28.3.2008

In Nepal

Dont let the photo to fool you, that was the only nepal photo I could locate on this website. I have srossed the border today from Varanasi and currently in Lumbini for 2 nights.

It was rather chaotic journey, but I guess it could have been worse. I got to the train station at 11.30pm and found a group of people heading for the border also. Really funny bunch, who have been travelling on and off together for 3 months in India.

Marco, an 6'7" ex-basketball player from Italy, a young Dutch couple, Arte (from Finland)- the funkiest and scruffiest Finn I've ever met, Pablo from Argentian who used to have a jewelary stall in Camden, Miko a spanish guy...They reminded me once again that I am done with cheap travelling. Absolutely great people, but all have some condition like skin rash, blood in their s***, stomach bug...They like to eat the street food and really live like Indians...

The train journey didnt start well as we were delayed 2 hours so it was already 2.30am when we got on our coaches. For the first time I was travelling on Sleeper class, non-air con with the locals. It was dirty, had cockroaches running around, smelly toilets...All you would expect really. I tucked myself very well between my sarongs but there was a time I woke up with a baby cockroach on me!

So with all the anticipations I managed to get 3hr sleep, then sat down with the ladies on the bottom bunk, observing the indians, observing their observations of me also.

There is absolutely no logic, no thinking at all...Whenevr the train stopped at crossings an army of men got off to take a piss on the tracks, not going very far from it at all. There was one man who actually stood by the door that's never closed and hanged out his willy peeing, whilst there was a family looking out the window next to the door, probably getting their faces washed with the piss!

There were lots of young looking boys with their mobile phones, playing loud music 6 in the morning, people coughing, spitting, shouting at each other down the corridors...And again outside in the fileds, what looked like people contemplating squatting down but really they were taking a s***!

Anyhow we arrived around 8 am still in Indian borders, a bus journey away from the real border...But I will write about that tomorrow as the internet is getting rather slow here:)