An ending and a begining
left varanasi for agra on an overnight train which i should have missed due to traffic but luckily in the age old british tradition the train was running comfortably late so had just enough time to get it. Arrived in Agra early the next morning and devoted the next few days to some serious monument spotting, taking in Agra fort, an ancient city some 40 km out of town and of course the Taj. Well its big and its white. Actually it is pretty impressive, worth the 10 quid to get in (this doesn't sound like much, but could easily last me 4 days). Delhi followed and more monuments.Right now i'm out in the desert in Jaisalmer, an old golden sandstone town, with a fort with a whole village inside. Its nearly all beautifully carved, like the whole town has been fashioned from one big block. The thing to do here is a camel safari and although i had already done one in china i signed up for four days - having been assured by the salesman that i would be with 2 other english and 2 canadians so have lots of company. Of course what the kind salesmen meant to say was i'd be with 6 french, 2 of which are technically canadian, leaving me with just a stinky camel for company - some people just have no shame.... seriously wasn't too bad, it turns out that me and the camel shared a passion for shakespeare. Lots of sand, stars and campfires was the order of the day. Thankfully not too many hours a day on the camel as sitting would now be (more) impossible. Now for the title... for those who haven't heard this may be a bit of a suprise, but it maybe sometime before im back in england, have decided to stay in asia and get a job. Of course i miss everyone at home and its been a big decision but just can't help myself. will be leaving india in the next week or so and that will be the end of this part of the story but i'll keep up this site and try to give you all some idea of what i'm getting up to. OK bye all, hope you enjoyed crossing a zillion countries, a few mountain ranges, close encounters with wierd beasties and those horrendous unforgettable bus trips with me. And remember, if you want to do the same, stop making excuses and in the immortal words of nike corporation.....just do it....
Into India
My last week in Nepal was spent seeing some of the sights of Kathmandu and catching up with some friends before striking out in search of india. The origional plan was to take an overnight bus to the border and then leave on the last day before my visa expired but when i got to the bus station it emerged that the rebels had caused a strike in one of the areas the bus was to pass through and consequently it was cancelled. So instead the next day I had to catch one in the morning taking a route that was the two slow sides of a triangle. Pulled into the border town of sunoali sometime late and checked into an empty hostel with a ever present order of urine, taking a top floor room, which according to the proprietor 'smelt better'. It was a pretty seedy and muddy little town, and like most border towns had more than its fair share of deranged looking characters. The owner of the hotel tried to sell me hash by the kilo which he said he could supply on the indian side of the border so i suspect there may be a little bit of a drug trade going on....Crossed the border first thing in the morning and after a battle with the travel agents who were supposed to give me the ticket i'd bought in Kathmandu but instead tried to extract more cash first i got under way. It now turns out that i got out of nepal just in time, as yesterday the king chucked out the government there and has cut all communications and imposed martial law....India is just so amazingly crowded. everywhere is a teeming mass of people jostling and shouting, arguing and fighting. everyday life seems to be executed in a war zone. Varanasi is an ancient city on a bend in the ganges. everyday pilgrims climb down the flights of limestone steps that seperate the sometimes ancient and often crumbling buildings from the toxic river and wash away their sins. Starting at about 5 in the morning, temples along the front begin to fill and priests perform rituals that appear prehistoric. Bells clang incensently whilst in front of the alter a man baring what seems to be a medievil flame thrower chants and spins, waving his blazing metal torch. By the riverside, the pyres which burn 24 hours a day immolate a cease procession of embalmed corpses, and barges arrive piled high with the wood to supply this endless market.I'm staying in the narrow alleys of the old city, a world only a meter wide. Apparently this is still wide enough for bikes, motorbikes, people and cows to exist in, although not quite side by side. People told me that india was going to be dirty, and they weren't wrong, there is an astounding amount of excrement. But i guess thats only to be expected with quite so many cows everywhere. These bovine baronets wander imperiously around, facing down oncoming traffic and napping calmly in the middle of busy streets whilst the tides of life flow around. So thats Varanasi.
