Hjemsuk

Mussouri, 24/03/1994. Being hjemsuk is quite a new feeling to me but off late i seems to attack me more and more every day. Mussouri is quite a nice little hillstation used by the locals for holidaying and spending their honymoon. Like any other hillstation in India Mussouri has got it s own population of tibetan refugees who seem mostly employed as streetseller of clothes and junk.

An one armed monkey

Every so often i see or experience something here in thid country that is so typically indian that i can hardly believe my eyes, although this is really India after all. Just the other day i crossed bridge to the connects the two parts of Rishikesh, and smack there right in the middle of the bridge in the middle of Sahdus, mutulated beggar and poorly dressed women with small children all screaming out at me for baksheesh was this one armed monkey - the Rhesus Maque type - . I gave him an orange which he gratefully accepted and after eating it at ease he gazed up at me with a look that seemed to say .....MORE;MORE,MORE......

A Norwegian lady

Rishikesh, 23-03-1994. I had charming company with my dinner today, a 31 year old lady from Norway who is convinced that she needs her very own personal guru. I explained to her i believe what she really needs is a boyfriend. She paid the dinner

Local sexual frustations

Rishikesh, 22/03/1994. Just a few km. up along the Ganges from Rishikesh are some fine beaches populated by bikini clad female backpackers. Female white flesh aplenty and a shitload of trees to hide behind or plainly sit down on the beach and let your eyes feast on all that beauty from the rich west, that is the way the Indian male seems to think. Dressed in their holiday suits they come here in droves to watch that what in their culture is not be seen but here free and about. Such a effort to satisfy their sexual frustations, if they just knew the things i have seen as far as sex goes during my trips around the world they would probably go bonkers

A mystical place

Risikesh, 21/03/1994. Rishikesh is one of these holy places in India and does have a mystical feel to it with all the ashrams, sadhus and temples, the ambiance/or should i call it admosphere/is really laid back and tgough i smoked some charras last night with a bunch of people from London one does not need that mind enhancing stuff to feel at ease in Rishikesh. I just feel plainly relaxed here yago and meditations sessions or not.

A beatle s place

Rishikesh, 20/04/1994. The english band `the Beatles` came to Rishikesh to visit their Guru but i cannot be bothered to meet someone who can supposedly tell me the way to a more spiritual and happier life. I did take a small room in a ashram, though but that has more to do with the cheap price of the room and the quiet location of the ashram than the spiritual aspect of the place.The ashram is called Sri Ved Niketan and is the same place where i stayed in 1989 when last i visited Risikesh. I skip the free yoga and meditation sessions they offer in the sandy basement and instead stich to my daily walks around Risikesh. Like Hardwar forests aplenty and i am still in pursuit of wild elefants

Bags of water

Hardwar,19-03-1994. The yougsters in Hardwar seem to get their kicks from throwing plastic bags filled with water at unsuspecting foreign tourists passing them on the Bajaj motorbikes.Not a very pleasant experience despite the ever present heat. Did manage to get my hands on one of these shits and show him the results of maddening a western white backpacker. Now that was definitely not a very nice experience for him. I still spend time walking around the forests of Hardwar but apart from elefant dung, i am not in the luck of really seeing these elusive animals.

An old Bhramin

An old Bhramin bravely enters the river to take the obligatory bath even submerging his grey bearded head with long hair in the fast flowing river, okay guys i am impressed. The wooded hills around Hardwar are the tradional migration routes of wild elefants as i discovered today during a bicycle trip but these elusive elefants remain to be seen.

To wash away sins

Hardwar, 18-03-1994. Hardwar is full with hindu pelgrims who come here to wash away their sins. Since it is here in Hardwar that the Ganges leaves the Himalaya, it is the best place to wash away all sins, or so the locals believe.At night the they all assemble at the bathing Ghats where holy cows wander freely feeding on discarded waste and lost underwear. A local family with a mongoloid son asking me to make a family foto and people in light green uniform asking/demanding a donation while flapping little booklets in my face. Little boys selling postcards and adult vendors selling miniature boats made out of banana leaves containg flowers and a little candle -have i not seen this stuff in Thailand- . Some of these boats are bigger than others and i have no doubt the price has something to do with this. The river is lit up with all these boats and their burning candles, the religious significance i can only guess.

Short tempered

I am actually learning something about myself here in India. How short tempered i can sometimes be, or maybe it is just a culutral thing between me and the locals. To them i seem to be a source of entertainment, the way my telly is back home.

No beer, oh shit

Hardwar, 17-03-1994. since Hardwar is a holy town close to Badinath and Joshimath and located at the holy river The Ganges -evrything and any place seems to be holy here in Holy India- the place has no meat, devout hindus do not eat meat and like i said the place is holy to hindus like Shiva himself. Now, the meat i can do without but no alcohol in the local restaurants.......that really pisses me off, not even a beer and wine shop to be seen, how am i supposed to survive the long and imense boring nights in my hotek room? At least the days are interesting withexcursions to the numerous temples, all these so-called holy cows searching the garbage rich streets for anything eatable are quite a sight as well, but then i have been seeing that stuff for most of my stay here in this chaotic country.

Animals again

Wild elefants, seen in small groups with an old female leader, a group typically consist of females with young and young males, when males reach adulthood they leave the herd for a solitary lifestyle......Wild Boar,a main tiger pray. is very brave and can often be seen near human habitation and in forest where they dig up the earth for roots which they eat. Lives in groups of up to 20 animals......Hogdeer, usually seen in groups on open grassland......Gwarial,can be seen on sandy shingles basking in the sun.

Walking on my own.

Corbett, 16/03/1994, Today s elefant ride was not as fruitful as yesterday but a walk by myself offered me the exclusive sight of a mugger crocodile and a wild otter. In the water of the reservoir i saw meerjat fish playing. Returning to the Dikala tourist camp late afternoon the dutch people who gave me a ride at the gate a few days ago and an english birdwatcher with an encyclopeadic knowqledge on birdlife, we went birdwatching.

Elefant riding

Corbett, 15/03/1994. Today proved very fruitful as far as elefant riding can be concerned. Lots of wildlife with a herd of wild elefants as highlight. Actually elefant riding is big fun, They storm through the underground while you do your best to spot wildlife, and if you don t spot anything the ever watchful mahount will and point it out to you.

Corbett National Park

Corbett N.P. 15/03/1994. Luck was with me this morning at the gate of this magnificent national park named after a famous english tiger hunter during the days of the english Raj. Sitting in a watch tower near the visiting centre of the park i felt lucky again seeing mongoose, spotted deer, sambar and propably barasinga. Corbett is truly a beautiful national park with lots of wildlife. Since walking around the park can be suicidal /tiger attack/ you are absolutely prohibited from leaving Dikala, the main tourist camp in Corbett.

Dope dealing

The Owners of my hotel proposed me a deal today in a dusty and dirty back room of their hotel today, dope dealing to backpackers. No doubt they thought that me being a backpacker myself and being for a long time in India i would have the contacts and, off course would run the most risks. They showed me a big bag full with tolas of hashish while they prepared a chilam. Now the chilam full wit dope did get my attention but dealing dope at running the risk of ending up in an Indian jail did not so i had a few good hits from the chilam, a few swigs from the bottle of whiskey they had taken along to the backroom- no doubt to celebrate the possitive outcome of the negociations- and left for the dark streets of Ramnagar. Out of my head from the hashish and half drunk on the whiskey i was in the right state of mind to absorb all Indian streets have to offer.

A strong physical and mental attraction

Ramnagar,13-03-1994. Every so oftem i meet a lady with whom a instantenous share a strong physical and mental attraction, like Kerstin in Puri and Anne in Darjeeling and Sikim. Last night i met a beautifull mademoiselle from French who could speak perfect ESPANJOL. Unfortunately she left this very morning for New Dehli. Too bad but can not be helped.

Devouring dead buffalo

Ramnagar, 12-03-1994. Seeing a life wild animal is quite something, or at least when you take the time to let the sight sink in. Armed with a pair of binoculars and a sack of oranges as well as a canteen with fresh water i set out for a long walk this morning. Lots of animals in the woods around Ramnagar but a saw mostly birds and monkeys. A whole bunch of vultures devouring carcass of a dead buffalo was impressive enough to keep me captivated for a long time but i stuck to devouring my oranges instead of dead buffalo. Overhead i admired the antics of a big group of red banded green parakeets.

Muslims

Many people in this part of India which is geografically called The Gharwal Himalya And Kumaon are muslim. They are easy to recognise with their lunghis, their small white caps and the moustachless beards which depending on age, are streaked with gray or gray altogether.

My own recommendation

Ramnagar,11-03-194. A friendly local brought me from the Ramnagar bus station to the Gound Hotel where i found my very own recommendation from 24 june 1989 in their guestbook, talking about deja vu....The forested hill around Ramnagar are full with wildlife and provoke in me the lust to wander.

Irritations, no more.

Haldwani, 10-03-1994. After all the irritatios i have off late experienced with the locals i was pleasantly surprised by the offer of a local truck driver and his co to take me all the way Haldwani for a mere 15 rupee even offering me chai at a chai stop and giving me back the 5 rupee tip i gave them at the end of the ride. Some nice forests along the way which makes a pleasant change from all the cultivation i normally see outside the urban areas in India, a real big part of the Indian countryside is under cultivatio but then they have many mouths to feed in this Magic Place.

animals in Dudhwa

Swampdeer, alone or in small groups, always in thickly forested areas.......Leopard,very rarely seen. likes to eat dogs and monkeys..........noisy local families usually well dressed and belonging to the middle- or upper class, i make long walks to avoid them.

A heavy situation

Dudhwa National Park, 08-03-1994.Trying to check in at Dudhwa N.P. headquarters a whole bunch of young well dressed indians-probably middle class by the looks of it-followed me into the office keen on having a bit of fun on behalf of the foreign tourist namely me. After a lot of stupid giggling while i was trying to check in and get some sort of cheap accomodation, one of them got brave and, trying to show off to his mates, slapped me gently under my chin. That did it. I immidiately lost my temper and threw them all out of the office using quite a bit of violence and harsh words. Iwas already from the little morning adventure back at the hotel in Palia where the owner while i checked out all of a sudden demamnded my passport and that i fill out all sorts of pappers. I was pretty sure some sort of money extrating scheme was in the iar so i refuse and threathened to not pay for the 2 chai i drank in the restaurant the night before. To save face he gave his employees a hard time, at least that brightened my mood. Back at Dudhwa N>P> the manager of the park headquarters gave the well dressed youths a hard time for slapping me unprovoked in the face telling them they got the wipping i gave them welldeserved, that too brightened my mood considerably.

the Queen s english

Although i am not really off the beaten tourist track in Palia, the last remnants of the Queen s english have pretty much disappeared and all the problems that arrise in India with uneducated locals with no education what so ever in their heads run their usual amok state. For some locals is seems absolutely impossible to grasp the idea of conversing with a foreign tourist, not even on the most basic level.

A room with a colour TV

Palia,07/04/1994. This place is only 5 km. from Budhwa N.P. and my room even has a colour television set, only one channel working though, how come i am not surprised?
The room also has two toilets, one european and one squat style toilet, they look very funny being placed next to each other. I have not yet figured out which one i will use, they both look equally dirty though.

A seperate reality

Lucknow. 06/04/1994. This not such a big city is just a over night stop on my way to Budhwa National Park and a place to chill out after Varanasi. Feeling very happy to leave Varanasi and be on the move again i finally had time to reflect on my life there. Somehow all these Bangh/lassies i consumed started to give me feeling i had come to live in a seperate reality,honestly speaking i been having that feeling ever since i arrive back in India, Bangh/lassies or not.

Coppers at night

Varanasi,05-02-1994Once again trying to negociate my way back to my hotel, my head totally fucked on cheap charras and several Bangh-lassies and full with all the stories Mickey has told me of his native Hawaii and his life over there completely given over to drugs, sex, booze and rock and roll, i all of a sudden get completely paranoid about all the cops idly toting big guns while patrolling all the small alleys around my hotel. I have seen them all around Varanasi and came to the conclusion there are here to keep a eye open in case of trouble Varanasi being a holy city with a Muslim minority, but now in this weird state of mind i am in............they could decide to rob me, shoot me, fuck me up the ass mayor..... instead i manage once more to make it back to my cockroach inhabited room get down on the bed and ignore the smiling massive spiders whose beady eyes follow my every move, i know they are waiting for me to drop off to dreams of Magic Land so they can without any opposition of my site devour my body leaving the left overs to the bredthren,the cockroaches on the floor. I will leave this weird and crazy place tommorrow first thing.......

More Mean Bangh-lassies

Varanasi,04-02-1994. Like at teh bazaars of Calcutta, the endless maze of small alleys that are part of focal point of Varanasi and bazaars hold an eternal fascination for me, especially after consuming a Bangh-lassie and late at night. Most allys are even too small for rickshaws althought these guys will give it a try any way. My Bangh-lassie i consume in a chai shop and charras come out of a hole in some wall or other, just a hand poking out and handing you your dope demanding a handfull of dirty rupies in return. It is easy enough to find my way around but after all the charras i smoke and the Bangh-lassies the place becomes outer-worldly and i start to freak out, with all the shadows caused by late night cooking pots and all the Holy Cows that roam these small alleys, the sounds from the nearby garage like shops quite litarally do my head in but somehow i always seem to make it back to my little hotel room where small spiders inhabit the walls and ceiling, enormous cockroaches crawl around on the concreet carpet free floor. In my present state of mind i could scream but instead i just go my small one person bed and try to sleep it all off in blissful Shiva given oblivion of the dream world.

Mickey the freak

I met Mickey today who was with me in the dormitory in hotel Maria back in Calcutta a few weeks ago. We smoked chilam together and had a Bangh-lassie, they do have some mean Bangh-lassies in Varanasi. I spend most of my early evenings at the Ghats with a cup of sweet chai and watch life go by.

The Ghats

Along the the river are the world famous Ghats which are used to burn the bodies of dead relatives, for bathing in the holy water of the Ganges which cleanses the soul of all sins. The local Durga temple was full with monkeys and therefore nicknamed "Monkey temple" but unfortunately non-accessable ton non-hindus which includes me, too bad but at least i saw the outside.

Varanasi

Varanasi, 02-03-1994. At the other side of the holy river the Ganges which is full with playful sweet water dolfins and dirty like hell,an old fort is situated and accessable to the public. The fort itself is not much fun but makes a nice day s excursion the way i see it. The place house a dirty and dusty museum that contains a set of rusty weapons one used to cut peoples heads off and now there to amuse the foreign visitors. Don t worry about the rust, that is dried up blood mister. hahahaha

Chaotic Indian Life

Varanasi, 28-02-1994. Together with Anne i took the bus to Siliguri and on to Varanasi leaving beautifull Sikim and its friendly inhabitants behind, back into the chaotic scenes of India. The weird and almost incomprehensible chaos of daily indian life, trains that are cancelled, people that refuse to understand even your most basic questions < hoping for baksheesh really > street husters, irritating rickshaw wallahs that never seem to be able to bring you to your destination, fowl exhaust fumes from the indescibable chaotic trafic that is constantly fucked up, let us not forget all the stary animals that criss-cross the dirty streets at will. I wonder how long it will take for my tolerance to drop to the zero level again.

Pancakes

Geysing, 26-02-1994. The shortcut from Pelling to Geysing goes straight down the mountain but Anne and Sandra did not complain, obviously being hardy ladies and travel hardened. Our hotel in Geysing is called Nonim but I mbaptised it into No Name, the place is really in the middle of no where with extreme nr. of guests. The locals in the hotel asked the ladies to show them how to make western pancakes for witch they carched us afterwards, funny.

Pelling

Pelling, 25-02-1994. Making a hike way above Gangtok in misty and magnificent scenery I ran into Anne and Sandra who where on the way to Pemayangse Monastery inviting me to come along. This monatery is the oldest in Sikim and we arrived just in time to witness Puja-the religious gonig on-Two rows of monks seated and facing each other chanting, beating a drum and blowin away at big steel trumpets with a haed monk seated at the top of the row on a slight elevation, around these monk i see idols of local deities and -presumably- a statue of Buddha. In another room we see a replica which took one monk five full years to built and what they call the perfect heaven. The monks in Sikim are dressed in bright red to deep red robes and wear only wooden sandals on their bare feet, i try not to think of the biting cold in this place.

Sikim busses

Every second shop in Gangtok seems to have to be a "beer and wine shop", handy to help me while away the boring, cold and lonely nights in my extremely dirty hotel. I don t dare to leave on the wood fed rusty heather in my room of fear of suffocating during my sleep. The Sikimese busses in this small Himalyan state are so small i bumb my head everytime i need to get up from my hard wooden seat.

Phodang

Gangtok, 23-02-1994. taking my backpack with me on the 2,5 h. bustrip to Phodang this morning. I felt fit and ready for a strenuous hike in forested and mountainous terrain, the purpous of my hike was the monastery of Phodang on top of a steep hill. Arriving at the place i found most of the residing tibetan monks involved in full prayer ceremony chanting and making religious music. The murals of the inner sanctum took my breath away. In a small room in the back i found more muralsand a lone monk chanting in a loud voice, the murals depicted devils and demons, scenes out of a hellish world looked like something out of a bad LSD trip. With the lone monk starting to bang away at a gigantic drum and throwing yak milk aroundcompleted the other worldly feeling.