I found her

And on the Seventh Day; William found his place.

I am in Kasar Devi; a small scattered community of homes, guesthouses and mini shops on the edge of an utterly picturesque valley beside a Hindu temple and a Buddhist monastery. Everything here is slow and shanti. The people here seem happy and content with life. They take pride in their beautiful home and take measures to keep it that way. A boy told me in the internet shop in Almora that there are three energy centres on earth; Kasar Devi being one of them, I’ll let you find out the other two on your own.

This is only my third day here so I am still discovering what this place has in store for me. Much to my amusement though; I have discovered that a daily battle ensues between man and monkey. The monkeys sneak in en-mass with the aim of causing nuisance and maybe getting a quick snack at the same time. Man, woman and child, with the help of loud noises, similar to that of a hoarse dog crossed with an angry monkey, and badly aimed stones, are immediately onto them and their games, chasing them off before the next wave of attack. A spectacle which would bring a chuckle to even the most morose, but which brings on fits of laughter to the rest of us.

It is the type of place where after having to walk around with something on my feet for my first six days in India, I got to go bare again, and get to go bare all the time. It is a place where you leave the numerous insects in your room in peace as you really understand that they were here before you and that you’re the guest in their home. You’re surrounded by such nature here that children don’t go out after dusk as they risk being carried away by leopards. It is even the type of place where you are undercharged for biscuits.

On the flip-side though Kasar Devi is also unfortunately the type of place which in five years will have become, after it’s first real Lonely Planet plug, overrun by tourists but is at present perfect. Two dozen tourists at the very most forming a lovely little community alongside the locals in a beautiful peaceful place; where I immediately felt at home and have continued to do so since.

After a curious incident involving the choice of a book and a song playing in the background; I discovered you don’t always get what you want but you do get what you need. Well I can see that this place is exactly what I need but also a glimpse of possibly what I ultimately want too



Two images of the view from my balcony or landing or whatever you call the place I sit out on most days



Nepal, and all the fun that comes with it

As I’ve already mentioned I’m in India, and despite my lack of news or updates I’m sure you’re also aware that I was previously in Nepal for two months. I can’t remember everything as I am, despite my best efforts, only human, but what I can remember I would like to share with you. I would also like to give you my opinions on travel as I value my own self-importance and my opinion is therefore not only correct but of great importance.

·         I met some beautiful people, inside and out, who I feel I got a lot from. For me people are the source of all knowledge, and even if you doubt yourself I assure you; you have something to share. These are special people, and whether it was the person acting as my didi, my Mayan challenge, my chillum partner, the mandala master living next door, the Columbian Baba who has shown me the way or the Turkish gypsy who showed me it’s not too late to learn the most beautiful instrument there is; I want you to know you were good people to meet and I love you all.

·         I enjoyed mushrooms, of the fun variety, up a hill with a moorchild and his magic pipe. It was during this I truly connected with the ants and then I discovered heaven is up a tree, up a hill overlooking a beautiful lake and a valley, where birds having made themselves little cotton cloud nests, sit all day playing the harp and frolicking with angels

·         Another time after a few mushrooms I realised drugs simply confirm everything to me that I already know. A nice moment of realisation.

·         I’ve sat next to a dirty old German taking photographs of porn in an internet shop, evidently saving them for later. The google search being ‘monica belluci cunt’, straight to the point, very efficient; good German.

·         I learnt how to ride, and only crashed a little, a scooter. I then went on a four hour ketamine inspired road trip in search of more ketamine. This was unsuccessful but I realised after about five minutes that the ket wasn’t important and that my enjoyment at riding a bike was the only thing I now had on my mind; it was well worth the seven pound in damages I had to fork out. I now want an Enfield as despite my best Dennis Hopper, RIP, impression I just didn’t look quite as cool as I would have liked or thought I did at the time.

·         Back to the ants, I love those little fuckers. While at a little late night jam session I watched an ant, almost hypnotically, running in circles around a candle and doing this until it finally burnt out maybe an hour and a half later. I’m not entirely sure who is more simple, the ant for running in circles or me for spending an hour and a half engrossed in its movements. I also watched two ants doing their best ‘To me, to you’ Chucklebrothers impression with a dead insect. Ants are quite simply amazing and obviously watching them live their lives like machines, like ninety percent of humanity, is something people need to see and realise. Break free people, we’ve been given conscious thought, use it.

·         I’ve had fleas, ticks and ringworm and have thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it

·         I learnt a little about patience but also about anger. I learnt that in general the Nepali are inherently good people but there are a few who I would have no qualms about stabbing in the face. The man who refused to give me my departure stamp, as I was three days over my visa, unless I extended for the minimum fifteen days and paid the fine, not to mention the ridiculous exchange rate, and smugness and ‘not my problem’ attitude. He’s a man who brings out my base Scorpio instinct with its sting in the tail. He got a piece of my mind, as did the American who suggested I lacked an understanding of karma. This as all in contrast to the first Indians I met, the army, who gave me lots of water and then stopped a motorbike for me and told the driver to take me to the immigration office, wait and then take me to the bus station. Good Indians, bad Nepali.

·         Of course I did other things like go up to the villages where I got the shits from dodgy Chang, which is rice beer. I learnt how to make chapatti, pasta (!) and bamboo chillums among other things. Or the time I walked up the Peace Pagoda in bare feet like a pilgrim or the time I got the craziest lift with a truck driver who was racing his friend at night on a windy road. And of course I relaxed, why fight Pokhara’s energy.

Obviously there were more things done but I can’t really remember certain parts of the last two months, a bit of a blur to me. I wonder now if you could indulge me, like you have done before, and listen to my thoughts on a few things, namely travel, actually kind of only about travel.

I feel I’ve got a lot from these last two months and that I’m heading in the right direction. I’m excited about now, the present, but also about the future which promises so much. For me, life with travel is a life with substance. I told someone once that I planned on travelling until I was about thirty, at which point he enquired what I would then do and I said I had no idea. Although he confessed to wanting to travel he went on about wanting something to show for it all. I told him that by then he may have one hundred thousand pounds in the bank but that I would have had one hundred thousand experience and therefore memories. I realise now though that it’s about so much more, that it’s about discovery and learning and adventure. How can you really ever know who you are until you’ve experienced who you’re not, the same goes for what you like or don’t like. Thankfully that boy, who I love very much, is now doing the two things I know make him happy; making good money and travelling, throw in the third too which is most likely having sex with a lot of women and I think there’s every chance he’s now living his perfect life.

Now one of his reasons for not travelling was a very common one; that he had commitments and couldn’t afford to go off and travel. Well he still has most of those commitments and as he’s working so evidently money is being provided for him. My point is people always come up with excuses in life for why they can’t do things, myself included, or they say it just isn’t possible right now but they will in the future. We don’t know the future but what we do know is the present.

Another friend once said ‘The only thing holding you back in life is yourself’. Take the chance, one will reveal itself. Just to prove what wise friends I have I’ll quote another, ‘it’s not the chances we get in life that define us; but the choices we make’.

On that note I’m off to enjoy India.

First impressions India

A beautiful girl told me just the other day, 'Once you enter India, India enters you'. It's been twenty years but I've finally returned, and the closer I got to the border the more I could feel her. I like this place, it has an energy which Nepal was lacking and while I thoroughly enjoyed my time there; I already know this is going to be different.

I've just arrived in Almora after an eight hour bus journey, a twenty hour journey the day before and a seven hour journey two days before that. Since I arrived here I've been buzzing and it's most likely because I'm beyond tired, but I'm putting it down a little to India's energy working on me and also the fact it's a full moon today. I'm thinking of spending a couple of days here before heading to the Valley of Flowers and then walking barefoot up some mountain I forget the name of with pilgrims

I'll let you know how it goes. I'm going to bed