I guess it's safe to say, since we are coming home on the weekend, that we almost died yesterday. More on this later.

The bus ride out to Dehra Dun was really winding, unlike anything I've ever experienced before. Twisting and turning, our little bus clinging to the pavement which was clinging to the sides of cliffs. Sometimes I'd look out the window and there was nothing beside us, just a sheer drop hundreds of feet to the river below. I was a little stressed out, especially after bus incident earlier in the day (more later) and finally when we came to the bus' first stop, we both felt pretty unsettled and queasy.

No problem. We ordered ice cream and waited for the bus to take off again. By this point in time we were out of the mountains and on fairly straight roads. The only bad thing was I had the worst stomach pains I've had in ages. At about 1am, just over halfway into the trip, I knew something bad was going to happen. Sure enough, my stomach started crunching uncontrollably and I stuck my head out the window and promptly threw up...three times. Things calmed a bit, but then got going again about an hour later when I had to hang my head out the window once again...this time I threw up like 7 times. Thank goodness I was by the window, or we would have had some serious problems.

This morning when we got off the bus, I saw the extent of the damage I'd done!

A huge stream of vomit, definitely showing colors from yesterday's lunch and snacks, sprayed from the window and fanned down in an arch to reach the wheels of the bus. If the bus had been any other color, everything would have just fit in with the scenery. But...the bus had to be white.

-amie-

Ok back to almost dying (before Amie's bus story) - we were planning to take an overnight bus from Dharamsala to Dehra Dun and were on our way to the Dharamsala bus station on a local rickety bus. The local bus trip was only 15 minutes but had to go down several mountain switchbacks. Not that difficult with power steering. Our bus didn't and was on it's last legs. Luckily for this experience we were in the front row. The bus, going only about 10km/h, turns a sharp corner. Then it keeps turning. Then it keeps going, pointed off the road. The bus driver reefs on the emergency brake and we start to slow down. We eventually come to a complete stop but not before a tree branch breaks through some front windows and people unleash blood curdling screams. Amie is smarter than me. She promptly jumps out the window, not sure whether the bus teeter-totter is going to stop or keep going off the cliff. I am pretty stupid and sit there stunned as everyone climbs over me to get out the windows. Regaining composure, I am last to get off the bus. I guess I hadn't planned an escape plan for that one. Still pretty shook up, we hail an autorickshaw and head to the bus station. I asked him politely if he would pay special attention to staying on the road.

-steve-

Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama

Everyone has been telling us since we arrived that the only place in India that we should go at this time of year is the far north where the elevation brings more manageable temperatures. We spent a couple weeks in the desert and South India confirming that and then decided to take the advise. We jumped on an overnight bus from Delhi and headed up to the North - not quite to the confluence of Kasmir, Pakistan, Nepal, and Tibet but real close (50km)

Our first stop, Dharamsala is best known as Tibet in Exile. We showed up at a good time. Guess who's in town? You betcha, Dalai Lama himself along with at least a thousand Tibetan monks attending his teachings. We had two choices - shave our heads, purchase a maroon robe and prayer beads to sneak into a session. Or the lesser, settle for watching a "grand entrance" by the Dali Lama to his teachings. We opted for the second and exchanged waves with him. The buzz on the street is "Have you seen him?" "Free tibet!" and "Save chinese enslaved Tibetan leaders!".

Amie and I are signed up today for a Tibetan bread baking class. That should be interesting.

-steve-

We did some recalculating and tried to figure out what we wanted to do with our last week. We had planned on heading to Chennai to visit Steve Hepting (on a work term). We figured it would take about 3 days of busses and trains to get there, with not much interesting in between. We didn't really want to spend the rest of our trip on transportation so in a moment of great spontaneity, we jumped on a SpiceJet flight to Delhi (a good experience) planning to head into the mountainous north. This would put us closer to Delhi where we need to be for our flight at the end of the week. Unfortunately we are stuck in Delhi for a day so we decided to point out some observations about daily life in India.

holy cows - everywhere. They sniff and snort through the garbage like street dogs and find a comfortable place to crash for the night in one big, bovine group.

Women in India are generally invisible. I'm virtually non-existent unless by myself. People will also rush up to us to say hello to Steve and ignore me. Gotta love male dominant societies.

Indians love to get their pictures taken with foreigners and then tell everyone they know about their "friends" from abroad.

Elbow fungus. Amie has developed it from resting her elbows on tables while eating.

Who knew you could get a chest / sinus cold in such a hot country.

Garbage. People will even throw garbage around their own homes and restaurants and wonder why their neighborhood is filthy.

Perceptions of westerners. Indians care about their appearance and don't understand why all travellers dress sloppy, wear dreadlockes, look like hippies.

Chai. Milk tea + cardamom + black pepper + ginger. Everyone drinks it all the time out of small plastic cups.

Middle class India thinks they are going to overtake the West as a superpower. They obviously haven't spent enough time in the West - we aren't doing too bad for progression either.

Questions we have been asked a million times in order of importance. "hello, what country?" "What your name?" "first time India?" "How old?" Any answer you give is satisfactory - they just want to know you have understood. After the complete annoyance of saying my name to hundreds of passerbyers, I often say I am John, a 35 year old from Africa. They still nod and smile.

Networking. People in the tourism business have a nasty network of autorickshaw drivers, hotel owners, and restaurant operators - a good deal from one will probably lead to a screwing over from a relative working in a different but connected business.

Newspaper classifieds. Brahmin (caste), Hindu 31/157cms, living in Mumbai, M.Sc in Micro biology, for complete details view profile R587984 on MarathiMatrimony.com

Well, that's about all that comes to mind. This scorching day is going to go a lot smoother with a freshly squeezed glass of pomegranate juice.

We arrived in Mumbai early in the morning, welcomed by the sight of dozens of naked bottoms squatting on the tracks defecating. Though that was the initial impression we got of Mumbai - some of the worst squalor in Asia, the city was also a dream come true for me (as anything remotely dramatic usually catches my attention). The city didn't disappoint!

We stayed in an AC room to maintain some degree of sanity in the heat, admired the remnant of Britain's colonial past - beautiful stone buildings that are still used as Bombay University, Municipal offices, etc. Since were in beating heart of Bollywood, we HAD to catch flick! And since we were only 2 blocks from a theatre, there really was no excuse not to go!

We watched Metro...Imagine every single romantic story line you can possibly pull out of your wildest dreams and roll all of them into a neat, emotional and highly dramatic 2 hour saga (including a 15 minute intermission!). Steve hated it (though he did like air conditioning for two hours). I loved the whole experience!

We only stayed one night - not enough time to get scouted to be extras in a Bollywood flick as I had originally hoped! Oh well, next time!

After a 15 hour bus ride sitting wedged at the back of the bus where the annoying guy in front of me kept on refusing to put his seat up an inch, pinning my whole body down to my seat, I'm so glad to be in Goa.

We've managed to cover a lot of ground over the past couple of days and have paid for it in fitful nights, little sleep, getting sick, the whole works. Yesterday we spent the whole day in transit, trying desperately to get out of the Mumbai area. We bought unreserved train tickets (such a BAD idea) to get to Goa last night which would take us 12 hours and have us arrive at midnight. I took one look at the sardine can of a train coach, bursting at the seam with men, and promptly burst into tears.

Steve tried to be stern, but the thought of standing at the front of the car, an object of curiosity and intrigue for the 70 Indian men crammed into the car for 12 hours was just too much for me. We jumped off, canceled our tickets and felt lost in a random place called Thane for a very long time.

Then we found McDonalds. Now, I don't usually eat McDonalds at all in Canada, but for some reason, the building, in all it's air conditioned glory, stood on that street corner and beckoned us to come in. Above the counter, a plack announced that the restaurant served no beef or beef products. We opted for the Maharaja Mac - the vegetarian version of the Big Mac but a lot worse, and ice cream. Then we hopped on the bus.

And now we're here, surrounded by palm trees. Just ate shark filets and kabaabs for supper and are hoping to find someplace with a fan that will be showing a movie later tonight.

So our India adventure continues! Sometimes I have to laugh at ourselves...we get so infuriated and frustrated with the bureaucracy, with the constant scamming, the sheer irritation of smelling crap and urine all the time. But for some reason we keep doing this thing called backpacking to ourselves. Deep down, I must love it. :)

-amie-

We had a great day near Mumbai in a hill station called Matheran - great rock formations looming in all directions. It was nice and cool for a change and there were lots of hiking trails and lookout points. It is one of the only places in India where motor vehicles are banned. The whole place is serviced by hand rickshaws and horseback. One of the highlights was a 'toy train' which transported people up and down the mountain.

-steve-

The past week has been chock full of heavenly highs and frustrating lows. Steve met a really nice family on the train to Jaipur and we promised that we'd visit them and see their Uncle's unique talent: building wooden, handcrafted fans (woodenfan.com). After 5 minutes of viewing the fans, the uncle showed us his real passion - saving the environment from garbage. Who knew that someone so talented in a worldclass trade could be capable of such horrible artwork made mostly of garbage. Of course there are artists out there who've created great things out of junk, but this was a class entirely on it's own.

"All Natural" and "Suspense" were the words he used to described the ramshackle garbage art. He scours the streets for refuse, paper, plastics, twist ties, bottle caps, tin, etc., and paints horrendous figures of people and animals on them, all with natural dyes and paints. That's the all-natural part. The suspense part we never quite figured out. Maybe it was the dogs attacking people, or the blobs of paint meant to resemble people that was supposed to be suspenseful, whatever it was, we wanted to leave so badly, and kept on dying inside after an hour of him picking random pieces of junk and passionately describing it as natural and suspense.

I'm running of out words to describe the scene, so trust the pictures. Just trust me on this one, the guy was part mad hatter, part brilliant artist...i wish he'd just stick to the fans.

....After Jaipur we headed out to Pushkar, one of the most holy of Rajasthani towns, with all the buildings framing a lake. Unfortunately Steve and I both got a case of the trots and spent most of the day out of commission lounging in various rooftop restaurants, downing soda water and sprite trying to feel better! We managed to keep everything for our night bus to Bikaner where we hoped to catch of glimpse of something utterly bizarre - Karni Matta - perhaps the only place in the world where you'll find holy rats.

The most disgusting part of the temple is that you had to take off your shoes...thank goodness I was wearing socks and shoes...Steve wasn't so lucky, so in he went with bare feet. We're still not sure what kind of diseases were lurking around in the rat infested temple. It truly was a sight to behold...rats everywhere, bickering and tumbling over one another, jumping into rat holes, and drinking water and milk the temple priests has set out for them in big bowls on the ground. Oh, and people were laying around on the same floor the rats run on, praying to various gods, and lighting incense sticks. We took our pictures and then left.

Now we're in Ahmedabad where it only too 10 minutes for me to be offered hashish by a local rickshaw owner. But we're doing well. I found chocolate cookies and have devoured about 15 so far this morning...so thankful Gujuratis love their sweets! On to Mumbai tonight. This drama queen is craving some Bollywood!

-amie-

We were deciding whether we were even going to go to Jaisalmer. We had wanted to originally but after being sick for a couple of days and tired of being in the desert, we wanted to head south to find some milder climate (below 40 degrees). It is a good thing we didn't though because we had one of our best days yet. Jaisalmer, like most Ragistan cities is built around a magestic sandstone fort. This one in particular rose high above the city. The city had a more peaceful feel with rickshaws banned from the inner walls, camels pulling carts around, and a nice blend of Sikhs, Muslims, Rajputs, and Indians.

The day started out with the prospect of a new confluence point to discover (confluence.org). We rented a motorbike in Jaisalmer and set off into the desert. It was freaky being in Indian traffic and also riding a manual motor bike. I was told only girls ride automatics. Confluence hunting was cut quite short since most of Jaisalmer is surrounded my military facilities. It seems every area I want to go for an adventure is smack dab in the middle of some military complex!

We turned around and headed for the hills. This direction was chosen because I saw some wind turbines up there. This turned out to be an interesting experience as I compared some of the technology and practices to those for my work at home. I e-mailed some pictures to my workmates who will find the safety standards quite laughable.

Later in the day we forced ourselves onto the tourist trail and took a camel ride into the desert. Companies offered any length of camel ride - some up to 30 days and nights. We opted for a half day, mostly because it was too hot this time of year and who can really stay on a camel for more than a day? We had a great Muslim guide drive us in his jeep out into the desert scrub. Later this 13 year old boy rode with us on camels through sand dunes for a while before returning us to the desert jeep. I asked him how much he gets payed and he said 300 rupees per month ($6 US) - poor kid! I thought I would really rock his world and give him 50 as a tip when we were done. After we were back at the jeep, I quietly slipped him the money. The kid turned to me in anger and said "this is not tip! you give me 100 for 2 camels.." The little punk - we didn't have to give him anything. I was so shocked I just stood there for a while looking at his open palm. I eventually mumbled that he should be happy with my "gift" and we were off to town. This has been typical of our dealings with anyone on the streets providing any service in India - infuriating!

-steve-

It's hard to say whether or not one can actually love India - maybe even like. There are some highs - some great sights, some nice people, and great food. But most of the time words that come to mind are garbage, scams, spit, excrement, obnoxious, scortching hot, and filth. Of course we have only been in the North Central thus far. We have found that there are some genuinely nice people but you don't really see any of them. Any places that are easily accessable to us are filled with people who are out to make a profit.

Even for the most experienced travellers, it is nearly impossible not to get scammed. They are excellent at getting money out of your pockets and getting you into questionable situations. One guy was really facinated that Amie knew french. Before long, Amie was translating a short French paragraph. Following this, we were pressured heavily into a tour package. Sometimes it is nice to get a picture together - some people want money in return if you hand them your camera. Another rickshaw driver took us to an overpriced hotel with the same name as a guest house (the one where he got commission at). There are also scams where it is cheap to get some place but expensive to get back.

Aside from the travel hassles, we have had some great experiences. The Taj Mahal was amazing! So have some of the other experiences exploring ancient forts. We have had great experiences in restauants eating real Indian food that is much better than we have ever had before. Unfortunately, Amie and I both woke up with some Delhi belly this morning. We had to opt for some western type backpacker restaurants in order to hold it down.

-steve-

So we're in Rajasthan after spending our 2nd anniversary at the greatest love monument in the world, the Taj Mahal.

I'm still unsure what I really think about India. It certainly is difficult to get a straight answer from anyone...being white certainly doesn't help as we are walking dollar signs flashing in peoples' eyes. But I can't compare it to anything else I've seen.>

Stinking, dirty, dry and dusty Rajasthan with its princely heritage and fantastic monuments. Rickshaw drivers and commission touts who will rip anyone off to make a buck. Gorgeous saris fluttering in the wind, taking our minds off the polution and the overwhelming sent of urine in the streets. It's unlike anything I've ever experienced. And it is hard to determine whether I love it or hate it since I swing back and forth on the pendulum ever 2 minutes.

Transportation is otherworldly in the great Indian Universe. Steve and I spent an hour trying to find the right ticket counter at the Jaipur train station last night. When we finally got into the right line piles of people were squishing in and budging to the front from the sides. Finally we got to the front and bought our tickets, ran to the platform only to find that the train already left.

Stayed in a hotel last night, got sick this morning, took off on a bus for Pushkar where are now...a small, holy town with a welcoming backpacker's atmosphere.

It's all part of the experience, I suppose. The scams, the commission hounds, the rickshaws waiting like sharks to devour poor travellers. But it's something you've got to do...because India is changing us...I'm just not sure how yet.

-amie-

What an experience so far. We thought our Canada to London trip was annoying. That was nothing compared to last night. Now I know how we got our London-Delhi tickets for 200 pounds round trip - the plane went from London to Bahrain to Abu Dabi to Muscat and then to Delhi. We had a layover of at least an hour at each location! I still like plane food but we have eaten a little too much. Each leg fed us at least a meal an hour.

What an experience arriving in Old Delhi. After a wild taxi ride from the aiport (42 degrees outside), we were left in Old Delhi to fend for ourselves. The number of people on the streets, the smells, the random cows - everything is overwhelming. As we were standing in a guest house we wandered into, a snake dropped from who knows where. It was about 3 feet long. At first I thought this was just an everyday occurance. But as I pointed it out to someone, it started a little ruckus and everyone gathered around. The snake eventually slipped into a sewer hole - I hope they don't fall from our guest room cause we accidentally payed right before the unexpected falling visitor.

-steve-

So Steve and I finally arrived in Delhi this evening...about 5am Calgary time. We've been in transit for over 40 hours so it feels good to have our feet planted firmly on solid ground, no matter how much urine, Holy Cow dung, human bodies, garbage and other refuse litter the streets.

After dodging people, rickshaws, motorbikes and taxis through the really narrow streets of the Main Bazaar, we are content to just sit and write and connect to home for a bit.

We still haven't found an ATM that will take our bank cards, but we're still optimistic! And to be honest, the staring isn't as intense as in Egypt, so I'm feeling rather good about myself!

What a strange mix of smells! Incense, diesel, human waste, sewage, food. It bombards our senses with a different smell ever step. Truly a fabulous experience.

We have no clue what our plans are beyond tonight...possibly the Taj mahal tomorrow, possibly not! But we shall keep you posted.

Now, how about some Chai!

-amie-

It turned out to be a struggle between two things I enjoy doing - eating plane food and sleeping in the night. The flight from Canada to London is just too short. It is only 5 hours - they crammed in 2 meals and a couple movies and only had the lights off for 1 hour. So the only way to get any sleep was to skip all the meals and ignore everythign. We opted for the meals. So Amie and I ended up getting about 1 hour of sleep which left us crabby most of the first day we had to explore london. Aside from that we have had a good time seeing the sites and being tourists.

Of course the first thing we noticed was the prices - definitely one of the most expensive places on earth. I find it difficult to eat because I am always gasping as I do the conversions to Canadian dollars. Anyway, with a day pass on the Tube you can pretty much get everywhere and see all the interesting architecture from the outside. Some of the highlights so far were running into Prince Charles, meeting up with friends we worked with in Suriname (Egbert and Sieneke), and visiting Amie's friends from Egypt. Tonight we are off to India!.

-steve-