Final Delhi Send Off

Seven and a half years ago we ended our India trip with a Jain Family (Delhi chapter) outing to the best Dhosa restaurant in town, Sagar (the original in Defence Colony, not one of those cheap knock-offs in CP or your local mall). Not a people to buck tradition, we find ourselves back in the same spot for the final send off. Same restaurant, same floor (the top - because the family has a rep of being so loud that they won't let them mingle with the other customers on the first three floors), same tables, same menu.

Pretty much everyone arrives on time and gathers on the fourth floor. (This seems a bit out of character, but if we've learned one thing in India it is to expect the unexpected.) Our children, -- who we haven't seen in a solid day, as they stayed with Bhavna and Rhea, while Geeta and I did last minute purchases, packed, made last minute phone calls to the myriad of relatives who expected to see us for a meal at some point during the trip, but didn't -- are indifferent to see us. They are more interested in playing with the cousins, a fun little game called "Rose Garden" in which one pinches and rubs and generally abuses the other's arm as the story of the planting of a garden is recited. Ahh, good fun.

I greet a few aunts and uncles who I've only seen very briefly during this trip. Sadly, there are considerably fewer than last time, as time is catching up with all of us. And Geeta's generation becomes the dominant force in the Jain family, Delhi chapter. I end up at a small table for four pinched into the inside, one might say trapped, but I won't. I'm seated with Gautam (which I pronounce Gotham, and for whom I've always felt Gotham City would be a great nickname, but alas it hasn't stuck) and with Baby's (aka Ritu's) brother. Baby's brother's nickname is Goo Goo. I don't think it's spelled that way, but I like it. Note that there's a cousin nicknamed Ca Ca, too. That's my favorite! But he's in Jammu and not able to be at Sagar.

So the point of being at Sagar, apart from seeing as much family in one sitting without having to visit every single person's house for a multi-course meal that nobody will be able to handle, is to order some South Indian fast food and indulge. The specialty is Kieran's favorite, Dhosa, a rice crepe that embodies delicious fried goodness. As much as it's been talked about letting loose because the next day we will be on a plane back to the States and who cares if you're sick on a plane, I keep thinking I don't want to be sick on a plane. And so I approach the evening with our motto from our Ladakh trip, Osvaldo's paraphrase of a Buddhist philosophy, "all in moderation." Not to mention, earlier in the day we were taken to lunch for a "let loose, you'll be on a plane tomorrow" snacky lunch of Punjabi favorites, including Geeta's favorite, fried hollow balls of dough with green murky water in them. Yum!

Dhosas, idli, and other South Indian specialties are ordered on a rolling basis. I pace myself, sampling but not binging on most everything. I draw the line at the sweet spaghetti noodle and kulfi ice cream dessert which I'm assured is much better than the one I was forced to sample a few hours earlier at lunch. I'm sure it was great, but I don't feel I've missed out. Goo goo's coffee arrives before the wiener-shaped Gulab Jamun. This, apparently, is an offense. The waiter doesn't look pleased being called out on this dessert faux pas.

Baby, Bhavna, Punya, and Shalu alternate pointing at me as if to say we could rescue from that corner you're trapped in, but it looks like you're having so much fun listening to dirty jokes in Hindi that we'll let you be. I try to appear engaged as much as possible. Over the years, I've perfected a look of interest and understanding as the Jains code-switch from Hindi/Punjabi to English to Punjabi/Hindi without missing a beat. I listen very hard for numbers and colors and fruit, the extent of my Hindi knowledge. When I hear "char" (four) spoken I nod. Hmm, char.

After the usual hub-bub about who's paying and how much, we file down below. There we stand outside the restaurant, not really believing that we're saying our final good byes and not really believing that we're standing in the middle of a narrow road that cars are trying to pass. The cars pass, brushing against our legs, side mirrors folded closed to say excuse me. Geeta feels sad, less sure about leaving than she had felt a few hours before.

Baby implores me to blog about the experience, certain there was more in my head than the mantra of moderation regarding eating too much fried food.

The next morning we set out at 5:45 AM through the empty Delhi streets to a brand new (and very sanitary) international airport, the beginnings of a 23 hour journey home.

-Ted

Monkeys, a Hill Town, and Tunak Tunak Tun Da Da Da

Manki Point, Kasauli

Clump, clump went my feet, up the stairs. I was on the tenth step and already tired. We had to walk up 1 kilometer of steps to reach Manki Point. I was assuming that Manki Point was just a place where monkeys do tricks and run around. I was panting up the stairs. I was the last one of everyone. I was taking my time. Slowly, my foot reached the next step. Then the next. Tired and breathless, I tried to step one more step. I grabbed the railing and hoisted myself up. This is harder than Nubra Valley, I thought because we had to walk up steep stairs instead. One foot after another, I reached a platform that led to a bench. Because I was the last in line, I kept on going. I was out of breath. How the heck would I get up there, I thought. In the distance, I saw a small sign. Assuming it was a sign for Manki Point, with all my left over might, I ran up the stairs. It ended up being a sign that God made Manki Point. What a waste of energy. After 15 minutes of one step and another up the stairs, we reached a sign that said, Please Take off Your Shoes. Which was basically ridiculous, because it was hot and we still had more stairs to climb. Looking at my feet, I made sure I didn't step on anything sharp. In the distance, I saw a temple. A temple? I thought there was supposed to be monkeys. When I reached the top, all I saw was two dogs, a temple, and an amazing view. It was like it was split in half. One side it was all cloudy. The other side was all green. In the distance I could see little tiny houses. After asking Mom, I found out that it was Manki Point, because Hanuman (a monkey god), when he was rushing to Ram put his left foot on the point where the temple was built. In the end it was worth it. Seeing the view and knowing that Hanuman put his left foot right where that temple was.

-Pari

Simla

Uhhh, I don't feel so well. I feel kind of dizzy. We were at Shimla (aka Simla). Mom said I was feeling a little car sick. As we went up this elevator to Shimla, I started feeling a little bit better. When I felt good we started walking in Shimla. Shimla is this little town in the mountains with no cars (except for the police) and it's full of shops. I really wanted to buy something. We bought some popcorn and Mirinda (orange soda). Mom showed us that our cousins lived in this small house, right down an alley in Shimla. We went down to the house and they served us so much food. We didn't eat alot, because we were still queasy from the drive from Kasauli. Tripti Didi wanted to show us a church. She told us there were some Christians in Shimla. The church, which you see in the picture, is a church that looks like any normal church. On the schedule I saw there was a thing in English and a thing in Hindi. Inside the church we looked around. As we exited the church I read a small poster that said, I asked Jesus, "How much do you love me?" And he said, "This much," and he stretched out his arms and died. From the church we went to another shop to get ice cream dipped in chocolate. Boy, it tasted it good. I got a double cone because mine kept dripping. When we were going out of Shimla we saw these very cool toys. I was itching to buy something. On our way back to the car, Mom let us go in one shop to buy something. I got a keychain and Pari got one too. We also got one for Nani, our grandma, because she was born in Shimla and got engaged in Shimla. When we were driving out of Shimla, I asked mom if we could go again one day. I love Shimla.

- Kieran

Daler Mehndi

Hey Look, There's Daler Mehndi, someone shouted. Ha, Ha, I said. Nice joke, because all I saw was people minding there own business. We were at the Taj Hotel in Chandigargh. Why the heck, would Daler Mehndi be there? Then mom said, Why would Meenu Didi lie? But she had this weird smile on her face, pretending, trying to make me look like a fool. Slowly, Bobby Bhaiya scootched his chair and asked Kieran and Me, Do you want to get a picture with him? Wait a second, I said, I really have to make sure he's real. Because if he's not, I'll be asking to take a picture with some random guy. So I cautiously got out of my seat and started walking toward the entrance of the Taj. Then I spotted him, Daler Mehndi. It was really him. I was so embarrassed, I rushed back. Meanwhile Kieran and Bobby Bhaiya were walking behind me. I went back, but Kieran and Bobby Bhaiya kept on walking. When I got there and said it was really Daler Mehndi, Mom started pushing me. I mean really pushing me. Mom said, come on honey, go go, go. I walked a few steps then turned back. What if this guy didn't want to take a picture. They pushed me again. They did this three or four times. Finally I went. I ran towards them. I scootched toward Kieran and Bobby Bhaiya . Bobby had just asked if we could take a picture. Luckily I was there when he said, Sure. So Bobby Bhaiya pushed us toward him and I slammed into his big belly and bounced off. Sorry, I murmured. He wrapped his arm around me and FLASH, the picture went off. Luckily I didn't blink. That's how we got the picture.

-Pari

(For the uninitiated: quintessential Daler Mehndi).

"Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot!"

Just like the song from "Bend it Like Beckham and this is true ; it was burning at the Taj Mahal! We were walking to the Taj Mahal and it was soo, so, so hot. My face was red as fire. Finally got to the Taj Mahal, we had to take off our shoes. Oh great, we had to walk on hot marble but luckily Mom had socks, phew! As we reached the Taj Mahal it was not that hot. We saw a tomb; it was Shah Jahan wife's tomb. Shah Jahan was the emperor who built the Taj. When Shah Jahan died his tomb was put next to his wife. I learned this from our guide at the Agra Fort. I also learned that Shah Jahan's son imprisoned his father for eight years and killed his brothers because he wanted to take over the palace. As we walked in the Taj, we stayed in one place just to cool off. I felt so much better. As we went to the back of the Taj I saw a golden eagle. I tried to take a picture but I wasn't that lucky. We walked to the next mosque. The mosque was all nice and good to cool off from. I took a picture, it was a sillouette of Nick and Tio Osvaldo. It looked pretty cool. Our walk back was all in the shade...ahh, it was so much better.


-Kieran



Walking into Oberoi Hotel

We were sweaty, hot and wanted to eat something. So Mom suggested this hotel to eat which sounded kind of weird cause who eats at a hotel? Well, I guess we do. When we drove up to the hotel, there was a huge gate. We had to go through security just for lunch. As we entered the courtyard of the hotel, people were dressed very elegantly like a Indian wedding. They greeted us with their palms together saying, "Namaste" which means hello in hindi. The courtyard had a fountain but the water was turned off. As I was gradually walking up the stairs, the doors swished open. I walked through. There was a huge chandelier in the middle of the lobby and there was an amazing view of the Taj Mahal that no other hotel could have. We were surprised to learn that you needed reservations for this place. They told us there was a huge party going on. So they suggested getting snacks at the bar. When we got to the bar, they said there were not any snacks but could go down to the restaurant. So truthfully I think that the people who said you need reservations, really didn't want us to go in because we were sweaty people from the streets and not hotel guests. Luckily, no one stopped us. When we went downstairs there was black rectangular surface. We didn't know if it was water or glass but Kieran thought it was glass. He stepped on it, got his foot wet.and made a mark on the floor. When we went into the restaurant, it was totally empty except for a few couples. I knew it was it fancy restaurant, and I was right. The food was delicious!The meal was the best we've had in the last two weeks. We were ready for the next party of our journey, Agra Fort!

-Pari

Old Delhi

Drum House
"I can't believe it,I'm finally in the Red Fort," I thought. We were walking toward the Drum house as we entered the museum. I saw a bow and arrow as I walked along. It was a museum of weapons for when the emperor went to war. My favorite one was the sword. There were lots of them. I also liked the bow and arrow; the arrow looked sharp. As we exited the museum, it was scalding.

-Kieran

Escape from Nubra Valley: Day 2

Last we left our adventurers, the children had crossed the glacial river and then were crossed back. No more cars were being allowed up the mountain road due to a series of avalanches before K-Top. Our heroic driver had made the decision to go it alone and take the car up to the avalanche and then continue on foot past the snow-slide to K-Top. We joined up with an American adventurer (call Central Casting: looking for Matt Damon meets Arnold Schwarzenegger hero-type to play role of mysterious [CIA?] traveler to assist hapless adventurers and an Indian journalist to find a place to stay in Nubra Valley. As the last car to cross the pass, we were also the last car to descend the valley and the last to look for a place to stay.

The first stop was full and on to Khardung we went. No street lights to light the way, the entire village was dark. Our heroic driver was mentioned, but as there were 13 of us there of course was the driver of the second car who doesn't get such high praise as he was a bit of a Nubra Valley Newbie. Despite our low expectations he was able to score us a room in the 2-room home of a village family. Thirteen weary travelers slept on the floor a typical Ladakhi village home. Alarm was set for 4:20 AM. Although every person of any authority would give us conflicting times as to when the best time to return to the pass in the AM, the local consensus was to ignore what they had to say and to get their early to be first in line.

We met up with Central Casting and drove back to the check-point truck stop to wait. At 6 AM we were car number 3 at the gate. The official line was 2 PM and 5 PM and 11 AM and any number of times in between, before the road would be repaired. We killed time, napped, ate more momos and Magi noodles, tried to guess the identity of Central Casting, a man with mountaineering skills, charming people skills, but a very quiet and need-to-know approach on sharing info. We made other friends, the young German. We made un-friends, the French who were trying to cut the line. Some army personnel who didn't care for our proactive approach the day before...

After 5+ hours of killing time, we saw a familiar face walking down the road from K-Top. It was our heroic driver. It was his opinion that the road wouldn't be done till 5 PM and that with the pending visit of the Dalai Lama that the first to go through would be all official people. He advocated that we walk up to the broken road/river crossing where he left his vehicle and drive on from there. The avalanches had been cleared he assured us. He had spent the night on K-Top.

Our current location was in the neighborhood of 4,000+ meters, the location to which we were to hike was 5,000+ and K-Top was 5,600. We had adjusted to the altitude of 4K+, but had yet to do any hiking at that height. Hero Driver was very confident in our ability. Central Casting volunteered to join us and carry any kids if need be. Merely to favor action over inaction we decided to go for it.

First we walked through the valley, leaving the winding mountain road to our right. It was gorgeous and although the terrain was light, the altitude made it difficult from the get-go. Within 20 minutes Hero Driver was carrying Kieran on his back. We had estimated the walk to be 8KM, but that number wasn't firm as we would be cutting corners off the winding road.

It felt very Sound of Music, except we couldn't really skip and twirl for fear of passing out. By the time we got to the first of the switch-back roads we were assured there was not far to go. It looked like we could accomplish our task in two to two and a half hours. Our group had stratified into the fast walkers and those of us who were bringing up the rear in deliberate, contemplative, and monastic fashion.

After two hours of walking, the slower group was met up by two army vehicles. They were a bit puzzled by our trekking and after some convincing gave us a ride up to our vehicle. It was clear we would not have made it in 2 or 3 or 4 hours. The army guys had chocolate and sweet drinks and spoke of the training necessary to do such a trek. They also said the road would open in a 1/2 hour. We were relieved to be rescued.

After some more convincing they went back and got the 1st half of our group as well. We were united at the one vehicle that had passed the river the day before. We were now 14 with 250 lb Central Casting, joining us. With luggage on top, we piled in.

We took off toward K-Top, made it 75 meters and then k-put! The fan came disengaged. Our driver opened up the car and the healthiest of our crew including, Central Casting decided to walk from there to K-Top. At this time, cars were coming down the mountain for the first time and we could see that official vehicles were delivering the all clear signal to the base of the mountain.

After 10 minutes and some little miracles our driver fixed the car. We drove past our group - the car would not be able to carry them and there should be someone available to pick them up before they got too high. Two minutes later with some hand gestures and a little more magic, Hero Driver arranged an empty cab (the first car out from the base of the hill - how was that possible?) to pick up the rest of our party.

We drove past the cleared avalanches and made it to K-Top, passing joyous buddhist monks and nuns descending into Nubra to see the Dalai Lama. We were happy to coast back down the other side to Leh.

Showers, hammocks, and showers awaited us at the Oxygen-rich height of 3,500 M. Relief!

-Ted

Misspelled and Funny Signs of Ladakh

* After whiskey driving risky
* Do not urine here. Urinating here is a offence. Defaulter will be fined of rupees $1000. Public toilet inside taxi stand.
* Be married Drive divorced
* Toliet
* Chilling 29 KM (funny cuz it was burning hot that day)
* Dinning Hall
* Hello I am Here. Use me. (trash can)
* Entry charge, just smile.
* Begal (for a bagel in a bakery)
* Photograph is strickly prohibited inside temple. Smoking and consuming alcoholik drinks in the vicinity of the temple is also strickly prohibited.

-Pari

Road Block, Nubra Valley

We were driving back from Nubra Valley then "bam" there was a line along the mountain road. We were supposed to go back to Leh but we had to get past the line. Me and Dad went ahead and guess what? We saw a big puddle, a gigantic puddle, an enormous puddle ! Actually it was a river flowing from the mountains. The water had covered the road so the people tried to get past but they got stuck because the road was so rocky and the water was deep. Andy climbed up the mountain to get a better view. When we saw enough, me Osvaldo and Dad went back. People were being foolish, so Baby Massi started yelling and trying to get people back in the line. Soon Osvaldo started yelling and he looked really scary. The driver was horrified. It took such a long time to get cars out that the day went into the night. Finally it was our time to get across. All the kids were in the car except for Andy,Nick, and Bhavna Didi. Rhea, me and Pari were with Punya Massi in the car. We drove half way and then got stuck in the car. Our driver was brave and the water was freezing. Eventually we got the car out and we started moving. Then we found out that there was an avalanche up ahead. We said a prayer as our parents came to rescue us. Finally we got back and it turned out we had to stay another night in Nubra. Oh great!

-Kieran

Splash, Swish, Bang! The wheels were turning round and round. Water was gushing everywhere. My hands were grasping onto Punya Massi's fluffy brown jacket. I had a long sleeve shirt and sweatshirt and it was in the 60's and we were getting splashed by 20 degree water. There were four army guys and our driver trying to link us up to a platform because our wheel got stuck between two rocks. A waterfall was gushing down, the car was deep in several feet of water, the road was totally broken. It was unbelievably scary! Our car got linked up to an army truck and our driver who was soaking wet, shivering, started up the car. Slowly but surely the car jerked up. There was a tug and pull going on and because the wheel was so stuck into the rock that the chain broke off. They tried two more times but failed. The fourth time the army truck pulled the car out!! This whole time we were saying prayers. As soon as we got across we were so thankful. We were about to reach Leh...three more hours. But suddenly we heard our driver say, "two avalanches fell right when we were crossing, so we need to turn back." My expression from happy changed to sad and then slowly changed into tears. We had gone through so much and now we had to turn back...

-Pari

Earlier that day we were so proud of how efficiently we got out of camp in the morning and were going to be on the road to exit the Nubra Valley and be back in Leh by late afternoon. Surely, the break in the road from the previous day that swallowed the wheels of a large diesel truck would be fixed and it would be smooth sailing to Khardungla Top (K-Top), the World's Highest Motorable Pass (altitude 5,600 meters) - a tourist destination slightly more significant than the World's Largest Ball of Twine, a sweet mixture of diesel fumes and about 1/3 less oxygen than most human's could use. We arrived at the last check-point, truck stop/dhaba before the ascent, to learn that they were still repairing the previous day's damage and would not be open until 2 PM - efficient exit thwarted. We kicked back, had some noodles and momos, waded through icy streams and killed time in the valley awaiting the all-clear signal. By the time the signal arrived and we got everyone in the two vehicles (local pronunciation, Vya-klls), we lost our pole position and had slipped back to about 20th vehicle. Not an issue if the road is repaired as promised. Right? ;) By the time we reached the once broken road, we found it was in even worse shape than before with some new 16 inch diameter bypass pipes washed below. The repair was left to our imagination.

Flash Forward: 5 hours. Vehicle 1 passes with kids inside. Hooray! Vehicle 2 is 2nd in queue. Hooray! Water gushing over road is insane. (I've skipped the chaos of the vehicle queue, the lack of authority by the regular army, followed in the best of Indian paradoxical fashion, the bravery and committment of the special forces, Ibex Warriors -- all to be the basis of my next novel.) Word arrives that there were two avalanches up ahead just shy of K-Top and no one else was to pass. The kids are on the othere side of the rushing water, parked and waiting. Somewhere between 30 and 45 minutes of typical chaos and uncertainty follows before we get the assistance of an Ibex Warrior who helps Baby (aka Ritu) wade across the icy water to bring the kids back. Geeta and Sunny follow half way across the water and then I was the last to pitch in. Children are passed in assembly line fashion over the water to the other side. First Rhea comes from Ibex Warrior to Geeta to me and I shuffle across the water and set her on the other side. Next Geeta passes Pari to me. I pivot, trying what looked like a slightly shorter path and almost immediately slip, falling with Pari in my arms onto a large rock. I was certain her back hit square on the edge of a two foot boulder, under water. I popped up and got her to the other side. I feel crushed. I hadn't planned any midlife special ops, mountain division career change, but I thought I could deliver my daughter safely 6 feet across an improptu stream. Pari calms me, trying to assure me that she is not hurt, just wet from the icy water.

As emotions settle we regroup, head back down into the mountain in search of a room at the Inn among the few tiny villages of the Nubra Valley...

-Ted

Can't believe that the previous day we had entered the beautiful Nubra Valley, just an hour delay bypassing the road block. We drove further to Hundar where we embarked upon sand dunes. Yes, sand dunes midst snow-capped mountains and green valley. What was this paradise we were so fortunate to view? We had an added bonus of a camel ride. The best part was that 10 out of 13 of us went along in a caravan across the sand dunes of Hundar. Our worn bodies from a VERY bumpy, death-defying, winding drive led us to this amazing experience! To top it off, we decided to visit one of two Gompas (temples) in neighboring Diskit. We thought we might be too late because of a short detour, but luckily the temple did not close until 7pm. What we saw as entering the temple was a golden, brightly colored buddha standing alone. MAGNIFICENT! Then further beyond was the actual Gompa. The short walk up to the main altars led to a stunning view of the different landscapes we had encountered on our drive. Our timing was perfect as preparations were being made for the impending visit of the Dalai Lama. The atmosphere among the Gompa and Ladakhi people was filled with excitement. We topped off our day with a camping experience, Indian style..tents with beds, full dining hall, prelit bonfire and stars galore!

-Geeta

Splish SplashGetting Our Feet Wet in Ladakh

First stop Sindhu Ghat. Sindhu Ghat is a place where the Indus River flows into Leh. Leh is a city in Ladakh. It is where you take off your shoes and dip your feet in the water. The water is shallow for a river but deep for a shallow river. You get it? I don’t get it but it is true! The water was refreshing. Sindhu Ghat was awesome. I saw some soldiers. Mom told me India and Pakistan were in war because Pakistan used to be a part of India. Pretty cool history. I really like Sindhu Ghat. I hope you like it too!

-Kieran

“Blah…” That was yesterday. Seven times in two days I threw up. Today I was feeling much better! I pushed my finger through the loop of my sneaker. One by one I took of my shoes. I slipped off my slippery socks. I walked onto a sharp rock. I stepped into freezing cold water. I couldn't feel my feet. Shivers rushed up legs! To make sure we didn’t slip, Rhea, Kieran and I held hands. The water went all the way up to my knees. The color of the river was muddy brown. We were right by where the Indus river meets the Zanskar River or called Sangam.

-Pari