Friday 30 May 2008

You say you want a revolution!





View of Pokhora from the Yoga retreat.



Rice Paddies, Agriculture in Nepal is pretty basic Which isn't helped by the fact that most of Nepal is mountainous. Most food is imported from India.



Lake Pakhara.

Well, the past couple of weeks in Nepal have been very interesting. On Wednesday night I went to bed in the Kingdom of Nepal and woke up the next morning in a Republic! The newly elected Maoist Party voted to abolish the Monarchy during the night and gave the King 15 days to vacate his Royal Palace! Long live the Republic!! I only wish we could be as decisive with our in-bred, spoilt, over indulged Royals. At the moment there is a bit of unrest in Kathmandu, apparently there are thousands of protesters outside the palace chanting "down with the King!" waiting to see if the King abides with the commies wishes. He's got 600-1000 personal bodyguards holed up with him, so I suppose it could get a bit messy. Although if the bodyguards can count I'm sure they'll realise there are more protesters than bullets. Hope it works out OK. Was going to go back to Kathmandu in a couple of days, but might wait in Pokhara and see what happens:)
For the past week I've been at a Yoga retreat in a small place over-looking the Lake just outside Pokhara. The programme involved getting up at 5.30, then 45 minutes meditation at 6, followed by at walk, then a 1 hour Yoga session. After that- breakfast, then a mud/steam bath, 30 meditation, lunch, chanting, Yoga session, dinner, bed. Met some very interesting people, learnt some new and painful Yoga positions and discovered I'm fucking useless at meditating! Your meant to empty you mind of all thoughts, but all I could think of was what was for breakfast. Oh well, practice makes perfect:)


Guru Adams in Lotus position after mud bath.

Various Yoga positions.

Sunday 18 May 2008

Annapurna


Daybreak on the South Face of Annapurna. This massive 3000m high face was famously climbed by the Brits in 1970, led by Chris Bonnington. Annapurna is 8091m high and after K2 is probably the most difficult 8000'er to climb. For every 2 people to summit, 1 person pegs it! While I was at base camp, an number of Russian climbers were getting evacuated with frostbite.



Warm by the fire. Inside one of the lodges, sheltering from the daily rainstorms that tended to hit every afternoon. The Annapurna region is so remote everything has to be carried in on the backs of the small but considerably strong local Ghuregs.



Goat traffic jam on a suspension bridge.



Just press play, dude..........................



.....................another Jimi Hendrix convert.



Dhaulagiri, 8167m and 7th highest mountain in the world. Very pretty mountain.



Me at Annapurna base camp, with S face of Annapurna in the background. Been there, got the T-shirt.


Well, I made it out off the mountains alive!! After 2 weeks of continually walking up and down hillsides, living on dal bhaat (lentils and rice) and getting up at 5 am, I'm now considerably fitter and a few pounds lighter. Which is no bad thing after doing minimal exercise and eating curry everyday for the past 6 months. The adventure started off quite slowly. My legs just weren't use to walking up hills, and my pace dropped even further when a friendly guide gave me a load of locally grown weed. Oh well. After a few days the going got easier as I adapted to getting up early, doing the days hike, getting to a lodge by lunchtime, then watching the storm clouds envelop the mountains from the comfort of my pot filled room:) In common with the rest of the trip, my plans of where a was actually going were quite fluid. The original plan was go and trek up to a town called Jomson, but after talking to a couple of Argentinians, it didn't sound that great. Instead I decided to go up to the Annapurna Sanctuary, where I could get a much closer look at the South Face of Annapurna, and get right into the big mountains. As always, the Lonely & Paranoid guide book turned out to be complete bollocks yet again, describing the route as dangerous and avalanche prone. Turned out to be a pleasant 5 day walk, up beautiful forested valleys, topped with HUGE snow capped mountains. Annapurna base camp is at about 4100m, so in the evening it tended to get a bit chilly, but any physical discomfort was completely overshadowed by being surrounded on all sides by massive Himalayan peaks.

I'm now safely back in Pokora, where I'm happily drinking beer and eating anything but fucking dal bhaat. Immediate plans are to have a shave and a hot shower, then go and do some white-water rafting and then maybe stay at a Yoga Ashram for a few days. With only 3 weeks left, for the first time I'm going to have to be a bit creative with my time management!

P.S Happy birthday, Mum!!

P.P.S Thanks for reminding me, Dad.


Friday 2 May 2008

Namaste Nepal

Well, that's it. I'm out of India. Probably just in the nick of time, as the temperature in Delhi was over 40deg Celsius. A bit oppressive really, so I was quite thankful to get on the plane and arrive in the mountain Kingdom/Maoist Republic of Nepal where the temperature is more reasonable. The guide book describes Kathmandu as a noisy, hectic polluted city, but to be honest, after 6 months in India it seemed like an oasis of calm to me. The city itself is a bit of a tourist trap, 40 odd years of catering for western travellers, trekkers and mountaineers has created an enclave of shops selling all sorts of crap and restaurants offering pizza and filter coffee. On a more positive note, the beer in Nepal is about 100 times better than the piss water you get served in India. Kathmandu has one place of interest-Durbar Square. A complex of old temples and gompas set around the now redundant Royal Palace. Nepal has a strange mix of Hindu and Buddhist religions. Everyone seems to get along with each other. Even with the Muslims.
After a couple of days in Kathmandu it was time to catch the bus to Pokhara. Why anyone 'backpacks' is beyond me. While I was sweating away on the bus, knees cramped under armpits, looking out at the wonderful landscape of mountains and terraced villages, all I could think of was " Shit, I wish I was on my bike." Anyway, Pokhara is the Nepali version of Chamonix. It's right by the Annapurna range, and pretty much the national centre for trekking, rafting and any other adventure sport you'd care to name. In the next couple of days, weather permitting, I'm gonna head up into the mountains and do some trekking for a couple of weeks. With it getting towards the end of the trekking season, the cloud tends to build up in the afternoon and it starts raining, so unfortunately its going to have to be a low altitude/not very dangerous trek. After 6 months biking around India, best not push it! Don't think theres many internet cafes in the Himalaya, so don't worry if you fail to hear from me for a while!!:)


Temple, Durbar Square, Kathmandu.



Cool lime green Enfield custom, with interesting hemp leaf motif, Pokhara.

Friday 25 April 2008

India TT. Lap record : 165 days: 15 hrs: 35 min: 16 sec

Namaskar India

Well, that's it. I'm now back in Delhi. The bike has been sold, and I've now become what I most despise- a backpacker. God damn it. It seems strange to be at the end of the road of the Indian leg of my journey, but after 13,000 odd km it had to end sometime! I'm slightly amazed that I got round with only one breakdown (knackered ignition coil) one crash (slipped on some train tracks in Darjeeling= grazed knee/bruised ego) and no punctures. Considering the state of Indian roads that must be some sort of record!
After 6 months in the country it's still pretty hard to put into words what I feel about India. I'll start with the obvious , India is a land of contrasts. There is no middle ground. Everything is black or white, you love it or you hate it. You can have the most beautiful building, be it Hindu, Mughal or British and next door there will be the most hideous slum or department store. You can have a vast modern metropolis, with international banks and shops, then 1 hour into the country you can see farmers ploughing the fields with bullocks and planting crops by hand. The contrast between the rich and the poor in this country is vast, and unfortunately like everywhere else in the world the gap is only going to get bigger. The new middle class are going to continue buying mobile phones and designer jeans, and the poor are going to continue to beg for a few rupees. Its horrible to say, but the sight of a kid covered in filth, picking through the rubbish becomes normal.
India undoubtedly has some major problems. A population of 1.2 billion and growing is always going to create problems. To its credit, unlike China, India has a vibrant and functioning democracy. The country is always colourful, load, brash, chaotic. Every day is an adventure, and never fails to produce something memorable. A mathematician or philosopher studying chaos theory need only get on a plane to India to see it in action. To the untrained eye, the country, the transport, the economy, the infrastructure- all seem to be governed by chaos. Underlying all this is a kind of equilibrium, if you wait long enough everything works out in the end. Water comes out the taps, the curry you ordered eventually arrives, the train gets to its destination. All you have to have in India is a few Rupees and lots of PATIENCE.
India is governed by religion and cricket. Although I can understand the latter, I still, happily remain a cynic on the former. After six months visiting churches, temples and mosques, I still remain convinced that religion is a pile of crap. This was confirmed to me a couple of days ago when a brahmin said a prayer for me. I then got on my bike and broke the kickstart. So much for good karma. The only place I felt a tinge of spirituality was at the Golden Temple in Amritsar. A complete oasis of calm and beauty in the heart of a busy Punjab city, where the Sikh pilgrims were incredibly open, friendly and welcoming. Different to alot of mosques and Hindu temples, where you can be made to feel like a bit of an outsider. Forget the Taj Mahal, anyone visiting India for the first time should head straight for the Golden Temple.
I've absolutely loved my time in India. Its an incredible country that never fails to amaze you with it's wonderful people, geography and history! Well that's it, I've run out of adjectives to describe India. All I can say is, if you've never been to India"GO". You won't be disappointed:)
Lastly, I've been carrying a sketch book round India, so here's a 'best of' selection.



Taj Mahal, Agra, November 2007.



Rickshaw driver waiting for a fare. Pondicherry. February 2008.


My bike. Varkala, Kerala. March 2008.


Inside the Basilica of Bom Jesus, Old Goa. March 2008.


Lake Pichola, Udaipur, Rajasthan. April 2008.

Thursday 17 April 2008

Gujarat & Rajasthan


Its only been a couple of days since my last post, but the broadbands pretty quick here in Rajasthan, so I though I'd take the opportunity to upload some pictures now rather than later!
Since leaving Mumbai, I spent a few days in Mahatma Gandi's home state, Gujarat. I am now back in Rajasthan in the town of Udaipur, famous for the setting in the Bond film 'Octopussy' (crap Roger Moore 1980's one) and Bhang Lassis (a potent and very nice yogurt drink laced with hash:)


Mahatma Gandi's Ashram, Ahamedabad, Gujarat. Gandi was based in Ahamedabad from 1915 - 1930. All the important decisions on the struggle for Independence were made in the small room on the left.


Chaos on Relief Road, Ahamedabad. The state of Gujarat is a bit off the track, everyone seems to bypass it going from Mumbai straight to Rajasthan. Which is a shame. Gujaraties are incredibly friendly, and the food is by far the best in India. Gujarati Thali is a meal, consisting of numerous small dishes- sweet, sour, hot, soothing, different textures, then you savour each dish a little at a time. mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.


Elephant traffic jam, Udaipur, Rajasthan.



King of Udaipurs 1924 Rolls Royce and me, Udaipur. One of many Rollers in the kings collection. The jammy bugger also had a number of old Merc's, Cadillac's, Buick's and a couple of Morris Minors.



Lake Pichola, Udaipur.



Tuesday 15 April 2008

Bombay Nights

Since the last post, I've continued up the west coast and spent 4 plesent days in Mumbai. Mumbai (formally known as Bombay, but changed back to the pre-British name) is Indias largest city, about 16 million residents, and is by far the most cosmapolitan/westernised place I've visited so far. Which is hardly suprising, givin that Mumbai is positioned on a headland facing the Arabian Sea, and has always had trading links with Arabia and the west. The prominent community in Mumbai are the Paris- originally from Iran/Persia who got kicked out with the rise of Islam. Interestingly they hold water, earth and fire to be sacred, so they leave there dead in towers, to be picked at by vultures! Nice.



View from Arthers Seat, Western Ghats. About 250km south east of Mumbai are the northern tip of the Western Ghats, a chain of mountains that run all the way down to Kerala. The views are incredible, and the mountain roads are hair-raising.



Sunday morning cricket, Oval Maidan, Mumbai. There is a big patch of grass outside the High Court and Bombay University that is used by Mumbaites for playing the national game. Its an amazing sight seeing thousands cricketers running around, creating dust clouds. Everyone plays, young and old. If you go in the evening you can see businessmen in there suits running around like school boys before they go home! The joy and enthusiasm with which the game is played is really infectious. Much more fun than watching a game at Lords!!!!



Mighty bladesman, having a go. As you can see from the completely gay stance, I went to a state school. Didn't make any difference in the end, the bowler kept spraying it down legside for some reason.


Victoria Terminus, Mumbai. Affectionately known as VT, this is all you need to see why Britain had a vast Empire. To invest so much money and time in a train station says it all. Now all we get is the Millennium Dome. All the same - Empires a bad thing, kids. Anyway, most of the old city is littered with these incredibly ornate neo-gothic buildings.



Chowpatty Beach, Mumbai. The place to be in the evening. Everyone congregates to eat food, and watch the sun set, with the city of Mumbai as the backdrop. Ended up getting pissed on the beach with some friendly Mumbaites. The evening ended when they went off to find some hookers and I went back to the hotel to watch Chelsea v Arsenal.

Sunday 30 March 2008

Boats,Beaches,Vindaloo and Fenni

Hello. Currently in Goa, on a beach...................Nothing much to report as far as that goes, apart from the seas warm, the beers cold and the vindaloo is spicy!!!! To be honest, I'm not much of a beach bum, sitting on a beach all day is kinda boring, but I'm slowly getting the hang of it:)
In a place called Amarol, which is one of the more chilled out hippy beaches, rather than the rave/rape/murdering beaches further south. India has been in a frenzy over the whole British teenager murder, so there are police everywhere in Goa. The place has a reputation of being a bit druggie, but theres not much of that going on at the moment. For the first time in 5 months I actually got pulled at the boarder crossing and had to show my docs!!!! God damn fuzz.
Anyway, apart from the police overkill, Goa is a pleasant place. You see the Portuguese influence in the State capital,Panji, in terms of the architecture, food and Port wine. Pork Vindaloo is a famous Goan dish, not as hot as the UK version, but much, much tastier:P The locally produced white spirit- Fenni, made from either cashrew or coconut, is pretty lethal as well. At 10p a shot it would be rude not to!

Next stop: Mumbai (formally Bombay)




Man overboard in the Keralan backwaters, Kollam, Kerala. Most of the coastal region of Kerala is covered in a network of canals, rivers and lakes, where fishing, prawn farming and toddy taping are the main industries.


Chinese fishing nets in Fort Kochi, Kerala. Loads of these fishing nets on big canti-levered wooden structures line the coast around Kochi.


Church of the Immaculate Conception, Panji, Goa. Goa is an old Portuguese colony, so has loads of Catholic Churches, Cathedrals and monasteries dotted around the place. A more useful Portuguese after-effect is the amount of Port wine that is available in the state, mmmmmmmmmm.


View from my beach shack, Amarol, Goa.

Cows on the beach, a uniquely Indian sight. Amarol, Goa.


Sunday 2 March 2008

Temples & Tigers


Roadkill.


Scaffholders working on the Sri Meenakshi Temple, Madurai, Tamil Nadu.


Close up of one of the gopurams , most of the temples in the south are painted up like this in Dravidian style.


Me in the jungle. The gaiters are to stop leeches getting in! Periyar Tiger Reserve, Kerala.



Spot the elephants.


Hi there!!!! Since my last post I've been doing plenty of temple spotting in Tamil Nadu. Down here in the south the temples are completely different to up north. North= Ayran (not the blonde, blue eyed type) South= Dravidian, therefore completely different language, culture, temple design, etc. I visited the three biggest temple towns of Tanjour, Trichy and most famously Madurai. To be honest, the Temples all looked pretty similar, although the complex at Trichy was bloody massive- about 60 hectares according to Book of Lies. All were very impressive and colourful.
After all that cultural stuff, I've crossed the border into Kerala and am now at a small town called Kumily, in the Cardomom Hills. The whole place is surrounded by tea and spice plantations. For the past few days Iv'e been living off cinnamon and cardomom tea hmmmmmmmmm. Anyway, right next to Kumily is the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Yesterday I went on a jungle walk and saw lots birds, butterflies, monkeys, elephants and buffalo. No Tigers though, with only 40 tiggers in a 700km sq reserve it was always going to be a long shot. After seeing some of their paw prints as big as your hand, in retrospect it was probably for the best.
Well I'm knackered after all this running around, so tomorrow I'm heading for a Keralan beach. Laters....

Friday 22 February 2008

South India


On the road south, with Eastern Ghats in the background.


Slightly insane schoolkids, Mamallapuram.


Temples, rockcut from a single boulder. No separate parts what so ever! Mamallapuram.


The Ambassador, king of the Indian roads, Pondicherry.


Typical tree lined street. Pondicherry.


Well, after 3 1/2 months in North India, I'm finally here in the South. Everyone says there are two Indias, the North and the South. My impression is that theory is true. Its certainly ALOT hotter down here. Seems to average around 90deg, so my body is still getting use to the change to a tropical climate, and having to take siestas in the afternoon. Still, it beats freezing your arse off in a Himalayan hill station! Everyone is alot more laid back down here and the pace of life alot slower, the hawkers and the rickshaw drivers are much less aggressive, which makes a welcome change.

Well, I left Puri, up in the North on the 8th Feb, and basically nailed it down the coastal highway(which was actually a 2 lane highway, and not a potholed dirt track, for once the map didn't lie!) so I was averaging over 400km a day. A personal record. Unfortunately the weather all the way down to Chennai/Madras was 'changeable' so whilst riding I was going from sweating away to soaked to the skin, then back again. After spending a few days in Chennai, an old British East India Company fort and trading post, that has turned into an industrial city of about 6 million people. I went down to a small coastal village called Mamallapuram, a backpacker haven, so slightly touristy, and a about twice as expensive as elsewhere, but it did have some beautiful 7th century temples on the beach. Half the village is designated as a UNSCO World Heritage Site.
Now a bit further down the coast in the old French colonial outpost of Pondicherry. Its a weird infusion of Indian and French culture. The town is set out in wide boulevards, all the streets have French names like - rue Dumas, the cops wear kepis, French style hats. Also the coffee shops actually serve half decent coffee and pain au chocola.

Sunday 17 February 2008

Things Iv'e learnt in India

* Don't ask leading questions like "Is this the way to Chennai." because you'll enevitably get a "yes" and a nod/shake of the head.

* On the flip side, asking for anything generally results in "Yes, no problem."

* Indian bike mechanics are the best in the world. + The quickest & cheapest.

* All Indian coach and bus drivers are homicidal cunts.

* Riding a motorbike with the gearshifter on the wrong side and upsidedown.

* Eating raw chillis, good for the digestion.

* Why have 1 person do a job when you can have 8. (This does not mean things happen 8 times faster, rather the reverse.)

* Indians hav'nt figured out what to do with rubbish, other than dump it in the street/River/Sea.

* The Lonely Planet guidebook is a pile of crap.

* Everything is really cheap.

* Everyday in India, you see somthing hillarious, insane, heartbreaking, breathtaking, ugly or beautiful.

Friday 8 February 2008

North West Bengal

Kolkata, Park St.



Puri beech


Hello everyone. Sorry I've not posted for a while. Since leaving Darjeeling not much has really happened! Tried to get into the Kingdom of Bhutan- but couldn't because I didn't have a visa- even though the Lonely Planet book of lies said you didn't need one. Oh well only a day wasted. It was then a bit of a nightmare journey down to Kolkata. A mixture of really heavy rain, then i got 'ill'. Completely lost my appitite and couldn't sleep- hence completely knackererd and no bike riding. Luckilly my appitite has returned, ,and i'm back on the curry:)

Finally made it to Kolokata last week. Very cool city, very cosmopolitan. Looks a bit like an old derilict version of London. Got bike serviced+ new front suspension. the old ones were completely shot.

Now about 300 miles down the coast from Kolkata in a place called Puri. Its on the beech and very chilled out. think I might stay here a few days and enjoy the sun:)

Thursday 17 January 2008

Darjeeling

For the past week I've been living in Darjeeling, a hill station famous for its views of the Himalaya. A view that until today was denied to me by some very English weather. Fortunately, the town has plenty of stuff to do and can get pretty lively. The town has a big Ghurka population who want an Independent State. Theres always demonstrations and strikes going on, and the odd political assignation is'nt unheard of either. My local bar that plays Hendix, Stones, Doors etc, has a doorman outside armed with an old Lee Enfield rifle! Not sure why, nowts happened yet, guess Ghurkas just like guns and knives, must be why the British Army like to employ them.



In the Darjeeling Planters Club, with temporary membership! A place with hunting trophies on the wall, tea on the table and a slight wiff of Empire in the air. Ended up playing snooker with some guys that were on 'The Rickshaw Run'. A race in rickshaws from Kerala in the south to Kathmandu! I won, so 1-nil to the bikers:)



Tibetan Refuge, where Tibetan exiles make carpets, textiles and handicrafts.



Young monks. I'd like to think they know at least some kung-fu.



View from Tiger Hill, with Darjeeling in the fore ground and Kanchenjunga in the background. Kanchenjunga is the 3rd highest mountain in the world, and I can confirm that its fucking massive! Its 60miles away in the picture! Also saw Everest, zoom wasn't strong enough.



Me and Kanchenjunga. Apologies for the hat, but its cold in the Himalaya in winter. Who'd have thought it!