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.

Rishikesh part two

As any traveller knows you can meet someone for five minutes and that meeting can change your life. Well I let some people close to me and I hope to maintain some form of contact and friendship with as many as possible as there were some gems amongst them. Some vampires too but I ate too much garlic for them to do much harm (being metaphorical). Rishikesh was the place where all these feelings came up and there were a couple of other things that happened there too. The first odd thing was that Dan, Tim and I had origionally planned to go to a place called Kasar Devi somewhere similar to Vattakanal. Then I had my dental problems and at first felt guilty about delaying the move. I was assured it was OK but none the less I kept that as the objective for a few days. That faded away as a new venture loomed on the horizon. There were some "Rainbow" people staying at the guest house and they seemed very interesting. I had never really heard about Rainbow gatherings or Rainbow people before so I enquired of them what it was all about. They explained that people get together and build a camp site and exchange ideas and do all kinds of workshops on stuff like reiki so of course this sparked my interest even more and I became desperate to go and see for myself. The thing was that it took a while to get off the ground and then people were not sure that it would move or even happen properly so it grew, it died and grew and died and grew again. After a few days of this I gave up any attachment and sat back and had a good laugh with the guys as my bag was packed and unpacked. I met a Frenchman who said if I was truly interested I should go to one in Europe where it would be well organised. Then I found out that the moon was the closest it had been to the earth in eighteen years and there was to be a big celebration. So the whole cycle started again.
At about this time I met Aaron who had started making jewellery with various stones and I had always wanted someone I knew to make a necklace for me with a stone I had chosen. We became good friends and hung out in the same group. Now there is a little story to be told and I will try and do it justice. One day a couple of friends of mine were going to do some acid and I wanted to go along and keep an eye on them. We went down to to the first beach and sat down. I watched the two of them come up on their trip. For one of them it was their first experience so I wanted to make her comfortable. She told me later that a line by Terence Mckenna "going to the grave without ever having had L.S.D is like going to the grave without ever having had sex" was the deciding factor. I think the acid was quite strong as they started to talk about the world being created from the sound of the word "duplodopus" and the sand was of course millions of tiny empires in where there were infinite possibilities. One started playing the didgeridoo being guided by nature to play what he saw. It sounded really cool. They tried to create an empire out of sand and build a sand castle. This took three attempts and looked quite hilarious by the end. One of them was the creator and the other the destroyer and I the mediator. While they were tripping Aaron found us on the beach and came over and gave us a stone to wear. It was Labrodite. He gave it to me and said I should give it to the others to wear and make it a part of the trip. After ten minutes I found it so heavy I had to take it off so I passed it on. My friend loved it and went into the Ganga with it. While he was in there he told me he had an amazing psychedelic experience with the water rushing through him while seeing the spirit of the river. He felt it was now purified and became quite attached to the stone. Later in the day when the two of them could move I guided them back to the guest house and suggested passing the stone on. At first he did not want to as he had cleansed it so I gave him some line about letting go and the stone would come back to him if it was meant to. When he passed it on it was only a short while before the girl said. "I have to take this off, it feels so heavy" As she was saying this my other friend returned at that exact moment and she gave him the stone. As this was going on Aaron walked in and heard the story and I observed all this. Quite a special experience and a little freaky too.
The next day it happened to be Purim, a Jewish holiday basically commanding everyone to get really pissed. Well for this day I had be Jewish. What a great holiday! Anyway I made a mission to get booze and Rishikesh is supposed to be a dry town so it really was a mission. I came back with vodka, whiskey and a bottle of poison I love to hate, yes Old Monk to those of you who know it. Eeuch! Foul stuff! We were poised yet again to go to the Rainbow gathering but at the last minute decided to go to a beach party instead. I bought some firewood to take and lit the fire on the banks of the Ganga. We all got delightfully drunk and had a great time. I even fell on a rock knee first and had to hobble home anesthetized by the alcohol and helped by a lovely Spanish girl. Through my inebriation I still had enough chivalry to lend her my sweater. Note to father I AM SAFE IN CABS!
The next day it was Holi, a festival where everyone throws brightly coloured paint over everyone else. An excuse to go wild really and get very messy. My nose thingy's on my glasses will be forever pink I fear. Dan and Tim had got some paint powder and we made weapons of water bottles and tried to fill one thousand tiny Indian balloons with dyed water. This idea was abandoned as the balloons were mostly all faulty or too small to fill properly. Indian manufacturing!
We eventually mustered the strength and courage and with bandaged knee I went onto the streets to commence battle. We got separated from Dan and crossed the bridge. There were some impeccably dressed Indians which confused me somewhat and I had a momentary wrestle with my conscience and the mischievous side won as I just had to spray a chap all dressed in white. It felt most satisfactory to drench this innocent passer by from head to toe. We went to the main area where they had some large speakers blaring out music and everyone was dancing. It was a hot day so being sprayed with water was a welcome relief. A few clothes were ripped off. Tim lost his Jimmy Hendricks shirt but I found myself standing quite close to the police who sternly said something like "today no problem. Enjoy!" I was covered from head to toe by now in various colours and my hair was a kind of purple. The police were spotless and were obviously out of bounds. After some more time we made our way back to rest and re stock. Dan called out and said Oi! At first I didn't recognise him as he was completely black with some oil based paint. It took a long time of scrubbing with sand in the Ganga for him to get clean.
We went out once more into the fray and then by two pm it was over so we went and washed with hundreds of others in the Ganga and the river did turn red. What a day.

We spent the next day chilling out together and trying not to think of leaving and splitting up and for me the last leg of my trip was about to begin as Tim went back to Varanasi to finish his tabla lessons and Dan and I went to Dharamsala. I listened to the two of them having a last jam session and felt a little sad.

Rishikesh part one.

Dan took my backpack to the bus stop and we said goodbye. He gave me a stone for safe keeping to be returned when we saw each other again. A touching gesture. The bus ride was an easy one thanks again to the wonders of valium and I slept most of the way. As I woke up I noticed yet another front window had smashed but the driver didn't even stop. As I got off I tried communicating with the only other westerner there, a Russian with dreadlocks. We decided to walk the two or three kilometres to the main bus stop in town to catch another bus to Rishikesh. Strangely enough I really enjoyed the walk with all my stuff on my back feeling the freedom to do as I please.

It was a bit of a mission to get to Laxman Jhula (my final destination) another rickshaw ride and a walk down lots of steep steps and then over the bridge. The bridge was pretty narrow and crossed the Ganga which looked beautiful with clean water and little beaches. Quite a surprise after what I remembered of Varanasi two years ago. I negotiated the usual obstacles, people, cows resting in the middle, a few monkeys perched on the wires looking aggressively at the passers by and of course the odd motor bike. I had been given the Bombay guest house as a reference point by some other travellers and it was ideally situated so I tried my luck. At this time most of the places were full so luckily there was a large room available. I had the task of finding accommodation for Jan (O.K. Tim. I changed a few names in the beginning but no one needs that much anonymity really) and Dan and as I had gone along with others organizing most though not all of the accommodation I felt I better organise something good. The room was crap but large and hey three guys need the basics and that's what we had. I was there for five days on my own. Even I tried to brighten up the place with my aum sheet stuck against the wall and a brightly coloured sheet which ended up as safi.

After settling in I woke up with a bad tooth ache and knew this one was not going to go. With typical denial I put it out of the front of my mind and told myself I would find a dentist the next morning. As I went for my first wander literally across the road at the German Bakery was Mark. I met Mark two years ago in Vattakanal so we sat and chatted for a while. I was really pleased to see him again. There was some festival going on (bugger time) I now forget the name. He suggested we go as he was going to check it out anyway. Later in the day Mark and I were walking along the road and I saw Anastasia who I also met I think in Kassol two years ago so now in one day I met two old friends. Great! Anastasia also had some strong pain killers which I took and the pain subsided somewhat. We hung out together and made some plans for the next day to meet up.

I woke up to intense pain and found my way back to Rishikesh and a dentist. I was told I would need root canal treatment. Oh, god I thought. It would take five days to complete. Great my independence was to be used like this? I had no choice so agreed to the treatment gobbling the pain killers which thankfully worked to about ninety percent and sat back and the drilling commenced.

With root canal treatment for those of you lucky enough to have escaped it so far the dentist takes a small wire brush and skewers out your nerve endings. The pain goes right into your skull. Anyway enough of my torture in the chair. It passed but I was left with swelling for ten days.

Now I want to talk about what really interested me. The intense energy there. It was incredible! Everyone I came into contact with felt a powerful attraction to the place. It was strong yet gentle. On one level it is full of temples with Indians clanging bells and making puja. There are yoga and meditation centres, Ashrams and of course the famous ashram where the Beatles stayed. The holy Ganga river where people washed themselves both to get clean and for spiritual purposes. I must emphasise the water was fast running and clean. A tad chilly but not that bad, oh, and no dead body's.

On the day we had all organised I was woken up by Tim. He had arrived quite early and woke me from a deep sleep. Having not seen each other for a while it was great to see him again. We hugged and chatted and caught up on what we had both been up to. A couple of hours later and Dan appeared. The three of us reunited and it felt good. Pretty instantly the jam sessions started again and it was like old times. Tim tried to turn me into a kinda roadie but I thankfully failed miserably and went back to just listening.

Tim and I decided to do a reiki course together and this was just the prompt I needed. I have done reiki two but have had to sit with it and only practice on animals. Just another way of learning patience (still need to work on that a wee bit). As soon as we finished the course I according to the certificate was now re named a Mr. Richard Spene. The chap had the balls to say that was how I spelt it and for a second I wondered if that was possible thinking the last time I misspelled my surname I was about three. Anyway name corrected I have my reiki one certificate. Then the fun started. At this point I know some of you may think I'm bonkers (some have for years) I saw peoples auras. From time to time over the course of my life I have seen them and said very little about it but now it was as if people were walking about with flames like those from a hob above their heads on full blast. when I started to practice poor Dan was my first guinea pig and I made the mistake of touching his crown chakra. He said it felt something like dunking an empty milk bottle in some water. Dunk! We were told not to as it is so sensitive. No harm was done though as it is spiritual energy and will not harm anyone. Then Auras and all the different colours. I am learning what they all mean but I saw purple, white, gold, blue and many more. This kind of talk can get one locked up but everyone seemed to be in tune and I saw what I saw and I now I see it as a gift.

Soon we had our little group and hung out together usually starting at the German Bakery across the road where three or so Indians worked and the best and brightest was little Santosh who was much older than his few years. It may sound posh but it was a shack really.

The weather picked up fast and soon we were spending a lot of time on one of the beaches and swimming in the fresh river.

The day came when we all decided to go to The Beatles ashram. It was only forty minutes if that from where we were staying and so we set off with didgeridoo, djembe and guitar. the walk was easy and we were soon there. We paid our fifty rupees and in we went. It is unmaintained and overgrown but still magical. The windows were all smashed but the buildings were mostly intact. As we walked around you still got a strong sense of what John, Paul, George and Ringo must have seen. We saw building number nine where John Lennon went to meditate and wrote the song no. 9. and then we found these cool dome buildings with ladders up the sides. we all climbed in and of course I got a little stuck as I couldn't swing my leg over, it cramped. Eventually we were all inside and then the music started. The acoustics were brilliant and I sat back with the sounds of the music carrying me away with my dreams. Pascal and his mates were there and heard us and came over and joined in. To the people who were there thank you for your beautiful music and company. I have some pics I desperately want to put up but as my netbook has crashed I am praying that the info can be saved. If so they will all be posted. There Is so much to say about Rishikesh I think I will make it a two parter. Next in a couple of days.

Pushkar to Rishikesh

We arrived at three thirty am and the town was cold and dark. We realized we were in the main area but everything was shut. We sat down under our blankets and waited for the sun to rise and the day to begin. two cows or rather the male tried to mount a very disinterested female who dismissively kept wandering off. The odd dog came to sniff us and then slink off into a dark alley. It was not scary but cold. I hoped one of the shuttered shops would be a chai shop and waited expectantly.Time passed and we heard the shutters go up and the familiar sound of gas as the chai wallah started to make chai. We were saved as the warm sweet tea revived us. soon enough the guy opened the door to the hostel and asked us why we didn't ring the bell. Shit! Oh well we got a room and showered and went to sleep.
We woke up and realized we were not in the right hostel and checked out to move to the right one. The third eye. Wow! We entered a nice courtyard and saw a lawn and a pleasant seating area. The room we chose was a good size with our own shower and western toilet. Happy days.
Soon we went walkabout and discovered the area we were in when we first arrived was a hub of good food and a general meeting point over a chai or meal. Now at this point I must try and convey my amazement at the food we ate. All vegetarian but cooked to western standards It was incredible. The thing is I said that three times in one day and then came the desert thali. Wow, again! This magnificent creation had a kind of Belgian style waffle with fruit, ice cream, chocolate and condensed milk and crushed biscuits. After some of the muck I had to force down I was in heaven.
Dan and I decided to hire a motor bike and do a couple of trips around in the hills. I am so glad we did as the scenery was really beautiful. We passed farmland and it is generally well maintained. Of course you have to pass your typical Indian settlements which are mostly characterless shacks but in moments the countryside opens up and it is truly stunning.
The time I spent in Pushkar was lovely. The weather was perfect and I really enjoyed it but I felt drawn on and felt I needed to steer my own destiny for a while so made plans to get to Rishikesh alone and see what came along. At this point Dan had found himself a way of keeping busy at night so I thought he would appreciate some time too as he also had a friend from home who was in the area at the same time.
With plans to meet up with Jan again and see Dan in five or six days I set off on my over night sleeper bus to Rishikesh.

Tamil Nadu to Puskar

The day arrived and it was our turn to leave. This was my second departure from this magic place but I had Dan and Roni for company so it did not feel lonely but I was a bit sad none the less. I was not thinking about the mammoth four day journey that lay ahead. we had booked by sleeper bus as the trains were fully booked until the end of February. We left in the evening and sat and slept and listened to our headphones and watched an episode of the history of India and tried to sleep. In the morning we had a couple of hours in Bangalore and said a sad goodbye to Roni. We got on our next bus this time a full sleeper and settled in to our small cabin on our next leg of the journey to Mumbai.
we both slept well and arrived in Mumbai ready for a day of fun as our next bus left in the evening we had the day to kill. I took Dan straight to Colaba as I had been there before and knew it was not a bad place to spend the day. We did a few necessities and found ourselves in a bakery stopping for a coke and a cake where the name just happened to be Gaylords Bakery. and the coke alone cost me ninety six rupees. We soon found ourselves in Leopold's drinking draught beer. Before we knew it it was time for our next bus to some place called Amadabad where we arrived in the morning and caught a rickshaw with a driver who didn't know the way and got us to the station just on time.
Our last bit was only a few hours. I have not managed to fit in the bit about the bus that smashed it's front window in the middle of the night because thankfully I can't remember which one it was. This pales into insignificance with a story two English girls later told me about a bus accident they were in where a guy was killed and his head was all over the place. I've been lucky so far.
Finally and most importantly we arrived in Udaipur in good spirits and then we found our hotel, Minerva. Bloody paradise! Marble floors and stairs, hot showers and a view over the whole lake and CLEAN! thank god we thought.
We settled down and met people easily and soon had a nice group of people we hung out with and did stuff like hiring a jeep and riding all day to see a temple and an old fort. Don't get me wrong I love seeing stuff but there are so many temples here I feel OK to skip a few by now.
The vibe in the city was noticeably more relaxed than other places and we enjoyed walking around. Dan is an inspiration when it comes to trying local food and I have seen him literally chase a man with his wagon to try his food and it was bloody good by the way. What was it I hear you ask. Couldn't tell you but I loved it.
With the group we met in Udaipur we did the cookery course which was interesting but long and we were all glad to finish. I plan to do another one but more hands on next time. I learn 't a lot about their spices and how to combine them so it was worthwhile.
We had a nice mix of nationalities and so after a week or so we moved to our next stop. Jasilmer and knew a few were joining us.
Waiting for the bus to take us I met Emma and Angela. Hearing English I having just noticed a shop selling Hobnobs felt it was a good conversation starter. We all got on and chatted. They stayed in the first guest house but Dan and I had energy to look for another place as neither of us liked the place. There are guest houses built into the wall of the fort and we found one with a great view and a good chill out spot. OK and happy we settled in.
We told the girls where we were and then bought some vodka and finished three bottles. Gotta love the English and their alcohol consumption.
Day one we went to the sports stadium and watched a camel show, a Mr. Desert competition and some dancing with some of the funniest English commentary I have heard. It began to get hot so we retired to the cool shaded guest house and relaxed late into the evening with the view of the city and all the goings on below us.
Adrian and Heather an English couple we had met joined us with Riaan who we also met in Udaipur and oh, by the way it just happened to be a three day desert festival at the same time. We were wandering down the road and they were passing in a rickshaw and stopped to pick us up with Dan hanging on the outside yelling at the driver not to kill him.
We were watching a polo game on camels and then there was a skydive display and then we all had enough and went to party again.
We had all decided to spend a night in the desert so we organized to be taken into the desert, watch the camel racing and sleep there with a camel ride in the morning.
Out came the vodka and some home made cookies and we had a blast. I woke up at about five AM and froze for a coupe of hours.
In the morning I got up and chai was being brewed. I adore chai and it is an integral part of my morning. Especially after freezing in a desert. As I was waiting one of the Indians organizing things was screaming into his mobile so I scowled at him and put my hand to my lips to indicate silence. He moved off a few feet and carried on yelling. I said SHUT UP! So he moved another couple of feet away and was practically standing in a bush still screaming so I yelled at him telling him I would throw his phone into the desert. Riaan then said if I didn't like it I should move. She might as well have thrown boiling oil over me so poor girl got "don't be so bloody English!" and I terrified the Indian who gave me a wide berth for the rest of the morning. I drank my chai and looked at the desert in peace.
We were made a kind of porridge and I tried to eat something. It tasted like a mix of bread and coco pops but I managed a few mouthfuls. While we were eating the camels arrived and I sussed mine out and climbed on.
I loved it as the camel was so used to people and easy to steer so I soon asked if I could steer It myself and did for the rest of the trip.
We ended at a gallop which was a lot of fun but after three hours or so I was happy it was over. No wonder the Bedouins are off their faces on opium tea most of the time.
Back at he guest house I was exhausted and had an early night as we were off the next day to Pushkar on another overnight bus.
By now the familiar feeling of depression as the group was about to split and the excitement for the next chapter was spinning around inside me. I consoled myself with the thought I would hopefully see most of them again on the trip. Dan and I were soon alone again and off on our next trip.
I may be known for a bit of a temper from time to time but on this bus trip it was Dan's turn. The bus itself was fine and we had our sleeper but the bus soon became unbearably full of Indians obviously paying a pittance in comparison to us and the proceeds obviously finding their way into the drivers pocket. We could not move in the passageway and Dan was let's say rather unhappy about life at this point. I see things a little differently so I try and be all British like and say excuse me but if ignored I try one more time to ease my conscience then unheard I jumped on the guy. I think he then understood he needed to get out of the way.

January 2011 Goa to Kodai

New years eve as far as parties go was a disaster. All I can say is that it involved lots of drunk Indians grabbing the girls and being rather pathetic really so we left and went to Sunset.

The next few days were spent at the Sunset. We were all looking forward to leaving for Hampi. We had a good connection between us.

Around this time I was given the name Badel which means the cloud and it has stuck. This came about during a long evening spent with some cool Indians from Mumbai. I like this name.

The fifth arrived and we having said our good bye’s set off forty five minutes late as the taxi man took his time getting to us. Of course not before Nadia tried to pick up Dan asking him if his room was still available. He gracefully declined. We arrived in Mapsa too late for me to recharge my internet stick and waited for the bus which was about an hour late. Pascha sat with us until it was time to board. When the sleeper bus arrived we were literally herded aboard and screamed at not to put our shoes on the beds.

We settled in with our nutella sandwiches and tried to sleep. It became very cold in the night and Jan and I were freezing. At about three Jan remembered he had a load of spare Ali Baba trousers and threw me a pair which I put on in a hurry. We were still freezing and hung on till dawn. Both thinking we needed to get closer for warmth but keeping our distance and freezing.We were all awake by the time we got to Hospet and waited about forty five minutes until the familiar sight of Hampi’s rocks and temples appeared.

I got off the bus first and was met by the usual barrage of rickshaw drivers. When I said I knew the way they scowled and slinked off. With all of us ready I walked the group to the river to get the little boat that would take us across. We were in luck as they were washing Lakshmi the temple elephant. We sat and watched and took pictures. When we crossed the river I took them to Goa corner where I stayed two years ago. Everyone loved it and we decided to stay after checking out a couple of other places.

Hampi is one of the best climbing spots in the world apparently so serious climbers go there from all over the world and get up early and climb in the morning. I heard this annoying Kiwi voice and instantly remembered two years ago being woken by her rallying her fellow climbers at six thirty in the morning. As I saw her I asked if she remembered me which she did. Not satisfied I told her how I remembered her and suffice it to say she was not impressed. Hehe. She avoided me for the whole time I was there thank god.

After a couple of days we were all going to Hospet to do some stuff. I met someone the night before who was making a documentary and asked me to do an interview in the afternoon at three. I agreed and left in the morning. While waiting for the ferry I began to feel dizzy and I decided to go back to Goan corner. Just as well as I had caught a virus and spent the next twelve hours with diarrhea and puking half a dozen times. No starring in movies for me then. Plus the fact I still had only half my voice and a stinking cold. For someone who hardly ever gets sick it really annoyed me.

At about ten that evening I recovered and although I had no energy I knew I would be OK by tomorrow. Yael who I was sharing a room with left me in peace for the night and I had a good sleep. Let him puke in peace I heard Yael say as she and Dan went away.

The next day we explored and went onto the plateau and stopped at a place called the Babba cafe where we were spoken at not to by a so called Baba who I later nicknamed Jabba Babba. This was after he placed some drawings of U.F.O’s in front of us. We decided to watch the sunset at the Hannaman monkey temple which had three hundred stairs leading to it. A really stunning view was at the top over the whole valley dotted with many temples. As it was getting dark we wanted to go down but had a look in the temple first. There were people worshiping Hannaman and having a whale of a time singing. We were offered some tea and drank it and made our way down the narrow stairs. It was now pitch black so we caught a rickshaw home.

The next evening we went for a jam session at the Tepee and some great musicians rocked up and the vibe and the energy were good.

I did go to see some temples and one I really liked was the underground one. The complex of temples goes back at least five hundred years and probably earlier in some cases.

I also went for a blessing from the temple elephant in the main temple. Lakshmi the elephant is the one washed every day in the river. I put ten rupees in the elephants trunk and she rested her trunk on my head. It was a lovely experience.

One evening we went to watch the sunset from the plateau. Jan took his guitar and a Jambi and there were a few other instruments and soon we had a fire on the rocks where we watched the sunset over the hills and scattered temples and rice paddies.

After eleven days Jan, Dan, Yael, Ogi and I left for Tamil Nadu and the hills where I knew of a magic place. I had convinced them to come there. Jan had heard of the place from a couple of people and I was so happy to be going back.

We were on a semi sleeper but the ride was easy enough and took us straight to the main town. We immediately took a taxi to the place about fifteen minutes away and I recognized that nothing had changed since I was there two years ago. I let the guys go to find accommodation and I watched the bags. About half an hour later they came back grinning from ear to ear and announced that we had a place. Just above the chai shop and the first house on the left. A fantastic position as it is hard to describe but there about twenty or so houses on the hillside scattered about. Some are incredibly hard to get to and one is exhausted upon arrival. Our house was lovely and had one room with a double bed in it. This was taken by the new couple Ogi and Yael. Ogi was pretty sick and went straight to bed. He did not appear for two days and after going to the doctor it was discovered he had a lung infection. The rest of us had two double beds joined together and this was in the sitting room. We had running water in the house for about an hour a day but a big water tank just outside. I was delighted to be able to boil a pot of water and have a hot shower every morning. A great start to every day.

As I said our house was in a great position and we were soon swamped with visitors passing by. People just drop in and come to jam or just hang out. I was so lucky as everyone seemed to play an instrument and there were some incredibly talented people there.

We all took turns in the kitchen but it soon became apparent that Dan was chief cook wallah as his food was continually delicious. I became the fire wallah and ensured every night we had a warm fire to sit by.

To describe the atmosphere is impossible with my limited writing skills but was my Katmandu and will live in my memory as one of the best experiences of my life. We were in unspoiled nature which seemed to welcome you with open arms and you could feel a powerful energy coursing through your body and soul where even the trees and wildlife seemed in perfect harmony and everything was beautiful. Sometimes the cloud would come up the mountain and slowly filter through the houses wrapping you inside the cloud.

Soon, too soon people began to make separate plans and Yael and Ogi went to Orville. Jan a few days later went off to Varanassi and Dan, Roni and I were left until it was our turn to leave and this is where I will end this and the next blog will bring you up to date.

Arambol pt3

To write about the last couple of weeks will be a little difficult as so much amazing stuff has happened. I have my alternate place “Sunset” to hang out at the other end of the beach which is really mellow. I have been going there to recover from a hard night at Sporting Heroes I have also met more lovely people there and will be traveling with three others. Two Israelis, David and Yael who also happens to be incredibly beautiful and brilliant fun to be around. Just Walking down the beach with her is amazing to watch all the heads turn as she passes by. We are also going with Jan, who is Dutch. Jan and I are planning to meet at Bangface (a festival) and then HORRAY! We are going to Israel at the end of September which is the New Year and lots of big parties will be happening. My friend Oded organizes parties for about ten thousand people. Hahahahaha! I always new I would go back someday. (now to find a good Israeli girlfriend and I’d never leave). We all get on really well. Someone has already called us the family. They asked me to go to Hampi with them on the fifth of January. We are going to go by sleeper bus. I am really happy with the way things are happening.

Going back a couple of weeks a group of twelve of us went with bikes for a day out to ReadI Fort and Paradise Beach. We had all been drinking in Drunken Heroes as we call it and of course I lost my bag with my camera, wallet, lap top and my room keys in it so I had to sleep on the couches until the morning. At about five am Johnny the owner woke me up and said they had my bag and when I checked it much to my relief everything was there. I stumbled home and somehow managed to wake up at eight to meet everyone and with Paddy leading the way as he had taken some people before off we set.

We filled up at the petrol station and then drove towards the ferry. We were all hung over and hungry so we stopped at some “shack” on the way and had breakfast there. The girl had a shocked expression as all of us descended on the place all at once and we all gave her our orders. I was the last to be served and was barely trying to hide my intense irritation. I wolfed the breakfast down and felt better instantly. Suitably refreshed we set off to the ferry. I was on the back of Deses bike and he drove very well so I sat back and enjoyed the view. We passed rice fields and loads of palm trees leading into the jungle. At this point we lost one of our group as they went off in some other direction. We only caught up at the end of the day. The ferry was free and we drove the bikes on and chatted to one another noticing the boats that were collecting sand. It looked like hard work. They would only stop to offload when the boat was about ready to sink.

It was hot and we were all glugging our water bottles. Arriving on the other side we parked our bikes and Pat led us into the jungle. Suddenly after about five minutes we came across the fort. Redi fort is about five hundred years old and is still standing strong with its thick walls. The jungle is growing all around and in it with huge trees growing through the walls. A magical place! The picture of the spider was taken by the lovely Olga, possibly one of the most beautiful women I have ever met but as she focused intently on the spider I noticed the group was moving away. A slow panic grew as I wondered if Olga would hurry up. Picture taken and suddenly we couldn’t hear any one. Shit! I’m lost in the jungle, but wait a minute I’m lost with a lovely girl, things could be worse. We soon found the others much to my relief and we had a great time laughing and joking about our near mishap. We have since become very close. One of those situations I don’t want to think about too much. She takes my breath away.

We drove to Paradise beach and all went for a swim (even Brad). As soon as we arrived on the beach which looked deserted a man appeared and had coconuts he tried to sell us. No one wanted one but he moved off about five feet and just stood there. After five minutes or so I got fed up and asked him how long he was planning to stand there. He grinned at me but didn’t move an inch. Another few minutes went by and then I got up and told him to “Go away!” He then went and we had the beach pretty much to our selves.

After enough in the sun we moved off and headed homeward s driving through more beautiful scenery and stopping off once or twice to take it all in. We had a great drink that was both sweet and salty and found it refreshing.

Back across on the ferry and off we went to a restaurant overlooking a long stretch of beach with a beautiful view. A couple of cool beers went down and I had some fried momo’s, Yum!

Too tired to party I went to bed early that night.

I spent the next day swimming and took my hammock to Sunset. At first people looked at it with an air of suspicion but as soon as I was in it everyone has had a go and it is going to stay up until we leave.

Anna’s two friends from Switzerland arrived and are a part of our group now although one is leaving tonight. There is a good energy and I have introduced everyone to one another so the groups at both ends of the beach are merging.

Between the two ends there is a drum circle that starts around sunset so I wander down there sometimes with Mark or whoever is around at the time and watch great musicians and beautiful girls dancing freely in the sand.

So, Christmas eve came and we started at the Surf club and I met Bernie who came over from another beach. We met last year in Dharamsala so it was cool to hook up and chat and exchange small presents. They had organized some good live music and everyone was having a great time and the drinks were flowing. At about ten we walked along the beach and heard only two places that were pumping, Coco Loco and The German Bakery. We went to Coco Loco first and danced to some good music but we felt we wanted more so headed off to The German Bakery where they were playing some banging stuff. Brad and Tracy headed for the corner of death at drunken heroes. Me, Bas, Anna,David and Jan danced. I left knackered at about five to the sounds of electronic music, dry retching and lots of chewing.

I woke up on Christmas day feeling pretty good considering the night before. Just after I finished showering and was about to leave Tracy came to get me. I was just on my way to look for them. We wandered about looking for a Christmas dinner which in my mind was roast turkey with all the trimmings. Everywhere we went was not doing anything special so I got really pissed off and had a small hissy fit. Tracy then suggested we have a traditional Ozzie Christmas and have seafood. I cheered up instantly as the calamari and prawns arrived. I went all out and had a lobster which was fabulous. Lunch cost 2000 rupees. It was really good. I heard Dylan had crashed early on Christmas eve and had lost his bank card (it turned up two days later when he went back to the bank, on top of the A.T.M.)

I tried phoning mum and dad and my brother but missed them so left a message. I put thoughts of family out of my mind as they were celebrating. Actually I hate Christmas day away from family and am glad it is over for another year. Although It was nice to spend it with good people.

Absolutely nothing happened in the evening so I just chilled at the Sunset. There did not seem to be a single party going on anywhere.

The other night Yael, David and Mark came to Sporting Heroes and joined the rest of us we had a blast going back to my room at some point to finish off my nice brandy. Suddenly in mid sentence my voice went and the whole of yesterday I could not talk. It seems slightly better as I write this but I think it will be another day or two of writing things down as no one can hear me. A wee bit frustrating although I have been told it sounds sexy. I don’t care I’d rather have my voice back!

Seeing you Nastya yesterday was lovely and if you are reading this I hope we see each other in Rajasthan and get to spend some proper time together.

Well I’m about ready to post this and wander off down the beach to begin the festivities of New Years Eve.

Arambol pt 2

A week on and Paddy has had his bike stolen. Brad's drinking buddy Des from his local pub in Australia is here and another mate is on the way. A few new characters have developed, Scottish Andrew who has been a part of our crew for the last ten days or so and what a character he is. His Swiss friend Anna who he met in Dharamsala has also become part of the posse. Although as will become clear we keep her at arms length. A lovely couple Hans and Sylvia from Bavaria in Germany are with us a lot and they are so nice. I have copied some of Hans music and shared a few beers with them. although they speak only a little English we still manage to communicate quite well. They are so German which is amusing to watch in India because it is so un Germanic. Having been here for about three weeks I feel part of the furniture already and as I said in my last blog some stories were developing. I'll start with Brad. We just get on really well but try to picture the stereotypical Ozzie, he swears like a trooper is as tough as nails and drinks like a fish even at fifty one. He had to borrow seven thousand Australian dollars because the f*****g police (his words not mine) back home took all his money when they found him guilty of growing marijuana plants in his back yard. A funnier man I have not met. Generous too. Tracy is a lovely woman who can stand up to him and puts him firmly in his place from time to time. I have a lot of time for her and she is great to talk with. Their mate Des who has just come over is a laugh and I instantly liked him, a very affable sort of chap. Yesterday he hired a scooter and was practicing learning to ride. He offered me a lift but I declined. We are all meant to be going to some fort a couple of hours away on Tuesday. I have until then before I need a lift.
A harder story to tell is Andrews. His wife of some twenty years passed away last year and he gave up his teaching job to travel. He comes from the streets of Glasgow and although he is quite small he is wiry, very street wise and tough. I have been getting to know him on our long drinking sessions and he is a good man. He recently saved a child from a pedophile ring and took him back up to the mountains in the north to his family. He got the police involved and they know who the people are and are going to bust the ring. He had to leave yesterday to sort something to do with it out but should be back for New Year. What an amazing thing to do.
Cough,cough, now we come to Anna the Swiss girl who it also happens is a nymphomaniac and rather attractive. I met her and of course started chatting to her and began to think I was doing rather well when my mates saw what was happening they gave me some space and all was going well until Andrew came over and said through the haze "Richard can I have a wee word wi ye ?" Sure I said. "Richard, there is no way to say this nicely but I met Anna in Dharamsala and she was trying to organize a sex party and she had a dildo she was about to use and I had to take it off her and steal the batteries so she couldn't." My face dropped to the floor in amazement and I suddenly lost all interest in perusing the matter any further. For me to say I'm shocked is quite a statement but even the well seasoned Ozzie's blanched at her forwardness. Now she is a friend we are all a bit concerned for her. I have nicknamed her the machine. Of course just yesterday she met her two friends who flew out to be with her so now there are three of them. They seem to eat men alive. Never mind the mosquito's. It will be fun to sit back and watch the ensuing carnage that is bound to follow.
I have a bolt spot about a mile down the beach away from the main town area and the Sporting Hero's and it's madness where I hang out with a Dutch friend Jan and some Israelis. We swapped music and I now have an awesome collection with some of the best from all types. Modern and old. So that's the way things are panning out at the moment.
Yesterday I saw Mark who I met in Vattacanal last year and it has been great to hook up with him again. People ask me if it's hard traveling alone. Does it sound like it from what you have read?
Another day is here to enjoy so I will post this and then I'm off for a swim.

Arambol

A very interesting mix of people are here and that suits me. An Ozzie couple Brad and Tracy are the best laugh. He is about six foot three and looks like a ZZ Top member with a very long gray beard and she is great fun and really nice but quite quiet, well for an Ozzie! We met the other night and when I left they were still going at it. Last night I chatted to a couple of lesbians and they were most entertaining. I have been walked home by an extremely beautiful Russian girl who insisted on seeing me make it safely back to my shack. I still managed somehow to get a nice little cut on my forehead though.
I wake up around nine or ten and go down to the beach passing a few shops just opening. First it's good morning sir "you want taxi?" Then all the motor bikes, hundreds of them and "you want bike sir?" I get to the German bakery ironically full of Israelis and have my chai and a good breakfast with the smell of incense permeating the air as they purify and get ready for the day ahead having first made Shiva happy.
I walk along the beach just past all the beds and go for a swim in the warmest sea I have ever swam in then wander back to my shack where I usually put the fan on and wait out the few hours until about four or five when we all congregate at The Sporting Heroes Bar where we never watch any sport. Drinking is the only sport there but the decor is the best and it's comfortable. I have now got to know and trust the owner and take my laptop which they plug in and play and it's nice to watch the resulting increase in drinking speed and people starting to dance. As well as Sporting heroes I have found another spot on the opposite end of the beach which is very chilled and a whole new crowd are there. Each bar has it's own community of revelers and I have now got to know a few.
I have had some really great food. Tuna steaks, king prawns and tender calamari are my favorite so far. The other night Paddy a sixty year old roadie who has worked with so many bands over the years picked me up on his scooter and took me further down the beach to an Indian restaurant with another crowd I have got to know. The food there was delicious but I nearly didn't live to tell the tale. On the way back he was so pissed he nearly crashed twice. I'm on the back saying "please don't kill me." We made it in one peace and had a good laugh about it. He was only doing about ten miles an hour though. Last night Brad, Tracy, two Germans with very little English and two Israelis and I went out to the Surf club which is owned by an English couple. The live music was excellent and we had a blast and all walked back along the beach stopping off along the way for a few more beers. We ended back at Sporting Heroes. We were back in our corner again and I heard a familiar voice. It was a friend I met in North India last time so we celebrated. Suddenly I turned and saw Brad lift his glasses and confront a guy who I had just been talking about saying what a prat he was. He had been trying it on with Tracy and suddenly I found myself getting really annoyed by this oaf and got up to have a go but Brad beat me to it and saw him off. No fists actually flew but it came very close.
Soon after this a plain clothed policeman came in and I decided to leave and go to bed.
There are a few stories developing with some of the characters but it is still a bit early to write about them as they are just beginning to unfold.

Mumbai/Goa

So the last couple of days in Mumbai seemed to revolve around avoiding the intense heat and humidity by finding an air conditioned watering hole as soon as possible while trying to delude ourselves we were just going for a walk. Meeting people was as easy as saying, "going out". "Anyone coming?"
A week in Mumbai and I was ready to leave as although I liked it there was nowhere to really relax. Smuggling girls and booze into our room was a little exhilarating but we ran the risk of being thrown out of the "Christian hostel" which I am quite surprised I wasn't. The manager came into the room as an impromptu party in the room was in full swing and I had a bottle of vodka which we had put into coke bottles right in front of where he came and stood. He was more concerned there were girls in the room. Off we went and ended up with a guitar and our booze singing by the gate of India. What a night!
My last day was a repeat of the last few but I managed to get my stuff together and left for the station sweat pouting off me at nine pm. I arrived at Victoria station, quite an amazing building and went into the chaos. I found the information office and was told the train left from platform sixteen. I wandered down the platform and found a group of westerners, Welshmen actually and sat next to them. They had arrived that day and were going to sleep on the station until seven the next morning. Too hardcore for me. As the time came closer for me to depart I wondered why there was no train so I asked an Indian and he told me I was on the wrong platform. No Sixteen sir. Number eighteen. You sure? Yes sir so I ran across and boarded the train with about five minutes to spare.
On the train safely I found my bunk next to a westerner who I started talking to immediately. I was so happy to be in the cool second class carriage with air conditioning and felt that I would not faint as I had almost done the night before. I found out that Ian was planning to DJ in Goa and he had some nice music equipment. He said he would get hold of me as he only wanted small parties of fifty to a hundred people. He offered me a sleeping pill and I soon drifted off to a fairly peaceful sleep. I woke up the next morning feeling really good and well rested and decided to ask where my stop was which is just as well because it was the next one. I was ready and saying good bye to Ian I jumped off to be met by the usual barrage of rickshaw drivers. Having an idea of the price I asked and was quoted the right amount three hundred rupees and as it was a fair way I felt it reasonable.
As we approached Arombol I liked it straight away. Surrounded by palm trees and hills it is exactly what I was hoping for. The taxi driver took me to one place but the rent was too high so we went further along and I bargained the owner down to two hundred and seventy five rupees per night and as season is coming up and the prices will sky rocket I took it and have paid up to the third of Jan. The room is big I have a double bed, electricity, a fan, a balcony,a table and a chair. The outside loo is very clean and I even have a hot shower which I have to switch off to make it cold enough. It is a two minute walk from the beach. I like!
I have been meeting people easily. The weirdest was meeting Ian as he got off at another station but is also in Arombol. I bumped into him in the street. Then the day before yesterday I met a yoga teacher that I met way up north in Ladak last year. While chatting to him a very nice girl joined us and I was invited back to her place. We had a few drinks and then I left. She is going to an Ashram for a week but will be back so I hope I see her when she returns all bliss-ed out from seeing her Guru....I dunno these old hippies hey.
Yesterday I was having my breakfast and started to chat with a lovely German girl we ended up spending the whole day together but she was leaving in the evening. Dam! Oh well at least they are talking to me. There is still hope. So that pretty much brings things into the present again. I think I'll go for breakfast.....

Mumbai

Having been given a great send off at Sam and Stu's with a roast leg of lamb and two very nice bottles of Claret I went contentedly off to bed.
Four fifteen and I sprang up and showered, as I was dressing I was unable to wear the shorts I had dug out and put ready as my girth had become a bit more ample than the last time I wore them. Undaunted I rummaged deeper into my rucksack and found another pair of older more worn shorts and these fitted comfortably. Oh well I thought, it won't be long I suspect before the weight falls off me in rapid fashion.
I was ready just as the taxi arrived and whispered good bye, closed the door and left.
Heathrow terminal three, Quatar Airways via Doha. A very decent flight except that I had an isle seat and was bumped into continually. I watched Dinner for Schmucks, lighthearted rubbish perfect for a long flight. The stopover was fine and just not too long. The second leg was also pleasant enough and I watched Get low with Robert Duvall and had a few brandy and cokes.
The flight arrived on time but became delayed on landing as they were doing construction work on the airport so we sat on the plane in a queue for a while before disembarking. My bag as always was just about the last off but all intact. I had arranged to be met at the airport and driven to the hotel. As I came into the hall and looked for my name I could not find it and a mild panic crept over me. I began to look again and saw the hotel sign of where I was staying with three names on it, one being a Mr Richard Schwartz. The chap grinned at me and waggled his head and said "Welcome in Mumbai, yes you come with me to taxi". OK this must be the right one so off we went. It was now five am and we waited for the taxi. After about fifteen to twenty minutes I began to get a bit fed up and he said "traffic big problem, I phone". Anyway soon after the taxi arrived and took me to the hotel.
A quick shower and I collapsed on the bed which of course is about six inches too short. I woke up at midday and had a delicious dahl and rice for lunch. I am happy here although writing this at two thirteen in the morning shows I am not adjusted to the time difference yet.
Nine thirty and I was up and ready for action. A young Chinese girl was debating where to go and we started chatting and decided to wander about together. She was going to Colaba which is where I am having my teeth done on Tuesday and I wanted to check out because of a cheap hostel. Only two hundred and twenty five rupees and free bed bugs at no extra charge. We went out and haggled a tuck tuck driver down from one hundred to twenty rupees and set off to the station. Buying the ticket was easy enough and the train ride of forty five minutes was quite fun.
Colaba was a breath of fresh air with nice gardens, super Victorian buildings and a vibe that I liked instantly.
I found that the hostel was ideally situated near to everything and asked if I could get a bunk bed tomorrow which seems to be no problem. We then went to Leopold's cafe made famous first in the Shantaram novel and more recently by the Mumbai terrorist attacks. I quite liked it and no doubt will return in a more determined fashion later this week. After being refreshed by a banana lassie and fruit salad we went down to look at the Taj Mahal hotel and the gateway to India. Ellie the Chinese girl suggested we take a boat trip to an island with some carvings in some caves so off we went. The journey was hardly worth it as the caves were pitch black and we only had an hour to see them before the last boat back.
I now fast forward a few days and have had my teeth done and I am happy with the result. The hostel was overrun with about fifty kids in a military academy so every morning I have to shout over the wall to shut them up which they do and a constant stream of apologies follow. Sorry Mr. Have nice day etc, etc.
I have gone out a couple of nights now and had a blast meeting some cool people. One random thing happened on the first day as I was unpacking a voice said "I know you" and a chap also called Richard who I met in Morocco and traveled with for a few days was here. Small world I guess.
Anyway what to say about Mumbai? It's hot and humid and a complete mixture of everything imaginable. Old next to new. People in a hurry or just hanging around. Crooks and saints. I love the old taxis. It is the anniversary of the Mumbai attacks today so there are police EVERYWHERE. I am avoiding the midday heat and will go out for a last night on the town. I will write a bit more when I have settled in Goa. At the moment the plan is Arambol. If I don't like it there then I will move to a quieter beach nearby.

Nearly there

OK, so here I am with three weeks to go before I finally pack my bags and head off to India again. I want the time to fly by until then and then stop as opposed to the other way around. Five months away to most people is a long time but to me it's short as I remember last time it took me two weeks just to strike up a conversation with anyone other than waiters and hotel staff. India is big in every sense and I am trying to make sure I am mentally prepared as it will be in some parts both manic and stressful. I have about a week or two planned in Mumbai where I will be getting my teeth cleaned and whitened. I am not a fan of cities in general so I will make my way as soon as I can down to Goa to spend Christmas on one of it's beaches. I hope to avoid the Russian Mafia, package tourists and 'Brits on the piss' in equal measure. I guess I will have to put up with the young, rich, middle class gap year students as this will undoubtedly make up most of the other travellers I will encounter. The rest of the time is pretty flexible. I hope to meet up with a few of the people I met last time if at all possible. In March I plan to go to Nepal where I will do a three week hike of the Annapurna circuit.
The other day I bought a new camera and It's great. I spent £200 on it but reasoned that It would be a waste to be in such an amazing place and not to be able to record the things I will see around me.
This morning I carefully bought my travel insurance. I say carefully as last time I unwittingly only had three months cover on a five month trip. At least this time I am covered for the whole time I'll be away.
I have no interest in being here in the U.K during the winter so I am living in a sort of limbo waiting for those jet engines to blast me to India's warmer climes.
Although I confess I am not much of a writer and my grammar is bad I am determined to write this blog as a kind of diary. I'd love some input from you all and suggestions of things to see and do from those of you who have been to India before.
Wish me luck.