Nature Notes Riverside Resort Manali

sat here in lazy dog writing this and i am a bit ****ed so it might take a while!!amazing place, amazing people and amazing scenery!!all i have to say on the matter really!!leaving tomorrow for shimla and the toy train which will by all accounts be very good!!really hard to leave this place but u have to move on at some point!!gonna definetly be back!!!!

... busying myself with a cup of Chai, I was fast approached by a peculiar young man. Adopting the ostentatious "camp" gait, he flopped his way over to me. I couldn't help realise the imbalance of his barrel-chest to his short, spindly legs. Across his face was plastered a vacant but sincere smile, and his eyes were two different colours. I was in trouble here. As it turns out, he was American, and so found it necessary to point out that this was the best time for me to visit ...

... it looks like its worth it. Merely the half hour spent staring at food I couldn't bring myself to eat on a stunning balcony overlooking the huts that tumble down the sides of the mighty Himalayas, basking in sun that was, for once, not too hot and breathing in the cool, clean air, convinced me that I think I like this place. Also, about 50 monks carrying candles and chanting just passed my window. Hard to beat. Still, I'll take a walk in the marshes any day.

... and even greenish-black (from the limestone, i presume). Jagged edges, caves and grottoes, stupefying heights and in the middle of it all, the Indus where i sat on a grey raft, paddling away according to the commands of our Nepali rafting guide. At one point, as we rafted along the confluence of the Zanskar and Indus rivers which eventually becomes the Indus, the moment of truth dawned. This is where it all began..the timelessness of the ...

I'm so tired. And what's worse, is that I have started using the blog as an emotional outpouring. We've had a pretty knackering past few days, Jared's been ill, eventually diagnosed as the measles, which seemed quite tiring, and me and Joe have been admirable carers, anyone would have thought we were trained nurses, crazy Sufi lady even said we were as good as a real mother (yes!). We did lots of hotel changing around in Mcleod for him, first took him out of the damp room and into a ...

... of which there are a few here,(temples) there are the free common public baths, which look utterly disgusting and unhygienic, then regular baths and the deluxe baths, looking at them I don't think I personally would want to step foot in any!! Particularly as you can be seen from the cafes and guest houses above getting changed...well maybe not in the private deluxe ones but no thanks all ...

... need to read further...I said Karen was only 20). Large, with a fireplace and a nice porch to just sit and serenely look out at the snow capped Himalayas...ahh Saturday This was as nice of a day as I've had this trip...and days don't get much better than this. We took a rickshaw taxi to Dunghri Temple and this was a 1500 year old structure. Wow, went inside and in another 500 years you can bet that nothing will ...

... now as currently we are getting ready for a leaving party and the music is insane indian disco at top volume. Later I expect to be doing insane dancing which tends to happen every week and everyone gets involved - the volunteers, the translators, the drivers, the cooks and especially Manish the 15 yr old boy who lives at the camp helping out. He really loves to dance - please see previous blog for me and him dancing! Next on the travel list is the Taj Mahal this weekend...

... two times a day couldn't get rid of the dust. Therefore, the first day's journey, in the desert area near Jaismailer, could best be described as "dirty". After driving 500 kilometers we were no longer in the dusty desert area and we arrived in Mandawa, a small town, where we were spending the night. Our hotel stay there was a bit surreal. Our room was nice, but the hotel was under construction probably due to the fact that it is "off season" - there were few guests. In the morning we ...

... might that person have had. Still, this temple spoke to the women in our group (me and Kerri) more than the Southern Hindu temples did. It was very earthy, worshipping a large shiny rock, protected from the elements, life taken, blood dripping into a dark womb under the rock. It is no wonder the Hindus gave the temple a female goddess. Finally, I must mention about Holi. Holi, a Hindi holiday celebrating the beginning of Spring and the death of evil. Well nobody really gives ...