The following four posts are from a 30 day journey taken through Northern India with my daughter Courtney back in the summer of 2001. When she was 5 years old, I promised her we would make a long journey together when she graduated high school. Her ceremony was on June 6th and we left for India on June 8th.

Travelling in India is hard, and we had some uncomfortable times. Much of the tone of the writing reflects this discomfort, and the whole thing could use a good edit. I've chosen not to do that because I wanted it to share the original material composed in cybercafes along the way.

Keep in mind that the posts are listed in reverse chronological order. The most recent is first. If you want to follow the whole trip from beginning to end, scroll down to the post dated, Wednesday, June 13, 2001. It's the first missive from India.

I've added some of my photographs here. To see more pictures from this trip and others, please visit my website at: www.speignerphoto.com. To read my Mexico travelog click here.

We arrived in Dharamsalla (actually Mcleod Gang-the upper town) 6 days ago. Our trip here began in Pushkar where we left town just as a torrential monsoon rain was arriving. It got kinda scarry and I got pretty freaked when the rain was coming down in sheets and the Ambassador car we were in had no functioning wipers. The situation is bad enough on American roads where there are lanes and people actually stay within them. But here in India where "road chicken" is how traffic is done, I totally freaked out and made a bit of a scene. I calmed down when the rain subsided some and I became convinced the road was not nearly so heavily travelled as others we had been on.

The taxi got us to our train connection at Merta Road Station in Rajasthan in plenty of time, we were two hours early, and the train was on time. Our boarding was the best yet. The car was actually marked with the number; we were the only ones boarding that car; and no one was getting off as we were getting on. Just when you think you can predict something about Indian trains they fool you.

There was a nice young Indian man who was the only other person in our compartment. He was in the Indian Air Force and worked in Pathankot (our train destination and connection for the bus trip the rest of the way) as an air traffic controller. He sort of took us under his wing, showing us where we were on the map during our 19 hour journey, and later took us to the bus station via a shortcut saving a couple hundred meters, which with the weight of our bags was most welcome. 

When we got to the bus station we discovered there was no bus Dharamsalla for another three hours, but there was a local bus to Guggal, 18 km away. We boarded with me maiking a big deal about "going to Guggal", "is this bus going to Guggal" "were going to Guggal", stupid stuff like that. I just liked the sound of Guggal, and by that time I was tired and a bit delerious.

Interestingly the ticket taker on the bus looked kinda like a dark skinned version of my ex father in-law, Don Nichols. He was thin frame and face, fine features and glasses that were exactly the same. He also joked around with the regulars on the bus in a manner not unlike Don's. Small world. I told him of the resemblance and he laughed and shook my hand in a sort of bonding jesture.When we deboarded the bus in Guggal, a swarm of mini-van type taxis litterally swooped down upon us. We didn't even have all our bags off before they were calling out to us "Hello sir. Dharamsalla?". Seeing I was in a buyers market I went from cab to cab getting qoutes, took the lowest bid and 30 minutes later we were here. All totalled the trip from Pushkar took about 26 hours.

Needeless to say the next day we were not worth much and so did not do a whole lot. But we did manage to get tickets to a cultural show for the next evening at the Tibetan Institute for the Performing Arts (TIPA). That show was a lot of fun. It lasted nearly two hours with a 10 minute intermission. All the performers wore elaborate Tibetan costumes and sang and danced to traditional folk songs.

On July 6th, the Dalai Lama's birthday, Courtney and I went to Tsuglagkhang, the compound containing his residence and temple, to see what was going on. There again were many performers in traditional elaborate costumes singing and dancing. Unfortunately we could get no where within site of the stage to watch, but we could hang around in the open area behind where the stage was and so got to see them rehearsing and posing for pictures.
While we were there we met a Tibetan Buddhist monk who asked where we were from and then said "follow me" in a sort of authorative tone. We complied and shortly found ourselves sitting in his tiny room eating Tibetan cookies and drinking butter tea. After several minutes of struggling small talk, he got to what seemed to be the point of his hospitality. He showed us a picture of a young Tibetan refugee whom he had taken as a student. The letter with the picture xeroxed on it said that the boy was in need of sponsorship and that any amount contributed would be appreciated. I gave as generously as I felt I could afford, and the nmonk thanked me. Then, as swiftly as we were invited, we were politely ushered out saying "today, very busy, must go now". We left with mixed feelings of, gratitude for the opportunity to be in the monks private quarters sharing food and drink and, wonder "had be been had?" We decided to see it positively and I still am gratefull. I think the funds are being put to good use.

Most of the rest of our stay has been enjoying the beautifull mountain air and scenery. It is much cooler here than anywhere we've been in India. There are evergreen trees and lush grassy terraces that can be seen from the privacy of our wonderful corner room with big windows on two sides.

The weather has been better too. It has rained a little. The night before last though we awoke to a fantastic electrical storm that rumbled and roared for more than 25 minutes. The flashes were distant and behind clouds but they light up the countryside with the frequency of a neon light with it's ballast going out. We sat mesmerized with the curtains opened and watched the whole scene from the warmth of our room. The streets flooded and the next day we were curious to see what had washed away.

Forturnately nothing significant was lost, and in fact the rain seemed to wash the streets and the air. Yesterday we actually had sunshine and clean cool air for much of the day. It was great.

Writing from a CyberCafe not 100 meters from His Holiness the Dalai Lama's residence and temple compound in Daramshalla, Himachal Pradesh, India, we are nearing the end of our Indian adventure. We did not get a chance to meet His Holiness in  apublic audience as we hoped but we have had a great time with each other and within ourselves. I'm sure the effects of this journey will shape us and touch us in ways that we are not yet even aware of.

For me I am so grateful to have had this amount and quality of time with my beautiful and brilliant daughter before she heads of for college and begins making her own life.

Well, finally I get the opportunity to update our web page. It's been two weeks and we've done a lot of travelling since the last post. I'll try to capture at least some of the highlights and details of our adventures since June 16th.

First off, we did move to another place in Varanasi, the Hotel Alka, located right above the Ghats where we could see, and hear, all the activities of the devotees bathing, swimming, etc. in their sacred Ganga (Ganges River). The accomodations were a bit spare, dirty and alittle buggy (Courtney would probably describe them in less couched terms) but cheap and ideally located. We navigated our way into and out of the place through cramped, narrow, shit lined (cows are everywhere) paths but amazingly we had fun.

We left Varanasi after a total of 5 nights, bound for Rishikesh by train. We thought our tickets were valid all the way, but when we got to Hardiwar (after 22 hours including a 1-1/2 hour delay departing Varinasi) they disconnected our car from the rest of the train and told us we would have to get off. No worties though, we threw our packs on our backs and set off for the nearby bus stand and got a local bus the rest of the way (about 4) kilometers).

While waiting for the train in Varanasi, one shoed up on the track ours was supposed to depart from at about the time we were supposed to leave. We figured, this is India, so a little late is to be expected, and boarderd the train. Boarding an Indian train, sleeper class, is no simple feat. You have to fight and claw your way past people getting off at the same time. Now I know what you're thinking, "why don't you just wait for the disembarking passengers to get off the train, like a civilized human?". That's what I thought, but the fact is everyone does it this way and if you don't you can't get anywhere. Barbaric? Maybe but it's how it is. Anyway, we got on board, finally, got all our stuff settled and comfortable and sat down. A lttle voice told me I should just check to insure this was indeed the right train. A couple minutes later I bounded back onboard and yelled at Courtney "Get your stuff, honey, this train is going to Bombay." We rushed off board and then the dang thing sat for another 45 minutes before it left.

Stayed at a lovely plce in Rishikesh, the High Banks Peasant Cottage. It's a family owned three room accomodation above their home. It's gorgeous, with a balcony looking out over the garden, valley and across to the steep Himalyan foothills (anywhere else they'd be called mountains).

We loved it there. Met some very nice people: an Australian woman (Tammy) travelling on her way to work in England, an Indian man from Kerala (Manoj) travelling with his Italian companion (Rosie), and a British chap vacationing from his teaching job in Poland (Craig). We also got to an enjoy evening Pooja at Triveni Ghat, and one afternoon found our way up river to meditate away from the madness and close to nature.

From Rishikesh we travelled to Haridwar by shared taxi with Manoj and Rosie. We bought tickets for New Delhi and boarded in the same car as our friends. After several minutes of Manoj haggling with the others in the berth we settled into our 5 hour ride. The most remarkable thing about that journey was the face on the man actross from us. It looked like it was draw by Salvodar Dali. Like those dripping clocks in that famous painting, the right side of the man's face drooped down to where his ear touched his collar bone. It looked uncomfortable and strange, but he seemed to be fully functional, helping his family load and unload luggage, conversing with others, etc.

In New Delhi, Manoj tried valiantly to help us arrange onward transport to Jaipur before he had to give up his quest and catch his train to Bombay. It was a bit of a scramble in New Delhi. Everyone there acts like they are trying to help you but in fact what they are doing is offering misinformation to steer you to there commission producing and costly solution to your travel needs. We had to actually push past 5 teenage punks going upstairs in the train station to get to the Government of India Tourist Assistance Area. They said it was closed for lunch.

We were not able to get a train to Jaipur and had to take the bus, which worked out fine. This hard won information came after first travelling across town to the Old Delhi train station by way of an auto rickshaw that ran out of gas about 150 meters from the station. I am so glad we purchased backpacks for luggage. Once we finally got settled on the bus and about to leave town, we developed some sort of travellers hysteria laughing at all the craziness that had gone on. Then on board came the first of several "pitch men" selling jewelery, etc. in polished monotone sermons. I told Courtney that he rieminded me of a stewardess demonstrating how to use an oxygen mask, that's when we both "lost it". Next boarded a guy who was selling these little plastic spigots used to get juice from an orange. His demonstration was so persuasive that we both bought one at 10RS each (about 25 cents ea.).

Our 6 hour bus ride put us in "The Pink City" at 11pm. We stayed at the Hotel Arya Niwas and were thrilled with the cleanliness of the room. Actually, it spoiled us, as for only $10 US per night it was by far the nicest place we've stayed in our entire trip. The next day we mostly vegged out, went to see the fantastic astronomical instruments at Jantar Mantar and booked a trip to Ranthambore National Park for the next day.

On the morning of the 28th we got up early to go to Sawai Madhopur (closest town to the park) via taxi. The trip was bumpy and a little frightening in the sense that driving in India frequently involves these "chicken" like situations that look like you're going to end up in a head on crash until the last moment when one driver swerves to let the other by. Actually I think it's safe because all the drivers seem to be paying an extraordinary amount of attention to what the other guy is doing. Anyone trying to talk on a cell phone while driving in India would have be compolely out of their mind.

The park at Ranthambore was exquisite. We got wet from a monsoon storm but it did not dampen our spirits. We experienced such beauty and peace there. The country side is rich with flora and fauna with tenth century ruins of Maharaja's palaces and forts spread throughout the place. We did not get to see a tiger but we did see spotted deer, gazelle, summer deer, storks, antelope, peacocks and many other creatures. The day was a little more expensive than we had been budgeting, and the trip was long and ardouous (4 hours each way plus three in the jeep in the park) but was very much worth it. If I ever come back to India I will make a point of staying several days near a park like this and going on several "safaris".

One more day was spent in Jaipur, again basically recovering from the day before. The highlights being; a visit in the afternoon to Pizza Hut, where I actually became homesick and wept because it was so like being back in America; and a trip in the evening to the Ram Bagh Palace (a Taj Hotel) to see a traditional music and dance performance. It was very beautiful there and the dancers amazing. They danced while balancing stacks of bowls and glasses and such on their heads. One guy balanced a big clay pot filled with water on top of four water glasses on top of his head then danced and performed amazing feats such as walking on broken glass and even breaking glass with the heels of his feet. All this was done to a lovely melody and driving beat.

One more bus journey, yesterday, brought us to where we are now Pushkar. A holy town on a sacred lake surrounded by ghats whre people bath and worship all day and apparently all night. The noisy poojas went on well past my falling asleep last night and were there to wake me this morning. The town seems to be a little more easygoing. That is the hawkers arn't quite as voracious as I've seen elsewhere, with a few exceptions. A group of gypsy women shook hands with Courtney, while I was taking a picture of a snake charmer, and started painting mahendi designs in henna without her asking then tried to charge 100 rupees. I told them to stop, paid 20rs, pulled Courtney's hand away and balled the women out calling them very rude. I'm sure I looked ridiculous, but I was so angry. Immediately after that a kidd came up to beg and, poor little guy, I glared at him so fiercely that he shrank away rapidly.

We plan to do some shopping today and leave tomorrow on our longest journey yet: taxi to Meta, train to Pathankot, and bus to McLeod Gang where His Holiness the Dalai Llama lives. We plan to be there for a week and hope to get into a public audience with HH before coming back to Delhi for one night and then on to Copenahgen and the USA.

The day before yesterday we saw the Taj Mahal. We got up early in the morning to see it a sunrise, and it was well worth it. The grounds and monument together are much more beautiful than any picture I've ever seen of it. The physical presence is truly breathtaking. Our experience was somewhat clouded however by the heat. At sunrise it was already 90 degrees and climbing rapidly with the sun. By the time we left, about two hours later, it must have been close to 100 degrees.

The people in Agra were nice and we had a much warmer experience than in Delhi. When we stopped near the Red Fort to take pictures of the Taj from a distance, a teenage boy approached us with his friends, and instead of trying to sell us anything, he just wanted to have his picture taken with us and especially with Courtney. He didn't even have a camera, he just wanted to be in a picture with us.

The rest of the day in Agra was spent trying to beat the heat and beat the merchants. Our driver insisted on taking us around to different merchants (only those who deal to tourists). "You look. If you like you can buy, no like, no buy. OK?" He was a good guy though and we did fall in love with a couple of things whice we bought as mementos. After running out of things to do we went to an Indian movie with our driver. He paid as a gesture of friendship, and we were touched. The movie dragged on for three hours, was filled with melodramatic intrigue, music, dancing and action. Still it was interesting to gain some insight into modern Indian culture and lifestyle by waht appeals to them.

The best thing about the movie going experience however was that it started raining while we were inside, so the temperature dropped about 20 degrees farenheight. What a relief. I never thought I'd be thrilled to see rain fall but I was that day. The best part about it was that it made for a cooler night in our non-airconditioned sleeper car.

The train trip was uncomfortable but probably the most fun and adventurous experience thus far. We understood that we were supposed to get an airconditioned sleeper car, instead we got a non-airconditioned car. It was a three tier, meaning three bunks on stacked each side of the compartment. We had 7 people in our compartment. A mother shared her cramped top bunk with her daughter after first setting her husband up with bed spread, and pillow.

Varanasi, India. Formerly known as Benares, or Banares, this most holy of Indian cities is located on a curve in the river Ganges and in between two tributaries. We arrived yesterday morning and checked into Hotel India, near the Varanasi Junction Train Station.

Today we got up at four a.m. to take a boat trip along the ghats of the river Ganges. Clouds obscured the sunrise, but the trip was still well worth it. We saw people engaged in a variety of sacred and everyday rituals: washing clothes, bathing, praying, meditating, cremating there dead, we even saw a few people getting shaves. The most uncomfortable thing we saw were four different dead bodies floating in the water. Each was wrapped in cloth, bound hands to knees and floating face down. We were told this is common. What happens is that instead of being cremated, some bodies are prepared as described, then tied to a stone and taken into the middle of the river to sink to the bottom. A common belief is that those who float back to the surface are Holy people.

Sitting in an internet cafe arrangement just one mile from the Taj Mahal, we've finally made it to India and are out exploring. The trip so far has had a couple of unexpected adventures to adjust and adapt to. Flight cancelled from Copenhagen to Delhi got us a lovely room at the airlines expence in the beautiful Hilton Copenhagen Airport. The room looked like it was torn from a page of the Ikea catalog. Very modern design with everything perfectly complimenting and accenting each other.

Got to Delhi on Monday morning at 9:15 am, then the fun began. We found out that hassels are sort of the way of doing buisness in the city. Thought we had arranged good accomodation and transportation to such, then got diverted to a travel agency and further diverted to a more expensive room. Too hot, tired and bothered to fight it we went with it then chaged hotels the next day for a room one third the price and 3 times as nice.

While in Delhi we spent most of our time either sleeping, beating the heat or hasselling with the agent. We did get out on a tour of the city yesterday. Saw the major sites, passed on a few. Most interested in Ghandi museum and Ba'hai Temple. Loved the temple, a huge white marble structure shaped like a Lotus blossum. Sat inside and meditated in the amazing interior space. Took many pictures.

Left today for Agra. Will see the Taj Mahal tomorrow morning, then shopping in afternoon and off to the train station in the evening to catch a night train to the holy city of Varanasi (Benares).