Khushboo Resorts Manali

... in the clouds. They are kind of obesessed with that - taking thousands of pictures of the clouds, then slideshowing them to the sounds of Indian prayers, and it has some addictive power I should say. 
So we talked, and smoked and it was quite agreeable. Eventually we watched Bruno in Russian, which is already funny - the translators did their best, I liked it someetimes. By the end of the movie we were ready for a good sleep.

... our agenda! The lonely planet book came to our rescue again to find us some nice grub at a very reasonable price! after some mashed potato and boiled veg and some sorta chickeny stuff, we took a walk around the main street to loosen up after the long drive! the place seemed to be a hub of activity and we were glad that we spotted some obvious tourists skulking around.

Next day our lovely drivers tell us we're having a day of ...

... about it, even when I have never lived there. Since we were very hungry, we decided to search for an open place in Cannaught Place. This being Sunday, it was difficult. And we wanted only Saravana Bhavan. (I can understand KK craving for South Indian food, but why the hell did I want it too? I guess I have to admit my roots changing their position here). We finally found Saravana Bhavan after walking for around an hour and ate to our fill. We hired an auto to ...

... We talked about America, about my religion and theirs, about Ladakh and Kashmir and the unstable world of nuclear proliferation. Two of the monks had Engliish that was fully capable of all of this, but the others struggled through, asking their friends to translate, and asking questions two, three or four times until I understood what they were saying. They were easy going, and thoughtful. For the first time with Tibetans, I felt I ...

... and visited the buddhist temple - where the Dalai Lama is actually staying right as we speak - unfortunately we didnt see him but his presence was there for sure :) !! we have also been looking into 2day treks (i still have no idea how viki and joe will get me walking for that long) but thats the plan atm!!! we also plan to visit simla before heading back to delhi to say bye bye india!! speak to you soon love xxxxxx

... Our guess is that it is nothing so esoteric and instead for the same reasons we liked it. That would be the services available (see above), climate (nice and cool compared to the rest of India), accomodations (tons of guest houses including our most excellent Tiger Eye Guest House), and the natural beauty of the Kullu valley and Old Manali in particular. This is an outstandingly pretty area and has a deserved reputation as such that attracts not just hippies ...

... all this however, I have been doing some exercise, studying hindi, reading dickens, and trying to remember all the corny classic rock cover tunes I can in preparation for a final landing in Goa. The fresh air has my smoker's hack all but gone, and eating every night with the family lots of rice, and dal or a mild curry with the indegenous hot peppers to spice things up on the side of my plate has allowed my health to return with ...

... are still a few more weeks before it ebbs away, to be replaced by the major annual influx of tourists. Although it hasn't rained much since I've been here, there has been a significant level of cloud cover. In combination, these factors can at times result in the place feeling quite oppressive - an atmosphere which has resulted in my travelling companions from Leh all continuing with their respective journeys already. I've been happy to hang around for a while longer because, for the ...

... places so I am rather bruised now. The whole experience was just incredible. At the worst point I felt delerious and started crying for my family and told Pooja the nurse all about them and in turn she told me about herself. It was just such a shock to end up in such a bad state after feeling fine 24 hours previously. The next day the doctors turned up at camp because they were so worried about my condition, I thought this was really sweet ...

... of England vs Pakistan, Day two - England after a shaky start yesterday had gone on to score big, centuries by Cook, Collingwood and eventually by Bell. Needed the two rugs on my bed - it was so cool. After a spot of reading I turned the lights of and settled down to drift off. It was silent, nothing, no sound - it seemed so strange, there was no fan whirring, no street noise, no insects - it was almost unsettling.....night...' Saturday 15th - Monday 17th July '06 ...