NEMY, INDIA ,INDIAN MUSINGS

MAY, 2011

PHOTOS of our continuation after POON HILL BREAKFAST.

and

NOT ALL WHO ARE LOST WANDER.

RANDOM MUSINGS FROM TRAVELS GONE BY.

INDIA

Having still the occasion to bolt around Kathmandu and Pokhara with taxis I hesitantly am reminded and write about one occasion in India.

I do quickly add that one taxi driver here in Nepal made his Indian counterparts look like they took driving lessons from Nana Mansfield.

I laugh now how at home I’m so calculating when it comes to mine or any travelling companions safety and were here we start to jump up and down when a cabbie has accepted our rock bottom price and quickly jump into his taxi that would immediately be refused at any North American Recycler because it was built long before any valuable man made materials existed. Many seemed to be of the rare makes that never were given a crash safety rating as they would always breakdown on the way to the impact wall. In all credit, many proved to be ideal subjects for side impact test as the minimum requirement of 10kmp was easy l achieved by the human push of the designer.

Upon planning our departure from various locales, we held impromptu meetings to arrive to a best mode and method. It was occasionally after these discussions the I set of and very proudly found, negotiated all the details, and endlessly bartered down the asking price. Then I beamed when such arranged vehicle would appear at our doorstep on time and I immediately started supervising the securement of our backpacks to the roof rack, made doubly sure that Kate and the girls were as comfortable as can be. It was then the driver announced our grand departure, generally before an audience of bell hops, strangers and most anybody walking by, that I excitedly jumped in the “passenger side” only to have a steering wheel face me. It was only once that I was modestly able to convey that I was carrying out a last minute safety check of all gauges, similar to what they would do before an Apollo Lunar launch that would only further instill a safe journey.

The other time I just plain old got out, sheepishly walk around with head held down as if I would be doing a tire ware inspection and then just got in. Now the only thing I had to deal with was that every time during our six to seven hour journey our driver would look at me and say nothing, I assumed that he was thinking that this stupid westerner had a 50/50 chance of opening the right door and he blew it.

I swore that once he purposely demanded a rest stop only to taunt me by doing his best Monty Hall impersonation, including the Contestant Queens that had legs the seem to go on forever. He would constantly be opening and closing his driver’s door as if I was to guess what’s behind door number three. Ya, I know. A gas, brake and clutch pedal.

I do have to note that there was one occasion were our driver seemed to completely ignore my door misadventure. Here I appreciated his total disregard of my action but just assumed he deemed me stupid long before our pick up for agreeing on our such negotiated price. 

Right hand drive is humbling both at rest and at speed

SHIMLA, INDIA

As we trekked another image came to mind. When you study the pictures from our expedition, try to visualize that every component of every structure and anything related had to be brought up the valley on the backs of either animal or man or woman. Our route was not some Disneyworld creation for the amusement of us trekkers with the more appropiate service roads tucked secretly behind. We had barely ventured in the valley. Countless villages laid, some 100kms beyond us that had to use the same route as we travelled. Most times not more than one meter wide and rarely flat.

We watch as both human and animal caravans past by carrying anything from sheets of corrugated metal, plywood, bags of cement, food goods and so much more that it is trying just to think of the effort.

This prompted me to write about a scene that we all observed in Shimla, India. Having been built on what seem rather impractical cliff/slope sides, there are parts today that are too steep and narrow to transport by even modern means goods to certain services. What we observed early in the day were lines of Kashmiris, Hillman from a section of India that borders Pakistan and the Tibetan Himalaya, acting as the local Sherpas. They would systematically line up, load cases upon cases of goods on their backs and then disperse throughout the town.

We all happened on a scene were two of these porters symiltaniously meet from two different directions atop ridiculous stair climbs. They met. Seemed to pay their respects and stood and started a dialogue

HOW YOU DOIN?

SEE THE GAME LAST NIGHT?

ANY BETTER LUCK TENT TRAINING YOUR NEW YAK?

HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO AFFORD EATING ANYTHING IN THE LAST WEEK?

SEEN ANY PAKASTANI INSURGENTS GUNNED DOWN LATELY?

It seemed to go on for a while.

The most striking image was the one had a refrigerator, not some wimpy dorm room model, strapped to his back. The other had what appeared was a 54” High Definition LCD TV on his. It didn’t look like a wall mount unit and he seemed to have the stand as well.

The only bright side to this story was neither appeared to be plugged in.