Delhi

Local children at ruins

Local man at ruins

Himanshu

Karen and I had lunch together before I took the bus to Delhi. Felt strange that I'd be no longer travelling with her and Ben. I have never gone on a trip and travelled like this on my own, but I knew I would be fine and it would be a good learning experience for me. Karen booked her ticket to meet me in Bangkok in 3 weeks so I had to plan how I wanted to spend that time alone until then. Since I have an american friend living in Singapore I decided to go there first and then do the islands in Thailand.

I left Jari town near Mateura on a local bus for 2 hours to Bhuntar. The bus was crowded and I had to stand with my heavy backpack without a single man offering to give up their seat. Eventually the bus conductor collecting the fares demanded that one man let me sit! I got off the bus at Bhuntar and looked for the overnig ht bus I booked to Delhi. After my last horrible experience with the local overnight bus, I wanted to treat myself to a nice volvo semi sleeper aircon bus so I could sleep. While waiting at the agency for my bus, I met a young man 20 years old who started chatting with me. Within half hour he had given me a beautiful mug made from pottery which I felt honoured to get. We had chai together and then he had to leave for his bus. I then met another nice fella who was on my bus to Delhi. Then when I went on the bus I began talking to the man sitting next to me. Immediately I was seeing the difference of travelling alone. I was approached by friendly strangers and meeting so many more people than travelling as a group. The bus ride was 13 hours and it was very comfortable as I was experiencing luxury for the first time in 6 weeks - air-con!! I managed to sleep a bit and when we got to Delhi, the guys helped me get a good deal on a tuk tuk to the hotel tourist area of Delhi called Gang.
I was recommended a hotel by Hannah but we couldnt find it so I ended up taking a hotel that a man was hassling me to come see. It costed ten times what I paid up north however it had air con which was a necessity in Delhi's 45 degree weather. Delhi was a bit of a shock for me - noisy, smelly, boiling hot and busy. Total opposite from the peace I just experienced up in the Himalayas. I missed it so much!

Burla Temple

Delhi Metro

I was only in Delhi for 2 days so I made plans to meet up with Himanshu who I met in Rishikesh a few weeks ago. He lives in Delhi and met me at the hotel. We ate and we went on the metro to a place called the "Hauz khas Village". The metro was really nice - new and had cold air-con which felt nice after walking in the sauna outdoors. This area he took me to is called Hauz Khas Village and is known for being a fashionable and wealthy part of Delhi. It didn't quite feel like Delhi at all because it was unexpectedly quiet and peaceful which I liked. There was a park that had lots of couples hugging which is never seen in India as public displays of affection is not accepted. The park had some old ruins and a big green lake. We walked around and heard the peacocks which is India's national bird. There wree which is India's national tree. We met up with Himanshu's friends at another park where they all met everyday after work to lime and play football. They were all much younger than me, 20 and 21 and all engineers. In India, the higher class people all become either engineers or doctors. It was nice to have some friendly nice locals to lime with.

Man who showed me around

Delhi

The next day I got up and browsed the area with all the shops in my hotel area. I was approached by a young man who tried to get me to go to this store which was 5 minute walk off the main road. I told him no but asked for directions to the Radha Chrishna temple. He jumped into a tuk tuk with me and took me to the temple, without me even asking. I didn't mind the company so I went with it. When we arrived I realised it was the Burla Temple but this temple still had a statue of Radha Krishna so I went with him. He showed me around the temple and all the different statues and gods, explaining to me the differences. When we got to the Radha Krishna statue I presented flowers and said a prayer for my friend Roshni in Trinidad who asked me to go and thank this God for her. She had prayed for success and received it so on her behalf I thanked the Radha Chrishna Gods. Being a catholic praying to a Hindu God didn't feel strange, to me it's all the same God, just different forms.

After, I went to the guy's store to repay him for taking me. I spent 2 hours here choosing out 2 canvas paintings and I tried on sari finally! He took me to a local place for an indian lunch, the food was amazing but I got many stares as if foreigners never go there. Later I met up with my friend Himanshu and we sat in a cafe to chat. We ended up talking for a long time with a Spanish man sitting next to us. He was very different looking - covered in tattoos, the longest dred locks I ever saw, big metal nose hook, those big round things in the ear lobes, and implants inside his skin throughout his body. Despite his scary look, he was really nice and chatted to us about travel. I said my goodbyes to Himanshu later and thanked him for showing me around and being good company during my stay in Delhi. I got an early night for my flight at 7am to Singapore the next day.

Eating at local restaurant

Looking back at my time in India, it was a priceless experience. It was a place that challenged all of my senses - sight, smell, touch, taste and hearing. It was hot, smelly, dirty, dusty, frustrating, an invasion of privacy, poor and difficult many times if you backpack and take local travel like we did. Every single day of the 6 weeks in India, electricity went for hours. Everyday, people tried to take advantage of me. Everyday I faced something challenging. However, everyday felt like an eye opening experience. I witnessed culture at its best and beautiful scenery and people. I haven't seen the world, but I am almost sure no where can beat culture like India. I have gained such an appreciation for all the little things in life - running water, toliets, education, health, safety, food and electricity. I also gained an even deeper appreciation for family, religion, culture and values. I got a chance to witness and experience simple living, back to basics and remind myself that we don't need all the materialistic things we have in today's world. I got to be around people who have nothing but are happy because they have life and family. I have been reminded on how lucky and fortunate for everything I have in my life.


Unfortunately, I only got to do the north west part of India. There is still so much to see there and I hope to return one day to do the south, Varanasi and the north east. I loved everything about India - the good peaceful moments and the frustrating challenging moments because these were the testers in life. The highlights of my trip was my stay in Pushkar and playing with the children in Mateura. Special thanks to the good local people we met in India who opened up to us and showed us what India is about- Vnot, Lokesh, Raul, Himanshu and Abi. India thank you for opening my eyes and heart - I will never forget the lessons you taught me and I hope to return one day to re-live the eye opening experience.

Malana, Mateura & Keer Ganga

Girls collecting sticks in Malana

Donkeys transporting goods 

Malana village view from our guest house

Mateura village became what we called our home in India, so we stayed here our longest (almost 2 weeks) leaving our things in our rooms and venturing out to other nearby villages of Parvati Valley with a small bag. We left our stuff and went to Malana for a night. It had to be the scariest drive I have ever been on. The roads were tortuous around the mountains with poor road conditions and steep cliffs with no barriers along the roads. A few times,we had to get out the taxi and push it through certain parts of mud in the rain! After an hours drive we then trekked an hour up the mountain across to Malana. Because no cars can get to this village, food is sent via donkeys or the sky line which transports goods from one mountain to the next. The trek is not difficult as two months ago a pathway was built however it is quite steep so many times I found myself stopping to catch my breath. There were donkeys carrying goods up to Malana and two girls collecting wood and sticks as well as children running up to us shouting 'Chocolate', the only word in english they know. When we arrived at the village, I was about to rest my bag on a stone barrier around a tree and immediately I was shouted at by the villagers not to touch. I should have done my research before but found out after that many places in this village are holy and if outsiders touch, they must pay the cost of a slaughtering of a lamb to purify the object. Malana is the oldest republic in the world and the people here are very ancient and strict in their customs and beliefs. They admire their beliefs an view non Malanis as inferior to them making them untouchable. You cannot touch them nor many parts of their structures in the village. They speak their own language Kanashi and do not like change. When we were walking through the village we had to be

There isn't much to do in Malana because you can't interact with the locals. Luckily, we met some cool tourists there from Israel, France and Spain staying in our guest house so we chatted with them on our guest house rooftop until dark as there was no electricity. I didn't quite like the vibes in Malana, something felt very cold about this place although it was interesting to see somewhere that's so ancient and different to anywhere else I've been. When you analysed the village, you could see that these people survived on the basics of life - food, clothes and shelter and absolutely nothing else. The houses all had lots of wood stacked underneath for winter when they make fires for warmth as it snows there. Malana is also known for having one of the best marijuana plantations in the world higher up in the mountain which are protected by the villagers and it is their main source of income. This hash is famous and known as 'Malana Cream'. We actually got to see it and it was very sticky and soft and smelt very fresh. The children and people here are absolutely beautiful - like a light brown skin, brown hair and light eyes maybe because they are believed to be descendants of Greek soldiers of Alexanders Army.  

Breakfast in Malana

Waterfall at the end of Malana trek

The next morning we had breakfast on the rooftop of our guest house and I was very happy to be leaving. As we made our way out the village, you got funny stares and several times locals shouted at us not to walk down certain paths.We didn't know where was considered holy or not. If you also got too close to them they tell you not to touch them. We took a different route back, down a very steep mountain with lots of stones and rocks. I found this trek downhill very scary and dangerous and at one point I began to feel nauseous and completely out of balance. I felt as if things were spinning around me only for brief moments when I looked down from high points. I think these are some slight symptoms of vertigo but I am not sure if it is just fear of heights. I don't mind heights, but it's the fear that I will fall and die that was scaring me the most. This 2 hour trek downhill felt like an infinity for me and I took much longer than Karen & Ben to get down. I took my time and once we reached the ground I felt so relieved. There was a beautiful waterfall at the end which made it all worth it in the end. You couldn't pay me any money to do it again though! I don't know how those poor donkeys do it everyday with heavy weight. We enjoyed the waterfall for half hour and left to find transport back to Mateura. Rather than pay alot for a taxi, we hitch hiked back. The first big truck we stopped and Karen & I jumped in the front while Ben was told to go in the back of the truck. The drive was again scary for me and little did we know that Ben was struggling with loose gas tanks in the back which were flying everywhere. He spent the entire ride trying to dodge them! Poor Ben, we felt so sorry for him as he was bruised and a bit shocked by how dangerous the ride was for him.

My last time with the Mateura children

Kids trying to grab my camera

On our walk back up to Mateura village, the children spotted me walking back and ran up to me shouting my name to play games. Despite being exhausted, I still wanted to spend time with them so I stayed out for two hours and played hide & seek, relays, hopskotch and skipping. They were really a fun bunch of children and brought such joy to my heart. I felt like I knew them so much better. I could see who the popular kids were and who the other children did not like. I couldn't understand what they said to each other but I could tell there was banter and competition amongst some of them. I loved these children the most out of all the children I met because they didn't beg or expect anything from me. All they wanted was attention and to have a good time. My second favourite was Navi, the girl from the guest house who I also spent alot of time with because she was always around and over two short weeks I could see her growing!

Picnic in Mateura

Ben, Karen, Ilan (a guy we met in our guest house from Israel) and myself spent the next day at the waterfall in Mateura for a nice picnic up in the mountains. We could tell there was some type of landscaping done here as it was beautifully laid out with lots of different trees and flowers. The more villages we went to, the more we realised how much nicer Mateura was than the others. There is something very different about this place, perhaps the fact that it's quite untouched by tourists. The people and children are very friendly, the houses beautifully old and wooden and the lots of peaceful cows, goats and lambs everywhere.

Sunset in Kalga

Kalga guest house

The next day we left our things in Mateura again and headed to Keer Ganga which is a 2 hour bus to Bershani village and then a 4 hour trek up the mountains. We heard it was a mission to get to, but very beautiful and worth it. We refused to pay for a guide and as a result we ended up wasting 4 hours walking in a complete circle! We walked through some nice villages though like Tulga and Poolga and came across this perfect picnic area so we stopped to rest and eat with our useless guide dog! It felt like we were in a Twilight movie surrounded by tall green lush trees. A few hours later we ended up in the same spot we started off ! Because it was going to get dark soon and we didn't want to risk being stuck in the mountains at night, so we decided to stay a night in Kalga village and head to Keer Ganga in the morning. Kalga was beautiful, probably my second favourite to Mateura. We stayed in this guest house which had a lovely place to sit on mattresses and eat and watch the sun set. We stayed up chatting all night and all shared a room to save money. There were no showers so you warmed water up in this heater outside and mixed it with cold water in a bucket to bathe yourself.

Resting on our way to Keer Ganga

Ben, Karen & I

 The next morning we met a group of 7 Israelis who were all heading to Keer Ganga so we split the cost of a guide and headed off! As usual again, I was always the last one lagging behind the group. I don't know why but I just found these treks very difficult but not as much physically as it was mentally for me. The trek was steep and had very narrow pathways with drops. One trip and you could stumble over and fall off the mountain. Despite this I would admit it was an absolutely beautiful trek being surrounded by green and nature with everything you can imagine - from rocks, stones, cliffs, waterfalls, logs, gravel, grass. It was a bit of everything. Within an hour however, started to feel very anxious and dizzy again. I was afraid to say anything to make a scene with the group so I held it in for a while until suddenly I got on the ground and busted into tears crying hysterically. I think the last time I cried like that was 6 years ago when my heart was broken. It was an uncontrollable cry where I felt like I was gasping frantically for air to breathe. Karen luckily was nearby and stopped to help calm me. I don't know what I would have done without her there. We weren't sure if it was vertigo or an anxiety attack from the heights or an altitude thing being difficult to breathe. I knew I had 3 more hours to go of this so I tried my best to stick it out. I came across some difficult parts on the trek to cross and I had another attack crying. It was very embarrassing for me as I was with 7 guys and a guide and everyone was trying to help guide me on where to step. What a hot mess I was, but once I got by those areas, I was relieved especially when we came by the beautiful waterfall, that brought a smile to my face!

Arriving at Keer Ganga

Ladies Hot springs

Ben Karen Ilan & me at breakfast

We finally reached Keer Ganga and it was beautiful. I don't know if it was worth the trek for me, but maybe for everyone else. But the hot springs definitely were worth it...they were amazing! The ladies was enclosed by a wooden fence and the mens' were outdoors. Karen & I went to the ladies and there were women relaxing in what was like a hot jazuuzi in the middle of nowhere. It was really nice. Lots of women came here to wash their clothes and bathe. Instead of organising a place to sleep that night, we ended up paying 50 rupees to all sleep in the restaurant. Lots of people do it to save money and its quite different. I ended up meeting a Venezuelan girl, first person who I've met on my trip that is somewhat close to where I am from. We were kept up late at night by people talking till 4am and then the restaurant was open by 6am. That morning we went again to the hot springs and then had breakfast. This place was a bit overcrowded with Israelis and it felt like a real shanty town with people banging trance and dancing, hoola hooping, twisting sticks around. Very weird scene for the early morning!  I now had to make my way back down trekking tired! Ben and Ilan stayed back for an extra night and because I had to get to Delhi the next day - Karen came with me. I mentally prepared myself for the trek back and braced myself for those difficult parts. Luckily our guide held my hand for half of the trip which made all the difference to me. I felt safe and he helped me get by the scary parts so I tipped him well for my safety! When we reached the end I felt so good that it was OVER and I was alive! I actually said some Hail Marys on my way - that's how terrified I was. Karen decided to stay longer in India with Ben, so I went ahead to travel to Delhi and Singapore on my own  for the first time. The first time I found this out, I was a bit upset and anxious about it but think it's a good opportunity to get to know yourself better and experience travelling in a totally different light. I have felt like a bit of a tag along so far but now I will get to lead and do things on my own for a change which might be empowering for me. We will see what it brings! 

Manali to Kasol & Mateura villages - Parvati Valley

 It's now been just over one month since we have been in India. One month since I have drank alcohol and one month since I have eaten any meat (including fish) and I don't miss it one bit. It's also been a month of no work. I have never been off work or school this long in ten years. It feels strange, like a guilty feeling to still be on vacation although sometimes travelling like this can be considered hard work.

Bus ride

Only four of us left Manali and took a 5 hour bus to Kasol, a village in Parvati Valley. During this bus ride I realised how wildly marijuana grew everywhere on the sides of roads. I also had a lady sleep on me in the bus. I've noticed in India, there isn't really regard to personal space. One bus ride, a man came and sat next to me and took the headphones out of my ears to listen to the music I was playing. In any other country, this would be considered rude but for some reason you let it slide here. The bus ride to Kasol was quite scary, you are very high up in the mountain on this bus driving on a very narrow road where any sharp turn can send the bus flying off the mountain cliffs. I try not think about these things but sometimes you just can't help it. (I know my mother is having a heart attack reading this part). Don't worry mummy I'm okay ;)

Kasol village

Peaceful guest house in Kasol

Natural hot springs in jacuzzi for

In Kasol, we met up with Ben's friends from Israel. We found a guest house away from the village up this very steep stone hill - Karen and I called it the never ending hill and we always felt like grannies walking up and complaining. I loved waking up on mornings here as my room had its own private balcony overlooking the pine trees and snow capped mountains. The place was even more peaceful than Manali. Kasol was filled with Israelis and hippees who all have dredlocks, baggy clothes, and think they are very very cool. Didn't quite like the vibes of the people in this town - you can tell the majority of people who come to Kasol were just there for the drugs and raves which isn't my thing. Nevermind, the village was still nice. In Kasol, we went to hot springs that was like a jacuuzi but had the natural hot water. The guest house charged to use it by time. While walking by the few shops in the village I heard a reggae song I had never heard before drawing my attention. I ended up sitting with the shop owner for an hour having chai and chatting about music. I also made sure to get the name of that very mellow reggae song which was made in India by an indian british man (Apache Indian - Om Numah Shivaya).

Fire in Kasol heading towards guest house

Evergreen cafe view - Kasol

In Kasol, we spent lots of time at Evergreen Cafe, which had mattresses on the ground to sit and amazing food. While walking across the bridge after breakfast one morning, we saw a large pool of dark red blood in the river stream. When we looked harder to see what it was, we saw a tent on the riverbank with a sheep that was just slaughtered and was being cut up (even with its fur still on). It was very heart breaking to see and at that point I felt like such a hyprocrite for being disturbed when I myself eat meat. I felt good that I had not eaten meat in a month but wondered if it is something I could give up for good and become a vegetarian. The biggest action that happened in Kasol would probably be the bush fire up in the mountain that evening, which started off controlled and then got out of control. It started to spread very quickly and was heading towards our guest house, so we were in a bit of a panick as to whether to move our bags to another guest house. Second time in a row we have encountered fire issues by the way. We kept monitoring the fire and asked some locals who advised us that once the fire came down the mountain then the they could then out it. In the end, that's what happened so we were lucky.

Mateura village view

Walking up the mountain to Mateura

Beautiful children of Mateura village

Teaching the kids hop scotch

We heard about a very tiny village called Mateura which was half hour away from Kasol. We took a bus there and walked up the mountain to find this place. The walk through the villages was really nice and I knew we were going to like it here. When we found the guest house - it was everything we were looking for. Away from people, nice clean guest house with a view of the surrounding himalayas mountains, quiet and a place where you could completely relax. My room wreaks of marijuana from all the plants growing outside my window but I love the smell so it doesn't bother me at all!

My first day here I went down to Jari town to look for an ATM, on my way back I came across some children who couldnt stop giggling. I ended up taking photos with them and before you knew it, three hours had gone by and I found myself still in their company playing games. It started off with four kids and more and more heard the excitement going on and came to join. There were about 10-15 kids between the ages of 2 and 10, none who spoke english but somehow I managed to teach them games like running relay, hop scotch, catch monster, duck goose - all games from my childhood. Other adults from the village came to watch all the action. The kids showed me some of their games as well.

Playing with children

The next day I was reading in the guest house when I heard the children shouting my name 'Melanie!' over and over. As I walked out, they all ran towards me and jumped up and down eager to play games again. I decided to go down to the shops and buy a ball. Instead I ended up getting a cricket set and a rope. I wish I had video taped their faces when they saw me walking up the hill with it. After an hour or so of games, this woman appeared with a whip and started whipping a few of the kids away back into their homes. I was left standing there alone quite disappointed and wondered why she had done that. Maybe dinner time, or chores? Not quite sure but I never went back in fear I was encouraging something I shouldnt be. Despite this woman ruining the fun, I think the time I spent with these children has been the highlight of my trip so far. There is something about being in the company of children that bring a deep sense of joy to my heart and is beyond description.

Friendly people in village

Walk through villages

In Mateura there isnt much to do so most of my days here were spent just relaxing, reading, playing cards, listening to music, going for walks and washing our own clothes in the standpipes. There is something very womanly and natural about washing clothes without a machine for a change.  

Karen & Ben at our picnic spot

Marijuana plants everywhere!

We went for a trek a few hours through villages up to this beautiful temple on top this mountain.

Temple at mountain

There was a nice grass area so we had a little picnic and sat staring out at the amazing view of the valley and trees and mountains. Probably one of the best spots we have been in India. It just doesnt feel like you are in India here, that's what is nice about it. The villages are very picturesque with the wooden houses, flower gardens, cows, hay and beutiful friendly people. You realise through these walks how simple life can really be. I really liked the vibes here and will probably stay here the longest. On our way back we came across some large marijuana plants, the biggest we have seen so far so we stopped for a little photo shoot :)

Spider in shower!

Karen washing clothes at standpipe

Playing with baby at guesthouse

The large family that run the guest house have a little 1 year old daughter who is adorable, she doesn't go to strangers so it took me a few days to warm to her and finally hold and play with her. The one scary thing about our guest house is the spider infestation! Not just your regular itsy bitsy spider. Talking about massive ones that crawl with their big eight legs! A few people find them in their rooms at night so you can imagine every night we scan the bedroom to make sure none are under the covers! I haven't come across one in my room yet (knock on wood) but did come across this one in the picture when I went to take a shower.

We are off to Malana and some other village tomorrow for a few nights but will leave our bags in a room here in Mateura for when we return to this paradise.  Only a week left in India so got to make the most of it.

Rishikesh to Manali

Can I have your photo?

Crossing bridge to leave Rishikesh

I liked Rishikesh, we had a nice group of people, amazing food and nice views staying on the Ganges river but I knew this wasn't what I was looking for. I was looking for something more peaceful where I could hear nature and listen to my inner thoughts. My last day in Rishikesh I went by myself for a walk on the other side of town to find an ATM and see the Beatles ashram. I had not really taken much time to do things alone so it felt strange on my own for a change. I went walking too far and ended up in another village near a temple. There were lots of old babas walking and sitting everywhere and many poor people but they were not begging, just staring. Apparently usually around temples, this is where indian people come from all over, many come from small villages where they have never seen a white person before. I had a little boy come up and ask me for a photo and before I knew it, there were swarms of people pulling out their phones and all asking for photos. This wasn't the first time it had happened to me but it was the biggest group of people all at once. This was not only an experience for them but it was also one for me so I also asked for a photo! They are very curious people and always ask questions. The three most popular questions I've been asked so far is 'which country you from?' 'How long you here? How India make you feel, you feel good? I started to feel really hot after this incident and sat on this wall to rest. Of course people followed me there and sat next to me to continue taking photos. It all felt so strange, as if I was some sort of celebrity. A very tame monkey was sitting next to me and while I wasnt looking he climbed over me and jumped off from my head!! I'm not quite sure what happened but it felt like the monkey slapped me!

Saying bye to Himanshu & Abhisek

We spent time with the friends we made on the beach Abhisek and Himanshu who were really got on well with. Their english was excellent and they seemed to have similar interests to us. I wasn't too sad to leave this place as I knew we were onto somewhere even better. A group of six of us left the next day to head to Manali. Natalie (Spain), Ben (Israel), Karen (South Africa), Chris (Germany), Hannah (England) and myself (Trinidad). So you could imagine the group dynamics! Its been very interesting to see how 6 people from totally different places with different accents and personalities interact. There is alot of language barriers we cross but we make it work. I feel sometimes as if I am on a reality TV show. Being a large group, we took alot longer than expected and ended up missing our train and the bus we had booked so we lost out on some money but not too much. We then were forced to take a local bus to Manali which was a complete nightmare, at least for me. We spent a total of 19 hours on 3 local buses. One was an overnight bus, cramped, uncomfortable seats (non sleeper), extremely bumpy, fast and frustrating for me because it was night and I couldn't sleep. Plus time of the month for me = miserable! For me India is a country you develop a love-hate relationship with. There are moments that are so breath-taking and beautiful and there are moments that you question what am I doing here? This bus ride was definitely one of those hate moments. There are vendors who hop on the bus every now and then to sell drinks and snacks. One man was selling peeled cucumbers sliced in half and he sprinkled salt and black pepper on it. Cucumber is my favorite vegetable and I wanted one so badly but had to resist temptation after seeing him handle the money and cucumbers with same hands. The cucumbers are also passed down a few hands before reaching to you.

 

Karen enjoying local bus ride
Men eating cucumbers in back

TUK TUK - Hear, see, speak no evil

I somehow managed to sleep for maybe an hour around 5am and when I woke up it was almost daylight and I could see that we were somewhere totally different. I was surrounded by the Himalayas mountains, some with ice on top and the sounds of gushing clear river streams. Driving up north there was a big drop in temperature. We went from 35-40 degrees Celsius to now 15 degrees or colder. It was cold and we were all exhausted but it looked like it was worth it. I really don't know what we would do without Ben here with us leading the squad. He really is an angel sent down to look after us. He knows how to handle the people here, how to make sure we don't get ripped off and keeps everyone organised and on their toes. You always need someone like this when in a group, but only one. We were recommended by Lokesh from Pushkar to go to a particular guest house of his friend in Old Manali. From the bus stop we took a tuk tuk to the place and walked up higher into the mountains.

View from rooftop of M,anali guesthouse

We had breakfast in a cafe and walked up the mountain with our heavy backpacks and exhausted from no sleep. Despite being tired, I was already loving the vibes of this place . I was seeing the cutest oldest wooden houses engulfed in the mountains, women washing clothes on the concrete, children running and playing, temples with people praying, cows, birds, old men playing cards, lots of little parlor shops, vendors trying to sell, and just a really nice relaxed chilled out village with lots of smiling faces. The guest house was perfect, high up the mountain, only £1.50 a night for a room with a balcony overlooking the snow capped mountains (so with Karen and I sharing it is only 75pence). Waking up to that view always sets your mood beautifully for the day. You could also feel the difference in the air how clean and fresh it was to your lungs, compared to the other polluted cities we had been before. As soon as we arrived in Manali, I knew I was going to like it. That evening I went on our guest house roof top by myself and wrote in my journal and prayed. I had not prayed in a while so needed to catch up with the old man up there.

Pine trees park

Hadimba Tempe

In Manali, there is so much beauty all around to see. You could just spend hours walking and you would never get bored. Natalie, Hannah and I ventured to the Hadimba Temple which was a nice walk up the mountains. There were many indian tourists so it was not very quiet as we were being asked for photos alot. We then took a walk through a beautiful pine trees park to New Manali a more busy city with lots of action. The people in Manali look a little different because being closer to Nepal and China, you can see the mix of chinese and indian, really nice mix. The end of this evening we had a really nice dinner at a restaurant called People. They give you crayons and paper to draw and color while you wait on your food and the walls are filled with really cool art work that guests had drawn.



When we got back to the guest house, we saw burnt mattresses laying outside my door and then found out the room next to ours had started to catch on fire. There was an Israeli couple staying in there and had left a speaker charging on the bed for the day while out- it blew the fuse and caught the bed on fire and all their belongings were burnt. Luckily Karen, Ben and Chris were there when it happened so they worked together quickly to out the fire. They managed to save the room and the building from going ablaze. It wasn't a happy scene when they got back to their room around 11pm to find all their stuff burnt. I felt so sorry for them but it's just stuff which can be replaced with money. No one was hurt and that's what mattered the most as it could have turned out much worse.

Liming with the shepherd on mountain

My favorite day in Manali we decided to go trekking to the hot springs that we heard all about. We ended up going the completely wrong way on a different mountain - trekking for hours up rocks and climbing as far as we could go. We came across an old crazy and very funny shepherd on a big grassland area on the mountains with lots of cows grazing. So we took this opportunity for a resting spot and chatted for 45 minutes with this man who made absolutely no sense, probably because he had no teeth. But definitely the happiest man I have ever seen, grinning from head to toe and telling us 'God is love' and what happiness is. After realising we had no clue where we were, we came across a house and asked for help and ate our packed sandwiches. We headed back to Old Manali and then once we found out the correct way we continued on. We came across lots of marijuana plants growing on the side of the road. Normal. We got lost again but getting lost is always part of the fun, you always bump into other random different things you wouldn't have seen had you not got lost. We then went through very tiny villages and came across a large group of children. The happiest children I had ever seen. They run up to you smiling and giggling at absolutely nothing! They followed us for a while and anything I said to them, they all repeated. I love children so I was in my glee being surrounded by them. After crossing a few bridges and walked further up we came to a town called Vashisht. A very cool shanti town village, with lots of weed smokers and reggae music. After trekking from 10am- 6pm, we finally found the springs which were not even open in nature but instead it was inside a temple in a bath form. The water was boiling hot and coming straight out of the mountains. The baths were separated by male and female and the female one had naked women bathing in it. Completely not what I had expected for hot springs, but India is always full of surprises. 

I LOVE all the animals in Manali. They all have these extra layers of fur for warmth and are all so cute, cuter than the average animals. There is the Yak which is found only in Central Asia and Himalayan region, related to cattle but very strange looking. We came across the most adorable lamb that looked like it just come out of a curling salon! The stray dogs are all fury, cute and friendly. The cows are cuter and oh the rabbits - massive fury rabbits like I've never seen before. But the locals use the yak, rabbits and lambs to get money from tourists by asking for 5-10 rupees for a photo with them.

Animals of Manali:

In Manali, there are lots of activities you can do - paragliding, zorbing, helicopter rides, trekking, white water rafting. I didn't end up doing any except for trekking. The others seemed too expensive and I'm a big chicken to do things like paragliding - especially in India where I don't know what the safety measures are like.Would rather not take my chances. My last day in Manali I spent hours doing admin, dealing with my bank in UK who cancelled my card and trying to get a new SIM card here because I had problems In India, everything takes LONG. It could be the simplest task or errand, it will take forever! I think this is good preparation for moving back to Trinidad. So far I notice I have been developing a big tolerance for poor customer service and much higher levels of patience. Tomorrow we are off to Tush which is supposed to be really quiet and peaceful, even more than Manali. This time it won't be the big group of 6 people, it will be only 3 of us so looking forward to it.

The clan liming at guest house

Wooden houses