Crossing the Border and Onto Pokhara

I arrived in from Mumbai to Kathmandu airport, then mucked around getting a visa, jumped in a taxi to the bus stop and boarded a local microbus (no other tourists, no leg room, no air conditioning and no personal space) for the 7 hour trip to Pokhara. My day began at 5am and I finally arrived at the guest house at 8pm. LONG DAY.

Day 2 I explored, sat by the beautiful Phewa Lake, attempted another leg wax but fainted on the poor woman (definitely not responding well to the altitude sickness tablets so no more of those for me), drank countless cups of tea, went to the tour office to finalise my trek and made a late night dash in bucketing rain for dinner at the closest restaurant and then BED.

I think I’m going to like this country – a world apart from India but so beautiful in its own right.

Mumbai – The Land of Bollywood & Slumdog Millionaire

There was a real mix of emotions coming to Mumbai – excitement to finally see the work of Vision Rescue first-hand, a concern that I wouldn’t have enough days and some apprehension knowing that it was only weeks since a terrorist let off a bomb right where I was to depart from the train.

Departing Mumbai I was so touched, inspired and yes, my concern was validated - I certainly did not allow enough time in this city. I did not lay eyes on any one of the tourist sights – no Gateway to India, no Taj Mahal Hotel and no Bollywood films BUT I felt like I was a local and my oh my, it was so refreshing.

To rewind, I checked with the men I shared my carriage with where Dadar station was and when they prompted me, I departed the train. There were no signs confirming the destination, so thinking the train was early, I joined the scores of people pushing and shoving their way up the stairs, after nightfall, in the rain. I was waiting for my pick up and looked around with a feeling I was not where I should be. I picked out a young girl and asked where I was, to which she replied Thane and told me it would be a 45 minute train trip to my intended destination. So I called and called until someone picked up their phone and was told to wait until someone came to where I was and got me. An hour later I was kindly fetched, then two hours and a gigantic dosa later, I was at the hostel. Needless to say, I fell straight into bed.

The next day I was picked up by the lovely Rajesh, along with the two volunteers from the UK whom I soon befriended and we later arrived at Vision Rescue HQ. Vision Rescue targets slum areas where children are not attending school. They drive around mobile school buses and the children jump on and have a class, are fed and then the bus moves onto its' next destination. My day started with a devotion, then it was time to board the buses. Over the next couple of days I saw some beautiful children, learnt some Hindi and was incredibly touched by the work of Vision Rescue. There were mothers asking the staff where they can find a church and to see the way they blessed a worried mum with a child that has malaria was amazing. To add the the list I also got a very expensive dessert at Häagen-Dazs with the UK kids and left I left the city absolutely exhausted. I could go on but at the end of the day I had a wonderful time and was privileged to be a part of it, even for the briefest time.

Pune and the Day Which Started at 4am

I checked in and slept until breakfast – oh how I needed it!

Just a bit of background, I was in Pune visiting a good friend of the Derwins who works at the Girl Guides World Centre. I shared a room with seven 16 year old girls from the UK – they were so much fun! The day starts with an 8:30am sharp breakfast that begins with grace in song form. It was so nice to be around a table with people chatting in English – it had certainly been awhile!

Jen then gave me a bunch of her favourite tourist destinations and addresses to start my day. I jumped in a rickshaw and went to the Kirkee War Memorial, where World War II fallen soldiers are buried. It seemed so bizarre and out of place; it was pristine and well kept and really quite beautiful. I then went to the Pataleshvara Caves – a temple that was discovered underground when people were excavating for a new building – interesting and a stark contrast to the elaborate temples I have seen. Next stop was Parvati Hill – my favourite of the three. It too was a temple but you could climb the walls and just sit and take in the view over the city. It was certainly worth the steep walk up. I then went back to meet Jen who scootered me off for a delicious lunch, train ticket purchasing, food market wanderings, shopping and a visit to the Aga Khan Palace and Ghandi National Memorial. This is where the Mahatma, his wife and secretary were interned following the 1942 Quit India resolution and where the latter two died. For dinner we met her delightful Indian friend, Karmani, for dinner – yum scrum!

Day 2 was a jam packed morning. As Karmani is a primary school principal, I went to visit her at the school. The kids were gorgeous – as were there uniforms! I watched them learn dances, sing songs and write the numerals 1 to 10. I then tore myself away to visit the Tribal Cultural Museum. Such an interesting exhibition, I had to race through to be out within an hour – the musical instruments with their incredible shapes and paintings were the highlight. Then I raced back to have a quick bite and grabbed my bags – it was time to head to Mumbai!

The Experience That Was... Sleeper Train #2

Other than being dropped at the train station nearly 2 hours early and then having to sit in the insane heat and humidity, the train journey started rather smoothly. I got set up and started chatting with a young guy working in pharmaceuticals. His clear and fluent English was refreshing but then he started with the compliments, buying me food even when I refused, talking up his father’s wealth and flirting. I quickly reverted to my laptop AND HEADPHONES!

By the time dinner arrived, I was exhausted so I tried to stay awake

but was failing so I set myself up for bed – curtains closed, lights off and snuggling into my sleep sheet....THEN...

* ‘Opposite top bunk’ came to bed, making a racket, keeping me awake...

* Shortly followed by an extremely loud and bellowing phone conversation in the corridor...

* This was followed by the entrance of a Hindu bigwig who turned the lights on and took an hour to get settled and eat his dinner which had a nasty smell... Then finally – LIGHTS OUT!

* Oh but wait, the flirt is back with a new girl and they start talking about books and how many siblings they had ON MY BED... until... I snapped and asked them with all the kindness I could muster to carry out their conversation elsewhere...

* The flirt soon returns and had a very loud conversation with the oth

er guy he is travelling with until FINALLY they agree – bed time!

* This was about the time Hindu bigwig started snoring and even though I managed to find my earplugs, nothing could have helped block it out.

I arrived in Pune at 4am – shattered. 2 sleeper trains down, 2 more to go.

Goa – the Coastline of Famed Beaches

Yeah so Goa, didn’t love it. This was probably attributed by the number of stores and restaurants closed for the monsoon season, my use of 76 tissues due to hayfever and the subsequent ailments that had me bedridden, the sightseeing tour that was in Hindi not English on a non A/C bus, the overwhelming humidity and the dirty hotel room. I have heard Goa is overrated, I wanted to decide for myself and sadly I can’t disagree. However, I would certainly give it another go in the right season, probably at one of the southern beaches because while they lack the night life, the beaches are much more pristine.

All that said I did manage to have some fun. I saw some beautiful churches and towns on the sightseeing tour (and drank an exceptional coffee frappe and I borrowed a scooter the next day and putted around town. I headed up to Fort Aguada and the view was pretty amazing. I then purchased some cold n flu tablets, curled up in bed and had a rainy day in bed.