It ain’t India unless there’s a cow in the middle of the road. Seriously, every place I’ve set foot in, cows can be found leisurely crossing the road (and other farm animals, but the cow is the most quintessential), seemingly oblivious to the hurricane of traffic swirling around them.
Category Archives: India
Revisiting (and rethinking) Delhi
I’m back in Delhi after two solid days of rest in Guwahati. I found a copy of The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho on the bookshelf in the communal living room and quickly read it cover to cover. I know most of the Western world has already read this book and I’m late to the game, […]
Back on the (bleeping) bus
The bus ride was less like hell and more like purgatory. It turns out I was armed with higher tolerance on the way back from Ziro than I had on the way there. To my surprise, the same “punk kid” ended up being my Sumo driver from Ziro back to Naharlagun. This coincidence made me […]
Fake celeb syndrome
Tallo came to pick me up on his motorbike a little later today, around 9 am. We first went on a hike to Taw Tibe Farm, which involved climbing a hell of a lot of steps, but I am accustomed to uphill climbs by now. The farm itself is considered to be its own village, […]
The Apatani of Arunachal
I awoke well-rested and looking forward to exploring the town. I had known beforehand that Ziro is home to the Apatani tribe and was curious to see their way of life.
Ziro tolerance: part II
The Sumo ride to Ziro was a fun (and somewhat dangerous) one, which often seem to go hand in hand in my choice of recreational and holiday activities.
Ziro tolerance: part I
On May 12th, I set out for Leh airport from my guesthouse at 7 am to catch my morning flight to Guwahati. I had booked my Airbnb accommodations literally ten minutes before leaving, just barely managing it with the in-and-out wifi signal. I know by now that I prefer to have my accommodations booked before […]
Achoochoo?
Today is Day 4 of the trek, and the most difficult thus far. First of all, it’s IDGAF-level cold both inside and outside. “Achoochoo” is my layman’s interpretation of how to express “really damn cold” in Ladakhi (ok, the “damn” is my insertion, and yes, it’s pronounced like the sound effect for a sneeze).
Hankering for warmth (and maybe a hug)
Since I last wrote in this blog in 2014, a hell of a lot has happened, for better and for worse (but mostly for the better). A few of these events I could have imagined, but others I could never have predicted.
Hostess with the momo-stest
Today consisted of 6–7 hours of trekking through Markha Valley, which sits at an altitude of 3770 meters, a bit higher than Leh. It was cloudy and windy for most of the day, with brief periods of snow (which promptly melted).