Sangla: Day Two (09/05/11)

Sangla: Day Two (09/05/11)

For some reason I woke up quite early at 5:23 A.M today. I feared I had overslept and immediately checked my phone to see what the time was. Realizing what the time actually was, I decided to sleep some more before I was up and out. I finally woke up at about 7:45 and worked out for a little bit in my room. After the gruesome (for me) workout, I took a shower and stepped out to have some breakfast before I left on my trek. I had two paranthas, tea, and a cream scone and I was happy.
I bought water to take with me and left the hotel at 10:40 A.M in the direction of Rakcham. I walked past several guest houses and hotels on the outskirts of Sangla and came upon an establishment called Cafe 42. It was a queer thing really; an upscale coffee shop in the middle of nowhere. Even the foreigners who visit Kinnaur would have the sense not to pay the outrageous prices that they were charging. The prices were on par with what you’d find in Cafe Coffee Day, Barista, or Mocha. I wanted to take a picture but the guy sitting outside had a dour look about him so I let it be.

I continued my journey onwards all the while taking pictures of some old fashioned wooden houses (with Dish TV satellites outside) and some landscapes. Some distance later I saw the board pointing towards the Igloo Nature Camp site and I took some pictures of the accommodation that they were providing. From the outside it looked like an extra large tent with added amenities. The location wasn’t great and it just seemed to be in an awkward area. I lost interest and I walked on. After a little bit of walking I came to the Gangarang naala and the bridge built upon it. There was a Shiv Mandir on the other side and I went in under the pretext of praying and I took a couple of pictures. After that it was just solid and steady walking for a long time admiring the landscapes and the cool breeze. The sun was shining with full intensity and I think I’ve been sun burned as a result of it. On the road I saw a woman piling flat rocks into potholes and she asked me why I was walking when I could have taken the bus. I told her that I wanted to enjoy the surroundings and she seemed appreciative of the sentiment. I asked her about the villages that would follow and she gave me some good information. I gave her a chocolate and started walking again.

I found a ledge to place my camera on and used the self timer to take a picture. It was the first picture of the trip that had me in it. I wish there was a better way to include myself in the pictures at the places where I want to be in the shots. I then came to a bridge and saw a Hanuman temple outside of it. There was also another temple with no clear indication of the deity worshipped within. I can only assume that it was another temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. Next on the road was the spot where Kinner Camp was located. The sign said that it featured ‘Swiss cottage tents with attached toilet/bath, bonfire, & a good bistro’. They must have taken out the bonfire option for obvious reasons. They looked like high quality make-shift medical tents in war-torn regions. I was itching to go down and have a look but I thought I might not be welcome and so I moved on. All this while I had been eyeing the river in the valley and was dying to find a way to get to it. I eyed some dodgy looking mountainsides and wanted to descend there, but decided against it keeping my non-existent climbing skills in mind.

Just when I almost gave up on the idea of getting down to the river side I found a road that would take me down into the valley. It was at the archway that led to the Banjara Camp Site. The sign said that the road was 2 KM long and I happily started walking down the road. After walking about 600 meters, I noticed that road was long and winding and unnecessary if you were on foot. You could cut through if you trekked through the mountain side. I decided to do just that and started descending on the half-existent trails. My trekking boots really came into play and they supported my endeavor tremendously and I was able to cut right through the trails and save a lot of time and distance. I got into the village of Batseri and started walking towards the river. I could hear the wonderful sound of the river flowing and could barely stop myself from running all the way towards it. I made my way through the grass and rocks and got to the edge of the river. A clear sight of the river was being barred by a large collection of rocks and I found that I needed to walk over to them.

From a distance this looked easy enough as the rocks appeared to be in a tight cluster. Upon closer inspection I found that the rocks were some distance apart and there was a decent current flowing between them and also plenty of acid green moss. After some inspection I found a way where there was minimal risk of me falling into the water. This way, however, was barred by two cows that did not seem to take well to my being there. I wasn’t about to take my chances with the mountain fit cows and I tried to wait it out to see if they would move. A staring contest then ensued and finally the cows moved away and I was free to hop over to the river. Making my way to the river was a little tricky and I had to exercise extreme caution and agility before I finally made it. I sat on the edge of a big rock and happily looked at the river for a while and took lots of pictures. Then I made my way back to the road and saw the bridge and the village beyond it. I was in two minds whether to get back onto the main road and continue my walk towards Rakcham or to go into that village. I finally decided on the latter and made my way into the village.

The sign at the beginning of the village informed me that this was Batseri and that it was a green village. I started walking in and came to an entrance decorated with Tibetan symbols and pictures. Right after the entrance on the left there was a beautiful temple. The temple premises were empty and there wasn’t a sign with any name on it. There was a boy nearby and I asked him if he knew what temple it was. He shook his head vigorously and took off like a bullet. I was unsure about whether to enter and if so, with or without shoes. Thankfully I saw a man coming out wearing slippers so I went in and marveled at the temple. The temple (as I later found out) is called Dev Mandir. I don’t really know any history of it but the way it was designed, I’m going to say that it is a testament to religious tolerance and true secularity. The temple doors featured deities from almost all religions found in India and the gateways were adorned with two dragons. It was simply beautiful. I spent quite some time taking pictures there.

After the Dev Mandir I stepped out to see a stone which said that there was a Bodhi Mandir ahead and I walked towards it. When I finally reached I found that it was in a dilapidated condition but it certainly looked it had had some good days. I checked the time at that point and saw that it was 1:40 and I decided to turn back because I knew that walking back would take longer. I traced my steps back and slowly and painfully marched towards Sangla. I heard a bus coming towards me but I chose not to flag it down because I wanted to complete the entire distance on foot. One of the highlights of the return trip was reaching a place near Sangla and seeing my boot print in the sand from more than 3 hours ago. I also met the woman again and told her of my travels and gave her another chocolate and continued.

The last few kilometers were positively excruciating because every part of my legs ached. I tried to distract myself by singing or talking to myself and giving myself mini-pep talks. I finally reached Sangla at about 4:40; a full six hours from when I had left. I barely managed to walk into a Tibetan Cafe and order some vegetable chowmein and momos. I came back to the hotel room at 5:30 and didn’t step outside afterwards. Sometime during the late evening I heard rain crashing down on the roof. I’m thankful that it didn’t happen during my walk back; that would have hugely complicated things. Now, it’s time to lay my weary body to rest and wake up tomorrow and proceed towards Rakcham and Chitkul. Cheers till tomorrow!

Lessons learnt:
1) When going out for an adventurous walk, take surplus water, dehydration is no fun and the general stores might just be closed as was the case with me today.

2) Talk to the locals from the villages about interesting places, they have an excellent idea of where all things lie and they’re only too happy to help you out. Give them something as a token of your appreciation!

3) Try to walk as much as possible. If you take a cab you’ll have the advantage of stopping wherever you want to, but I still think that walking is better. It’s a whole different experience and you’re guaranteed to love it.

Reckong-Peo to Sangla (08/05/11)

Reckong-Peo to Sangla (08/05/11)
Today I woke up at 7:45 A.M and decided to go get some breakfast and walk around. After walking through the town for half an hour I went to a ‘dhaba’ and ate paranthas with dahi and chane. I also drank some tea and then trudged back to the hotel and started packing up. My plan was to leave as soon as possible from the hotel room and explore further before leaving for the bus stand. But sloth got the better of me and I decided to enjoy the comforts of my room for a while longer before I left. I stretched out the packing as long as I could and finally left the hotel at 11:29 A.M. The day before, I had intentionally walked a few kilometers down from the bus station to the market square to book a hotel room because this would force me to walk all the way back up again.
I turned in my keys and talked to the manager of the hotel for a while before leaving and then was on my way to the bus stand. I slowly walked up the hill and the high altitude and the heavy bag were taking their toll on my unfit self. I walked in measured steps and kept my breathing stable and soon it wasn’t that bad. I stopped a few times to take pictures of the landscapes and of the town but really there wasn’t anything very interesting in Reckong-Peo.

I reached the bus stop at 12:26 and found a lot of empty buses and no drivers or conductors in sight. Since the schedule said that the bus to Sangla was leaving at 1 P.M, I just hung back and waited for someone to manifest. Eventually a conductor showed up and pointed me to the place where the bus to Sangla would be leaving from. I went and stood outside the empty bus just to be the first in line so I could get the seat of my choice. At about 12:50 the driver opened up the bus and I rushed inside and settled into a window seat. As I stated before, the HRTC people are very punctual and the bus started off promptly at 1:00 P.M. The bus was relatively empty since most of the people boarding the bus got on at the market square. I was glad once again for having walked up to the bus station because if I had waited in the market square I’m pretty sure I’d have gotten a bad seat or would have had to go part of the journey standing. After picking up the crowd at the market square the bus rolled out of Reckong-Peo and began its journey towards Sangla.

The initial part of the journey was mostly déjà-vu since we were going back on the same route. After crossing the Shongtong Bridge, however, we got onto the road headed for Sangla. This time the roads weren’t as good and were full of rubble and dust. The views were still spectacular with natural waterfalls, valleys and the river in full flow, but all the work being done on the side put out a lot of dust and clouded the landscape.
We passed Poari and a little while after I could witness the beginnings of the huge power plant at Karcham. It started with a massive stone structure that looked like it was a super villain’s fortress. I kept watching and as we moved on further I could see the huge imprint that the power plant left on the village. It looked more like an industrial area than anything and that is the result of a 300 MW power plant sitting smack in the middle of nature I guess. I don’t know the benefit VS cost ratio of the power plant so I’ll keep my opinions to myself. From Karcham the roads were good once again as a result of JP Associates’ supposed benevolence. It was a short ride thereafter and a little while later I got off at Sangla.

The first impression of the town wasn’t that great, but the views of the Sangla valley more than make up for the dullness of the town. The bus ride had taken 2 and a half hours and I was famished. I decided to seek out a place to stay and found one with a decent room for 200 bucks a night. I paid for two nights, moved in, and then went out to the market to get myself something to eat. It was a Sunday and also 4:15 P.M so there weren’t many establishments serving lunch save for the hotels that had restaurants built into them.
I visited one of them and ate a mediocre meal that cost way too much and came back to the hotel. I went to the internet cafe next to upload a journal entry and also to figure out how to connect my GPRS mobile to my PC so that I could get online. After an hour of trial and error I finally figured it out and came back elated. It was already 6:25 P.M though and I was fast losing light so I decided to go for a long walk. I walked in the direction of Rakcham for about half an hour and then turned back. I got a firsthand view of the outer village and also some traditional wood housing as well. Somewhere in the middle of all of this I spotted a poster of Sangla that boasted of virgin environs. I remembered the diesel vehicles, the thick power lines, the construction sites, the noise and the dust and thought that apparently being raped only a little still allowed you to call yourself virgin.

I found my way back to Sangla at about 8:15 P.M and talked to a few friends back home. When I finished the time was 8:45 and I tried to seek out dinner but all of the regular establishments had already shut down shop. Apparently shops close down very early in Sangla and I had no choice but to return to that restaurant and eat another overpriced meal. There was also a bar present at this restaurant and I had to literally force myself to look away to avoid the temptation of wanting a peg of whiskey. There were two Russian guys at the restaurant who took some time in communicating what they wanted for dinner. I amused myself watching them try to communicate to the local that they wanted the food to be less spicy. I finished eating and then headed out to a small stall to have some tea. I love pahaadi tea and always try and have as much as I can. While I was drinking my tea a dog came up to me and looked at me inquiringly. I bought a couple of biscuits and fed them to him. After I was done he escorted me back to the hotel and I wrote the journal entry and read some Kafka. Tomorrow I wake up early and explore all there is to explore in Sangla and if there’s a chance, I’ll try and reach Sangla Kanda. Until then, cheers!

Lessons Learnt:
1) Always take the bus from the origin point i.e. the bus stop. This will ensure that you get a seat of your choice. If you wait at another place to board you might not get a seat let alone a seat of your choice.

2) Establishments in Sangla close as early as 8:45, so plan your dinner accordingly.

3) Feed a stray dog. It feels good and he’ll be your best friend for the duration of time you’re there.

Delhi to Reckong-Peo

Delhi to Reckong-Peo (06/05/11 – 07/05/11)

I left my friend's house on the evening of the 6th to leave for Kashmere Gate. I had already booked a ticket on the Delhi - Reckong-Peo bus the day before and it was scheduled to leave at 8:10 P.M I initially tried to board the metro to go to Kashmere Gate but the metros were filled to the brim with a rabid crowd. I decided that I couldn't risk the safety of my electronics and would take an auto. The auto cost a 100 bucks from Mayur Vihar phase I; small price to pay to ensure the safety of my laptop. I left at 7:10 P.M very worried that I might not make in time to catch the bus. Both luck and traffic were on my side and I reached Kashmere Gate at 7:35. After I reached, a small amount of time was spent finding an ATM and then I was ready to go. I went to the boarding point to see the DLI-RPEO HRTC bus standing there, already being boarded. It looked as ordinary as they come and I clambered in with a little amount of trepidation. The bus was almost full to the brim and the only 'girls' were at least 50 years old... I sighed heavily and headed towards my seat and discovered it wasn't by the window. I stuffed my bag between my legs and sat down looking fixedly at the window trying to avoid everyone's eye. Eventually, the guy with the prized window seat showed up and he was as devoid of expression and emotion as I was trying to be. The bus started off and so did my hell.

I understand HRTC has to cut corners somewhere when they hand out 'ordinary' class tickets but I don't understand why they've designed buses for smurfs. I couldn't lean back in the seat without my knees pushing up dangerously against the back of the seat in front of me. To move slightly, I had to perform an acrobatic manoeuvre that inevitably disturbed the passengers around me. There was no way an average sized human being could sleep in that bus. The night was a sleepless struggle for me and I spent the night squirming and looking on as we passed through Ambala Cantt, Chandigarh, and Panchkula.
After suffering all manners of torture and fatigue we somehow finally reached Shimla at 5:24 in the morning. There was a mad rush to get off and I realized that most of the traffic consisted of cheapskates who just wanted to take a cheap bus to Shimla. There was a half hour break before the bus departed again for Reckong-Peo. I took that time to go walk around a little bit and found out that my decision not to stop over in Shimla was a good one. It’s stupid to assume that there wasn’t anything interesting in store after such a cursory search but just by the outside look of it, I felt that I wouldn’t have had a great deal to do there except eat and get fatter.

Soon afterwards the departure was announced and the bus started rolling on again. Up and until Shimla the bus at least followed the reservation system. After Shimla though, all bets were off and it just became an ordinary local passenger bus. People got on and off at every single place they bothered to stick a hand out at. The traffic fluctuated slightly but remained constant more or less until after we departed from Narkanda.
From Narkanda to Rampur there was a heavy influx of people who were traveling short distances and kept the bus completely filled. All this while, I was suffering from severe physical fatigue as a result of not having slept the entire night before and I was drifting in and out of consciousness. One moment, I was intently listening to a song on the IPod and the next moment my head was bouncing off of the rod in front of me as I woke up startled realizing that I had fallen under. This happened a great many times, right up until the point we reached Reckong-Peo and everyone was very amused. The bus trip was very uncomfortable until Rampur and I was regretting my decision not to disembark in Shimla, spend the night, and take a bus to Sarahan.

After Rampur, however, the landscape slowly began to change as the valley came into sight in its complete splendor. This was slightly marred by the Hydro-Electric power project work being undertaken, but even that blemish couldn’t take anything away from the magnificence of the mountains. I was spell bound the entire way and I had my head out of the window all the time. The trip was also sheer terror because at many a place the road blocks at the edge had fallen off and all you could see was the edge and the river a few hundred feet downwards. This horror was compounded by the fact that the bus driver was a bipolar disordered person who alternated between sanguine calm and manic frenzy while driving the bus through the valley. There was one instance that almost brought me to my knees in prayer. It happened when we were approaching a particularly sharp turn and the driver decided to showcase his own interpretation of a scene from ‘Tokyo Drift’ and he took the turn at about 35 kmph. The wheel screeched and threw some rocks over the edge but it gripped the road just in time and we were all safe. All in all the driver was a confident guy who knew what he was doing but his erratic swings had my heart in my mouth when I wasn’t banging my head off the seat rods.

I have to spend some time raving about the scenery in sight as you drive to Reckong-Peo. There is a single road carved out of the mountain and you are surrounded by the great mountains as you drive on by. Maybe I’m one of the few people who finds that utterly captivating but I had my head out of the window the entire two and half hours taking in the beauty and feeling the chilly wind on my face. Mother Nature seemed to have her climate control setting on and the temperature was absolutely perfect. It wasn’t too cold or too warm.
There was plenty of bright sunshine and experiencing the sun without the heat was a treat for a hyderabadi guy like me. The mountain sides are dotted with houses here and there and you can’t help but wonder, who got the idea to build a house there and how he had even managed to finish up. The houses, roads, and the basic infrastructure is nothing if not a testament to man’s perseverance and will to endure in any sort of conditions. The roads leading up to Reckong-Peo were absolutely perfect except for places where landslides occurred often. About 80-85% of the roads were clear of potholes, bumps or any hiccups and that is a huge thing. My only regret is that I was in a bus and couldn’t get out where I pleased. The next time I travel to Kinnaur, it’ll be in a cab and I’ll be stopping at a lot of places.


We finally arrived in Reckong-Peo at 4:24 which was 6 minutes ahead of scheduled time. In this particular regard, I’m very impressed with HRTC for sticking diligently to the time tables that they’ve put out. I got out at the bus station, perused the time tables and toyed with the idea of catching a bus to Sangla or Kalpa today itself. I soon slapped the idea out of my mind because had I stepped into the bus again today I would have turned homicidal. I went and bought a battery for my phone and then took up ‘luxury’ accommodation for a princely 350 bucks and scrubbed the pain and fatigue of the last 21 hours out of my mind. My dinner was excellent vegetarian thupka, momos, a cup of tea and a wonderfully fresh cream scone. Having satiated my hunger, I settled down to do the grunt work i.e. transferring the photos from my camera, writing these entries, replying to my facebook notifications et al. Now I’ll finish recharging all my electronic devices and prepare myself to wake up tomorrow bright and early to go to Kalpa or Sangla. I haven’t decided anything except for that I’ll decide by way of a coin toss at the bus station tomorrow. Cheers until tomorrow!

Lessons Learnt:

1) Take the DLI-RPEO bus at your own risk. If you have knee or back issues you are sure to be destroyed during the course of the trip. After having suffered through the ordeal myself, I would highly recommend a stopover in Shimla just to insure your health.

2) Regardless of whichever bus you take to Kinnaur, try and get a window seat on the left side of the bus. You’ll get the best views

3) Keep an extra bottle of water and a snickers bar (or some meal replacement bar) handy if possible. You never know what you’re going to get to eat and when, so having one handy is greatly helpful.

4) There are three internet cafes in Reckong-Peo but the lines are unstable so having a GPRS equipped mobile or a USB internet stick is a must if you want to keep in touch. Also bring an extra batter y for your mobile. It will be of great assistance.

5) Always walk around town before deciding on a place to stay or a place to eat. There are some real gems hidden away in alleyways that you wouldn’t find unless you looked hard enough.

6) Reckong-Peo is the last place where you’ll find an ATM if you’re heading deeper into Kinnaur or into Spiti. So make sure you get your finances taken care of before you leave town. There is a State Bank ATM, a Himachal Pradesh Co-Op ATM (I don’t think outside cards work here), and a UCO bank ATM in the market square.

Destination Himachal Pradesh: Day 1

(Hyderabad to Delhi)

Day 1
I caught the HYB-FZR special train at Nampally Railway station today. Its scheduled departure time was 10:15 A.M but I'm pretty sure the train didn't budge before 10:40. So the trip starts off with a delay; perfect. My co-passengers are decent people. I have two families in the same compartment with me; four parents and two children. The children are cacophonous and have the energy levels of a ferret on speed. What I wouldn't give for intelligent (and attractive) female company... The first couple of hours of the train journey were alright. The temperature was decent enough and the families decided to spend the time napping. I thought I'd just sit by the window but since it was an overwhelming majority against me, I had no choice but to put up the berth and lie down with my IPod on and rolling through my playlists. I was drifting in and out of sleep thanks to the ADHD kid constantly trying to scale and descend all the berths a thousand times over. I finally woke up to a guy prodding me firmly and shoving biryani in my face. I was too sleepy to decline and since I was hungry anyways, I bought some and polished it all off within a manner of minutes. After I finished my pathetic lunch I realized just how incredibly hot the compartment was. In a matter of hours it had become a veritable hot gas chamber. The antediluvian fans stuck on the ceiling groaned and churned out even hotter air as if to spite us further. I tried to sleep again but trying to sleep when you have the sensation of your skin sizzling is not easy to do. I resigned myself to my fate and decided to read a little bit on the laptop. The ADHD simian child donned his destructive avatar once more and almost stepped on my laptop in his compulsive attempt to scale all the berths in a counter clockwise motion. A silent scream died inside of me and I begged his father to let me escape to the top berth. The man was more than happy to let me do so and I'm here in my refuge typing now to try and escape the heat and distract myself. I think I’ll go smoke a cigar or chew pudi cause this is getting to be a little tiresome.

Day 2

After suffering through the oppressive heat and the unceasing din of the raucous children, I finally experienced some form of respite when night came about. Having spent the entire day with the IPod plugged firmly into my ears and laying down on the top berth drifting in and out of sleep, I was extremely joyous to feel the cold wind rushing in through the windows. I wasted no time and took the pudi to the doorway of the train. I caught hold of the yellow railings and leaned outside and experienced bliss. I opened one pudi slowly and purposefully and chewed away. I felt the dim ecstatic high wash over me. I spent more than an hour feeling the rush of the wind on my face and all the noise of the train seemed like music in that time. Nagpur was soon approaching, however, so I brought myself back to the present and prepared myself to make a mad dash out onto the station to buy myself some edible food. As soon as the station arrived, I dashed outside and bought kachori and poori sabzi. The meal cost Rs. 40; the joy was priceless. All this while, my phone was steadily losing juice and I glanced over to the ‘charging area’ only to discover a herd of people trying frantically to get to the point. I decided against my chances of making it through there and put some Pink Floyd on and lay down with the idea of going back at a later time. The next thing I remember is waking up at 7:30 A.M, very surprised. Back home, my sleep cycle was utterly abnormal and I had not managed to fall asleep before 2:30 A.M for about 4 months now. And here I was, on the train, fully rested after a good night’s sleep. I was extremely happy about the state of affairs and decided to have some breakfast. The only breakfast I could find was watery milk tea and a bread omlette; I threw away the bread. I found out from my co-passengers that the train was running behind by approximately 2 and half hours. This dampened my spirits further and I chose to retreat to my top berth palace yet again. I woke up sometime later and went to try getting my phone charged up again and struck up a conversation with a guy who told me emphatically and in no uncertain terms that my phone was utter trash. I thanked him for his expert assessment and then got the hell out of there lest he got more personal about his judgments. We arrived in Jhansi and one of the brats disembarked with her family and I breathed a sigh of relief. It was however a little touching and sad to see the other kid’s sorrow at her departure. Once the train started moving though, the kid decided to channel his sorrow into destruction and set into motion Plan Hell spawn whose sole motive was to bother every single passenger in the compartment one way or the other. He flung bottles, threatened people with straws, and went so far as to spit at a bovine looking woman. In the background of this carnage, I hurriedly enquired of his father where they were planning to get off and thanked my stars that Gwalior was only 15 minutes away. And then Gwalior came and the child left leaving behind silent, sullen and tired passengers. At Gwalior I was informed that the train was actually running 3 and half hours late and that I wouldn’t reach Delhi until at least 6 P.M. I bought a couple of sandwiches and a packet of chips and this was my glorious lunch. After that I settled down to write. I’ll sign off now and finish my report after I reach Delhi.

The third and final phase of my journey was pretty uneventful. After Gwalior the passenger strength dried up and consisted mainly of fatigued veterans who just wanted to see the end of the long and arduous battle. I spent my time standing in the doorway, lying down, talking to old people, avoiding kids, and eating trash. I finally reached Delhi Safdarjung station at 7:20, exhausted, and glad to see the end of the 34 hour train journey. I wanted to take a metro to Mayur Vihar, where I’d be spending the night at a friend’s place, but instead opted for the comfort of an auto. I walked all the way onto the road and waited 15 minutes for auto and then realized that Mayur Vihar was the other way. I trudged across the road and got into an auto to go to Mayur Vihar. 5 minutes into the ride I realized that my phone was missing. I spent the next 5 minutes experiencing a minor cardiac arrest and then frantically screamed at the auto driver to turn back. He acquiesced and stopped on the opposite side of the road from where he had picked me up. I searched there first and realized that I might have dropped it on the other side where had picked me up initially. So I told him to take a U-turn and take me there. He told me to cross the road and begin searching while he’d go and take the U-turn and come back. In my thoughtless frenzy, I ran across the road and began combing the pavement for any sign of my lost phone. I didn’t find it despite my efforts and my heart sank. After 5 minutes I realized that the auto driver also wasn’t showing up and then it occurred to me that he might have stolen my luggage and left. The entire world’s weight suddenly descended onto me and I was left reeling. Then, like an angel of the Lord, the auto driver showed up and I was thankful at that moment for at least having my luggage intact. Depressed, I began to get into the auto and found the phone on the seat. I was sitting on it the entire time. Feeling like an utter fool, I apologized to the auto driver and asked him to go on. He thoroughly empathized with the situation and offered me some water and asked me to calm down. After reaching Mayur Vihar, I paid him a little extra and thanked him. Then I went to my friend’s home, had a long hot shower and a grand meal and decided to call it a night. The consequence of the train’s delay was that I couldn’t make it to Kashmere gate to book my ticket to Reckong-Peo and I had to postpone my trip to the evening of the 6th. It’s a small compromise on my schedule and it’ll allow me to plan a little better and meet a few more people here before I leave. It worked out well in the end  Lessons learnt from this train journey:

1)NEVER EVER TAKE THE HYB-FZR SPECIAL TRAIN!

2)When traveling in a sleeper compartment, carry a three-pin extension plug point with you. This will help greatly because there’s only two plug points available and if you carry a three-pin point, that’ll increase to four greatly endearing you to other people and putting you ahead of others for cell phone charging rights.

3)Pack some food and water. The availability of both is not guaranteed when you require it and also the quality of both is a little suspect

4)Bring an IPod or a book or a laptop or all three. There are high chances you won’t find anyone to talk to and in that scenario, one of these three will be your saving grace

5)Take the top berth when traveling alone; always.
That’s it for the first leg of my journey. I’ll write more when I get on the bus to Reckong-Peo. Cheers!

Trip update

Today I completed phase 1 of my preparation for the trip. For a while now I've been going through countless articles and write-ups to try and get a sense of what I'm in for and what I'll need while i'm on this journey. I don't know how helpful those articles have been but the singular feeling running through me as I read them is that of exhilaration. Maybe that's a testament to just how disdainfully I viewed my life all this time. I can't believe how much I've built up the concept of this trip in my mind and how much I expect of it. I don't exactly know what I think I'm in store for. Maybe I think I'll have an epiphany of sorts, or some spiritual awakening, or the resurrection of a long dead zest for life. I don't know. I truly hope that I can keep myself grounded and simply enjoy the trip for what it is and not put it up on a pedestal in anticipation of it falling down to perdition. It was also extremely amusing to see the reactions I got from different people when they learnt of all of this. I got a little bit of everything from envy to apathy to open contempt. It can be quite a revelatory experience in terms of understanding where you stand in the eyes of the people around you. Nobody really seemed to get why I was doing this, why I'd shy away from the apparently 'luxurious' lifestyle that I have, to go and rough it out in the mountains, even if it was for only a period of 3 weeks. It felt really difficult to try and explain to them or maybe I'm just terrible at expressing myself. Nobody can see past the surface and into the disarray and confusion that you probably really are. And it's confusing for people around you to see you engage in such eccentricities when you seemingly have it all going for you. I just think that everybody's broken underneath in one way or the other and they need to find a place to heal. I'm hoping this is my place. As simple as that. Onto more exciting things now :D

I bought a new laptop today; an HP Pavilion DM1. It suits my needs, it's a 11.6" laptop making it extremely light and portable. I don't know what it is about me, but I simply cannot seem to write on paper. I need a keyboard and a screen staring me in the eye before I can write something. It's extremely inconvenient at times, but I have to live with who I am, so I went out and splurged on this laptop. I'm going to take it along on this trip to document all the experiences and relevant information. I always try and make it a point to write about any trip that I take. Not only does it impart valuable information to those that care for it, but also I think it offers the opportunity to the reader to vicariously live through the trip and experience a semblance of the beauty of the whole experience. I have read hundreds of travel blogs and articles and experienced all the colors of emotion contained within. I can only hope that what I write will help others feel the same, even in the most infinitesimal of manners. So with the help of my trusted HP, i'll be posting updates and pictures as I go along. I also bought trekking boots at woodlands. They look sturdy and weigh a ton and the guy at the store assured me that I wouldn't 'slip and fall down', a tall claim considering who's going to be wearing them :) I just need to get a few more logistics into place and procure a few more items. My friends have been extremely considerate and gracious in helping me with all of this. Every blanket, swiss-knife, sweater, set of camera batteries, and plenty of other stuff helps. I can't help but feel like the golden child of the village being sent away to a better place with blessings and goodwill. This trip hasn't started and already it feels right. The beautiful snow-clad mountainous landscapes await me and I can't wait to be among them.

Destination Himachal Pradesh

So the moment of truth is coming up faster than I thought it would and I decided that I had a very limited timeframe within which to work in an escape of sorts. Therefore I decided that I would leave on my little odyssey in May rather than June and started charting out a plan. Regardless of how attractive carefree vagabonding sounds, a little attention to detail and logistics goes a long long way in making your trip memorable and free of stress. People, who are for all intents and purposes sane and rational, suddenly seem to become neurotic when it comes to planning a trip or a vacation. You have to work out a rough draft of what you want the trip to turn out to be but if you're obsessed with the specifics you'll miss out on the wonderful detours that you can take and the little segues that life throws at you. Traveling alone helps hugely in such a situation. I digress, however. I plan to take a trip through Himachal Pradesh right into the heart of Spiti Valley. My rough sketch of the trip runs like this:

Hyderabad to Delhi - Train
Delhi to Reckong-Peo - All bus travel hereonafter (unless I'm fortunate enough to share a taxi with decent people)
Reckong-Peo to Sangla to Rakcham to Chitkul
Chitkul to Kalpa
Kalpa to Reckong-Peo to Nako
Nako to Tabo
Tabo to Kaza
And then the incredibly long trip back to Hyderabad.

This is obviously a very tentative plan and I plan to adjust accordingly to situations thrown at me. The only constant through this haphazard sounding trip is that I'm going to try and travel as cheaply as I can covering as much ground as possible. I might omit a place or two but it would be nice if I didn't have to. Just the planning part is getting me very excited and I'm looking forward to be back on the road and in Himachal Pradesh. I haven't been fortunate enough to meet interesting people on my trips before and hopefully that changes this time around :) I'll be taking plenty of pictures and will be writing about my travels every single day. At the end of the day I plan to put together a nice little journal from the trip that can help/encourage other people to take a trip out there. I'm torn between wanting people to discover the beauty of inner Himachal Pradesh and keeping it a secret :) Lahaul and Spiti are supposed to be two of the most pristine places in Himachal Pradesh and I can barely wait to visit them. I'll try to cover the usual touristy stuff but also try and document the culture and life. A friend offered to lend me his Eneloop batteries and charger so that I don't have to worry about taking photos :) It just goes to show how much your trip is influenced by the many small generosities and courtesies by people. I don't know if anyone is going to be the least bit interested in all of this, but let's see :)

Untitled short.

Adam sat on the edge of the rock looking down into the still water of the clear blue stream. His reflection stared back at him haggard, tired, and it seemed to him, slightly judging.

‘It’s not my fault’, he said aloud.

He tried to tell himself as he had for many years now that he wasn’t at fault. He tried to think back to the beginning of the conflict and the erosion that inevitably followed. Time wore memories down and erased just enough to leave black residues of dark emotions behind. The times of happiness seemed vapidly surreal now. He knew that they weren’t always like this. The first years with Eve had been the happiest of his life. After wandering immeasurable distances he had found her in the most beautiful of gardens. She was singing in honeyed tones amongst the trees. When she turned to look at him she seemed to be resplendent, set against the evening sky. Her hair was golden and her beauty was absolute. He felt love for the first time and his feelings were reciprocated in equal measure. The years that followed were magical. With no encumbrances, responsibilities or objectives and with existence stretching out into the infinite, they loved purely and deeply. They decided to leave the garden and wander together.

They travelled a great number of lands together and all was seemingly good. Little did they know that dark days were looming ahead of them. Adam could not remember how it started anymore, but he remembered that conflicts raged between them that threatened to overshadow the storms in the skies. Any amount of happiness was fleeting and infinitesimal. Slowly the conflicts worsened and gave way to silence. Hours turned into years with the silence never subsiding. They wandered together never saying a word, all love forgotten. Time passed indefinitely and they continued wandering; two shells, withering away.

Adam crawled out of his memories and the world came back into focus. He threw a stone into the water and watched his face distort into ripples spreading across the surface. He couldn’t take it anymore. The pain was overwhelming but the silence was unbearable. He watched his face form again on the water, an expression of misery and anguish etched sharply on it. It slowly morphed into a mask of desperate determination as he decided that he would end all of this. The relief that followed was venom through his veins flooding his brain and conjuring visions of what he needed to do and how it would end. Like a man possessed, he relived the thought a hundred times over and felt his heart exploding in delight. He could wait no more. It had to be that very night.

Eve wasn’t back until very late that night. He had a large fire going and the stars were shimmering in the vast clear sky. There was a gentle cool breeze flowing through the night that seemed to calm the very earth around them. Eve walked expressionless into the clearing. The atmosphere had no effect on her and she sat down on the ground staring blankly and forcefully into the fire. Adam watched the fire cast dancing light on her face and breathed deeply to settle himself. He clutched the heavy blunt rock tightly in his hand and moved closer to where she sat; his heart pounding. He hesitated for only a second before he threw her back roughly on the ground and started bludgeoning her. He could feel the bones and teeth shatter, the flesh ripping, and continued feverishly in a maddening frenzy. Dark crimson stained the palette of the ground in an engulfing cloud. Gasping for breath, and tears running down his face he mused about how this was proving to be quite a cathartic experience.

When he finished, he stepped back and gazed at the scene. Her face had been ground into a bloody pulp and almost hammered into the ground. Her shattered face rested in a massive pool of blood that looked like a formless halo. He stood there, uncertain and confused, with the rock dripping blood slowly into the dust. His breathing gradually returned to normal and he waited, having done what he needed to.

Slowly and barely visible by the dying fire, the blood seeped back into the body and the face began to take form again. The bones fused together, the lacerations healed and where there was a mass of bloody flesh, a beautiful face appeared again. Eve stood up slowly and gazed at Adam tenderly out of her tearful big eyes.

Shyly she said, ‘You haven’t done that to me in thousands of years...I missed you so much. I love you.’

Adam said, ‘I know, I’m sorry I didn’t do this all these years. I love you too. I just lost my way I think and I didn’t have the courage to fix it. Please tell me we’re okay now. I want us to be happy together once again.’

A gentle smile spread across her face and she nodded. Adam walked across the embers and placed the rock in her hand and said playfully, ‘My turn.’

She giggled.