2 Virgos in INDIA

So my original plan for this post was to co-write a blog post about India with my travel buddy and fellow blog writer, Indrė. We had thought that we could spend our afternoons jotting down the events of the day and brainstorming our ideas together. But the reality of life in India hit us hard like a roti (chapati) to the face! There was no way that we had time or energy for writing in the afternoon. Our days were packed with adventure and random events and this post is my attempt to explain some of what went on during our extraordinary trip in the North of India. Also, I have featured quotes from Indrė that share her side of the journey.

After the conclusion of my yoga teacher training, I spent the morning in Rishikesh with some of my classmates. When we all finally went our separate ways I began looking for a hostel for my first night with my friend Indrė. Just a little back story on my relationship with Indrė, we met in Italy while I was wwoofing on a farm in Sicily. Within 24 hours of meeting each other, she had booked her ticket to India! We planned to travel together for the month after my yoga course. We were both convinced that we would make great travel partners after we shared some wild journeys during our three weeks on the Sicilian farm, hiking on the volcano Etna, fuelling ourselves with avocado and chilli and hitchhiking to a music festival. Not to mention, we are both Virgos!  You can read about these expeditions in my post: Aussie in the Boot: Sicily Pt. 2

Indrė did an amazing job at getting to me, navigating planes, tuk-tuks and the unusual encounters with random Indian men. It was very surreal to see each other in India! We headed to the hostel and updated each other on what had occurred in our time apart.

“First ride in a tuk-tuk from Dehradun airport to Rishikesh, first ride in India actually and also alone! I think we spent good 20 minutes before departure, waiting for the auto to be fully seated (6 seats, a rather friendly ride). Cows hanging out on the road, old cheese and animal deposit smell everywhere (I am grateful for a good nose now), humid and seriously hot. And everyone is beeping all the time, what traffic! No tourists on this auto-rickshaw, only locals, no one speaking English too. The drive was quite rough, I thought we would lose one wheel, but fortunately, we didn’t. Indian roads are unbelievably rugged. Other passengers were glancing at me as I was documenting this journey. I hoped I was going to Rishikesh, it felt forever and surreal too. An old man sitting beside, silently praying and rubbing his hands. A little girl, hiding under her brother’s arms and peaking at me. A young fellow helped to catch another tuk-tuk from Rishikesh to Topovan, more central area. I shared the second ride with 7 people in a smaller one than the previous. Well, this time I was dropped on the corner and told to keep left. After a few moments, another driver of auto stopped and proposed me to jump in cause Topovan was actually still 40min walking. I was hesitant and also startled a bit, the pace was seriously hectic, however, the passengers seemed to welcome me on board. I met another local yoga science student who pointed towards the panoramic view of the Ganga and explained that’s the real atmosphere, with “natural” ingredients – both impressive nature and poverty included. Rishikesh, known a bit more international, didn’t feel like on at all. At least from where I entered. I paid 40 rupees in total by the way for this long trip, that’s around 60ct. While I decided to fly to Dehradun from New Delhi to save myself from further exhaustion early in the morning, I could not resist travelling like locals in the afternoon, although it was a bit of a journey. I must admit my first day here is completely overwhelming. A lot to take in, so much to share, I’ll do it later. I love it though.”

After a bit of downtime in the hostel, we headed out for a bit of exploring. I decided that I wanted to get the tattoo that I had wanted since Sicily… a mountain tattoo on my ankle, the same as Indrė. I would like to say once and for all that they are not matching friendship tattoos! I loved her tattoo and thought that the fact we are from two different sides of the world, no one would ever know that we have the same. So within the first 24hrs in India, Indrė was getting traced for my tattoo. That’s how we do it in India!

We spent our time doing yoga and exploring the city. We also visited a waterfall and met some American tourists that were able to drive us back to town. In the night we went to the Arrti and watched the beautiful ceremony. On our way home we experienced the worst of the monsoon season. It was getting late, already dark, and the rain began. It continued to get heavier and the streets began to flood. We were about a 30-minute walk from our hostel! We took cover in a small jewellery store but after spending almost a half-hour there, they had to close. We then headed to a nearby cafe for cover, having to basically cross mother Ganga to reach it. After only a few minutes in this cafe, the roof caved in and the rain began to bucket down on us! We fled the cafe and hit the streets, deciding that waiting for the rain to pass was no longer an option, it was almost 10 pm. We ran through very deep water that was rushing through the streets. May I mention that these streets are not easy to walk on during the day with no rain! After what seemed like forever we made it to our hostel, very wet and worried about the health of my new tattoo.

After a few nights in a semi-expensive hostel (350 rupees each), we decided that it was time to implement some cash saving strategies. Indrė had been chatting with some residents of Rishikesh on Coach Surfer. There was a man that had agreed to host us for our last night in the city. He came with his friend and they picked us up on their motorbikes. It turned out that it was my anatomy teacher from my yoga teacher training. So crazy. When we saw each other it was like, “DHIRAJ?!?!?”, “STEPH?!?!” We dropped our luggage at his house and then they took us to a temple in the mountains with their motorcycles. It was an awesome ride and I now believe that on motorcycle is the best way to experience India.

The night that we spent at Dhiraj’s (anatomy teacher) home was great, we played cards and met his friends. The night took an interesting turn when things got intimate with Dhiraj. Now, this may be confusing to some if you have been reading my other blog posts as I have been honest about my sexuality and my attraction to women. Though I have been told by many not to shut down any entire genders as I may miss out on valuable experiences or people. So I decided to go with it, also taking into account that Dhiraj is basically the Indian Ken doll.

In the morning we booked a bus ticket to Dharmsala, the city that is the home of the Dalai Lama. Dhiraj was super helpful with all of the ticket bookings and navigating, it felt very comfortable and safe having him around, though Indrė and I kind of missed the challenge of working things out ourselves. We all went to some more mountains and met a family that grew their own cannabis. They make pakora, deep-fried potato covered in cannabis. When we got home we prepared for the long bus ride. We bought many snacks and were excited about the trip to come. I had a bit of a quick and strange goodbye to Dhiraj… We got onto our bus and the trip began! It was a crazy bus ride but the driver was kind enough to stop many times, I think Indrė and I slept for most of the trip.

“Pakora Himalayas style. We drove quite far, all the way to the mountains of Uttarakhand not only to immerse in the nature but also to see a local version of Pakora being prepared. This time it was potatoes mixed with spices and wild Himalayas cannabis indica, it is deep-fried and salted afterwards. Again, I had no clue we would find such a place in Uttarakhand”

“The first few days in India flew by and I am completely taken aback. It takes time to get used to the rhythm here, nothing is the same. India is full of life, it’s extremely intense and diverse. I’ve moved to Himachal Pradesh today, to McLeod Ganj, where Tibetan Buddhists gather.”

We arrived in Dharamashla and took a taxi to Bhagusu, the small backpacking village that we would be staying in. It immediately felt like home. I saw a mongoose (which became the joke of the trip because no one else ever seemed to see one! The girl who cried mongoose). I had an amazing falafel pita, this is due to all of the Israeli tourists in the area, and I found my place in India. It was a beautiful feeling.

“Arrived in Dharamsala Bhagsu and McLeod Ganj on an overnight bus. These are two must-visit places once in Himachal Pradesh. Both are popular destinations, Bhagsu is great for backpackers with many cosy cafés, yoga, music, carving etc workshops while McLeod Ganj attracts a diverse crowd as it is a centre for Tibetan Buddhists, Dalai Lama’s residence is based over there.”

We walked about 30 minutes into the town of Dharamshala and registered for the Dalai Lama teachings. It was so impressive to witness how organised the whole process was. We had to fill out a small registration form and provided our passports to the administration team who created an ID badge for us. In the night, We went out and drummed with a group of guys that make and paint drums and listened to live music, an open mic. Everywhere in this town that we went, we would make friends. Not one day went by where we didn’t meet a new friend. Everyone that travels through this part of India seems to have an open heart and open mind, it is very beautiful to be a part of.

Walked to the waterfall. My new fav place. Went to an awesome vegan cafe and got some early birthday cake. I upgraded my drum! A beautiful feeling behind my new one. My hope for my original drum was that I would walk into a store and the drum would choose me. I wanted to have a memorable experience when finding my first drum, though I didn’t have this is Rishikesh. But I found it in Bhagusu! That night, Indrė bought me a dreadlock! Each day would just be full of random events and we loved it. This area just energised us, the people, the mountains and the action.

We woke up at 5:30 am. An early birthday start. We walked down and saw the Dalai Lama teachings. They gave us Tibetan bread and tea. Went to the Tibetan museum. Had a birthday dinner, falafel plate of course. We ate a birthday chocolate ball, we originally ordered carrot cake (my favourite) but after a few bites Indrė was convinced that is was old and so we returned them (she was a pastry chef after all)! Birthday shake (to make up for the lost cake) and live music. I had the best birthday ever, pure bliss. It is amazing to have the feeling that each day just keeps getting better. When I feel low, sad or angry, I still feel content with my life! The world is good!

“We are generating extra happiness here. Today was a memorable day. In the morning a philosophical brekkie with Dalai Lama (obviously not personal), an afternoon spent jamming (jaw harp is my new official sound) and evening experiencing ecstatic dance. If it wasn’t the people surrounding, it wouldn’t have happened.”

The second day of teachings, it was already beginning to feel like a morning ritual, waking up early and making our way to the temple of his holiness. We carried out this morning routine with our awesome hostel roommate, Laura from Ireland. Laura got along with us so well and the three of us made a great group. In the afternoon we did a group drumming session, Laura also shares a passion for the art of djembe drum playing. To keep this intense positive energy flowing we decided to attend an Ecstatic dance class at night for 2 hours. Ecstatic dance is a practice that is performed in groups to a carefully selected playlist of songs to set the mood. The aim is to not feel the need to follow specific steps and abandon yourself to the rhythm, moving freely as the music takes you, leading to a trance and a feeling of ecstasy.

Last day of the teachings and we thought that something special may occur. It did! We met the Dali Lama’s sister. We saw this lovely lady walking around, many people were bowing down to her, yet she was not surrounded by a crowd. We were unsure who she was so our little group continued our conversation. The lady then approached us and shook all of our hands, asking where we were from. When she came to me, I had a mouthful of Tibetian bread! My answer to her question “where are you from?” went something like, “Authshrallala”. So that was a great impression that I made on a Lama! The important thing was that I had love in my heart and eyes, I’m sure she could see past the chunk of bread in my mouth.

On our final day in Dharamashla, we planned to move on, hesitantly, to Bir, a place famous for paragliding. My Indian love story continued. Due to the long and crazy bus ride that brought us to Dharamashla, Indrė left her glasses on the bus! So technically all of Bhagusu and Dharamashla was a blur. I messaged Dhiraj and asked if he could contact the bus company, not actually holding much hope considering that it was India. To our surprise, he managed to find the glasses! He then travelled 16 hours to meet us in Bhagusu. He brought Indrė’s glasses that she left on the bus and we invited him to come with us to Bir. Indrė also had a guy friend that she had invited that we had met in Bhagusu. It was a sad yet happy goodbye to all our friends in the town… I knew I would miss the daily hummus and falafel but most of all the energy of the place.

Dhiraj helped us get to Bir, 3 crazy local buses, it was awesome. It felt really cool to travel the local way, were saw the other side of life. We arrived in Bir at night and found a great hostel for a really good price, 200 rupees, due to the fact that Bir is famous for paragliding and the season had not yet begun…

Our first day in Bir, we rented bikes and rode around. Dhiraj and I rented a tandem bike that was not very equipped for the mountain riding that we attempted. He also introduced me to something that became my favourite snack, whole dried coconut! It is available in all little side/snack stores.

Bir was a place full of strange emotions for everyone. I think the person that had the best time was Indrė’s friend, he seemed to enjoy the company of us all. I had a few tears and was feeling drained. Also, once again feeling that the male partner path is not one that I want to follow. I feel that I am putting out the energy to attract female partners but instead, I keep ending up with males! What am I doing wrong?! Indrė and I both felt that we missed our Virgo team and were reminded how much we enjoy working out challenges and experiencing things together. So after a very short stay, we decided to head further north to Manali, Indrė had found a hostel owner on couch surfer that had agreed to let us stay for three nights at no cost!

We took a crazy local bus that travelled until late at night to Manali. A man touched my boob and we were slipping and bumping around in our seats, but the tickets were cheap! We arrived in Manali at 11:30 pm. Got to our couch surfing location and crashed.

“Travelling from Bir to Manali on a public bus for 9-hrs felt as if we were in an amusement park. Flying in the mountains, marvellous scenery yet bumpiest ride ever. And no, pictures don’t do it justice this time!”

Our first day in Manali was a chill day. We found a nice cafe that had an amazing view of the pine tree covered Himalayan mountains. I, of course, had falafel (best) and hummus, but at the same time, I made a promise that after that plate I would begin to eat Indian food again.

“Manali is all about mountains, fresh air, water, apples, cosy cafés and friendly Israelis.”

We hiked to another town and swum at a waterfall. The most amazing views. Walked through apple orchards and ate apples straight off the tree.

“Grilled corn tastes like lime & salt popcorn; samosas satisfy potato cravings; pakora reminds spiced potato chips; sweets sweeter than sugar fuel with energy; momos bring joy; chicken & mutton thali for that extra protein that’s easy to miss out on here and korma to combat homesickness using comfort food”

We woke at 4am and walked in the dark, a 30-minute walk to the bus station in new Manali. We had left our big bags at our hostel and only brought a couple of clothes with us. We planned to head to Kaza, Spiti valley. Spiti valley is what they call the cold desert. It is a mountain valley located high in the Himalayas in the north-eastern part of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. The name “Spiti” means “The middle land”, the land between Tibet and India. Taking the local bus was a good move. Most tourists rent a jeep which costs around 3,500 rupees a day. This bus trip cost us 270 rupees! The driver even stopped for meals. At the breakfast stop, we mixed our oats.

The bus trip was an amazing drive but very long. We were actually driving on the most dangerous road in India. At some points, the bus would just stop in the middle of a waterfall! But the driver had my complete trust. We stopped in a small tent town for lunch. Oats and bean Dahl. Finally arrived in Kaza. Found a homestay with beds on the floor, 200 rupees a night. We met a young Indian couple that said we could rent a scooter and explore some of the surrounding villages with them!

On our first day, we wandered around Kaza. We visited the Monastery and saw the monks performing a ritual, Buddhist monks reciting their sutras in Tibetan and playing their instruments. We found the only cafe with wifi in Spiti. I decided to change my flight, being intuitive and caring to myself. It was only a week sooner. It may seem like a random decision but it was something that I had been contemplating for a while. I was in the most amazing places but wasn’t taking it in. I lost my joy. After making the call to change the flight I regained energy. India has been the place of pushing the boundaries of my perfectionism. So much growth.

We walked down to the river. Spiti is such a breathtaking place, a location that can only truly be appreciated when witnessed, though there is some good drone footage on youtube if you would like to try and picture where we were staying. I ate Dahl from a bag with my veg chow mien, due to the fact that we were so close to the border of China, the local food was of Chinese influence. Many power outages. Indrė’s jaw harp broke and we had to visit a welder! The things we did in India!

We have also almost broken all the “India travel rules”: Don’t drink the water. Only eat fruit and veg that you can peel. Don’t walk around the streets at night. Don’t catch a bus a night.

We rented a scooter! We called it Scotty and he was our white horse. We went with our new friends to many of the surrounding towns.

Key monastery: It is a Tibetan Buddhist monastery located on top of a hill at an altitude of 4,166 metres. Its the biggest monastery of Spiti Valley and a religious training centre for Lamas.

Hikkim: The village that is famous for having the worlds highest post office, standing at 4,389 metres above sea level.

Komic: Famous for being the highest village in the world connected with a motorable road.

Langza: It is primarily dominated by the statue of Lord Buddha, overlooking the valley, an ancient monastery, and mud houses that the tourists can see during their visit to the village.

We stayed in Langza at a homestay, the lady cooked us some very delicious Dahl and rice and served it to us. It was a very beautiful night, the night before Indrė’s birthday! We were both where we should have been for our birthdays.

“If there’s heaven on Earth, I’ve experienced it! I am in the highest motorable village in the world and it feels like a bliss. The laughter of a mom and son together collecting the straw in the fields on the edge of Himalayas is now forever solidified in my mind. Pure and genuine joy. Freedom!”

Indrė and I went to some other towns. We crossed the highest motor bridge. We ran out of fuel in the mountains and rolled our way back to Kaza. We had the option and were told by many people that passed us, to go into the nearby town to get more fuel. But we always rise to a challenge and seek out the adventure. We made it home!

“Spiti on a bike, probably the best ride I had in my life!”

I experienced some altitude sickness during our stay in Spiti, trouble breathing, nausea, scabby/bleeding nose.

If you haven’t had it out of a bag have you even been to India? Golab jaman, fried rice, dhal, momos, samosa.

On our last day in Spiti, we hiked to Manu lake with many of the new friends from the village as well as the owners of the homestay.

“An off beaten path here! One day trek to Sopona lake near Mane Village in Spiti Valley. We spent a few hours searching for the lake which apparently had dried out during summer months and only narrow rivers were actively flowing. The whole place seemed to be a bit deserted however the cattle actually proved to revive the landscape. Also, I found wild rhubarb, sage, mint, rosehip and sea buckthorn in such wild environment in the Himalayas. Serene. Undoubtedly, purest (and freaking cold) water in the whole of India.”

Got the public bus back to Manali. Just as wild, at one stage people needed to get off the bus for us to make it through a rough patch in the road.

We collected our stuff from our old hostel in Manali and stayed there one more night. We had a chill and wonderful last day together. I bought Indrė a new jaw harp! Golden this time. It was a beautiful last day, we played some music and got invited to play at a cafe because they liked our playing. We decided to move to a hotel that was attached to the cafe. It was so fancy yet the same price as the other hostel. We bought some sweets and had a movie night.

Alex (a friend of Indrė) arrived and we spent my last hours wandering around the town. We picked apples and I ate thali at my favourite place (I think I’m the only customer). Alex seems like a beautiful person and the three of us work very well together. I’m glad that she is the person that will be Indrė’s new travel partner.

Indrė and I looked in each other’s eyes for 5 minutes and then hugged for 30 seconds. I cried. So many beautiful memories and such an amazing bond that has been formed. We now share so much that just cannot be explained to anyone else. It’s incredible that this all begun one day on a small farm in Sicily while painting orange trees!

“After meeting Dalai Lama XIV I can’t resist sharing his thought about the ultimate goal, no matter how simple it seems, let’s try not to forget, let’s adopt it: ‘To be contented human beings we need trust and friendship, which tends to develop much better once we realize that all beings have a right to happiness, just as we do.'”

I am now eating with my hands and not being fussed about weird smells or flies, I feel at home in India. I know I will return very soon.

A long bus journey to Dehli but no one on the bus. Dehli metro was very well organized but hectic crowds. I made it to the airport very smoothly and safety. Ready for Taiwan!

The exploring continues!

Kindly, Steph