I had such a wonderful time living in Melbourne and I know it’s a period of being settled (by my standards), that I’ll always look very fondly upon.  It’s amazing how much I managed to make my home and routine in a mere six months.

I feel really proud that not only did I manage the basics of moving to a new place, such as finding a job, a place to live and gaining an idea of the surroundings in a foreign country, but I also forged true friendships, joined and created community and was able to deeply follow my passion, giving me a great sense of achievement and possibility.  Sometimes we need to put ourselves out of our comfort zone to remind us what we are capable of.

The skyline of Melbourne taken from Northcote

Finding a balance

Striving to find a balanced and healthy lifestyle is something I’ve been continually experimenting with and honing over the past few years. In Melbourne I was able to create the most balance I have ever had.

It all starts with work…

Having lived resourcefully for over a year from savings, it felt good to earn money again and be able to pay for the lifestyle I wanted to have in the city.  Since my dreams of working in a hippy paradise cafe had abruptly ended and money was running out, irregular cafe work seemed like less of an option. So I ended up signing up to some temp agencies specialising in office work knowing this would be the best way to save and comforting myself in that it would just be for a short while.

I was feel very grateful that I managed to get a temporary administrative role at the Department of Veteran’s Affairs.  Working in the public sector felt good as the few days of work I had done for a Corporate before this role just didn’t feel right. It was a fairly easy job which worked for me at this time.

Admittedly it was extremely boring, pretty much just processing forms and writing letters but the perks were numerous – I was able to work 9am – 5pm, earn a decent wage that allowed me to save up (as the minimum wages in Australia is high) and have very minimal stress as I had very little responsibility. I would never think about work once I got home for the day.

The people were friendly and I appreciated that I could walk around the office in my socks and get up to make myself cups of tea without feeling clock watched. For the 5 months I did this job, that was ideal as I had so much space and energy to live a really fulfilling life outside of work.

Melbourne City Centre

Remembering the magic in the world

I know people sometimes wonder how I can live such a lifestyle of uncertainty and not knowing what is ahead.  I acknowledge there’s a lot of value in planning and working towards a goal, but sometimes there’s something special in releasing yourself to an experience to see what it brings you.

Somehow the universe has always provided me with what I have needed at the right time.  By complete serendipity it turns out that I already had a friend from England living in Melbourne which made my experience of living there better than I could ever have hoped.  I now had my wwoofer friend Kaitlyn from the blueberry farm as my room mate (yes sharing a bed to cut costs) and Kim, my friend from England.

Kim arrived in Australia just four months before me with his girlfriend Kiki.  They’ve been in the process of trying to settle there through the work route as Kim has lots of family close by and was also drawn to the lifestyle.  Kim and I had lots of mutual friends in London –  we sung in a few choirs together, used to go on weekends away to sleep in a yurt and sing, but we weren’t what you’d call close.  I was aware he had been planning to go to Australia but at that time I had not yet a clue that I would ever even go there and so it slipped my mind.

Kim ‘gardening’ aka burning things!

It was amazing to discover from a friend that he was in Melbourne and to have such a connection drop seemingly out of nowhere. Meeting up with him was so easy, we already understood eachother and could pickup our favourite activities that we had done together in London.  It felt like we’d been great friends for a really long time and we both appreciated the sense of home.

In addition, it meant I had an instant family base in Melbourne as he was living with his mum Avis who also welcomed me into their home with open arms and that was always a great joy for me.  Their home felt very warm and comfortable and I loved helping out around the garden, eating dinner and being treated as part of the family.  It also felt so familiar having that Englishness around me whilst living in Australia – no one makes a proper cup of tea like a Brit!

Life comes in cycles

Melbourne is a really cycle friendly city and it’s the only time I’ve enjoyed a traffic jam as it was one consisting of only cyclists and not drivers! It’s so heartening to me to see so many people getting to work this way and living such active, healthy lifestyles.  My cycle commute to work was one of the most enjoyable parts of living in Melbourne, I felt so fit, from just doing my normal daily routine and not having to set aside time to do this.  Kim could immediately tell me where all the best cycle lanes were and we had alot of fun going on bike trips to explore the city and surrounding countryside.

A day of exploration in the sun – we cycled 80km from Lilydale to Warburton and back. Just an hour outside of the city

Music brings me home

I think that maybe music is my religion…..  It’s the one constant in my life that brings me home to myself and makes me feel most connected to the world wherever I am. Bearing that in mind, being suddenly put in contact with Kim who has this whole shared history of the same songs, was really powerful.

We had so much fun meeting up to sing songs we had sung together in choirs in London and working together on songs with us singing and playing guitar to sing at open mics.  I think it’s one of the most fun things ever for me to do. In a short amount of time we were invited to perform as a support act for a local choir and we were meeting up regularly to play.  One thing led to another and before we knew it, we were setting up our own pop up choir to campaign for the creation of a national park around Melbourne that would end the disastrous logging –  More on that in my next blog.  This experience was particularly dear to my heart and is the closest experience I have had to feeling like ‘having a calling’ in life.

Our Pop up Choir Singing for Toolangi on the steps of Parlaiment House

Nothing is ever perfect

That’s not to say it was perfect completely perfect but it was pretty damn good.  For me finding a meaningful, enjoyable job that is not too high stress and earns a decent enough wage to live comfortably has always been the holy grail.  I don’t think it’s impossible but perhaps I need to accept there are always to be some compromises ( I haven’t quite yet been able to).

My job was boring as hell and my saving grace was that all day (quite literally) I listened to podcasts and music, so I could still get a sense that I was growing through my work, but it wasn’t sustainable.  By the end, it was quite a drag and one of my favourite songs by Martha Tilston about wanting to run across the office tables and feeling like a drone going to work, would regularly march through my head.

Bringing in an income

This might sound strange but it was nice to have some income again as my travel lifestyle has been funded by saving up and then when I am travelling living extremely frugally.  I even just appreciated the fact I could afford to pay to attend a weekly yoga class in a nice studio, which gave me grounding, strength and flexibility as well as routine.

I was also really lucky to be able to live in some really cute neighbourhoods in Melbourne including Brunswick and Carlton North – both close to my work and with a great deal of character and life.  I love the Victorian architecture, the amount of trees and green spaces and the cafe culture.  One extremely unique thing about Melbourne is that there are still so many independent shops and businesses adding to the quirkiness and uniqueness. Also unlike a lot of Australia, Melbourne is a melting pot of diversity  and is very open minded, liberal and forward thinking.

Kaitlyn and I discover art on the way to finding a Sunday brunch spot

Melbourne is said to have quite a European feel and have some of the best coffee shops. I really connected with this.  Especially when the weather is great, I’m much more drawn to waking early, being productive and spending time outside than to staying up and enjoying night life.  This period of my life is the time in which I have drunk the least alcohol which for me personally I have found to bring lots of balance.  Kaitlyn and I had a tradition of going for brunch at a different cafe every week which was so delicious, felt like a proper treat and meant we really made the most of the delicious food on offer.

We Brits love to talk about the weather

Melbourne is know for having ‘four seasons in one day’, but a more accurate assessment in my eyes is four seasons in one week.  Located on the South of Australia, Melbourne is subject to weather influences from the cool sea combined with the heat of the North, depending on which way the wind blows.

In one week it could go up to nearly 40 degrees with humidity and then drop right down to 18 degrees the following day, with cool winds and rain. It meant the mantra ‘always be prepared’ really rang true.  Some Australians I encountered found this a great source of annoyance, but for me it was a breath of fresh air compared with English weather.  You really appreciate rain after the intense heat, yet it was comforting to know that a grey sky would never linger for too long and that soon I would feel the glow of the sun on my skin, one of my favourite feelings in the world. For fleeting moments, this warmth brings me to peace no matter what is happening.

Speaking of sun, there is a huge hole in the O Zone directly above Australia and you really notice the power of the UV rays.  The sun feels all consuming and powerful.  Suncream of factor 50 is a must during all these weathers as people are known to burn in just 15 minutes.  One of Australia’s many dangers!

Glorious sun, but beware, it’s easy to get burnt!

Quite the impression

Were visas not an issue and were Australia not on the otherside of the world, I think I could very happily live in Melbourne.  However this is not the case!

I feel lucky that I got to experience this time in Melbourne and these friendships – I’ll miss these a lot. It’s hard to leave Melbourne as it felt so much like home but ultimately I know my time there was always limited and it’s exciting to have had a great glimpse of what a balanced and fulfilling home base can look and feel like.  I look forward to bringing these elements into my future living situation.

The Working Holiday Visa

I wasn’t ready to return home after the amazing adventure that was California.  I felt deep down in my soul that I wanted to continue to travel, be in beautiful surroundings and I wasn’t ready to leave my dear friend, the sunshine.  Yet I was aware that my finances couldn’t support me for much longer to just travel.  It was then I remembered talking to other travellers who had gone to Australia under the Working Holiday Visa.

It allows you to earn money there for a year (or two if you are willing to do some of the more arduous farming the Aussies don’t want to do) and if you are under 30.  The bonus is that the minimum wage there is very high, it’s not so much of a culture shock and it’s fairly easy to save up money.

What better kick in the backside to actually go and do it than being 29 and it being the ‘last opportunity’.  In all honesty there was never that much that appealed to me about Australia  – I’m done with hanging out with 18 year old backpackers, drinking too much and sleeping in bunk beds in hostels, but the idea of living in one place for a while so I could get to know people and my surroundings, of working and establishing routine, of living abroad, that really appealed to me and felt exciting.  Plus….it would be Summer in Australia. And so it all began to fall into place.

The blueberry field at Duckworth – the site of many a story, inspiration and discussion that changed the course of a life

Plant a seed and watch it grow

I planted a seed in Kaitlyn’s head ( a 25 yrs old girl from Texas also volunteering on the farm with a super contagious smile and laugh). She’d mentioned to me she wanted to work and then travel in the future.  I asked her ‘why not do both in one sweep, in Australia with me?’ I hoped me being an experienced, trustworthy traveller type might hold some weight.

Having made this fly away suggestion whilst we were blueberry picking, I walked off to empty my bucket knowing that she would be having an ‘aha’ moment of ‘this could actually happen’.  Lo and behold, a week later she decided she was in.  We’d only known each other maybe 2 weeks, but that’s farm time for you – one day feels like a week and you form really deep connections fast.  The fact that my farm love interest would also be coming to Australia to work a few months after I arrived was another bonus, especially as I was really starting to fall in love (that’s a whole other story – maybe a novel!).

I was in luck – flights were cheap, Kaitlyn wanted to come and live with me and do the job hunt together, which I normally find super draining, but I knew having Kaitlyn by my side it would be great – we would make it fun.  I had a few people I knew who had already done the working holiday visa who I could refer all my questions about working in Australia to.

Finding my hippy paradise

My flight was from Los Angeles to Brisbane in New South Wales where I headed as I had visions of getting some beachy, tropical vibes.  There are some really cute, hippy towns in California and I had an image of me working in a super laid back cafe in the Australian counterpart by the beach in a surfer town.  Byron Bay was the place that came to mind (I can’t even remember how) but that became my holy grail of Australia.

My new home?

I arrived ten days before Kaitlyn which gave me time to scope it out. I realised quickly that although a great place for a holiday, Byron Bay was no longer a hippy paradise, but pretty commercialised – the hostels were really expensive, it would have been nigh on impossible to get an apartment there, especially on a cafe wage with irregular hours and I was surrounded by the kind of crowd I wanted to avoid in the hostel of teens, living in a 8 bed girls dorm.

So I quickly needed a change of direction, especially with Kaitlyn arriving in a few days.  Mind you, I am not saying it wasn’t beautiful, there are some  really cool spots to visit and nice sites, but I just really didn’t feel ‘home’.  But I was infinitely grateful that Kaitlyn was with me, and we were in this together, that makes such a difference.

A glimpse of Paradise in Byron Bay

That’s when I had to be flexible and adapt fast as I realised that being in a city would be the best way to save up some money fast. I was really getting close to the line, especially having had to pay for an unexpected ‘health check’ to be allowed entry to Australia – I had to pay to have a chest scan and health check in the US before I could be approved for entry as I had been in Asia for over three months and they worry about TB (it was all very last minute and stressful – another story in itself!).

City life wasn’t quite the easy going lifestyle I had envisaged, but beggars can’t be choosers and we spent a couple of days researching and deliberating between whether to move to Sydney or Melbourne.  It’s so hard to know if you haven’t been somewhere where you want to spend the next 6 months!

My two best friends in Australia – Kaitlyn & guitary

Ultimately we decided that although Sydney had the consistent sunny, weather and jobs for sure – it sounded very busy, materialistic, a bit more shallow.  We felt that Melbourne sounded like it had more character – an arts and music scene, a cafe culture and Kaitlyn had some family out there.

So Melbourne it was based on not to so much information and a lot of trusting our gut!  We made that decision and didn’t look back as Melbourne turned out to be an awesome experience in more ways than one.  A huge part of that was forming my friendship with Kaitlyn – finding a home, job and sharing a room (even a bed!) to save up money and discovering new places together. So Kaitlyn thanks for being you and being so easy and fun to be with!

Duckworth Farm

Duckworth Farm – it's hard to describe in words, how much I love Duckworth Farm and what a huge  impact it's had on my life.  It really is a very special place.

Duckworth is part of the Wwoofing (Worldwide Working on Organic Farms) network, who have a website connecting farmers with budding volunteers from across the globe.   It's a unique exchange programme where farmer hosts, offer free food and accommodation to Wwoofers –  volunteers willing to work a certain number of hours per day on the farm doing a variety of farm related tasks. It's truly an excellent way to learn new skills, explore different cultures, get close to nature and live with little money.

My favourite sheep – Mimi and George

The scope of Wwoofing is amazing as there are literally farms all over the globe, the types of farms you can stay on are vast and thus so is the type of work you will do.  Your accommodation situation will be different wherever you go, as will be the number of other Wwoofers you will be working with.  These are all factors to take into consideration if you are contemplating Wwoofing yourself.

It's an experience I just had to try, knowing that those participating in this type of venture would be great people, given the hosts are welcoming complete strangers to live and work on their land, using the principle of exchange rather than money. I was also really attracted to it as I wanted to learn more about agriculture and growing my own food. I've been really intent in recent months on adapting my lifestyle into one that involves more working outside, using my body and being close to nature so Wwoofing was the perfect chance to experience this.

You're the one for me….

When I discovered Duckworth Blueberry Farm on the Wwoofing website, I immediately knew it was the farm for me.  Firstly, few farms have all five star ratings from the previous Wwoofers and so many overwhelmingly positive reviews.  I was travelling to California alone, with my travel fund quickly diminishing.  Yet I had a wish to learn and a hankering for adventure, so I knew that Wwoofing was a great idea, especially on a farm that accepted at least a few other volunteers so that I could meet new people.  Luckily my intuition was right and I spent a full two months living at the farm.  Several people who left the farm ended up coming back later which, again, speaks volumes.

What also massively attracted me to the farm was the enthusiasm of Lorrie and Oscar, the dynamic and wonderful duo behind the farm.  They're really keen for young people to experience and learn about farm life, very much wishing to share their skills and knowledge, accepting those who have little or no farm experience so that we can learn as much as possible about things we otherwise wouldn't have the chance to in our own lives.  For me farm life in itself was pretty knew, so even just working with animals and picking was a learning experience.  But on top of that we had great opportunities to learn about cooking, mechanics, spinning and weaving.

Opportunities to learn – like mechanics in Oscar’s workshop Where is Duckworth at?

Duckworth farm is located close to the town of Sebastapol, in Sonoma County, California.  The whole area just blew me away as there is just so much stunning scenery within just half an hour radius of the farm, all of which is very diverse: from the coast, to the forest, to the meadows to the farmland - it's very unique coming from England.  In our free time we were able to do a lot of exploring by car and by bicycle which was great, especially as in true Californian style, it was indeed always sunny, something I find myself longing for more than I'd like to in good old England.

Farmland in Sebastapol Duckworth's Bread and Butter

The Duckworth's have just over 80 acres of farm land, they accept Wwoofers from April until the end of August and on average there were about twelve Wwoofers at a time during my stay.  The main products sold from the farm are it's delicious organic blueberries and hay.  The bulk of our work was blueberry related - picking in the fields, sorting and packaging the blueberries, ensuring the fields were weeded, the nets are fixed to protect the berries from birds.

Some might find blueberry picking rather monotonous.  I honestly started seeing juicy bushes of blueberries when I closed my eyes, it's true! However I really enjoyed this peaceful imagery, it made a welcome change from the thoughts that have run through my head in previous lines of work, at least this was relaxing.

The other things I loved about picking was that we would have great conversations with each other in the field on all manner of subjects, it was the best place to get to know people intimately and to learn from them.  Not only that, when I did want to be alone, I enjoyed the silence of picking by myself, or I would end up doing a lot of singing which I thoroughly loved doing to entertain myself.  Not to mention the final bonuses - being able to eat away as you worked and being outside in the morning before the sun got too intense.

Picking blueberries in the field

There are also lots of animals at the farm - chickens which provide plenty of eggs, horses, sheep for milking and for wool, and lots of cats and dogs.  It really brought home to me how much richness having animals adds to your life.  They are indeed additional mouths to feed and a big responsibility to take care of, but they are also always very entertaining and bring a lot of life and love to the farm.

Daily chores

On top of the four to five hours of blueberry work, we also had morning and evening chores, which although we called them chores, I really enjoyed too.  It was initially a shock to the system having to wake up at 5.40am to be ready to start these at 6am, but once I got in the routine, I really grew to appreciate starting the day as the sun is coming up and getting all our work done first thing so that we could enjoy our free time in the afternoon.

We would do the same chore for a whole week with one or two other people.  This would be either cooking breakfast for the group, milking six of the sheep or feeding, mucking out and letting the horses into the field.  I actually really enjoyed all of the work that we did, I found it very rewarding to be outside, work with my hands and build relationships with the animals.

It’s sheep milking time!

My favourite chore turned out to be sheep milking – quite a surprise to me!  I ended up really loving the sheep, recognising each of the ones we'd milk and getting to know their personalities.  Sheep are notoriously scared of humans and see almost any other living creature as a predator.  Thus they generally run away from you if you approach, well unless you are carrying food!  But there were a few sheep on the farm that were actually really trusting (hey Mimi and George!) and they would approach you, even if you were foodless and not in their pen for some sheep cuddles.  So I had a lot of fun hanging out with the sheep.I like the animals as they put a different perspective on life, just doing their thing.

The bonus was of course that we were then able to use the sheep milk to make cheese, yoghurt and butter and there's nothing quite like eating something that comes from your land or animals.  For this reason I also really enjoyed taking care of the many chickens who would provide us with 15 or so organic, free range eggs per day.  They also were great, waddling towards you and I was like an excitable, small child when I learnt you could stroke them and that they have super soft feathers.  They in turn ate most of the compost waste from our kitchen so nothing goes to waste.

The Wwoofers play some post dinner games in the kitchen A typical day at Duckworth

5.40am: Wake up in my tent

6.00am: Start morning chores (breakfast/sheep milking/horses)

7.15am: Communal breakfast

8.00am: Start work - mostly blueberry related in the field

1.00pm: Lunch (which we took turns to cook for the group)

2.00pm: Free time!

6.00pm: Evening chores (sheep milking/ horses/garden watering)

7.30pm: Communal Dinner

Finding our blueberries at the local store

The benefit of Duckworth Farm is also that you get a good chunk of time in the afternoon to spend as you please, and you can never get bored on the farm!  I loved spending my afternoons learning how to make cheese, yoghurt, butter, jam, pies.  It was so nice to spend time with the other Wwoofers, I leave with a lot of new friends and happy memories.  The farm is always full of laughter, song, dancing in the kitchen, playing games, swimming in the pond.  We learnt alot on the farm because of the Duckworths, but what was also amazing is that we could learn so much from each other.

That's not to say it was without it's challenges.  Waking up at 5.40am was quite an adjustment and living in a community setting is a really interesting experience.  All of the Wwoofers came from different backgrounds (some from Europe, some from the States, Canada etc) and were a range of ages and had different life experiences. There were some great people there and we had so much fun, yet there were of course also differences in the way we liked to do things and it was a constant process of adjustment and negotiation.  The group dynamics would change really fast as new Wwoofers would come and go, people had different levels of contributing and it was just such a good learning experience in patience, adapting quickly to new circumstances and working with others who may have different ways of doing thing to you.

I could honestly talk all day about Duckworth farm - so I will leave it with a huge thanks to everyone that made it such a wonderful experience, especially to the Duckworth's who make it all possible.  For a virtual tour of the farm (and some dodgy commentary from me) there are some videos here on You Tube.  I can’t wait for the next time……….

The Wwoofer’s tent space next to the pond (that you can swim in!)

I've now left India but the love affair with this country continues and has me longing for more.  As always, I wasn't yet ready to leave - despite having spent four months there!  The more time that passed, the better it got – the more possibilities that opened up and the more I was learning.

Dharmalaya

I was fortunate to spend my last 3 weeks at Dharmalaya - a centre for compassionate and sustainable living.  Dharmalaya is set in the Himalayas a few kilometres outside of Bir, a town housing a Tibetan colony, several monasteries and a famous site in India for paragliding. It's not on the radar of many travellers who would look puzzled when I told them where I was going.

It's one of the most beautiful places I've ever lived and I kept having to pinch myself that it was where I was staying.  As I opened my tent door each morning I'd be welcomed into the day by a view looking down the valley of forests and hills.  Not only that, on a clear day, you could see the tips of some snow peaked mountains and watch the sunset create shapely silhouettes of the foothills.

What do they do?

The centre's main work is in running courses in eco building (in the local Himanchali style using mud bricks and mud plaster), in permaculture design and sustainable living.  They also host meditation retreats and have open volunteer periods, which is what I participated in.  During these periods you can do the hands on work – building the infrastructure, gardening, as well as be immersed in local culture and learn about sustainable living practices that they have implemented.

Dharmalaya is still massively a project in the making.  They already have a main house containing the communal areas such as the dining room, kitchen, meditation room, bathrooms and some bedrooms.  They've begun the process of growing their own vegetables but currently still have to buy most food from outside as the garden is not yet well enough established (and there is a monkey food stealing issue - damn those monkeys again causing trouble!)  A few other cottages are in the process of being built and there will be some meditation huts on the way too.  The showers are run by solar power and they have a few types of toilets including compost.

The Main House Part of the family

You can already see the huge potential and the one thing that is already well established is the wonderful sense of community.  One of the best things about Dharmalaya is that they employ about ten people from the local village above the site that you get to work alongside.  They are so hugely friendly and welcoming which I really appreciated.  Their English is limited, so I was grateful for my little Hindi to try and enable better communication.  Each day they would always greet me with 'Morning ji' - 'ji' being a term of respect that you don't have to use for a stranger. With this cultural understanding it felt like being welcomed into a family.

Before I left one of the longer term volunteers who co-ordinated the work told me the staff had really enjoyed working with me too –  I think they could see I was really doing my best to learn and be respectful and appreciated that.  Not only that - apparently they also really enjoyed the singing - yes of course I couldn't stay in a group of 12 volunteers without some kind of communal singing happening.  I taught a few sessions to the volunteers and in the morning circle we performed a rendition of a simple rounds called 'Bella Mama .  It got stuck in everyone's heads - it had people from the village asking 'what is this Bella Mama?' - which we always translate as beautiful mother/earth but in the local language apparently translates as 'ox uncle' which we all found hilarious.

The Dharmalaya family

I really enjoyed spending time with the other volunteers on the project, most of whom were around my age and from different parts of India.  It was brilliant for my Hindi as I could pick up bits of what they were saying in Hindi, but equally they also spoke to one another a lot in English so I could understand a lot and ask questions when I wasn't sure what was going on.  It was really nice to not just be with other Western volunteers as it enabled me to really understand more about young people in India today.  They were all really kind and a pleasure to get to know.

Day to day living

Staying at Dharmalaya was extremely physically challenging, especially for someone not used to so much manual labour AND the heat.  Luckily I was in fairly good shape from all of the hiking and living in the mountains and we were also given good rest time.  We had a three hour work session in the morning, and one in the afternoon with plenty of time for tea breaks and delicious lunch.  We worked hard, but there was also a relaxed attitude to it and it was one of those experiences where you get as much out as you put in.   I felt very inquisitive and so wanted to try all of the different activities and ask lots of questions.

I learnt lots of practical skills that I never could have imagined I would, or never knew I was so interested in (but am!).  This included …….

1. Pugging – essentially stamping around in a pile of  mud, water, pine needles and rice husk with your bare feet until the mixture becomes even and can be used to make bricks

Pugging

2. Making mud bricks – using moulds, allow them to dry in the sun for 3 days

Making mud bricks

3. Masonry – building the house with the mud bricks (trying to keep the wall level and straight!)

Masonry

4. Making Plaster – main ingredient is cow dung which has to be fetched from the nearest village 10 minutes up the mountain

Carrying cow dung (gobar)

6. Moving heavy things –  forming ‘human chains’ was the most efficient way

Human Chain

7. Gardening – including composting and planting seeds

Seed planting to grow vegetables Learning a new way

I gained so much inspiration from my time at Dharmalaya and the realisation that all over the world there are people and organisations doing great work for our planet, who invite others to spend time in their community and learn about what they do. Now I'm on a mission to learn more about sustainable living – how we can grow our own food and generate our energy using what's readily available to us.

I was reminded just how powerful living so close to nature is to me - my Hawaiian jungle experience gave me an insight, but it was this experience that reminded me of the peace of mind and energy I get from being in such a setting which has really empowered me to make sure this is something I make part of my future living situation - not just as a holiday.

I was also surprised with how much I love being hands on and getting my hands dirty.  Having always used my mind a lot it was such a simple joy to be outside and be creating something you can physically see that is going to be of use to people.  I'd never realised how strong my body can be when I give it the chance and it feels like finally I'm using this body I was given for it's true purpose.  I don't want to sit down all day - I want to be active and then enjoy rest.  It feels right to be using my body now whilst it's still fit and able to do theses things and the more I do this, the healthier I'll stay - it just all makes so much sense!

I'm still excited and inspired by this experience, it feels like a shift in how I want to live and what I want to spend my time doing.  Let's see what happens…..

'How can you travel alone?!'

After visiting beautiful Palampur, my travel buddy Eric returned to Canada so I was back on the road solo and ready to explore some places I'd never been before.

For many going somewhere new can be a nerve wracking experience - particularly if you are alone in a county where the culture is so different and you don't speak the language.  A few months ago it seemed like a daunting prospect (even though I did it on a previous India trip over five years ago), but this experience reminded me again that every time I do it I get so much out of it. How quick we are to remember negative experiences and slow to remember the positive.

Wandering around the mountains of Manali

I see how much fear we can create for ourselves, worrying about all sorts of if, buts and maybes.  The great thing about continuing to travel is after a few new places you start to lose these worries and get a deeper faith that somehow it will all work out well. You gain a sort of flow, or momentum and then when it does all work out it is just so satisfying!

The kindness of strangers makes my travels possible and it's these interactions with everyday people that restore my faith in the world.  People taking me to the right carriage, getting on the bus with me to take me to my stop, buying me chai for playing them a song, allowing me to stay in their home without asking for anything in return, assisting me with printing, booking transport, finding a good mobile deal etc. The list goes on.   It's so nice.

Immersion in beauty

My week in Manali was a time of immersing myself in the nature of the mountains and as a result I had a flurry of musical inspiration.  I really fell in love with the mountains of Himanchal Pradesh this trip - the snow peaks, the animals, the sweet local people, the clean air and the calm feel.

Traditional buildings in Old Manali

 

Old Manali is the place to stay (as opposed to New Manal), as it still has a lot of the character of a traditional Himanchali village despite it becoming ever more busy with guesthouses, bars, restaurants and cafes for the growing steam of tourists that come for trekking, skiing and rock climbing.

At the top of the town are buildings in the local style made of wood and stone, with space for the animals underneath the house.  The women here still weave the local clothing of thick blankets using traditional weaving apparatus.  Despite the tourists they are still connected with their roots and wear this traditional cloak style blanket with a tie around the waist and a scarf tied around the head. I couldn't resist buying a hand knitted wooly hat that I didn't really need.  I just had such a nice chat with the women in my growing Hindi that I wanted to support their work.

Traditional weaving machines

In the end it came in handy as Manali was very chilly at night time, sometime reaching 0 degrees so I would wear all of my layers in bed.  But during the day, as soon as the sun was out,  we could bask in the glorious weather, perfect for exploring the gorgeous forests and mountain peaks in every direction.

I found myself wondering around a lot for walks with my guitar and writing some songs, my favourite being 'In the Mountains' (original title I know) which came following a conversation with a friend about the mountains being the last place on earth to live as climate change gets worse.  The recording quality is terrible (as there is the noise of a river and someone building in the background!) but here it is on you tube on a better one should appear at some point…..!

Gorgeous forests in Manali Musical Magic Manifestation

All of the playing culminated in some kind of new musical surge, finding it easier than ever to sing and play guitar together at once (finally) which before was a true brain ache and now is becoming natural and easy.  This is immensely satisfying as I remember being on my previous India trip five years ago and practising uber basics of strumming (up, down, up, up, down, up), so boring, yet now I play and even write songs.  I'm so glad I had the insight to realise what I could gain if I put in five years of practise.

I was reminded so much of the Renee that wanted to play and sing but couldn't yet when I began giving free guitar lessons to some Nepalese guys running a German Bakery.  Their tea, friendliness and good wifi initially drew me in, but it became a bit of a daily routine to sit in the bakery and teach some guitar.

Me and my best travel buddy – my guitar

It was their turn to overcome the repetitive practice of 'up, down, up, up, down, up' monotomus strumming.  But because I have been there, I have ultimate patience to sit with someone working through this important, but very boring, initial stage.  I now have real experience of what is possible with practice and I know how much the support of others can help you on this journey so it was really nice to support them.

Moving on up

Ii was a real momentous victory when a Nepalese bar owner promised me a free dinner if I played at set in his bar.  I was terrified, but knew the pay off would be so great if I could learn to enjoy playing in front of others without being self conscious.  It could be a true useful, practical skill for travelling to provide me with the basics I need like food for free - a huge gift when living on a shoe string budget.

So I overcame my stage and mic fright and sang about 8 songs, half of which I had written myself and the other half blue grassy/folk songs I love.  It was far from perfect but it was fun and it went down well.  Seeing the guy after me play reminded me that you don't always have to be super/ gifted talented musician for people to enjoy your music as so much of the music is what you bring to it - if you are enjoying it, or really feeling it, others are also more likely to.

Love ewe Manali

So yes I got free dinner and some cups of tea!  The basics I usually have to pay for with hard earned money, were given to me for free for doing something I love that gives me energy and makes me feel good.  Wow!  In Manali I reached a tipping point –  my musical experience and playing of songs will just keeping getting richer and richer.  My bank balance is getting low but, but my wealth is increasing.  You can't put a price of music and nature.  I feel so lucky that this is what I get to do at this time in my life.

Off the hummus trail

I was growing tired of the backpacker hub of Bhagsu - the familiarity and lack of what I call 'real' Indian culture (if it’s too easy, it’s not ‘real’ India!).

Bhagsu and the nearby town of Dharamkot, are famously part of the 'hummus trail', a route taken by Israeli travellers.  They often spend months travelling in India, following their compulsory military service for 2 or 3 years (depending on whether they're female or male).  They come to India to chill out and forget about life for a while, yet it's created these strange pockets of cafes and guesthouses with mainly just Israeli travellers, with all the menus and signs written in Hebrew.  They tend to hang out in big groups and party hard. Although I’ve met only lovely Israelis, I wanted to move away from this culture, after all when I want to experience Israeli culture, I will go to Israel not to India.

A perk to the many Israeli cafes is the abundance of hummus (my fav snack)

I hadn't realised it consciously, but I needed to get out of my comfort zone again to be opened up to the beauty of India and out of the Bhagsu bubble.

Enough of the same menu for Westerners that somehow ranges from Indian, Israel and Italian main meals to Tibetan, Japanese food thrown in with some English or American breakfast - none of which is quite like what you'd eat in that country.  Enough of speaking in English all day to other backpackers.  Enough of my nice guesthouse.  I was scared of being lonely, having had company the most of my trip - in Varanasi from my Indian family and then my mum coming to visit and then lots of interactions with backpackers.  But it was time to rock the boat, which is the best move I could have made…..

Back on the move

When I'm travelling, I find it near impossible to plan any sort of route in advance.  Reading information in books or online, I just get overwhelmed by possibilities and options and find it difficult to really get a feel for the atmosphere of a place which, for me, is the most important.  So I tend to go on recommendations by other travellers I meet along the way, who always give you the golden nuggets of information.  Even then, you can't take what they say as a given as everyone has different views on why they like a place, but from past experience I've found this method to work very well on big trips where timing is not an issue.  And so I'd collected some golden nuggets and had some chance encounters with other travellers that shaped up nicely.

In McLeod Ganj I sat down in a café for a nice coffee (the best way to get free wi fi), joining a table with a young guy sitting there already.  Eventually we started chatting as he wanted some local information on yoga and trekking. Just ten minutes later we were best buddies who had decided we needed to go off the beaten track together to do some hiking for his last few days in India.

Travelling in the back of a truck with my new overnight best buddy – Eric

It's so funny how fast that can happen when travelling. With Eric, I just knew in just that short amount of time, that we really clicked on a deeper level.  He was super friendly, funny, so enthusiastic to learn, reminding me of me on my first trip in India.  I could tell he'd also really immersed himself in the culture and had lived away from backpackers for substantial amounts of time so had some really interesting, crazy stories.  Lastly he didn't feel too intense to be with alone, which is super important travelling with just one other person.  I say this because I've met many types of people in India, some who are seeking something, some who are very lost and for me it just sucks my energy.  But with Eric it was easy to just chat or have our own space when needed and if anything we inspired each other.  Needless to say I'm so glad I met exactly the right person to leave the bubble with.

Trekking Tales

We headed by local bus, just three hours away, to a town called Palampur, which turned out to be just what the doctor ordered.  It's really not on most traveller's radars - in fact every time I mentioned I was going there, the response was 'Why are you going there?' or 'What's there?!'.  Yet it turns out that just outside the main town, it's a really quiet, countryside place, with a village like feel to it, super friendly locals, charming tea plantations and stunning mountain views.  Even the main town is what I call 'India light', as it's the least hectic town I've been to in India, the Himanchali mountain people really are very chilled out and kind.

Rhododendron flowers in the Himalayas – a tasty treat

We were fortunate to meet an American guy who was really knowledgeable on the local area as he lived in Palampur managing a company that takes groups on mountain training courses at high altitude.   He arranged for a local villager to take us on a two day trek for just 750R each (about 7.50 in pounds), promising it wouldn't be like the hikes his groups do that last ten days and climbing high mountain passes!

We went shopping with the guide to buy food supplies to take with us up the mountain as there would be no shops and then caught a dodgy looking Indian van, with an open back for carrying goods, to the trail head.  Of course to add to the excitement we had to sit in the back of the truck which then turned into standing as we got more daring.  I also very wisely (?!) decided it would be a great idea to bring my guitar as Eric had said he'd really enjoy hearing the songs I'd written and I thought the top of a mountain would be a pretty beautiful place to play.  So I did the ridiculous thing, not for the first time, and took my guitar for a hike.  Was it worth the pain?  Of course…

Sheepishly (!) I trekked with my guitar

It was exciting hiking on paths that we’d never have been able to find ourselves.  We admired the beautiful, bright red rhododendron flowers that start to appear when you reach a certain altitude in the Himalayas.  We learnt you can eat them straight from the tree, they taste quite sour and bitter - an acquired taste, but once I was hungry they suddenly did wonders as a snack to keep me going.  You can also make tea and a chutney out of them, both of which I was keen to taste, but as yet have not yet come across as it's something not available to buy, only made by locals.

After a day of hiking we arrived at our destination - a deserted Sherpa village in which we were the only ones staying.  A bit eerie, but also incredible to encounter, especially as on all sides of us were mountains. During monsoon season a whole village move up the mountain to this spot to graze their animals on the grass and shelter from the bad weather in their traditional stone cottages.

Deserted Sherpa Village

The cottage design ensures there's space to sleep at the top of the house and space for the animals to shelter at the bottom.  The sleeping space also contains an indoor fire.  This was great to keep it warm, as it was freezing, but it got so ridiculously smokey that we had to keep the door open.  It doesn't surprise me that smoke inhalation is still the biggest cause of death in India when this is still common place in villages to have fires indoors.

 

Home for the night – sleeping on a bed of hay

Dinner was of course the standard dish - rice and daal.  We had an epic (outdoor) fire and went to bed pretty early knackered from the hike (and also as Eric's stomach was playing up - not ideal at the top of a mountain!).  That's when the bad weather started - howling winds, cold temperatures, rain.  In the morning neither of us could bear to move from our cozy sleeping bag until the guide came to tell us we had to get up and go before it got worse otherwise it could be dangerous. So we had to hike down through the epic rain, lucky that we'd been given some waterproof ponchos.  Brave Eric kept on trooping despite his stomach getting worse.  But it was such a great trek - so off the beaten track and such good company.

Wet, wet, wet on the way down Village life

During the rest of our time in Palampur we were fortunate to explore some gorgeous villages.  I'm probably idealising village life greatly but I just loved seeing the children running around playing, giggling so much, free to explore as it is such a safe place and because Indian parents tend to have a more laissez faire approach whilst children are young, allowing them to play without supervision.  Ironically the children seem to have less freedom as they become adults having to report in to their parents regularly about every aspect of life if they aren’t at living at home.  Or so I have been told by several young Indians I have met.  I’ve had to be in a few selfies with Indians to proove what they are up to, to their parents!

The children weighed a lot less than the guitar

The kids were enjoying us giving them piggy backs up the hill.  There's still a traditional style of building, made from clay and wood, which is beautiful, and many of the houses still have their own vegetable patch and animals.  There were only about 50 houses in the village and most of them had TV dishes on the side of the house, and apparently good electricity supply.  It's such a mix of tradition and modernity.  The villagers were so friendly and we were invited into one for delicious pakora (deep fried veg) and chai tea (spiced tea with lots of milk and sugar).  I really have been appreciating my basic Hindi in these situations and I just can never get over how hospitable people all over India are.  It makes you feel at home wherever you are, restores my faith in humanity and is the best way to get a taste of local culture.

My new friends from the village near Palamput The best gift

My other favourite memory of Palampur is writing a song for Eric's brother – David who has had a tough year fighting sickness.  Having brainstormed what would be a good gift to bring home for him, we decided instead to write him a song as what could be more original?  It was so much fun to write – first Eric told me as much as possible about his brother to give me writing inspiration and then I wrote the tune and lyrics according to what he wanted to say to his brother.  It turned out super cheesy and is called the best gift.  I've given up fighting against the cheesiness now as at least it made someone smile!

Even more fun was shooting a short video to go with it.  Of course we had to have a super, luscious, gorgeous looking back drop - so we sat on some rocks in a stream with green fields and snow peaked mountains in the background, as you do!  It’s not great quality but you get the idea.

Video shoot for ‘the best gift’ Dreams of living off the land

I've been really inspired by the way I've seen people live in the state of Himanchal Pradesh, more traditional ways of life, coming back to basics such as growing your own food and building your own house with local materials.  Sometimes I forget how many ways there are to live other than the culture I have been raised in.

I was fortunate to be invited to visit an Indian friend's land, also in Palampur, which they hope one day to turn into their own sustainable and eco friendly farm that will host volunteers.  Already they have their own tea plants, several types of vegetable and many herbs and spices and they plan to build eco cottages out of local materials.

It's just such a peaceful space, you instantly feel calmer being among the sound of birds and crickets.  I was also welcomed most warmly, as is so uplifting in India, with lots of tea and delicious home made Indian food.  I'm really excited to see how the project will pan ou'- they are currently trying to build the funds required to kick start the project and will soon launch a crowd funding campaign.  If you want to help support them, get in touch with me!

Beautiful land in Palampur with so much potential

I've greatly appreciated spending the last month exploring the Himalayas in the state of Himanchal Pradesh, now one of my favourite places in India.  There's something so special about living in the mountains.  The views are truly magnificent, the Himanchali people are so nice and I've encountered a greater sense of village life which appeals to the side of me that just wants to live simply and close to nature.

It is especially a relief to be in the mountains after my time living in the hectic, heavily polluted city of Varanasi.  To breathe clean, mountain air is such a blessing and the nature is beautiful – snow peaked mountains, cheerful birds chirping away, butterflies flying onto flowers, mountain animals like goats and donkeys wandering.  Not only that, but India is experiencing a really unusual amount of heat for this time of year.  Millions are suffering temperatures over 40 degrees and there are major concerns over people’s health, in particular those who are most vulnerable who can’t manage these extreme temperatures.  I realise I’m so lucky that escaping to the mountains is an option available to me that many don’t have.

Back to the Future

My first stop in Himanchal was to the area of Dharamsala where I spent a month on my previous trip five years ago.  This time was very different - firstly as I was there exploring with my mum for ten days whereas last time I'd been alone, and secondly as previously it was off season in monsoon and thus very quiet -at that time I felt like I had the mountains to myself and could sing into the wind!  Yet this time tourist season was just kicking in.

Once my mum left to go back to England, I returned to the town of Bhagsu.  Bhagsu is a lively backpacker hub, walking distance away from the town of McLeod Ganj, home to the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government in exile.  It's nice to be close to this area as the Tibetan town has a completely different feel to Bhagsu and also has lots going on.  The monks are always very chilled out and the Tibetan parts of India always feel calmer than the Indian parts of India!

View of Triund from McLeod Ganj

It was surreal, yet easy, to return to familiar Bhagsu, with it's nice cafes and views – the hours just fall away as you watch life pass by and chat to other travellers.  I even ended up in the same guesthouse as last time as I had such a good view and liked the location, high up the hill, away from the main street.  Yet I felt restless especially as more and more people arrived as the season kicked in.  Amazing musicians come here and there was potential to play music with them but I wasn't content to just sit around among the stoned backpackers drinking tea.  I felt I wanted to be as active as possible or to be experiencing more of 'real India' not this bubble.

What a waste

I was really thankful that I came across an organisation that I could volunteer with called 'Waste Warriors' whose work I felt really passionate about.  They are doing their best to clean up the town of Bhagsu as well as the surrounding local trails.  In particular they clean up the hike to the popular mountain top destination of Triund (2900m 9 km hike) and the path to the Bhagsu Watefall, a popular spot for Indian tourists. Waste Warriors also go into local schools to run workshops and they work with local businesses to ensure that they can recycle and responsibly dispose of their rubbish.  Volunteers can come and help with the weekly clean ups or can come to support the NGO in other ways via internships, running workshops, or helping with design, social media or other office based activities.

Waste Warriors office in Bhagsu

Despite the beauty of the mountains, trash is still a significant problem as there is a big difference in people's attitudes towards rubbish in India, it really is hugely dividing.  Either people will really find it a terrible issue and do their best to stop it or people just don't care at all, it isn't even a consideration - especially for those used to living in cities where the streets are full of litter and anywhere is a dumping site.  Even I am basically used to the rubbish in the cities, as everything is so polluted and dirty - but when you see the rubbish in the natural setting it really stands out as something that shouldn't be there.

Rubbish at the top of Triund

When I did the Triund hike the first time with my mum, I just couldn't keep my mind off the rubbish that I kept seeing everywhere along the trail.  It reminded me of a familiar feeling I'd had in Nepal when I had also been hiking.  There were plastic bottles, glass bottles, clothes, shoes, sweet wrappers, cartons, crisp packets, cigarette butts, plates, plastic bags - the list just goes on.  It was distracting me from taking in the scenery as I just felt so disgusted by it.  I vowed to take some trash down on the way back down the next day.  My heart sank as I confronted some Indian guys who happily threw their plastic bottle from the mountain.  They just didn't understand what I was saying, or simply didn't care.  The top of the mountain was the worst - we'd come during a popular holiday and the camping site looked atrocious covered in bottles left by tourists.  I was also surprised none of the chai stands had made any effort to clean up at least their patch.

A plea to keep it clean – but who listens?

But I was fortunate enough to join Waste Warriors on a few of their clean up operations.  I came across them when I was on the way down from Triund on their weekly clean up of the route.  Inspired and raring to go, I joined them a week later to do the same hike but this time I was equipped with big waste bags, gloves and tongs ready to face the rubbish.  Luckily, having done the hike before, I knew what I was letting myself in for and that I was fit enough. The Indian couple who had also joined us had not anticipated how hard the hike would be - it's one thing to do a hike when you aren't used to it, but another to also be bending down picking up waste and they really struggled.

Yet I enjoyed the challenge. We spent the whole day collecting rubbish, arriving at the top only as it was beginning to get dark and we stayed overnight to rest and return the next morning.  I found myself getting quite perfectionist in my litter picking - not being able to leave anything.  As I grew more confident I became a bit more daring with where I would go to collect the waste.  Some pieces were quite hard to reach, stuck in trees or bushes or having rolled off into the valley, but I figured if we didn't collect it, who would?  So we were very thorough in our clean up and I also improved my acrobatic and balancing skills as a result!  In return for volunteering the local chai stands would give us free drinks and we got to stay in a small hut in Triund for free, sheltered from the biting cold.

Accommodation in Triund is limited – a relief to shelter from the cold!

I still can't believe how much people's attitudes vary towards this issue.  From speaking to locals there is a great deal of tension and resentment towards the tourists who are the ones creating and throwing the rubbish.  However in particular, they blame the Punjabi tourists who are increasingly using this as a weekend holiday destination.  They are developing a reputation for 'having it large' and will come, party, do lots of drinking, shouting and then go home oblivious to the mark they have left.  It's difficult for me to write this, as I don't want to single out a particular group, as we are all responsible for this issue, however there is certainly evidence showing that the numbers of these tourists are increasing and I too observed this party culture and have been shocked this trip by how much alcohol and binge drinking really is becoming part of main stream Indian society.

The Bhagsu Waterfall Clean up Team

I'd really recommend anyone that goes to Bhagsu to spend some time working with this organisation - they are doing a really great job and it's oddly very satisfying to collect the rubbish.  Of course there is still much work to be done in preventing this from happening in the first place.  There needs to be a huge change in attitude and public opinion and I just hope that India's new prime minister succeeds in his mission to try and clean up the country.  The mountains are a wonderful place and it's a tragedy to see them being polluted and the wildlife to be destroyed.  Once it's done it's too late - I hope people start to wake up soon. For more info on Waste Warriors visit their website here.

5 bags of rubbish collected at Bhagsu Waterfall in just 2.5 hours

Schools out

I've been so happy to start volunteering at the Lotus Foundation School, a small NGO based in Samne Ghat with around fifteen students.  As always in India, things never go as you want and so I couldn’t start on the planned date as there was no water at the school as there was building work going on. Yet it was a huge relief when I finally could start as I'd felt quite isolated being in my Indian home away from it all and wanted to dedicate my energy to something.  I've really enjoyed working with the kids, they are so full of life and it feels good to be contributing to something other than just my own travels and musical development.

The school is a primary school for children that live in a small slum next to the Ganges beneath a large unfinished bridge that crosses the river.  It's really great they get an opportunity to have an education and to learn basic things that we take for granted such as how to take care of ourselves.  At school they can wash, clean their hair and brush their teeth.  Such simple acts that otherwise aren't part of their routine.

We learnt a song about a house and drew pictures to go with this

Sadly hitting and shouting are part of their every day routine and school is also a place for them to learn that this just isn't an acceptable way to treat people or get what you want. It's difficult when this is what they learn at home.  Many parents aren't supportive of the children attending school, so there are always different students each day.  Sometimes the children might want to come but have to work or sometimes they might just not feel like it and no one is forcing them to go.  However every day we go to the slum to collect them to try and encourage them.

I have a huge amount of respect for Jill, an American lady, who runs the project. Firstly she's learnt pretty good Hindi which her allow her to teach the children to speak, read and write.  Everyday there are new challenges at the school – there's no cook, there's noise from builders, the gas has run out, there's a scooter in the classroom etc, but Jill keeps her calm and each day just does what she can given the difficult circumstances.

She is co-ordinating a move to a new school building next month across the river so that more children can attend.  She will create a hostel so that the current 15 or so children that come each day can live there and be fed so that they can keep coming.  If that wasn’t enough in itself she is also in the process of starting a guesthouse in the tourist area – the profits of which will be used to fund the school in the long run and offer job training to the children in the future. Jill very much takes everything in her stride, she manages so many things, it's amazing.

Going to the slum to collect the kids for school

She has also been great to work with.  I've found it challenging in the past volunteering on projects where there is little support and induction but she was very welcoming.  I work with an Indian man called Vikash, who usually teaches but has been translating for me and handles a lot of the discipline which makes it so much easier.  I also really appreciate his help so much – in the past it's been hard to teach with my limited Hindi and not knowing the school's way of maintaining discipline.

Jill is also passionate about ensuring the children are involved in the arts and can learn to express themselves.  Which is where I come in! I've been teaching the children music and songs to develop their English and starting to develop their rhythm.  It's been fun taking my guitar to school each day to teach new songs.  We've also made out own instruments and done lots of drawing. We are now preparing for a performance before I leave which is really exciting for them and gives them a good reason to come to school.  I feel like in this short space of time I now know each child - their personality and ability.  It's a shame I have to leave, I've enjoyed working with the kids and having the school routine.

Lunch time – yummy

As well as the teaching I love the start of school, the name game they do so that they can learn names (another things we take for granted - they live together yet don't know one another's names), doing yoga, some meditation (aka trying to sit still for two whole minutes) and reading the day's message. It's also great they get given a healthy snack of fruit as well as lunch of rice and daal.  The one time of day there is a sustained amount of silence as they gobble up their food.  I'm also fortunate to get picked up every day on a scooter which is just so much fun, whizzing through the hustle and bustle of Varanasi.

Thanks so much Jill - if you want to get in contact with her for any volunteering let me know!

Monkey business

You truly know you're in India when you have to alter your daily routine as a result of monkeys causing you trouble.  I was lured into a false sense of adorement for these creatures, the little ones look so cute and they're entertaining to watch but I quickly discovered they are not to be messed with.  In fact now I'm super wary of them.

The monkeys are very aggressive, territorial and protective of their babies.  They're on heat at this time of year and just become crazy.  My first encounter was with Anita Ji, trying to get to her mum's house - there was a group of them crossing the street and she wouldn't dare go past them until a man came with a large stick and shooed them away.  I remember thinking she was quite overly worried and that it was a bit extreme, surely we could just quickly scoot past?

Beware – monkeys crossing the street

Soon I got a phone call from my Kolkata friend explaining she'd just arrived in Varanasi the previous night and had been bitten by a monkey this morning!  She was meditating on the roof when she felt a baby monkey jump innocently onto her.  She thought it was sweet until the mother monkey lept towards her, chasing her down the stairs with other monkeys following.  Mother monkey then bit her on the leg with her sharp teeth.  My friend had to go to the hospital to get several rabies injections which made her pretty sick each time she had them.  What a welcome to the city……

I knew then the monkey problem really was serious and the next day I had my first adrenaline pumping encounter.  In the mornings, if there's time I like to go to the roof top to play my guitar.  It's the only place I can get some privacy as every door in my Indian house is always open (even the one to my bedroom get's  re opened whenever I close it as they use the room for puja and to have class!).  If I played outside the house I'd just attract so much attention.  So before and after the heat of the sun blasts out, the roof is my one 'safe space' - although obviously there is also someone who lives up there are does their washing and cleaning as I play…ha.

Anyway, I was innocently playing my guitar and watching the group of monkeys across the street on top of another building, far away, scavenging for food leftover from a wedding party.  Before I knew it a small head popped up from over the wall, looked me straight in the eyes, flashed it's sharp teeth and immediately I knew it was in attack mode. Uh oh,

I knew that if I just ran, it would chase me and just bite me like it did with my friend because they are so fast.  Luckily I'd just heard from someone that if you look as though you are going to attack them they back off and so you shouldn't lurch backward but run forwards.  Yes, it seems a bit counter intuitive but I lifted my guitar in the air and shouted 'AGHHHHHHHHH' in a really low voice for a really long time lurching my body forwards. It looked surprised, so then I ran for it!

I heard it chase me as I ran down the stairs so I turned again and went 'AGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH'.  Ran again - I was still being chased so turned around AGAIN with my aggressive 'AGHHH' until I was on the level of my house.  Of course another monkey was also coming up the stairwell having heard the shriek from it's friend so I backed into my gateway slamming the gate shut and could see that there were now about six monkeys hanging around the house, the balcony of which is protected by a cage.  Now I know why there is a cage.

Now I always carry a stick to the roof!

Anita said she'd heard my shout but had though it was a man because it was so low.  They monkey troop hung around for a good hour waiting for me to come out.  It shook me up but I know I had a lucky escape.   From that day on if there's the slightest sign of any monkeys on the roof I return home.  And I always carry a huge, big stick up there with me.  On the streets I avoid going near them and know never to make eye contact….monkey business.

Gratitude

Little things I'm grateful for - hot water for washing.  I hadn't realised there was hot water at our house as the warm and cold tap are the wrong way round.  Each morning I'd been cringing as I washed, thinking that 'warm' water, must mean not freezing cold.  Only accidently did I discover there is warm water.  Halleluiah, it's changed my world, just a small, simple thing but so much nicer to have.

I also never realised the importance of mirrors.   I like to think I'm not so vain and when I lived in the jungle I barely used a mirror, but it's not like I had to look presentable for anything (or wear much!) but now I've been working in a school and wanting to get ready and there is only one mirror in the house in the dining room that everyone uses.  I feel really weird about standing there and getting ready.  Privacy in the house has definitely been an issue!

India life is so surreal

It's wedding season and so it was only a matter of time before I would be invited to an Indian Wedding.  I went to a small sections, which is good as they go on for days with people not even sleeping so I was satisfied with just a glimpse.  I attended with the whole family and although we didn't see the actual ceremony, as that didn't start until 1am, I got a good feel for what it's like. It was a grand affair with the venue lavishly decorated with sparkly and shiny things that they so much love here.  There were delicious food stalls dotted around the site and so I was in food heaven.  I borrowed a beautiful silk sari and felt very glamorous.  There was also a lot of sitting around not knowing what was going on which is just my usual India experience a lot of the time.  So I played with Anjali, the 11 year old child of the family, who was delighted to have someone to play rock, paper, scissors with.

Blinged up for the Indian Wedding

 

Performing folk at an Indian Classical Concert …only in India

I was also very privileged to perform in a small concert a couple of weeks ago – a complete surprise.  A group of Argentian tourists came to the home to see my Indian parents do a concert and they invited me to sing with them.  I sang an Indian song (Bolo Bolo) by myself which was terrifying as I had to follow their incredible performance!  And nerves make singing an already complex song even harder.  But I appreciate their sentiment, they were giving me this opportunity to practice which is wonderful.

Then I got to sing a song with my guitar which I really enjoyed, this was much more in my comfort zone but of course once again, expect the unexpected.  We hadn't rehearsed and as I started playing the song Indian drumming from the tabla accompanied me, a super fast rhythm started, far faster than I wanted - it just did not suit the song and the drumming had to slowly fade out again.  It threw me a bit, but I managed to see the funny side.  This is India….

 

Back in Varanasi

It's been a fortnight of ups and downs as I'm whirled around on the bumpy path that is India.  Don't get me wrong, I'm so grateful I'm here, but sometime I have to remind myself of why I'm in such an alien environment where everything is topsy turvy, dirty and I'm away from my friends and family! In actual fact one of the biggest reasons is to have singing lessons and spend time with a wonderful lady called Anitaji. The ji at the end of the name is an Indian term of endearment and respect.  I've been using it as I integrate back into Indian culture and family life.

Cows and kids – the most common of sightings in India

I'm fortunate enough to be living with her and her husband Rohitji in their family home in the sacred and super busy city of Varanasi - a place of pilgrimage for many Hindus.  Dying in Varanasi is particularly auspicious as it's meant to overcome the cycle of rebirth.  Anita and Rohit live in a residential area called Sakat Nagar which is about half an hour away from the holy river Ganges and the Old City (an area made up of narrow alleys, temples and lots of cows and monkeys).  This means I'm somewhat isolated in that I'm away from the main tourist area (and thus creature comforts such as Wi Fi!).

How things unfold

I met these talented and kind musicians on my previous India trip when I was totally mesmerised by the singing lessons I had with Anita in Bhagsu, a backpacker town in the Himalayas.  I enjoyed the lessons so much I stayed there for a month and then later in the trip also spent a month with them in Varanasi for an intensive course and had four hours of lessons per day! I had such an incredible stay being immersed in study and expanding my voice – it really inspired me so much to sing, a supressed ambition I'd had for a long time.  Choosing to dedicate your energy to singing is the kind of insane thing that only happens on travels in India when you have time and a little money (for us) goes a long way.

Singing has now become a huge part of my life – five years ago I couldn't even have imagined I'd be running my own community choir and performing at Glastonbury Festival - it's all a bit surreal.  My Indian music lessons paved the way for this and if anyone could appreciate how far I'd come; from not even being able to sing in front of others or sing high notes without grimacing awkwardly at the sound, to where I am now - it's Anita. So it felt really nice to come back and share with her my achievements over the past few years and develop my singing further so that I can continue to develop my choir leading skills.

Feeling Frustrated

I've been feeling a huge irony in being here again to have singing lessons, even though I've waited five years to return.  I'm here to develop my singing ability and yet it feels like one of the least conducive environments for this.  The pollution here feels really horrific!  Even in just five years it feels a lot worse than it used to be.  There's so much dust and smog in the air and the amount of traffic that blocks the roads is overwhelming, as it's constant traffic jams and often times it is faster to walk past the traffic than be in the rickshaw.

I've noticed my throat feels quite dry all of the time, I'm coughing – I may also have a cold or be adjusting to the climate, but in any case it doesn't feel good for my health.  It's so frustrating as I have had quite a struggle in class not being able to use my voice in the way I normally can.  However it's not just me who has had difficulty, Anita has also struggled.  It concerns me a lot that these are the conditions that people here have to live in permanently.  Without a doubt, if this continues a lot of people are going to get very sick and although the government is bringing in more measures to create positive change, like encouraging more push bikes, change takes time to infiltrate and we need action now.

Varanasi traffic on a good day Protecting the voice

Every time I go outside a wave of fumes hits me. I've begrudgingly resorted to wearing a scarf around my head that covers my mouth to try to stop this.  I don't want to walk around like this, as if I'm in disguise (though to be fair in India it has it's uses to blend in more) but I feel like it's necessary to protect my voice.  The other option is just to not go outside, but I'm too restless to do that.  I can't sit inside all day, especially if I can see the sun outside - I have to move or I go a bit mad.

All being said, it's making me really appreciating clean air - even London air.  I'm lucky that I can choose to live in places that aren't so polluted.  Although I am hugely grateful to be in Varanasi, I already know the fresh air of the Himalayas will be very much welcome.  For now I just have to deal with the pollution, as millions of Indians do every day!

My dramatic voice and throat protection! Or am I a spy? Welcome to your Indian Family

I've very much enjoyed being part of an Indian family, it's been lovely to catch up with what's gone on over the last few years for them, it's been great to practice my Hindi and it's reassuring there are some people looking out for me.  I feel so welcome in their home - they've introduced me to so many family members, they let me borrow their smart phones if I need to check something, they showed me their 90's wedding video –  jam packed with amazing retro Indian special effects such as their pictures spinning round in a love heart and gods flashing across the screen.

Each evening at 9pm we settle down to watch our favourite Hindi soap opera - Salaam ee Ishk, packed full of drama.  Each love scene the soppy music starts and the actor's hair starts to blow in the wind as they stare longingly at one another.  They have the classic evil step mother who is the villain of the family and is always scheming.  I shout at the screen a lot reacting to the drama as it unfolds, despite not being able to understand a lot of what is being said, but it's fairly obvious and I get regular translations given to me. At home I never watch TV but it feels nice to have something familiar each evening and it's definitely entertaining.

Singing from the same sheet?

I’ve resumed lessons – but this time only 2 hours per day.  Given that the school I a meant to teach in hasn’t been open (due to unexpected construction) I have felt a bit like I’m just hanging around too much. However I realise this isn’t for long.  I do love our early morning singing sessions which are very meditative just singing lots of low notes to warm up the voice and doing scales.  I'm also being reaquanited with songs I haven't sung in five years.  Some are very beautiful but overall I'm already realising that, although it's incredible to sing in the Indian Classical style, it's so complex and isn't really where I want to focus my musical energy.

The singing I 've been involved with in England is so much about making music accessible to all and this is basically the opposite as the true singers are trained one on one for hours per day over a life time.  However it's helping me realise the styles of music that I do want to explore further next -  bluegrass, folk, gospel, old spirituals.  I think that what I'll most benefit from is the opportunity to develop my technique, to really sing from the belly and expand my range.

My first week in Varanasi

I spent some days acquiring an old fashioned Indian mobile phone, having completed my fair share of bureaucracy - filling in some forms, giving copies of my visa and passport and of course also passport photos - what hoop jumping as usual in India.

I've had a few trips to the tailor to fit Indian garments for me - I now have several kurtas (an above the knee length top with slits down the side) and some kurtis (same as kurta but longer).  I have way too many Indian clothes, but as soon I'll be teaching and am not just in backpacker areas it feels like the right thing to do to blend in more and it's quite fun as I get to wear a completely different style of clothing to anything I would normally wear.

The colours and patterns I select are nothing like I would wear at home and the leggings I wear in purple and green are also way brighter than anything I'd normally wear.  Yet people here would probably still say my style is quite demure as they love their bling and bright colours.  Seeing Indian men wander round in the classic Indian sparkly jumpers makes me chuckle - they are so in fashion here, they're amazing.

This photo doesn’t do the Indian sparkly jumper enough justice

I've also gone on a few trips to Anita's mother's house (known as 'nani' or grandmother) who also  tries very hard to feed me so that I fatten up.  It's quite amusing sitting in their house as several people chat, laugh, sometimes bicker and I try to pick up on what's going on but don't have much of a clue.  I just sit quietly and sip tea.  Last time I was there they had a special guest - a family relative, who came to deliver a wedding invitation as it's wedding season.  So now I have a wedding to attend on Tuesday evening, my first one and already a sari is being arranged for me to wear!

Mother away from home…

I feel a bit like I've slipped into the role of an Indian daughter!  In some ways this is lovely and it's nice to be cared for, but it's also difficult!  Anita is a wonderful woman, but she is extremely stubborn and refuses to let me do any washing, cleaning or helping. I feel really guilty as I sit there watching her do it, but she just won't let me and gets quite angry if I do. I think as it's undermining her role and she wants to welcome her guest.  So I guess I should just make the most of it whilst I can, I'm starting to let go but it's difficult.  Then once I leave Varanasi I'll be meeting my real mum, so the mothering may continue!  I think it wouldn't be so bad but at the moment I've had quite a free schedule and so feel like I'm just sitting around too much doing nothing.

I've been going out as much as I can – I know Anita is really grateful to have someone she can venture outside with.  She explained to me that it's difficult to go shopping alone as women still get inappropriate comments made about them  which I find unbelievable.  Luckily, as I can't understand anyone, I'm not scared to venture out alone as I am oblivious to what they are saying and I know I'm doing my best to be respectful in how I dress and behave.

Nearly every day I accompany Anita on some errand that needs doing, including buying new t-shirts for Rohit, fetching supplies and helping her to find a smart phone for Rohit (I'm the 'expert' with this apparently - again ironic as for anyone that knows me I am not so great with this stuff but the fact I can download an app is even advanced so I am also helping them with this).  I've been their mobile consultant helping when something isn't working, something new needs downloading or when they want help writing a message.

Anitaji shopping at a local roadside market

We've also been going for walks together around 6am in the morning for exercise before it's hot and busy.  The park is full of men and you certainly don't see women on their own. It's quite eye opening how much freedom we have at home, to not even have to think about that.  Anita shared with me that as a teenager she could run and played lots of basketball on a team, yet when she married this ended and she really missed it so much.  I can't imagine having to stop doing exercise because you get married and can't go out alone.  She also sits a lot when she teaches so I really understand why she wants to walk whilst I am here and why she is so keen on moving about doing housework.

The park I walk in every morning The next chapter

I'm really looking forward to starting teaching next week.  It's been a great fortnight but I've felt isolated at times or a bit stuck at the house and frustrated I can't do anything to help.  I've been going for walks to Assi Ghat, the most Southern of the ghats which is the nearest to the family home which has helped.  The ghats are the steps down to the holy river Ganges that people use to bathe their and wash their sins away, although on a physical level it’s some of the most polluted water in the world – the Indian ironies…

Assi Ghat, my place of rest

It's nice there as it's far more peaceful, I can make the most of the sun, there is less pollution and I get to use internet in cafes with wifi (if I'm lucky and it's working).  The atmosphere is just very beautiful and sacred.  It's also a great place to people watch as I drink chai and I've already had my first Indian 'Selfie' Pic – hilarious.  Missing all at home, but grateful to be here and see Anita and Rohit as well as my good friends the cows!

First Indian Selfie (so I had to get a copy!)

Am I really doing this again?

I can't believe I'm back in India - it's been five whole years since my last trip and this year has seen me back on the road and in traveler mode.  In 2011, I vowed to come back in the not too distant future and now I finally have and am most grateful for the opportunity.  I've felt strongly about returning for a long time, as if it was something I had to do otherwise I'd forever regret it.

Yet despite knowing deep down it will be an incredible trip, I still experienced a lot of the pre travelling apprehension –  that sense of the unknown, wondering how much it would have changed, how I'd feel once I was actually there, awareness I was leaving behind the choir that I'd so proudly built up, saying goodbye to friends and family and basically any sense of stability, routine and familiarity.  Yet I'm now realising in many ways how much more familiar and normal this backpacker way of life somehow feels to me and so within that there is a great sense of stability for me!

A home from my Hertford home – Hertford Lane in Kolkata! Failing to plan, is planning to fail (except in India)

Before leaving England, India logistics felt a bit overwhelming - the two simple tasks I wanted to complete both turned out to be way more difficult than I felt they should be.  Firstly, I needed to book a guesthouse for my arrival to Kolkata, but ringing around the 'nice' budget ones recommended by Lonely Planet (of course), I quickly found they were all full.  On my previous trip I never booked ahead but I wanted to know I would have somewhere to stay upon arrival after a long journey, not yet quite being in my free flow traveller mode.

Secondly I knew that I wanted to get the train from Kolkata to Varanasi as soon as possible upon arrival. I'd made arrangements to visit and stay with my wonderful music teachers/Indian parents for five weeks, who were probably the greatest reason I felt such a need to return.  I knew that staying with them would be the best way to get back into the Indian culture, Hindi and that I'd be comfortable and well looked after in their home with good food to eat and a nice bed to sleep in.

Yet, busy train routes in India become booked up quickly months in advance.  I could see online all the trains I wanted to take were filling up fast. It turns out that booking trains online, which used to be simple, is now close to impossible for foreigners as you require an Indian mobile to receive the necessary 'validation code'.  In theory you can get around this by emailing a copy of your passport and some 'basic details' to an indicated email address.  Yet after two weeks of emailing back and forth and trying to set up an account with different email addresses, I gave up with the bureaucracy as a different person kept answering my query with another reason my details weren't correct which was so frustrating.

And thus, I remembered lesson number one (how could I forget?)  that if you can surrender to India, it will make your life a great deal easier. I could make plans as much as I liked, but in India you have to expect the unexpected, so it's a fatal flaw to try and control everything because you'll just end up really frustrated, which was totally happening to me. So I just had to let go of being in control of everything and to remember that it will all work out, it always does.

Surrendering

Through the wonders of the internet I found some guesthouses that were still available.  They were more expensive that I was looking for (at ten pounds per night which is actually my daily budget living out here) but prices in India are rising fast and Kolkata is known for it's dodgy accommodation which is limited to mainly dingy rooms at a high price. So essentially I got to pick the best of a bad bunch.

I went for one that I knew would be in a good location in the backpacker area.   This is where my previous Kolkata knowledge came in so useful, as I was confident that at least there I could meet other travellers, access internet and find some good places to eat.  The 'Hotel Continental' had three great reviews at the top and about twenty advising not to stay (bed bugs, cleanliness, dingy, small etc). But t I really just needed a bed for the night.

In the end my guesthouse turned out not so bad as I'd had really low expectations.  It wasn't worth what I paid but I had a decent bed, the room was fairly clean and I had my own bathroom.  It was quite noisy, but it's hard to find any peace in this city and it felt safe and secure and was well located (if somewhat hard to find).  I couldn't really have hoped for more given the reviews, I was just glad my room at least was bedbug and stench free.  It's funny how quickly my standards can adapt from my what I am used to in England.

Adjusting to Indian guesthouses in Kolkata – this was a pleasant surprise! Lost is the new found

On the day I arrived I decided to brave the city and walk to the Eastern Railways booking office, a place near the train station where it's possible to book trains under the 'tourist quota'.  They reserve a certain amount of seats for foreign travellers on busy train routes and I was hoping under this there'd still be space.  Fuelled only adrenaline I braved the madness of the busy streets and had to get used to the confused looks and people trying to sell me things.

Finding the booking office, felt like such an achievement.  As I have no smart phone I'd printed a map with more detail than in the book but what did not help was that it turns out that many of Kokata's streets have two names - the Colonial name and the new name, either of which could appear on a street sign and on the map. Also as the roads are so big it's hard to know when to cross as you can't see the street sign. Added to that crowds of people are everywhere and you have to cluster in small groups to have the power to cross the busy roads, edging confidently forwards until the traffic starts driving around you as they can see the direction you are all heading in.  Terrifying, exhilarating and hilarious all at once.

So I just went in a general direction, trying to keep my bearings. When I did have to reluctantly get out my the map and random Indians gave me directions, I ignored them as apparently it is common for people just to want to be polite and helpful even when they have no clue!  This is so true and if I'd followed the street man's directions I would have headed totally in the wrong direction and yet he seemed so adamant of where he was pointing me.

What I did do was ask lots of official looking people along the way, such a security guards in government and bank buildings who were very helpful and seemed quite excited to be talking to a foreigner.  So I found it after forty five minutes and when I arrived I was so proud of myself.  When I managed to also book onto the train that was advertised as full online I was delighted, the form filling and waiting around had paid off.  I am totally winning at India - phew.

The backpacker hub of Sudder Street Arriving in topsy turvy India

Despite my initial nerves, I had so many nice encounters even just on the journey there - with chatty Indians returning home, with the security men in Gatwick asking me to play them a song on guitar and with another girl who I had to wait with for ages before my bag arrived.  By the time I was stepping through the doors at the airport I felt a huge sense of excitement sweep over me. I felt the warmth of the sun on my skin, which I'd been missing so much in England.  Then I got a whiff of that familiar, musty air (honestly not a bad smell, though there are definitely some of those around).  There was a sense of familiarity among the madness and it didn't feel like much had changed or five years had passed.

And it is mad – yet of all the big cities Kolkata is my favourite kind of mad.  The best place to people watch - my taxi journey to Sudder Street, the backpacker area, took me through familiar sights of traffic filled streets full of cars, taxis, motorbikes all beeping their horns as much and loudly as possible to indicate their presence. In time this would probably drive me mad, but at the moment it still has a nostalgic feel to it as I walk the streets or hear it through my guesthouse window.  To us, it seems odd but in India, not beeping would be rude as it is alerting every one of your presence!

I was reminded of the colours and smells of India, so much brightness – in people's clothes, the trinkets and treasures the street stalls are selling, the billboard adverts everywhere showing how much of a consumer culture India is turning in to trying to sell us a Western lifestyle with an Indian twist.  That set amongst the dusty, drab, crumbling colonial style buildings makes a unique place, yet I find it quite mesmerising.

There's so much life everywhere.  People are just going about their business, Indians on the street polishing shoes, cutting hair, selling chai, drying out their washing in the middle of the road, reading newspapers, chattering away at the bus stop - it's just so fascinating to watch.

So happy to have chai back in my life; This stuff is seriously addictive. Times are a changing

I'm so curious this trip as to how much things in India will have changed.  Kolkata still has a very similar feel to last time, the back packer area hasn't expanded and is still small and has that lively but dilapidated character.  It does cater for backpackers but there's still also a local feel to it, with Indians going about their daily life and many of the businesses there exist not to cater soley for tourists. There is still the same mix of extreme richness and extreme poverty.  Prices have gone up a bit, but I am still sussing out how much by.  You can still buy a small chai for 5R which never ceases to delight me and I am already using them as a way to wake me up in the morning to overcome the jet lag.

However I am sad to see the decline of the Kolkata style clay tea cup - to me this is classic Kolkata, as much as the yellow taxis are, and I was so astounded by them last time taking several home- the clay cups can just be thrown on the floor and will disintegrate in the rain. They look most charming and are nice to drink from.  Yet very few road side tea stands have them anymore, that horrible plastic cup has replaced them which is discarded on the floor.  We need to start the 'Bring back the Kolkata Cup' Campaign!  This is a tradition we should be moving towards globally, not away from surely?

#Savekolkatascup

My little Kolkata Chai Cup 

I also came across the same beggar women as last time, who I have to say, look not too bad, they have somewhat of a relaxed swagger, they are chatty and wandering around you can tell this feels like their home turf.  I think their way of giving tourists henna is a fair way to earn money and a fair exchange for those who want it.  However I did hear from other travellers that after long conversations they would still ask the traveller to buy some rice for their kids, which is fine, but then at the shop they would charge 700R it should be about 20R).  I don't like this scam, in comparison the henna seems like quite a fine idea.

Their kids run around the streets together holding hands, the youngest maybe 2.5 years old being carried by elder siblings.  The children just wander in pairs without adults, easily managing the traffic and just playing.  It is incredible how independent these young children can be when they have to be/their parents let them be.  It does make me think that treating children as young, makes them act that way but they are capable of a lot from a young age.

A big change I am still adjusting to is the presence of Wi Fi.  On previous trips the internet cafes were packed full of backpackers communicating home.  My favourite one of these was always buzzing.  They did well as they would also sell Ali Baba pants, brightly coloured bags and sequined wall hangings, but this has now closed as everyone just uses either phones, tablets or laptops to access Wi Fi in the guesthouses or in cafes. There's something I miss about the good old days of not being connected all of the time, I think this is really going to change the nature of my trip as for the first time travelling I now have a laptop with me.  I just hope café's with Wifi won't just turn into the London tube carriages - where everyone is on their device and no one is interacting with each other! That was so much the magic of travel, meeting strangers who you'd otherwise never connect with.

Back to my traveller ways

I already have a favourite street side chai place where you can sit and people watch without too much disturbance.  Their Indian food of curry, rotis and omelettes breakfast is just divine.  That plus 3 chais cost me the grand total of a pound – amazing.

As I sat down, the chai man pointed to another white girl and said 'your friend'.  Turns out she was, at least from that moment on for the rest of that day which was really nice to have someone to wander and explore with.  Another girl from England, also a true traveller who had returned to India after seven years – we had a lot in common and we spent the whole day chatting away and visiting temples and eating street food, being super grateful to be back and grateful for the company as we adjust back to India life.

My favourite chai drinking spot on Sudder Street, Kolkata

We visited the ISKON temple - aka Hari Krishna temple - I hadn't heard much about the story of Krishna until now.  He is an incarnation of 'Vishnu' the god who is known as 'the sustainer of life' in Hinduism.  Apparently he was quite the cute, cheeky baby hence lots of depictions of him as a child and then quite the charmer as a young man, drawing lots of attention from the ladies. Hari Krishas  show their devotion to Krishna through their singing and chanting, all of which is to send out love to him and the world. I didn't see any Hari Krishna's as I do parading around Oxford Street but the food at Govinda's next door was super tasty (as it is in the London branch).

In the afternoon we visited the Kali temple - Kali is a fierce goddess who is associated a lot with mother nature but also death - she has a fierceness about her but is also very protective.  Often she is depicted with bones around her neck and holding weapons.  She is the goddess of Kolkata and we enjoyed seeing the temple with it's full Indianess - flowers, incense, crowds, blessings, a 'small' request for donation in return for a blessing, lots of bling trinkets and tacky (in a charming way) shiny gifts such as necklaces and bangles. A few 'one photo please missss'…  Yet it was that time of day when the sun was setting and walking back through the alleys, we experienced a more peaceful side of the city and the beautiful light of the city.

Being able to speak some basic Hindi, which I learnt on my last trip, has truly been wonderful. It's a great conversation starter, you can have a bit of a joke, it indicates you already 'know what you're doing' and it's nice to be able to pick up bits of what people are talking about.  I honestly know very little but have just worked out what top ten phrases are useful for everyday life as a traveller!

Getting back into the swing of India – visiting the Kali Temple in Kokata

I quickly remembered the traveller tricks of the trade - holding onto and always trying to aquire change as people never want to give you any, you have to spend your big notes in the bigger places like 'proper shops' so that you can gather change to get rickshaws, buy street food etc.  I have also resumed my Indian English voice, which is most strange sounding thing but it genuinely helps people understand me so much better.

I try to look like I know where I'm going, even when I have no clue.  If people try to engage with you to sell you something and you don't want it, just don't even start a dialogue.  It's hard turning off a part of the friendly traveller, but experience has taught me that sometimes this just has to be the way and you learn through intuition who you can and can't talk to.  I've already politely declined a few requests to give my 'Email ID' so that the person can practice English and had to ignore some child beggars, it's so horrible to do but I just can't handle opening that flood gate right now - that's a whole other blog.

This evening I head to Varanasi, I have enjoyed the chaos of Kolkata but I am also really happy to stay with my Indian family where I know I will be well looked after, can gently be reacquainted with the culture and I get to have wonderful singing times again.  :-)