India Part 13: Dharamsala
Trip Start
May 07, 2008
1
18
90
Trip End
Jan 06, 2009
Loading Map
Dharamsala,
Himachal Pradesh,
India
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Welcome to our India Trip part 13: The Himalayas.
Dharamsala
Well, the drive to Dharamsala was certainly interesting. Let's just reiterate one thing: the Indians drive like maniacs. With no road rules, no sense and no speed restrictions. None of this alters at all even when you are 2500 metres up a mountain. Resting on the precipice of a blood-chilling edge to let a big truck pass by makes you suddenly appreciate life!
To get from Manali to Dharamsala took us through overcrowded villages with stupid cattle licking tarmac just when you are doing 70mph towards it! We drove past loads of paddy fields with sari-clad women bent over double picking the rice in all weathers. Past fields of tea with sari-clad women carrying basket loads of the leaves on their backs. Past the most heart-stopping beauty of nature with waterfalls in-between ragged rocks and misty valleys winding around mountainous terrain. Just so stunning.
Our drive went quickly thankfully. Despite the beauty, it was yet another long-haul back seat journey. We're surprised we haven't got bed sores or the like! We went through a village where the temple was on the other side of the wide River Beas. To get to it you either had to walk over the rickety chain bridge and then for miles up the long and winding steps around the mountain. Or alternatively, there was a small metal cage hanging from the overhead telegraph poles suspended cloud-high over the boulder-strewn River below.
Beas River for white water sports and ooo and ahh
This cage, the size of a pet carrier, carried over supplies to the temple. We once saw a man crouched in this tiny cage along with several boxes of supplies. He was being pulled over by rope by a woman!!! We got to Dharamsala and went to find a Hotel. After the 15th one and witnessing another filthy bathroom (sod the flaming widescreen tv's in every room!!! Get some frigging Mr Muscle in for pitys sakes!!!) we decided to go to the first Hotel we ever saw. Always the way isn't it?! it was amazing. Overlooking the town, huge room, CLEAN bathroom, mini-bar, tv, massive balcony and for £28 per night!!!!!!!
Dharamsala is a hill station established by us Brits in the 19th century. The Dalai Lama lives here today and the Tibetan Government-in-Exile. The Dalai Lama lives in McLeodganj, right up at the top of the hill with scenic views and silence to die for.
We went over the road for dinner and drinks. The best restaurant in town apparently. Recommended in Lonely Planet apparently....! All of this was true. My god it was the best curry we had ever had. So we sat in there for 4 hours playing cards, drinking beer, listening to the table of 19 year old gap year students drunkenly droning on about how rich people should be stripped of all their money - and more money than you need for daily existence is pointless (Bless 'em), until the lights were slowly turned off and all the staff had their coats on!!!
The next day we had the experience of 'The Post Office'! We had to send a parcel home.
Dam end - even more incredible!!
A Hotel staff member accompanied us. What on earth for?? How hard could it be?! The post office was a room. The size of a passport photo booth. With a counter. A heat-stroke dog under a bench. And 300 tourists rammed up against a counter waving boxes and packages. Queue one end. Form to be filled in. Slippery Indian manages to squeeze to the front. Queue the other end now. Form returned - not enough information. Box weighed. Box returned. Not enough information on it. Box weighed again. Four slippery Indians manage to squeeze to the front. More waiting. Payment passed over. Two more slippery Indians manage to squeeze past our formidable blockade - damn they're good. Debate with all staff as box not packaged in white sack like all other parcels and sealed with wax!? Debate over. Thank you and goodbye. This took 1 hour. If we ever see that stuff again it'll be a miracle... and to be honest, drop kicking it off of the mountain would have been more fun, cheaper and a damn sight quicker.We walked down to the Dalai Lama's House! He wasn't in for tea. So we went to the café where the monastry is and ate the most beautiful pizza ever. Café run by monks-in-training. Lovely guys. We then walked round to the actual monastry just in time for prayers. The place was HEAVING with monks in their heavy red robes and yellow cloth bags. They were all sitting cross legged inside and in front of the temple waiting for prayers to begin. Little did we realise until right at the end that the flaming Dalai Lama was also inside waiting for prayers to begin!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! David went up to this little window to have a peek inside and saw him sitting there!! Goddamn it!! I didn't go to look because I felt I was standing in the way of all the waiting crowds, so wandered off where I wouldn't be blocking someone's view.
Dam start - incredible!!!
GGGGRRRRRRRRRRRR and DOUBLE GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRThere was a large selection of mantras etched into some big drums. The idea is that, instead of wasting half the day in prayer, all you need do is spin the drums and it's the equivalent of four hours of mantra mumbling. Now there's an ingenious spiritual labour saving device. I'll remember that next time I have a glass of red wine and a cracker.
Went to the Tibet museum which depicted the history of Tibet and the Chinese 'overthrow' sending Tibetans into exile. Very very moving. Lump-in-throat moment with photos and accounts displayed.
Our driver, Bablu, collected us and then we started the surprisingly short drive to the train station. We had to get a train back to Delhi - well, Old Delhi -and then onto the airport TO GET THE JOY OUT OF INDIA!!! We got to the train station irritatingly early, assuming we could see some sights along the way to Delhi. The only sights we saw was a collapsed bridge and children as young as 5 selling mangos on the road every 20 yards.
Thankfully, there was a large waiting room especially for our carriage class (A1 - air conditioned) so we set up camp for the next 4 hours!!! Soon after David and I started playing cards, we began getting some observers. The Indians love cards and card tricks so david showed this father and son a card trick. Then another one. Then another one. These were met with rapturous laughter and merriment. Then the other 4 members of the family were brought over to witness magic Dave.
David wow-ing me again!
Then another family arrived and set up camp. They too drifted over to see what all the merriment was about. They too got involved in David's card tricks. Then another family arrived. More drifting. More card tricks for them. Until our table was heaving with Indian families all jostling and hooting and wanting our email address and to be shown how to do the tricks. They were all really really lovely. From babies to grandmothers of 90 years old. Really good fun waiting for our train!!Our A1 carriage was gorgeous. Clean sheets, pillows and blankets and a private room with only 4 berths in it. No smell of piss and a carpet that was gorgeous, only a brand spanking... '50 years old' - no, it was ok. We had to share the room with 2 other men which I was not at all pleased with until we got chatting to them and they both worked for the IAF (Indian Air Force) and were off on a job in Delhi so I soon shed my "they will rape me in my sleep" attitude! They were lovely guys. And we had the best sleep on a train ever.
Well, our end in India was so close, I could taste the salty tang of freedom. Like being let out of prison, I was itching to get out and breathe clean and fresh air. To spend a day not having to bacterialise my hands every 5 minutes. To walk a pavement without any cow or human poo in your path. To be outside and not be stared at like a naked woman in public!
Read our next blog for the last few hours of our incarceration that was India.
Love Lois & David xxx
