Travelling tales...

Kathmandu

Bought soooo much stuff. Rented a sleeping bag and down jacket for less than 50p/day!

Kathmandu

Pictures

Met up with Tanya to see if we'd make good trekking partners. Tanya had already met a lovely Israeli couple called Raz&Ela on the plane and they wanted to come to. More the better! They wanted to do the Annapurna Circuit, which is 3 weeks. Did I want to do a 21 day trek with people I'd only just met? You bet! There all easy going and what did we have to lose?

We booked the trek through a trekking company and hired a guide/porter and porter to carry our stuff. Look, the stuff is heavy and I have no intention of doing my back in, ta very much! Besides it only cost us $108 each including $30 for the trekking permit.
Take a look for yourself around the route I'll be taking around Annapurna.
In the afternoon Tanya and I went to the Monkey Temple which was great. So peaceful, full of nice people and a real joy. Getting back in the dark not so good!
Made a list of things to buy tomorrow for the trek. It's big...

Kathmandu

Checked out of Excelsior into the cheap Star Hotel. $3/night! I'm in an area of KTM called Thamel which is backpacker heaven. Every shop either sells music, internet, camera stuff, souvenirs, food, trekking stuff or anything else you might need.
It's heaven after India although it will get on my nerves as time passes.
Answered an ad on the Lonely Planet web site for a trekking partner to do the Annapurna Sanctuary trek. Meeting her tomorrow. Can't wait!

Gorakhpur, Sonauli and Kathmandu!!

05:00AM... Decide a shared taxi will be more comfy and faster than a bus and at only R60 it's worth a try. Oh, how I laugh at my naivité! There were 16 people in our land cruiser that has seats for about 7/8. Then we get a rear blowout at 80km/h. Drier is on the ball though and controls the slide. So much for fast & comfy.... 09:30AM... In Nepal! Hurrah! From Sonauli, just need to arrange a bus to Kathmandu and I'm home. The local money changer is only too happy to sell me a ticket and at R250 I'm only too happy to accept.

11:00AM... The bus journey is long and arduous.To the tune of 12 hours! The scenery is amazing though. This is a mountain pass after all. The only thing that would make this more authentic is if there were some pigs/chickens in cages next to me. Maybe at the next stop....

There are times when there is only 1ft of mud between us living and dying by falling down the sheer drop into the river below. Time and again our bus driver would get upto an amazing speed then brake suddenly due to possibility of sudden death. This would have got me upset but as the whole bus didn't even blink the whole time there was a air of calm (or resignation I'm not sure!).

Nice chap called Nitin offered to put me up for the night with his family as we arrived into Kathmandu very late. I declined as I really needed to collapse. Found the Hotel Excelsior in Thamel, the backpackers area in KAT. After a 30hr journey I decided to sleep....

Varanasi

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That's it. I've passed my tolerance point. I've been at Varanasi station for 6 hours now waiting for a train to Gorakhpur. The train was supposed to arrive at 13:30. I'd been fed soooo many stories about how the train is 1,2,3,4,5 hours late. I've had enough of India. The dirt, the people, the complete squalor that everyone lies in (and tolerates), the stares, the touts, the beggars, everything. I did have some tolerance at 2.30, but now at 5pm I don't. I need to get off this God-forsaken country now!!!

18:06
I'm now finally on a train but its been at the station for 40 minutes. Maybe its something to do with a cow being on the tracks. Of course there's a cow on the tracks. Why wouldn't there be??? In my compartment is one stuffy looking jerk who won't look at me and his servant(that he treats like dirt) who wants to talk to me (possibly about escaping the p***k next to him) but his English is bad. And I have 5 hours on this train??? Call the cops because someone's not going to make it. And it's not me....

18:30
Now been moved by the conductor to my proper seat, thank God. I had got on a random carriage as it was impossible to find the one I needed. Now in a carriage that has only 1 other occupant. Eerily quiet...

23:13
Still on the move although I would contest that the train's name, "Gorakhpur Express", is fraudulent. Have also noted many non-fee paying passengers in my compartment, namely cockroaches. Many of them. This needs to end. Soon.

01:00
Reach hotel. I booked it over the phone and because it was in the Lonlet Planet, thought it would be OK. Wrong, it's a sh*thole. Least I'm only here for 3 hours before the bus to Sonauli and the Nepali border!!!!

Varanasi

Pictures

Matt US and I went to the Buddhist temples in Varanasi (there are 5). There are so many because Lord Buddha apparently came here and preached his message of middle way to nirvana after reaching enlightenment. How nice for him. Not much to see that was spectacular but interesting to understand some more of Buddhist culture.

Said goodbye to Matt US. Sad to see him go. He's an excellent travelling companion.

He recommended the massage service in the hotel, so I went for it.

A small chap in a tiny room offered me in and asked me in broken English to take my clothes off. All of them. What followed was a no holds barred coconut oil invasion in places my mother hasn't seen, let alone me. So, to answer your questions about this 30min episode:-

1. Yes, I enjoyed it and felt great afterwards
2. No, he showered me afterwards
3. No, I didn't get a stiffy!!!

Had a great dinner with Adrian who I'd met in the internet cafe earlier. Had loads in common and was v interested in some conspiracy theories involving AIDS he was researching.

Varanasi

Not toooo badly hung over so met up with Matt US on time at 5:30am. From the ghats we negotiated a 1.5hr boat ride up and down the ganges where there are many ghats (waterfront buildings with steps to the river).
Now, before I go on, there is a section in the Lonely Planet for India that says that the Ganges is polluted. No sh*t. Well actually lots of it. The safe amount is apparently 500 faecal bacteria per 100ml. The number found in the Ganges is 1.5 million per 100ml. OH MY GOD!!!!!.

So what did we see? Thousands of Indians bathing/swimming in the river, swallowing and spitting out the water, some Japanese tourists doing the same (I'm guessing they're now dead), many people washing their clothes (OK if they're brown I spose).
Apart from the huge untreated sewage problem there is also the little matter of the burial aspect of the Ganges. The Ganges is used to return the ashes of cremated Indians back to the Earth. We came off the boat onto the burning ghat to see where bodies were cremated, between layers of wood from the Banyan tree. We saw one being burnt where there was a foot that had fallen out. A quick poke by the chief dude got it back into the fire... The ashes were then collected and then shovelled in to the river. Nice.
The other problem is that pregnant women, children under 14, holy men and all animals can't be burnt because of religous laws so they are just thrown in whole with a stone tied to them. I've heard a few stories of what people have seen floating and it's not pretty. Not by a long shot.
Unbelievably, the girls saw a dolphin in the river. Must be realted to Blinky...
Most of the shops and attractions were closed at it was Diwali, so we decided to meet at the same bar again and maybe see some fireworks in the evening.
Met up (with Matts UK&US and the Aussies) and had a really average overpriced dinner. Then went for a walk to look at the fireworks. Turned out as soon as we got out of the hotel the fireworks came at us instead!!!! Some hilarious, funny, "nothing personal" kinda guy fired a firework at us. Not a banger, oh no, but a full on go up 100m in the air-type. We first heard the fizzle and then after some clumsy dodging it flashed (blue) past us and into a hedge. I swear it was less than a metre away from me. Great. Thanks guys. This set the scene for the rest of our walk. Reminded me of NYE in Paris with Geoff&Stalker but with NO police around and everyone doing what they wanted. Was very exciting but scary and yet cool at the same time. Said goodbye to Matt UK as he was off to Calcutta 2mrw. Enjoy, dude!

Varanasi

Met up with Matt getting off the train and shared a cab to our respective hotels which were only 1km from each other. Very nice,the Hotel Surya.

Decide to dump stuff and get straight to lunch (I am a Melikian, after all!). Bump into some Aussies who were in Matt's carriage and sat with them. Nice bunch and pleasant meal apart from the hour-long broughaha about the bill. Met Matt in the internet cafe in my hotel and he mentioned was meeting up with the other Aussies in the carriage later. Count me in. Also got a text from Matt UK who I'd met in the hotel in Agra. Invited him along.
Walked over with Matt US to the Best Western hotel and met the guys&gals there. It was a pretty good night and we all agreed to go to the burning ghats tomorrow at 5:30am(!).

Agra

I can certainly see why the Taj Mahal is often included as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Exquisitely designed and beautifully put together, it is understated and yet larger than life. Mind you, Shah Jahan's wife did produce 14 children and die during labour so perhaps she deserved a little something in return....

There are some nice optical illusions in there. Take a look at this flattering picture and see how the one of the two smaller domes looks like it's more forward than the other. Also, some of the vertical writing on the wall is larger at the top than the bottom so when one is close up it is easier to read. Frankly couldn't bear to see another fort so my guide Sanju and Khan took me to a locals place to get a meat biryani. Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if even the locals weren't scared of the place. The Mekon stomach won the battle though...

Posting all the crap excellent things I'd bought turned out to be a Indian experience in itself. Mr Man1 at the post office refused to send the parcel (which we'd already sealed) because he said it could contain a bomb. My reasonable retort of "WHY IN THE NAME OF F**K WOULD I SEND A BOMB TO MY PARENTS???????" seemed to fall on deaf ears. Still apparently if I paid Mr Man1 R150 and his sidekick Mr Man2 R75 the bomb would magically disappear. Mekon pulse rising..... Paid Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee and managed to get a discount on postage(!!!!!!!!). Try that at home!

Khan dropped me at Agra train station for an emotional au revoir (what a great picture!).

Trying to get on a train when you don't know which train is which, where there is no-one to help and the number of locals who swear that this IS the train and the number who swear it ISN'T the train can get a little frustrating. Manage to hook up with a great American guy called Matt who is almost on the same carriage as me and is definitely supposed to be on the same train. Luck prevails and we're off.

What followed was a 16hr journey punctuated by sleeping, chatting to Matt in the next carriage and swatting roaches. Toilets were best avoided and food had to be grabbed on the platforms at stops from mad people waving their wares in your face in a frenzy. Jeez....

Ranthambore and Agra

Went to Ranthabore's crumbling but cool fort which was innundated with monkeys crawling all over the walls and battlements. Definitely need to tak a couple home with me. Maybe if I ditch some clothes they'd fit...
On the long drive to Agra we tried to get to the Barathpur Bird Sanctuary but we got there too late. Khan proceeded to show me the red light area (truckers delight) in Bharatpur which was in every way grim. Ugh.
Made it to Agra at 7pm which makes today a new record, 8.5hrs driving!

Ranthambore National Park and Agra

No pictures yet...

Checked out of the hotel and headed to the fort in the park. Wow, this fort is inundated with monkeys. Luckily for the monkeys, they are all sacred. The monkey god Hanuman see's to that!

Then set off for Agra with Bahratpur Bird Sanctuary on the way. Unfortunately bird sanctuary was closed by the time we got there so more driving to get to Agra. That made it 8.5hrs driving today. Nice!

Ranthambore National Park

No pictures yet...

Rode out on the cantor to the park. Sat next to Tim (only available seat! Must smell! ;-) ) There was definitely an air of excitement about seeing some real nature at work.... Well in 4 hours we saw a

• leopard in the distance
• some monkeys
• a crocodile
• gazelles
• deer
• parakeets

Can you guess what I missed out? Yep, no tigers today. Close, but no cigar. When we got back our clothes were red from the dust that the cantor throws up. Looked seriously weather beaten. There was a Finnish guy behind me who'd worn a kultha (white indian dress) which was going straight to the dry cleaners!

Tim suggested I meet him in his hotel as he was having dinner with another couple he'd met. Perfect! Paddy&Sarah, Tim and I had dinner and many many beers chatting about our experiences, LBW rules and the like and then decided to go pack to P&S's room as the restaurant had closed hours ago... Besides, Paddy had a bottle of 8PM, Indian whisky! Can you guess where this is leading? Thats right, I polished off a good portion of the bottle as did Tim, who decided he was going to shave Paddy's head! Afterwards it was my turn but I managed to bargain him down to a grade 4 at least!! Unfortunately he got the grade wrong so I no have a grade 0 at the sides and grade 6 on top. Sh*t! Mini mullet territory!!!

Walked home in complete pitch black which was interesting. Happy now Rick??? Apparently Khan checked up on me to make sure I was OK without my knowing. Nice touch Khan!

V V V V drunk. Up at 5am (it's 2am now...). Gulp....

Ranthambore National Park

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Started the 180km drive on time for a change and arrived 4 hours later. Checked into the Hotel Tiger Safari Resort and booked a cantor(sp?) open top coach type-thing for 2:30pm tomorrow. Didn't fancy the 6:30am option. Reckon I have 3 attempts at seeing the tigers.Should be enough! Met a chap called Tim who's going to book the same trip so should be fun! Tigers yay!

Jaipur

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Went to the palace museum and the fort today which threw up a few oddities:-

• The largest silver containers in the world at almost 5ft high in the palace museuThey were used to store water from the Ganges river (the holy river) for the King of Jaipur when he went to England. He only drank water from the Ganges because he himself was holy. Buxton Spring not good enough for him apparently....
• The largest cannon in existence at over 20ft long and 50 tonnes for the barrel alone. With wheels more like 250 tonnes! Took 4 elephants to pull it. It was only used once where it fired a shell 35km into an oncoming army. Unfortunately the bang was so loud it made the boys(!) operating it deaf AND dumb. So it was never used again...

Jaipur is a thriving city full of life. It is the main hub in northIndia for jewellery, precious stones & textiles. It also has the best cinema in India! Would be a shame not to go so that night Khan and I treated ourselves to "The Game". It was pretty easy to work out what was going on. Bad guys in black, good guys in white etc with a plot with about as many twists as a ruler. Just as well as the whole film was in Hindi (with occasional random outbursts in English). I must admit the 3 hours did pass a little slowly but is was a novelty... Nice to see a few other westerners coming along too.

Jaipur

No pictures yet...

A rest day! Just went to the city museum in the morning which was a relic in itself. Dusty, dirty and cobwebs everywhere...

Jaipur

Pictures to follow....

Although there is only 180km between Pushkar and Jaipur, the roads are filled with trucks carrying marble. You will see literally hundreds of shops with 40 or so huge 10ft x 5ft slabs of marble outside them. Marble here is dirt cheap! 5.5hrs later, we're in Jaipur.

Sonia Ghandi was visiting Jaipur today and the roads were packed with people going to the gathering and people trying to get away from it. I couldn't imagine anybody making this much effort for Tony Blair, let alone IDS!

Checked into the Hotel Maurya. Nice hotel in the centre wth swimming pool! Left my bags and headed for the city museum which was closed. Then headed for a shop where I bought Loi some goodies. Hope ya like 'em babe!

Really, really miss the Simpsons and Futurama.....

Pushkar

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Had a holy blessing at the lake today. Let us never speak about this incident again other than to say that Pushkar is as holy as my butt and far far more dirty. The whole stinking place is run by the Brahmin caste to the detriment of everything except their pockets. Point made. Khan, next place please!

Pushkar

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The 6.5 hour trip(!) to Pushkar passed without incident but my God, the driving! Trucks travelling at 40km/h and everything else doing its damndest to stay at 60km/h. Three cars overtaking at once, why not throw in a motorbike between two of the cars as well? No problem. The road to Pushkar has it all!

Arrived at the Hotel New Park which has a swimming pool. Hurrah! Checked into the hotel and looked out over the balcony. As I was going back in I heard my name being shouted. Who should be in the room next to me but Michael, who I met at the airport in Delhi. W-e-i-r-d! He'd apparently set off on the same tour of Rajasthan after hearing his brother wouldn't be able to make it for a month. Spent the afternoon swapping experiences (mostly the same) then went into town.

Pushkar is a touristy little town built around a lake. The lake is said to be holy because Brahma dropped three lotus flowers and one landed here in the lake. As it is a holy city, no meat or alcohol is allowed and it is full of Israeli hippies for some reason. From the off I didn't like this place. The meat/alcohol issue I can respect, but if it is so holy then why the thousands of shops and touts and the general dirt? The touts aren't as much of an issue as the beggars. There are two types:-

• "Legitimate" ones - These are Sadhus who have devoted themselves to God and have no possessions and rely on handouts for food (nice choice guys!).
• The rest - Putting the "push" into Pushkar, these brats/children make your life a misery. I mean OK, giving out money by wealthy tourists is very painless and OK thing to do (and in some cases a big sorry on our part for previous generations!) but do they have to bother you every second of every day? No kid just said "Hi", it was "Hi" followed by asking for money or folding their fingers and just made you hate everybody.Grrrr!

Went to the Third Eye restaurant and headed straight for the big no-no, the "Special Lassi". This is a normal lassi (yoghurt drink with salt/sugar put in) with a whole load of Bhang (the local Cannabis derivative). Sol d very openly here so Michael and I shared one and had our own meals. Met an Irishman called Pascal who was on his own and managed to find a place for 50R a night. Not bad when you consider that's 80pence!!! The lassi kicked in after a while and I was glad I shared. This stuff is lethal and deserves its reputation! Giggled and joked around a bit and off to my deluxe pad with pool.... Managed to get lost on the way back and couldn't remember the name of the hotel, let alone the street. Luck/reason came good eventually!

Udaipur

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Soooo hung over! Why did I drink whisky? I never do in England, ask Stalker or Rick. Whhhhyyyyy???

The first tentative trip around Udaipur was to the lake. The lake and its surroundings are magnificent, like Monaco but with so much more majesty and character. Decided to give the lake palace a miss as you could only get in if you had a meal there and my stomach couldn't handle it! Went to the summer palace instead which was wonderful and then toured around for about an hour. Perfect hangover cure!

After the boat trip we went to the city palace museum. Nice but nothing special after all the other palaces I'd seen. Bought some pointy shoes for the Maharajah outfit from the market and visited the local Hindu temple. Loads of hassle at this temple as there is no curb on touts/beggars/thieves etc. Felt slightly outnumbered as there were no other western tourists to take the heat off! Made it out alive anyway...

One interesting thing about the art touts is that they are all saying they are from an art school and they are about to go to Birmingham NEC to display their work. Had the same spiel from about 3 different touts. Get a new story guys!

Back to the hotel and Raju had my Maharaja outfit ready. Did I mention it was tailor made to suit the Mekon's silver back body? It looks great, if I say so myself.

The evening was spent at a Muslim wedding going on outside the hotel. Very lively, with fireworks, a band and lots of food!

Ranakhpur and Udaipur

Ranakhpur Pictures

Udaipur Pictures

On the way to Udaipur, we stopped at Ranakhpur to get some lunch and take a look around. Frankly, I think Ranakhpur deserved a lot more than the 3 hours I was there. Ranakhpur is in the heart of the mountains and in this garden paradise is the most beautiful Jain temple you will ever see!

Around the temple are scattered some hotels and encompassing all is a huge nature reserve. No tigers here but I did spot a large cat (Jaguar?) climbing a tree. Monkeys are all over the place, on the roads around the lakes and near the temple.

The drive through (over!) the mountains was breathtaking. I just wish I had my MX5 over here rather than being a passenger in a 1.5L diesel with the aircon on full!!!!!

Checked into the stunning Hotel Rampatrap. It is situated on the banks of the Fateh Sargar lake and has a wonderful rooftop restaurant/chill out area. Khan took me to meet Raju, the best salesman in Rajasthan who over the next few days took a heap of money off me but put a smile on my face at the same time. I have come away from Raju with:-

• A Maharaja outfit
• All the accessories for above!
• Hand painted set of Karma Sutra playing cards (nice!)

Khan then invited me to meet his friends on the rooftop restaurant. This noble clan consisted of

• Deepak, the hotel owner
• "The Doctor", a taxi driver like Khan and most certainly no doctor!
• "Real Barcelona", one half of a Spanish couple. This guy smiled a lot but generally said nothing and was a bit of a FSOP (Geoff! ;-) )
• Real Madrid, the other half of the couple. This girl was very happy and jokey

For the next 4/5 hours we eat, drank and talked about Indian experiences, why Real Barcelona never talked and why on earth "The Doctor" was called "The Doctor"!!! A great night!

Jodhpur

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The Mahrangarh Fort was the first stop today.This magnificent fort has again 3 gates after the one entrance to confuse invaders. You get a pair of headphones and an MP3 player for this fort which is nice as you can really take your time but it's no good if you want to ask questions!

Stunning views of Jodhpur can be seen from the top of this fort as its on top of the highest hill. You can see the indigo blue rooftops of all the houses. The indigo blue was the colour of Brahmins (the highest caste in India) but was soon adopted by all in Jodhpur for it's mosquito repulsing qualities and the beautiful colour.
Next we drove to the cenotaph of the Rathore rulers of Jodhpur. My excellent guide showed me the transparent marble interior. This stuff is 6 inches thick but still the golden glow of the sun can be seen through it!
The palace hotel/museum was next. This was 90% hotel and 10% museum. Very disappointing although I did manage to slip into the hotel by "mistake" and look round. Astonishing piece of work! Fat businessmen will like it because it is close to the office. Grrrr...!
Went to the market on recommendation of the Lonely Planet and walked into hell itself. Dusty, dirty and full of quite sorry things. Walked around looking for a jewel in its crown and came away disappointed....
The night was a disaster. Stayed in and watched Father of the Bride on cable and was just settling into Tomorrow Never Dies when the cable TV went off. Great. Then I tried to erect my mosquito net which just wasn't going to happen. Kind of managed it by tying strings from the curtain rail on one side of the room and the wardrobe on the other. In between this the power failed and I was plunged in total darkness. No moon light from my view of an alley way so waited for 30 mins until it returned. Could I find my maglite? Could I %^&%^$ !!! Went to bed at 2:30am rather than the 11pm I hoped for...

Jodhpur

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Said goodbye to Yadu (who I'll miss) and Hotel Sudarshan (which I won't). Seven hour drive to Jodhpur, the blue city and yes, where the trousers come from. This is polo playing country my friends! Check into a wonderful family guest house called Hotel Newtons Manor. Stay in tonight as knackered!

Jaisalmer

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Made my own way into town as I was starting to feel a bit fat. Being driven around everywhere is nice but you need to stretch your legs and walk to get the real feel of a town. Bumped into Baguan again while getting some photos developed and he showed me around more of Jaisalmer after which I bought him lunch. Later in the afternoon, Khan took me to the lake which used to be the town's water supply but is now a tourist attraction. Had a paddle boat to myself which is a bit of a bugger when you're supposed to have 2 people in it to maintain balance!!! Deftly peddled my way around for half an hour taking some nice pics. Sunset beckoned so went to sunset point for a photo of Jaisalmer at sunset. Khan showed me a spot where you get the same photo and don't have to spend 4 quid to get in! Nice one Khan! Spent the evening in the towm and went to a nice rooftop restaurant, the same as I went to with Baguan. Still we were the only people there! Does this lace have any other customers ever??? My luck was in because there were two totally excellent Rajasthani musicians and singers who looked the part and played their heart out for me. They were afraid of the owner who shouted at them constantly even though they were great so I have them a hefty tip so ease their day.... Will be glad to leave Hotel Sudarshan tomorrow. Too many bugs and far too dirty. Must tell the lizzard in my room to work harder!

Jaisalmer

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Jaisalmer fort was my first stop, it being the most famous attraction. The whole city is built with the same golden colour sandstone and so Jaisalmer is known as the Golden City, and golden it is!

My guide for the day was a great guy called Baguan. His English was very good and he showed me some of the havelis inside the fort. The fort has one entrance and three gates before you reach the main centre. Each of the gates is hidden from the previous one to confuse potential attackers. Saw more havelis (how many more must I see ????) and a Jain temple. The Jain guys create the most beautiful temples you will ever see. Bought some spices and some Pashmina shawls (not for myself!).
In the evening Khan cooked my a chicken curry which was very nice. Afterwards, Khan, Yadu, A N Other and myself went off to the desert to chill out. Walked along the dunes at night which was great and took turns to see who could run up the sand dunes the fastest. Having relatively large feet helps for once!!!

Jaisalmer

Pictures

Looong drive to Jaisalmer. 6.5 hrs. Bought lunch for Khan which seemed to break the ice between us. Need to as he's the only person I can trust and talk to on the whole trip.... Arrived in Jaisalmer just in time to be told that the camel safari starts in 30 mins!! Sh*t! Unpack and pack at the same time.... The room is a bit of a nightmare. Resembles a mini zoo with lots of interesting creatures and my very own resident lizzard in the toilet. As long as he doesn't start charging me that's OK. After sharing the flat in Chelsea I can put up with anything... (yeah Dave, it was ALL your fault!!!) ;-) Drive for another hour to the desert. Get put on a camel sharpish so that we can take some photos of ourselves on the sand dunes. Slightly artificial but OK. Camels are great. They're just like Taun Tauns in Star Wars. They make a cool noise, have breath like the worst India can offer and they can gallop! Mine was called Michael Jackson! After we get back to the huts, we get a show of local folk dancing. Very cool. Do a bit of funky moving myself! After the band leaves at midnight, Khan, Juda (Khan's friend at the hotel) take a walk on the dunes. The dunes are amazing at night and there is enough light to see for miles from the moon. Sat down and chatted about everything.... A desert boy came along with his radio and sat down with us. Truly cool. Met Fede and Carlos the two Spanish guys I didn't get time to say hi to back a the huts. They're a bit standoff-ish but OK. We slept under the stars (well I did but not sure if I snored!)....

Bikaner

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OK, so frequency of posts has dried up, but then so has the numer of internet cafes I come accross.....

It's 11 at night, have a 5hr drive tomorrow and am shattered but alive!

Am in Bikaner at the moment which is in the west of Rajisthan. Very nice place. Been to see the old fort, a temple made with 40,000Kg of butter (I kid you not!) and the old market here. I'm unfortunately going to miss the Temple of the Rats where the locals feed thousands of rats who have their own temple (isn't that called London?) and you get to walk around the temple and have them rush round your feet. This is a joke right??? Please tell me this is a joke...!

Will post lots more when I compete my diary and then find a web cafe. Pro a few days from now! Off to a camel safari tomorrow! Yippee!

Mandawa

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Took a trip round Mandawa today with my guide, errrr... Fred(can't remember his name!). Walked round the town showing me the havelis (painted walls and exquisite exterior decorations).

Went to the local school where I met what I can only describe as the inspiration for Borat, Sacha Baron Cohen's character from Khazikstan. "I think you are the best", "I never forget you" and the favourite "You do so much for us it makes me cry" were all gems given in the best voice possible. I took some photos of the cheesiest kind which have to be seen to be believed! That all led upto the donation bit which I was happy to give for the entertainment value alone...
Got scammed buying a duvet cover afterwards. Word of warning to travellers. All guides will take you shopping afterwards. They come with you but you are on your own. Anyway, it's OK and its only about twice what I would have paid in England, not including postage!!!!!!
A 4-5 hour drive to next stop at Bikaneer went without a hitch.
In Bikaner, I'm staying at the ______ hotel. Get driven to the Junagahr fort and look round. First stop is the cafe. Get an Indian Tahli which is like a mezze in Greece with lots of little tasters to dig into. Talk to a really nice bunch of Indians from Punjab who are also doing a trip round Rajisthan. Have to rush off to see the fort before it closes. The fort is cool. I get shown round by the guide in a group (20 Indians and me) where the guide does the tour in two languages. I'm his best friend "Kre" (he misheard me and didn't have the heart to correct him! Inside the fort there is a Sopwith Camel amongst other oddities. Met an Oz couple outside and had a funny exchange with them. We couldn't bring ourselves to tell each other how much our trips cost in case we'd been ripped off!!!
Next was the Jain temple. Made with 40,000Kgs of Ghee (clarified butter). Maybe they had a butter mountain in India as well!? My guide Mohammed is an English student who can recite poetry and texts that I could only dream of. I just tell him what he says is correct and seem to get away with it. How embarrasing! Bought some artwork which I don't think was a ripp off.
Back at the hotel, while eating the food I met Ole and Klaus from Copehnhagen who told me thy had paid 1100GBP for the same trip so I felt a little better.... They went to the Temple of Rats where rats are worshipped and fed by the locals. As you walk thru the temple the rats brush against you. There are apparently 1000s of the buggers. Nice. Shame I will miss it! Apparently the rats bring good luck. Yeah right if Typhoid is considered lucky!!!

It begins...

Trepidation is high...

Meet Khan, my driver who will be the only person I can trust throughout the trip! He's a great, quietly spoken man but looks v reliable. Trepidation increases when our car breaks down 10 miles outside Dehli. We're going on 6-7hr trips in the f-ing desert and this piece of sh*t can't make it outside Delhi!?

Apparently this wasn't Khan's car. His car is driven up for us and he's happy and I'm happier. Best to get bad luck out of the way!

Driving around is a great way of seeing all the shanty towns and rugged outback that people live in. The poverty is truly humbling but these people get by somehow...

Arrive after 7hrs(!) in Mandawa and stay at the Mandawa Haveli. A very nice hotel and get the feeling all will be downhill after this.... The hotel is an old palace converted into a hotel. I have my own suite. Cool! Go out for a walk in the evening after dinner at the hotel. Walk about 100yds then realise no lighting v v v dodgy to go much futher. Straight back to hotel where I get on the roof and take a good look round....

The day of scams...

Trust no-one!!! There are only 2 kinds of people in Dehli. Those that want money from you now and those who want to save you from those nasty people but still want as much (if not more) money for the privilege!

Today was filled with such scams... Today I fancied taking a tuk-tuk (a three wheeled scooter taxi) which are cheaper than the four wheel variety. Being inside one is a bit like the game Crazy Taxi. Winding through all the traffic pushing past pedestrians,cows,cars,stray dogs and various strewn wreckage these heroes take everything in their stride. It was one of these guys who picked me up after a trip to Connaught Square. I wanted to go to the Old Fort in Delhi but it was closed yesterday. So I tried again and it was closed! Grrr.... I was telling my driver about my trip to Rajisthan and he was saying how much he hated people scamming tourists and how he wanted to stop it and try to be an honest guy in this town. He was saying what I paid was way over the top and that I should go to the Government Tourist Office where I could get a proper trip and report my hotel to the authorities. Then he will show me an old market which is friendly to tourists (ie no haggling and no hassle). The "Government Tourist Office" was down the most non-governmental road you have ever seen. Thought I was walking onto a set from Blade Runner (Hindi Style!). Needless to say alarm bells were ringing hugely and I politely declined to sign on the dotted line with Mr Big and Mr Bigger over my shoulder. I told him I would cancel with the hotel first and then call him to get me out of there. Yeah right, seeya buddy! Next was the market which was a shop with overpriced tat. Quick lap round and straight out. Luckliy a German tourist came in and that gave me an excuse to leave while the thieving vampires stuck their fangs in nice people attended to him.

After that adventure I saw an outdoors Hindu play on the Arakashan Rd near my hotel. Was very nice although I:-

• Had no idea what was going on
• Had to put up with the smell which was REVOLTING. Think Glastonbury on the last day in a toilet cubicle at the hottest point of the day. This was worse...
• Everyone stared at me rather than the play....

Went to bed early to escape world....!

First day in Dehli...

Booked a tour of Rajistan today through the hotel. I figure the chances of a travel virgin like me getting around India and shock!! horror!! enjoying myself is quite small, so I'm playing safe. The tour encompasses Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Pushkar, Jaipur, Ranthambhore National Park (to see Tigers!!), Agra, Varanasi, Gorakhpur and then a train to Nepal. Holy moly that sounds like a lot!

Took a taxi tour through Dehli to see some of the sites. Saw:-

• Hindu temple - beautifully clean temple. Salesmen wouldn't shut the %&^$ up!
• Indian Parliament
• India Gate
• Humayun's Tomb - Second mughal emporer's tomb that was renovated in 2000. Apparently the basis for Taj Mahal!
• Raj Ghat - Monument and park to honour Gandhi's cremation. Apparently the museum has the gun that killed him on display! Macabre or what!?

Went back to hotel to escape from the throng, then went to Connaught Place (main shopping area) to get some grub. Goody!

First night

The hotel is called the Mohan International. Had to walk over the wallah-type bloke who looks after the second floor. He seems to permanently live and sleep there. Nice.

The room is, well, a room! Have a TV with 50 random channels all showing Bollywood films and the Bloomberg channel which is the only English (though mind-numbingly boring) TV station.

Landed!

Arrived at Dehli at 01:55AM Dehli time. Sat next to an Indian guy who'd been deported from Germany. Nice chap! Didn't speak a word of English and my German/Indian not that hot.

As at all great coming together of nations in the name of peace, we told each other how to pronounce the usual unpleasantries in each other's languages! Great way to break the ice...

Flew through Dehli customs and baggage with everything in its right place...

Met the chap from the hotel and found that the Scots guy I had tagged along with through customs was staying at the same hotel. Bit of luck!

A half hour drive thru Dehli in the early hours is a strange experience. Not quite sure whether I was dreaming half of it or not. I'd say the average gap between vehicles whether travelling a 6mph or 60mph is about a foot. The horn might as well be sellotaped to stay on the whole time as pressing it every second must be a distraction for the poor driver!

Frankfurt....

Thankfully the plane was delayed as we arrived 5 mins before the connecting flight was due to depart. After hooking up with another couple of brits to catch the flight we got on the plane. Unfortunately, we were told there was no guarantee our baggage would be on the plane as well! Thanks guys, no really! That's just what I need right now... The Mekon temperament is holding but only just.....

Great start!

Plane is delayed until 10:25am GMT. Advised that flights from Frankfurt are also delayed due to the same mass of fog over Europe. Dark sense of forboding.... On the plus side, it does mean that I will be able to get the connecting flight to Dehli....

Had a slight outbreak of waterworks with Mum&Dad but I guess that's normal given I'm going to be away for a while!

Just found out that uni mates Simon Hadlington and Sam have just had a baby boy. Congrats!!

Tick... tick... tick...

Well, time is running out. All the shopping has been done. Tomorrow's the big day!

Now have to fit all the junk I have bought into the rucksack.... fun or what!?

Went for a meal with my parents and aunt today. It's my Mum's birthday today (hence holding on until October before I go!) and due to a little mishap of which I shall never speak of (Anthony knows what it was!!) I didn't have time to buy anything. Oops.... Seem to have got away with it though.

Have to get up at about 5am tomorrow to get to Heathrow for about 8am. Should be saying hello to Stalker and Geoff tonight as well....

Can't wait to get this whole thing started!