adventures of a tired coder

It was sad to leave Orchard Hut, almost like saying goodbye to distant relatives after finally meeting them for the first time. From there, we took a car to Pathankot, where we got on a train heading to Amritsar. Since it was a relatively short train ride, we got the authentic Indian experience by riding sleeper class. Sound nice? No AC, and I believe it’s the cheapest reserved seats available on the train. Finally, to give us the full authentic Indian experience, the train came to a halt for long enough to indicate that it wasn’t going anywhere for awhile. People jumped on another train passing by, but we had too much luggage to move quickly, so we stood next to the train to get some air (everyone else out there was male!). Finally, we found out what the deal was: “engine broke, they are bringing another one.” Awesome.

But we made it to Amritsar in time to get to the Golden Temple to see the nightly ceremony (Palki Sahib) where they bring their Holy Book from its day spot to its night spot. It was great to get the opportunity to see the Golden Temple both in the day and at night because the atmosphere was very different. The gold against the blackness of night was very majestic, but in the daytime, everything looked more peaceful (except the crowd of people trying to get inside the temple). There were people all over, bathing in the water, sleeping next to the water, eating from the free cafeteria, and chanting. For such a famous temple, it was impressive that it really felt like a holy place, not a tourist attraction.

Amritsar also marked the end of reasonable temperatures for me on this trip, going from the pleasant 70s of Chamba to a blazing 100 degrees. We also visited a modern Hindu temple in Amritsar (very different!) and Jallianwala Bagh, the site of a British massacre that is now a memorial. Finally, we made a trip to the India-Pakistan border to watch the very odd daily border closing ceremony. People packed into the stands on both sides of the border, and as they were waiting for things to begin, they played music on the Indian side and a bunch of women went down and started a dance party. Then announcers began the pep rally portion, shouting “Hindustan!” (echoed by the opposite side’s “Pakistan!”) followed by lines I really did not understand (though I did understand the “Allah!” shouts from the Pakistan side). Then soldiers did some funny marching, lowered the flags, and closed the border. For two countries that are supposed to not get along, they sure had to coordinate well to do this ceremony. As we followed the crowd out, I had two guys following me asking to take my picture, not an uncommon thing for foreigners in India to experience, but the fact that they were following me made me feel like a celebrity. :)

Then it was time to hop on an overnight train back to Delhi (AC this time, thank goodness!). I sadly said goodbye to my tour group after doing some shopping, and hopped on a train to Agra. The next morning I got up early enough to get to the Taj Mahal at opening time, 5am, and was rewarded by getting to experience it before all the crowds flooded in. It was really beautiful, and it’s hard to get a real sense of how big it is from just looking at pictures. Agra has a number of amazing tourist sites, but otherwise it’s an unpleasant place to be. Hot and polluted (I think we were at 110 degrees, but it felt hotter), full of people trying to sell you stuff or get you on their rickshaw. The heat was really killing me, so I saw the Agra Fort and then had to get back to my hotel (“No, Mr. Rickshaw Driver, I do NOT want to go to a bazaar!”). I’d already checked out, but they let me sleep in a room for a few hours for $5.

Took a train back to Delhi (it was late and then silently showed up at a different platform – I was the only person from my berth to actually make it to the right place right away), then flew out the next morning to Chennai. But that’s for part 4!

So continuing with my Indian adventure story… the part about the tour description that made me hesitate the most about booking it was the mention of a two day trek that was strenuous and required participants to be in great physical condition. I’m not in bad shape, but I don’t consider myself to be in great physical condition, either. My tour guide didn’t make it any better by harassing me and constantly asking if I wanted to change my mind about doing the trek (there was an option to ride a car to the next destination, which two people did choose).

In the end, it wasn’t as bad as I expected, and the scenery along the way was gorgeous. I did get off to a bad start by falling on my butt twice because we were going downhill on a dusty trail covered with pine needles. And the climb up was really steep. I had to make the group stop a few times to catch my breath, but even with those delays, the tour guide said it was the fastest he’d ever made it up there with a group. It was a lot of fun walking through the small villages because all of the kids would get excited and follow us around, yelling, “Hi!” and asking to get their photo taken. We also picked up dogs as we walked that would follow us for the entire day and then disappear. Temporary pets!

The second day of trekking was a lot easier, and then we arrived in Chamba, where a vehicle dropped us off as close as it could get to Orchard Hut, where we spent the next few days. The idea was to get the real village experience, so the closest road was about 30 minutes downhill. I really enjoyed the stay and the Indian hospitality we experienced there from the family. The food stood out as some of the best food I ate in India, homecooked local recipes that were very different from other Indian food I’d eaten before.

Tired… looks like there will be a part three to this entry :)

This is a long overdue entry, since this trip happened in May last year, but better late than never!

My friend Yamini decided on a wedding date in June of 2009, and I thought it would be a great opportunity to attend her wedding and visit India. I was going to have a travel partner, but those plans fell through, and I found myself with a plane ticket for three weeks in India. It ended up being an oddly pieced together trip, but in the end I had a lot of fun and got to experience amazing things.

After buying tickets, I was looking at possible itineraries to explore. The state of Himachal Pradesh began to look really appealing, mainly because it was one of the few places in India at the time where the temperatures weren’t blazing hot. Intrepid had a tour from Delhi into HP and Amritsar whose dates happened to work perfectly with my dates. The tour started the morning after I arrived in Delhi, and it ended with enough time for me to do a day in Agra before heading to Chennai for the wedding. So much to my mom’s relief, I booked the tour, drastically shortening my alone time in India.

I think the rumors that India is really unsafe for single female travelers is mostly false. It was definitely easier to be with a tour guide for my first experience, but I would have been okay on my own, though probably harassed more. Any time I was off on my own, some guy would inevitably approach me and ask to be my friend, then follow me around for as long as I would let him. Very strange experience for me, but I did make the first guy take me to get a SIM card for my phone and to an ATM. :)

The tour (called “Mountains and Mystics”) really showed a lot of different sides of India. We started off with some time in crazy Delhi, taking cycle rickshaws through Old Delhi and exploring the markets in 110 degree temperatures. The morning before the tour started, I’d taken a rickshaw to Humayun’s Tomb, but there were definitely a lot more Delhi attractions that I didn’t make it to. I was thankful we didn’t stay that long because I wanted to get out of the heat. The next morning, we took an early train to Kalka, where were transferred onto the historic toy train that wound its way up, through tunnels and over pretty bridges, to the hill station of Shimla. I’d looked into the logistics of doing this trip on my own before booking the tour, and by then, there were only wait list positions open (and they were pretty high numbers) since those hot months are high season for Shimla. I was curious how we got tickets for the train. Turns out, we didn’t have confirmed reservations, either, and our tour guide kept bribing the train guy, first to let us get on the train and a few times afterwards so he would let us stay on. Ah, India. :)

Shimla was quite a contrast from Delhi, the temperature drop reflecting a corresponding drop in insanity. This was where the Indians went on vacation to escape the heat. We met quite a few families who were on holiday, including one whose daughter had just gotten married. We admired her saree, and she told us that if she wasn’t on her honeymoon, she’d be dressed like we were! The highlights of Shimla were the bazaars, full of little shops, the Viceroyal Lodge (which now houses a center for higher studies), and the Jakhu Temple, which was full of mean, evil monkeys. We saw one steal the glasses off a guy’s head and another one eat a vendor’s samosas. They rent sticks at the bottom of the hill you have to walk up, and I had to use mine to fend off an attacking monkey! He was holding someone’s broken glasses, and I wanted to take a picture. However, he misinterpreted this as a trade gesture, so he dropped the glasses. I didn’t think my camera was a fair swap, so I didn’t give it to him, and he got mad. All of the Indians who were watching us fight found it very amusing, though.

After Shimla, we took a private vehicle with an insane driver to Dharamsala. See, it’s one thing to pass a car on a 2-lane road. Then there’s passing a car on a winding 2-lane road where there’s not much between the outer lane and the death cliff. Then there’s doing all of the above without slowing or looking for oncoming traffic. Or seeing the oncoming traffic and creating a third lane.

We spent three days in Dharamsala/McLeod Ganj, which we all agreed was a bit excessive. The highlights were the Tibetan things, like the Dalai Lama’s residence (we got to see monks debating) and the Norblingka Institute, where we got to see Tibetan arts and crafts. But the rest of it was very touristy, geared towards hippie Westerners. The setting was very beautiful, though, and the idea was to relax for a few days before heading on our trek.

Okay, that’s enough for one day. Part 2 to follow!