Jai Hind (Part 2) I'm observing again: look and listen with me. Chai Indians have taken two things from the British and made them their own: tea and bureaucracy. Whilst they have managed to plunge the latter into new depths of tedium and frustration, they brew a cuppa unparalleled by any I've had at home. This is no small feat considering that the majority of the population did not drink tea in vast quantities until the early part of this century. 'Til t...

Jai Hind (Part 1)Something has been bugging me for the past few weeks - despite numerous blog entries detailing my random thoughts and various activities, I haven't really spoken much about Delhi itself. I say Delhi, rather than India, because I don't think I've seen the real India. I've seen the sharp / blunt end of the economic spear strapped rather haphazardly to the worn and rather rickety shaft that constitutes the infrastructure, electricity and water suppl...

And finally As I boarded the coach back to Delhi, I couldn't help feeling I'd missed out on something. I had spent 5 days at the foothills of the Himalayas and not seen them. Not even one, singular Himalaya. There'd either been too much cloud cover or they just weren't in sight. Then, as we drove down the winding road away from McLeod Ganj on a clear evening, I saw the gateway to the rooftop of the world. I've seen the Himalayas. Now that's something special!

1293 My number on the waiting list for a genuine Tibetan Buddhist Horoscope, detailing my lives, both past and future. Should hear back from them in about 8 months. 8 months! I could have sworn Michael Palin got his in 48 hours. Hope I don't wait all that time to be told I'm coming back as a Big Brother Contestant, or something equally as repulsive.

Crouching Person; Squatting Toilet As I metioned yesterday, I'm in residence at the Dip-Tse Chok Ling Monastery close to McLeod Ganj. It's a beautiful and tranquil setting with great views and friendly people (and animals), but I do have two (relatively) minor quibbles.The first is the path between the monastery and town is designed to bring you just one step closer to Nirvana. I've slipped and fallen on my backside twice so far, and I don't know what I was thin...