to do with being 1 of over 1 billion, but i have seen many similar attitudes from people here as in china.
Anyway, enough of that, and i will try to stay positive. this time next week nepal and lots to keep me busy. but until then, new delhi, taj mahal and varanassi. stay tuned!!
