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say cheese… Jon even went out and bought me the deluxe version (10Rs instead of 5Rs) of the taj mahal in the snow globe key chain after our visit. The deluxe verison, he was told, is more special because it has extra liquid in it and therefore the snow falls more gently.

Still beautiful after hundreds of years.

Jon says “the biggest frustration so far in India had been my stomach, our North American stomach’s needs time to get use to food abroad. Today, I decided enough is enough. There is too much great food on the streets of India, and I wasn’t going to miss out on it anymore. So I had lunch on the street today, I cant tell you the name of the dish, and I cant say it was the most amazing meal I have ever had, but it felt great to be able to sample what most people here eat. Today for me it was some kind of fried mashed potato with chilies, tomatoes, and chickpeas, with mango sauce. Ok, got to go, time to sample the street side desserts.”

We decided to stop in Orchha on our way to Agra for a few nights. Not knowing much about this small town before arriving, we have been pleasantly surprised. Set in a beautiful landscape the town is surrouned by the ruins of old palaces and temples. Today we wandered around the Raj Mahal Palace.  Although a little  neglected, we could still see the forgotten beauty of times past and we were inspired by the Medival Indo Muslim architecture.  It felt as though we travelled to a different time as we wandered through long corridors and stone courtyards and overgrown landscapes always with the songs resonating from distant temples.

Jon and I rented bikes in Khajuraho and visited the several temples around the town site. The temples are famous for their erotic sculptures and we found our visit most interesting even though the area is quite touristy. The season is just starting and the shop keepers were fighting for our attention. We had a great afternoon riding bikes and getting lost in a tropical down pour.

We got up early this morning to take a boat ride up the Ganges River. This is a picture of Raul and his friend… Raul is the son of the boat owner. His uncle  was taking us on the tour with 2 other people from New York. Raul told me his other uncle owned a silk shop and if I would like he would take me there after. He has grown up on the bank of the Ganges. Over tea we talked about all the garbage thrown into the river. He told me he did not think it was good for the river but that everyone does it. There is a lot of praying going on in Varanasi. I pray for the life of the river.

We are here! Staying at the Ganpati Guest House by the River Ganges. The Durga festival was in full swing last night with the dumping of iconic statues, of all sizes, into the river, lots of music, dance, sweets and ceremonies. If you want to read more about it check out www.durga-puja.org

We are back in Delhi. We have to wait 2 days to catch the train to Varanasi so here we go again. We have to say that we like it better this time but we still have to deal with the touts and the endless schemes to rip us off. Today when we arrived at the train station we were told by “official agent” (he had a badge and everything) that we were at the wrong place had that we had to go to this other office to get tickets. When we arrived at office they told us no tickets were available for a week but they could sell us a packaged deal to another destination of our choice, private driver, hotels, etc.. After much consideration and some argument between Jon and I, we decided to pass and return to the hotel we stayed at when we first arrived. We checked with the agent there about tickets and sure enough we were able to book a train ticket to Varanasi.

Over dinner Jon and I  discussed our travel plans plans for the remainder of our trip. He was thinking that the organized tour sounded not so bad and perhaps we wouldn’t have to deal with all the hassles from people trying to rip us off and that having things organized for us would leave more time for relaxation and contemplation. I disagreed and said that I felt that the magic of travel is entirely about the journey and this can only be done on your own, not led to from safe point A to safe point B.  For me it is about who you meet along the way, the element of surprise and spontaneity, the faith and freedom of choice.

So here we sit, slightly divided on our thoughts and plans for the future, and wonder what you think about this matter… I know everyone travels differently (mom) so we put the question out there?

Day one of our trek was pretty easy other than the walking in the hot desert sun and getting a bit of heat stroke on the way. We really enjoyed our stay at the Guest House and wished we could stay longer. The family exuded friendliness and even though they spoke very little English, we felt very comfortable. Day 2 started with a very beautiful walk down a river to the Rizong Monastery and then a long walk up, up up and over a mountain to Hemis Shukpa Chan for our 2nd night. Our guide and Jon were really fast on the way up but I took my time and when I finally made it to the summit, I was very happy!

“I am getting stronger, every step of the way”

On our journey on the Sham Trek we had the great honor to experience Ladakhi hospitality at our guest house in Yangtang. Our wonderful hostess prepared for us the most amazing meals on her wood and cow dung stove. We also had the pleasure of trying “Chang”, a locally made alcohol from barley.

We have visited a few Monasteries since arriving in Ladakh. Although we find the them charming with their winding stairways and endless narrow alleys and friendly monks, we always feel a little out of place as we know very little about Buddhism and this way of life. As well, as Jon noted everything is built very small… watch the head. We tread lightly. The monks are always friendly and we have been invited for tea occasion.

When we arrived at the Likir Monastery we were awestruck/inspired with the larger than life golden statue of Buddha and had to sit for quite awhile in his presence.

Poster created by Teacher at Secmol

While in Secmol, we harvested Sea Buckthorn which grows wild everywhere around here. It is quite thorny and the berries small so the best way to get the berries off the bush is to beat it with a stick and let the berries fall to to ground. We placed plastic underneath to catch them. Upon returning to the campus we washed and separated the leaves/stalks from the berries. After cleaning, we left them in the sun to dry. They will use these to make juice in the spring.

Yesterday I taught an English class and I am also working on a new design for the campus newsletter with some of the students. Each day, we also take part in daily conversation classes. Jon has been cooking almost daily with the camp cook and he is learning to make delicious food with minimal tools and ingredients. Tomorrow the main cook is taking the day off and Jon will be cooking for everyone … breakfast, lunch and dinner plus tea x 2, I will help with another volunteer from Germany. Life is pretty basic but nice and the days float by with a peaceful rhythm. Now that we have figured out how to have a warmish shower/bath by putting a bucket of water out in the sun each morning, we are a just that much more happy.

We have arrived at Secmol where we will volunteer for the next 3 weeks. The internet is slow and the power goes out a lot so we will post more later : )

1. On the Bend Go Slow Friend
2. Work in Progress Inconvenience Regretted
3. Don’t Gossip Let Him Drive
4. After Whiskey Driving Risky
5. Beep Beep Don’t Sleep
6. Saftey on the Road is a Safe Tea at Home
7. It’s Not a Rally Enjoy the Valley
8. I am Curvaceous Be Slow
9. Say No to Plastic Let This Planet Alive
10. If You Love Her Divorce Speed

We arrived in Leh last night after a 2 day trip from Manali. We thought the trip to Manali from Shimla was frightening. We had no idea. 2 days to travel approximately 450km. The highest point was at 5500m. We are feeling the effects of the altitude and have decided to take it easy today. Tomorrow we might take in the Ladakh Confluence Music Festival before we start volunteering.

Manali is in the mountains surrounded by beautiful forest, and there is a river separating the old and new part of town. There are some good places to eat, accommodation for every budget, lots of little shops and temples… the flora and fauna consists of large marijuana plants growing wild along the streets. This is a meeting point between the North and South. Soon we will head North. I wish I could stay longer. “Yaks are awesome!!”

There are a lot of things to buy in Manali. Some really cool and others, well… We saw our first snake charmer today but decided not to pay for a picture. Though, we did pay the angora rabbit lady.

We arrived in Manali last night from Shimla. Although the distance is just under 300km the journey took 9 hours. When we weren’t avoiding snakes, reptiles, cows, monkeys, dogs and people, we were dodging dump trucks, other buses, cars, motorcycles and even a bicycle (we saw that guy we met in Delhi who rode his bike from Austria). With the windy road, continuous bumps, near head on collisions and sheer cliff drop offs, we were wondering how we would fare by the end of the day. Surprisingly, the trip didn’t seem all that long. Our driver stopped for breakfast and lunch and we ate the best Indian food as of yet. He also stopped at a beautiful roadside temple as did most other drivers, pulling onto the side of a narrow highway and blocking the traffic, to ring the bell and say a prayer, perhaps the reason we arrived safe. Manali is beautiful and clean and the cheapest place so far. We have a nice room overlooking the river for just under $10 a night.

We predict Shimla will be overtaken by monkeys soon. On our visit to the local temple on Jakhoo hill (2455m), dedicated to Bhagwan Hanuman, we felt confident we could deal with this monkey business (ahhh, they’re so cute). On the way we saw signs “Sticks for Rent, Only 10 Rupees”. We decided to save our money and bypass the sticks, what harm can a cute little monkey do.

Jon didn’t even see her coming as she jumped from behind to snatch his glasses. A mom with her baby, no less. We were forewarned just before  about the monkey thieves so Jon had a firm hold on his glasses and was lucky enough to save them from getting pinched. He did walk away with a nice scratch down the right side of his face. Purchased a stick after that, for the way down and gained a whole new respect for monkeys and the monkey god.

My first elephant. Wanted to reach out and touch him/her but did not want to fall out of the auto rickshaw.

On our last day in Delhi and we still have much to see. Today we visited the Mosque of Jama Masjid, the largest mosque in India. We also went to the Red Fort. Our rickshaw driver tried to convince us that it was closed, and that we could only take pictures from the outside so we would stay in his rickshaw and pay the fare back to our hotel, we trusted our gut and got out… oh those Rickshaw drivers, little head wiggle. The Red Fort is vast, and beautifully ornate. Walking around, I couldn’t help but think how strange it was that people would build such grand palaces for their emperor’s.

First day of wondering around New Delhi… We visited the beautiful Lotus temple, and learned more about the Bahai Faith, www.bahaindia.org. We also got lost and when we finally got a taxi we discovered the chaotic art of driving in India.

Not sure what day or time it is but we have made it through our first day in Delhi. The Paharganj area is far nothing we could have imagined. Tomorrow we are on a mission to find the Apple store and visit the Lotus Temple. At dinner we met a guy who biked here from Austria, really!

On our way, soon. Leave 8pm tonight from Vancouver, Canada. Arrive 6am August 17th in Delhi, India.