Zanzibar

I went to Zanzibar for a  two week vacation in June, could have stayed there forever. One of my next goals is to stay there for a few months.  

I stayed in Stone Town for about 3 days wandering around (eating and shopping for clothes) and then went to Jambiani, one of the quieter villages on the east coast for 4 days.  I fell in love with Jambiani and the Mango Beach Guesthouse so only came back to Stone Town to get more money (as the only ATMs are in Stone Town). One of the local expats from Jambiani was in town that day and kindly offered me a ride back.

I think the pictures will speak for themselves. In Jambiani I sometimes went 2 days without putting shoes on. My only regret is that I didn't ride a bike along the beach to the next village, or walk the full length of Jambiani through the village, will do that next time.

My first day in Stone Town I went to a spa, had a massage and scrub then sat down to this view to have a mani-pedi. 

Stone Town

This is Farid.  I met two travelers at the hotel who invited me on a street tour. Three hours for $5, we saw and learned alot.  Farid is an activist; he had a newspaper at one time and now has a radio talk show.  Needless to say, he knew everyone.  It was Ramadam at the time but Farid bought some street food and we went to a community centre he had founded and ate there discreetly (we did, he didn't).

This is the view from a rooftop restaurant.  I was the only customer there (Ramadam) so the friendly waiters had lots of time to talk with me .  

My room at the Mango Beach Guesthouse, Jambiani

My patio. 

Kiddo's Cafe.  Food was delicious with a European flair.  As it got dark at 6:30  most places offered to bring me back home if I came for dinner. 

View from the cafe

If you have trouble relaxing, the cats offer lessons . . . .

For rinsing the sand off your feet before stepping on the patio.  What TV show does this remind you of?   

Tide coming in, this was the most people I ever saw on the beach at one time.

These two guys took me  snorkeling, we went about a kilometre out, it was only 40 feet deep (or so it looked). As I was getting in, I wondered how I would get back in the boat out there.

After I was done, this guy hauled me over the side of the boat like dead fish.  He then said ""Sorry I had to do that"". 

View from the Step-In Restaurant. I ate lunch here a few times, came for ice cream a little more often.  A few times the tide came in and I had to walk along the path off the beach to go home.

Hermit Crab tracks around the guesthouse each morning. I never saw them during the day.

Delhi

I was looking through my posts because i have already forgotten what happened a few months back and I think i drafted, but never posted, a post about the ashram (Feb 9, 2011), so there's a post way back that you may not have seen.(either that or I just duplicated it)

I was nervous of coming to Delhi, partly because most people I met said they didn't like it and also because I'd had a wonderful, trouble free trip - too good to be true!  But, I liked Delhi.  They have the most fabulous subway system that was upgraded last year (for the Commonwealth Games or something like that). Brand new trains with no food or drink allowed, first car of every train is women only, some stations have fences so you know exactly where to line up for the doors (yes, an actual line up) and you buy a token based on the distance you're going - you swipe it to get in then deposit it to get out. I tried to avoid rush hour, but by 3:30 pm it was getting quite crowded and was about to get on a regular car but when I saw them all squishing up I chickened out, did a u-turn at the last second and headed for the ladies car.

I went to the Red Fort (was nice but no big deal) and took the subway to some not-so-touristy shopping areas but otherwise didn't do all that much even though the days flew by (couldn't bring myself to go to the market in Old Delhi - some other time) They had a park and a shopping area in Connaught place  - didn't shop, just wandered around eating popsicles.

So, I'm back in Toronto, feeling like my trip was just a dream and I've woken up again.  I'm so very grateful to everyone who supported me (which includes the hundreds on Indians that helped me find my way and always made sure that I got off at my station) and helped me make my dream come true.  I also realized another dream of mine can now  come true - to retire in a warm country for at least a few years - I could easily live in India - I just wouldn't travel so much and would stay in my favourite cities. I never at any time felt unsafe.  Daniel, the Brazilian guy on the camel trip was reading 'The Alchemist' so I thought I would give it a try when I found it.  It's a wonderful book about realizing your dreams and finding your treasure in life, so it was an appropriate book to finish off my trip.

As I was sitting in my Timothy's on the corner of Bay and  Charles having my chai latte and blueberry muffin (like I do every weekend)  I thought 'wow, I can make my dreams come true'  and so I then wondered - what's my next dream that I'm going to make come true?  And how can I help make other people's dreams come true?  because that would be just as much fun.   So let me know if I can help you . . . . . . . .

Thank you and see you soon!

Love you Bubba!

XXXXOOOO

Varanasi/Darjeeling

I'm in Delhi at the Metropolis Tourist Home (and pleasantly surprised that I really like Delhi!)

I didn't do to much in Varanasi except walk and sit on the ghats (still avoiding the shopping) and only went on the main street to eat breakfast.  The rickshaw driver from the train station drove so far and then said he would walk me to my hotel - through a maze of alleys, I thought he must be taking me in the back way but when I asked, he said no, this is the only way. That hotel was full so he said he would help me (I knew he would get a commission but quite frankly, I was completely lost in these alleyways and didn't really care) after two more that I declined (too dark, too many flies for the price they were asking) and two that also had no available rooms, we found the Elvis Guest House, nicer room and cheaper price.

I call Varanasi the city of flies - so many that i was afraid to open my mouth, afraid they would fly in.  Directions from the hotel guy included "turn left at garbage corner" - found it without problem and for a time, one of my landmarks to get to my hotel was 'turn right at the dead rat' - I figured by the time it was gone I would know my way.  The ghats were beautiful and quite empty; we only see them with millions of people coming for a religious occasion.  I was staying at the south end, well away from the action.

The kids here seemed to be running all the businesses- not sure if they went to school or not, so that was the only really bothersome thing.  The young boy at the internet cafe was about 12, said he had no father so didn't go to school.  When I tipped him on my last day he ran after me to tell me I'd given him too much money; another young boy outside a shop, 12 going on 40 "come right in, I have some lovely punjabi suits, just for you" and then there were the girls selling puja candles/flowers to float on the water.

While walking along one day, one of the flower girls asked me if I had any foreign money, she said she collected it.  She offered to take me to her house so i could see her collection.  I said sorry, no foreign money and she went on her way.  The next day, another girl came up to me and asked if I would by a two dollar American bill from her, I gave her Rs. 100 which is all I had.  Back at the hotel, I put the American money in my suitcase thinking I wouldn't need it here.  Next day, the first girl comes back to me and asks me again if I have any foreign money I can give her.  I say no, she said 'are you sure?" "Yup" .  Yes, I'm a bit slow sometimes, it wasn't until I saw the two of them playing together later that day that I realized their little game.  They ran by smiling and waving at me, I couldn't be mad, they were just kids.

Evening boat ride down to the puja ceremony

5:30 am Having the girl in the pic was not planned, I was just aiming and she rose up the stairs,  seemingly out of know where just as I was clicking.  Of course, she was coming to sell me flowers. 'Good morning Miss Canada" she said.

7:30 am The is the view from the balcony where I ate breakfast each day.  Restaurants like this had great and cheap food.

I walked along the ghats, stopping to have chai every once in awhile and going for breakfast. By 11 am, they were almost deserted, sun was very strong but it went behind the buildings by 3 pm, so I cam back then.

10:00 am

3:30 pm

I took an overnight train from Varanasi to the closest station and took a shared jeep up the mountain. On the train, in 3rd class sleeper, I found myself among a bunch of men, only one that spoke English.  He very nicely  told me there was no room for my suitcase under the bottom bunks and I would have to take it up to the top bunk with me.  I sat down and kindly said that that was just not possible, there would be no room for me to sleep if I did that.  He tried again, and  I said no. He smiled and said OK and they rearranged stuff to make room for my suitcase, no hard feelings.  They asked about my husband, I told them he had been working in Delhi but would be meeting me in Darjeeling.

The men spread out a sheet between them and played cards; I went to sleep. Then next morning, the one guy that spoke English told me the train was three hours late and said good bye, he was getting off at the next stop.  I thought, but wait, who's going to tell me when my stop comes up???  I've been totally dependent on the kindness of strangers to kick me off at my station. Another English speaking man came up and started chatting with me, he seemed to know about my 'husband' and the conversation from the day before but he didn't look familiar.  Before i could mention where I wanted to get off he said, gather your things, this is your stop coming up.  The kindness of strangers. Or perhaps i should say, their kindness to strangers.

The jeep share up the mountain was another adventure, our jeep broke down three quarters up the mountain.  They tried to fix it to no avail, we had to wait about an hour for another jeep to come get us. No harm done. Had to try a few hotels before I found one, it was at the very top of the hill with a beautiful although pretty cloudy view.

Darjeeling was a breath of fresh air in many ways - it was cool - socks, shoes, pashmina and soup weather but there were many cafe type places (with glass windows!) to sit and have tea. Most of the people here appeared to be Tibetan or Nepalese and shop/stall keepers would sit in their stalls and not say a word.  Unfortunately, it was cloudy all the time so I didn't see the beautiful mountain views but that's ok (I had checked the weather forecast and knew that was most likely going to happen.

I went to the Tibetan Refugee Centre and the walk back - an hour uphill of zigzagging paths - became brutal  but I think it had something to do with my luck running out in terms of avoiding Delhi Belly (or I"m in incredibly bad shape).  After a day and a half of  feeling crappy, afraid to stray to far from the bathroom, I started my antibiotic pills I had with me (not sure I really needed it but thought it couldn't hurt) and the next day I was back to normal.  However, it did leave me a little tired and I found the streets, which were kinda steep, a bit hard to climb, so I didn't explore the way I usually do.  I did run into a guy I met at the train station (my age!) and we went for tea and then had breakfast the next day.  I paid for my own breakfast but I'm still counting this as a date (my goal every year is to have 2 dates so I'm half-way there!)

These kids helped me find the Tibetan Refugee Centre - they lived there.

View down the mountain.  Unfortunately, they are dumping their garbage down the mountain so some spots have alot of accummulation.

Tilt left - not all the streets were quite this steep - but a bonus as they were too steep for cars and rickshaws.

 A second before I snapped the visibility was much better.

 I will do one last update on Delhi when I am back home - only 2 days left! 




.

Jaipur/Agra/Khajuraho

In Varanasi, leaving for Darjeeling on a train tonight .  From Bagdogra/Darjeeling will fly to Delhi on the 4th for my flight home on the 8th.

Holi in Jaipur - I look kinda drunk but wasn't

There were little areas like this of people dancing but for the most part, the streets were empty.  Only women out on the street were foreigners (Indian women celebrate at home)

Nana and me.  He said he was 76 years old.  He doesn't have a black eye, it was some purple powder.

Elephant Festival - I couldn't get anywhere close to that dressed up ones so went over to the others.

Not sure exactly what it was about Jaipur but I didn't really care for it - could have been the hotel staff - although very friendly, never smiled; or the relentless rickshaw drivers and store clerks or maybe PMS and tired of travelling so in Agra I went to the Taj Mahal, the Red Fort. Fatehpur Sikri and the park on the other side of the river behind the Taj but otherwise stayed clear of any stores and stayed out of the tourist area completely, including hotel.


I arrived at the Taj at 6:30 am (already a line up to get in) and ran into some young people I met on the bus the day before, they invited me to come with them - they had a guide which means not standing in line for a ticket, although I didn't want a guide the no-line-up appealled to me so I said ok  (the sun was already up in the air at this point but this is the earliest they open).  The guide was a nice young man, not married yet but had met his bride to be 5 times in a restaurant, he didn't tell us anything I hadn't heard already and I questioned some of it ( so what else is new) but he knew all the picture spots and took some good pics of me (unfortunatley, at this hour of the morning I didn't look so good).  At the end of our tour there was some issue with the amount  - as I wasn't there to begin with I just listened - the guide was very sweet and just said "it's ok, money isn't that important.  It's important that you have a good time in India and come back one day" but his body language, his face and his voice reminded me of  someone who realizes they have really screwed up.


The other two left and I wandered around on my own for another hour, and of course the guide's words stuck with me. I know what you're thinking, and yes, I'm a sucker, especially for young men who are Nick's age.  I always ask myself, if this were Nick, how would I want others to treat him?  When I came out, the guide was sitting with his friends, he smiled and pointed in the direction the other two went.  I offered him some more money (just a few dollars), he declined but I insisted.  As I'm having my  breakfast down the street, he comes in "I don't want any bad karma, I want to give you back the money".  He tried to explain about the difference in price - something to the effect that he has to give the ticker providers a share of his tour fee and when we added the third person, they wanted more money from him.  Never knowing when I can believe someone or not, I told him to keep the money, it's not that much and to help someone who really needs it if he's worried about bad karma. He offered to pay for my breakfast, I declined, then he asked if I would like to come back to the Taj for sunset (the ticket is good for one entry only), he could get me in. When I phoned later in the afternoon, he said just have your ticket in hand and if they ask, you were at the lockers, I'll meet you just inside. When I got there, no one even asked to look at my ticket. So, I think we're even now and I was grateful to find out about coming back later in the day.

The temples at Khujaraho were beautiful, was only there for the day arriving in the morning and leaving at night. 

6:30 am

Quality of this pic is not that good but shows the detail that you don't see from a distance - all inlaid stone.  Back writing is onyx, flowers part - green is jade, orange is coral (or so the guide said)

Inlaid stone detail

Very hazy day.

This was in the afternoon - the pics of me on the Princess Di bench in the morning were not good so when I went back in the afternoon, the photographers were fighting (one was taking too long and there's no such thing as a line up to wait your turn) so I just decided to stand to one side. the cloud around the minaret on the left is my camera dust from holi got in my camera.

Tilt left - I think because of the time of year, the sunrsie/sunset wasn't in the best place for photos, but it was still quite pretty.  This is one of the minarets behind the Taj, along the river

Tilt left - Fatehpur Sikri had the most beautitul, delicate jalis, you still couldn't see in from the outside. Still trying to figure out how I can get one of these back to Canada.

Fatehpur Sikra - many of the buildings were entirely covered with carvings. You have to imagine silk curtains hanging and lots of cushions.

Khujaraho - there weren't many that were this explicit  (don't worry, I got pics of all of them). Kind of made me wonder if there was just one really naughty stone carver and they said to him after a couple 'ok, we'll use those, but no more like that'

Tilt left - Most of the carvings were up high, and not as big as I thought (from pics, had the impression that they were life size or a least a few feet but they were more between 8 - 18 inches)

Love you Bubba
XXXXXOOOOOO