Yikes, wrote this up yesterday then the power went out so I saved it on the desktop. Luckily the place opened on time so I can update real quick before we have to leave for our flight in an hour!
I am quite a bit behind so I will try to summarize. Liz, Jessie, and I parted ways in Delhi and I began my travels with Greg. On the 4 AM taxi ride to the IGI Airport, the taxi driver asked me if I "have marriage" or a girlfriend, then told me I was very handsome.
Our taxi driver in Calcutta, on the other hand, got lost at least 17 times on the way to the center of the touristy section of town, demanded a tip, and wouldn't take our 20 rupee bill because it had a small rip in the edge. (We did not figure out until two days later that people in Calcutta don't fancy taking ripped money bills from you.)
The Sudder Street area of Calcutta perhaps involved even more people hassling you to buy something or visit their shop than Pahar Ganj. Nobody told me I had nice hair, though.
The highlight of the area was a small shack with a green tarp roof where an old man and a young boy worked diligently preparing food all day. After my pathetic attempts to order food in Hindi (when the main language of the region is actually Bengali) they served up a delicious plate of food for only 10 rupees - how sweet of them not even to try to rip me off. They could have quadrupled the price and I would have thought it was reasonable.
The five day quest to try all the exotic looking street food (sodas, fruit salads, weird ass protein milkshake) surprisingly did not harm my stomach, and it was not until pristine Ramnagar when I got what I termed dysentery. (In reality, it was simply a 24-hour lack of any kind of digestion, coupled with a lack of any kind of pain.) A course of ciphro cleared it right up but I do feel bad for anyone who happened to ask me how I was feeling those three days.
Yes, I did jinx myself, saying that I know I can trek with a stomach virus - I definitely had some eventful rest stops on the first day of our small trek through beautiful Kumaon.
December 1st saw the start of my Month of Meditation (to be followed by other months of meditation.) It's been 6 days now of trying to clear my brain for 15 minutes every morning. I can't say I've become any more focused, but I have been much less frustrated at the moderate lack of focus that I encounter.
Seeing old friends in Ramnagar and making new friends was.. nurturing, spiritual, incredible, beginning of a beautiful lifelong thing!
Now we are in Kathmandu, leaving for Pokhara tomorrow. The process of obtaining my Thai visa will cut into a week of my teaching time in Pokhara, since I will have to go back to KTM. Darn processing times.
A celebration beer is waiting for me due to the fact that I GOT MY FIRST GRAD SCHOOL ACCEPTANCE so more on Nepal later.
Pearl of wisdom for anybody who's made it this far:
You see others as you are, not as they are, more than you think. So set the intention to be at your very best and you will be surprised how good people are to you.
Good night!
I am quite a bit behind so I will try to summarize. Liz, Jessie, and I parted ways in Delhi and I began my travels with Greg. On the 4 AM taxi ride to the IGI Airport, the taxi driver asked me if I "have marriage" or a girlfriend, then told me I was very handsome.
Our taxi driver in Calcutta, on the other hand, got lost at least 17 times on the way to the center of the touristy section of town, demanded a tip, and wouldn't take our 20 rupee bill because it had a small rip in the edge. (We did not figure out until two days later that people in Calcutta don't fancy taking ripped money bills from you.)
The Sudder Street area of Calcutta perhaps involved even more people hassling you to buy something or visit their shop than Pahar Ganj. Nobody told me I had nice hair, though.
The highlight of the area was a small shack with a green tarp roof where an old man and a young boy worked diligently preparing food all day. After my pathetic attempts to order food in Hindi (when the main language of the region is actually Bengali) they served up a delicious plate of food for only 10 rupees - how sweet of them not even to try to rip me off. They could have quadrupled the price and I would have thought it was reasonable.
The five day quest to try all the exotic looking street food (sodas, fruit salads, weird ass protein milkshake) surprisingly did not harm my stomach, and it was not until pristine Ramnagar when I got what I termed dysentery. (In reality, it was simply a 24-hour lack of any kind of digestion, coupled with a lack of any kind of pain.) A course of ciphro cleared it right up but I do feel bad for anyone who happened to ask me how I was feeling those three days.
Yes, I did jinx myself, saying that I know I can trek with a stomach virus - I definitely had some eventful rest stops on the first day of our small trek through beautiful Kumaon.
December 1st saw the start of my Month of Meditation (to be followed by other months of meditation.) It's been 6 days now of trying to clear my brain for 15 minutes every morning. I can't say I've become any more focused, but I have been much less frustrated at the moderate lack of focus that I encounter.
Seeing old friends in Ramnagar and making new friends was.. nurturing, spiritual, incredible, beginning of a beautiful lifelong thing!
Now we are in Kathmandu, leaving for Pokhara tomorrow. The process of obtaining my Thai visa will cut into a week of my teaching time in Pokhara, since I will have to go back to KTM. Darn processing times.
A celebration beer is waiting for me due to the fact that I GOT MY FIRST GRAD SCHOOL ACCEPTANCE so more on Nepal later.
Pearl of wisdom for anybody who's made it this far:
You see others as you are, not as they are, more than you think. So set the intention to be at your very best and you will be surprised how good people are to you.
Good night!
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