Bagsu and the last bit of the trip.

Having said our goodbyes Dan and I boarded the bus together. I managed a few broken hours of sleep which he did not so he stayed awake the whole night. We had a delay of a couple of hours due to the alternator breaking and so we had to wait while it was knocked back into life. We were dropped in Mcleod Gange and caught a rickshaw up to Bagsu. From there I knew the way and we climbed the steep stairs to The Evergreen Guest House which was one of my favourite places run by a Nepalese chap called Dinesh. Within two minutes of being there Yarden came down from her room and gave me a big hug and half an hour later Oggie too. So minus Tim we were all back together again. Dinesh had only arrived the day before to open the guest house for the season so basically we were the first ones there. The weather was beautiful for a few days but bloody cold at night. We had a nice room with a hot shower and our own toilet. The guest house had it all. A great view, good food and I discovered the booze shop had cider and as I am not a beer drinker I immediately asked Dinesh to bring up a case which was brought up by a donkey. I was feeling pretty ill and as I later discovered I had flu and a lung infection so although in no way bed ridden I had little energy to go climbing mountains and visiting waterfalls etc. A pity really as I would have liked to. Soon the weather changed and became really cold even during the day. I just wanted to keep warm and was wearing practically everything I had.

My friend Daniel who I met the first time in India and his girlfriend Stefania who I met with him in London arrived one morning and announced their arrival with Daniel blowing his didgeridoo. It was great to hook up again and having their company while I was there was a big boost to my morale as of course the reality of my trip coming to an end was sinking in. We hung out a lot together and the little group clung on to survive the cold. One chap, Stephen had a hot water bottle and it was passed around from person to person to clutch and warm up. We often sat in my room with a jam session going on and Stef would do her knitting. We, or I suppose I started the trend of going to the balcony and calling out "Dinesh" who would shout back "yes brother" and we would place our order. This was meant in the best possible way and taken as such. A convenience for both parties. Whoever of us went down the hill usually came back up with a box of the famous Bagsu cake made with chocolate on top, toffee and a crushed biscuit base. They were simple but delicious. While on the subject of food I must mention our outing one day to have sushi in Mcleod Gange. It was a rainy day and I felt awful but I committed myself to going and boy am I glad I did as the meal was fantastic. We all had a blast and enjoyed our food. After the meal I bought some vodka and juice to take back to the guest house. Aaron and some friends we met at the Bombay guest house were back at Evergreen. I really wanted to organise another party like the one Guillermo and I did two years ago. La comida barbecue part two but as it was too early in the season and the weather was not warm enough yet this was not possible but we still managed to have one night where we went a bit wild and the times were good minus a few key players though.

Soon enough the day arrived for me to leave. It was in the afternoon so had time to say my goodbyes. It was hard as Dan, Aaron and Daniel jammed and sang. I held the lump in my throat back as long as I could and eventually went up to Oggie and Yarden's room. They went on a hike that morning and I missed them which was disappointing. The tears flowed as I said to Dan how I would miss all the good times. I pulled myself together and went to say the final goodbyes and put my backpack on.

Dan walked me down to the rickshaw stand and I slipped on the stairs putting my hand in fresh cement leaving my mark forever in Bagsu. This lightened the mood somewhat. Promising to see one another again when I get to Israel off I went to Mcleod to catch the bus to Delhi.

The bus ride had a little mishap and burst a tyre adding a couple of hours to the journey time. I arrived in Delhi and headed straight for a hotel called the Cottage Yes please on a recommendation from Leona. I had the day to rest in an air-conditioned room and was able to shower and sleep. In the evening I flew to Mumbai and then had a fair wait to fly home.

I arrived back in England to beautiful weather and made my way to Sam and Stu's. What a brilliant experience I had. India I love you.