Dharamsala – getting there

Dharamsala, actually Mcleod Ganj just up the steep road. Not feeling the best. I think it was the travel the last few days. On the way to Amritsar the train was really drafty – there’s no glass on the windows, only metal bars. For 8 hours a very strong hot, then cold, draft – plus fans overhead. Drafts kill me. They are my Achilles heel. Not that I am the Achilles of travellers. Amritsar was so enjoyable I forgot about feeling a bit off – but the bus trip out of there, towards Dharamsala was harsh. It was supposed to be 7 hours but ended up over 9. Its not really the time, its the discomfort factor. Regular buses have little suspension, little padding on the seats, plus I dont really fit in them. (In some buses when I stand my head hits the roof. When its crowded I can support myself by pressing my head into the roof, but its torture) At least I had a seat this time albeit a few inches too close to the seat in front. If there is no-one beside me its ok, i can move my legs a bit. At first there wasnt anyone but then they piled in and the bus got crammed. 5 people in the space my mind says is for 3. Now you’ve got an Indian bus ride. For some reason the driver didnt make a pit-stop. Iron Bladder. You learn to control how much water you drink just in case. In fact we did stop at a bus station about half-way, but the conductor didnt let any of us leave the bus. He blew his fierce whistle at all of us when we tried, gesturing we were about to leave. Then we sat in our seats at the station for 10 minutes. But who can chance it? Your bag is tied to the roof of the bus. And the conductor wasnt very communicative lets say. I thought – oh i guess we’ll stop at a restaurant along the way, as they often do. There was no restaurant though, no stop, no relief. Usually they go to a really disgusting place, after you have passed a few cheerful looking roadside restaurants. Clearly the driver or conductor is getting some baksheesh (tip, kickback) from the restaurant. Our bus was mostly foreign tourists. Was this intentional I wondered, or maybe the driver just wanted to get home faster?

But no matter how they rushed we were out of luck. The last 20km took 3 hours! Thats what killed me. We got stuck in a traffic jam — who knew there was “traffic” in a resort mountain village near Dharamsala? Completely stuck. Buses, mopeds, motorbikes, bikes, cars, pedestrians across the whole road, trying to move in both directions but completely stopped. For about an hour. Sometimes the drivers shut off their engines, or started them up to move a meter. No sign of police to sort out the mess. In fact there was probably only a couple hundred vehicles but the chaos was the problem. And no-one would give an inch. Locals stood on the side of the road and the bridge to observe it all, their eyes, and the drivers eyes popping out of their heads when they saw the foreign women on my bus. Sitting in this scrum was toxic. My lungs ache. I feel like I smoked a pack and a half of cigarettes. There was a fair in town it turned out. Or a demo.

Finally, out of this jam and one bus later I made it to Mcleod Ganj. Aryan, my friend from the ashram in Kerala met me in the main square. Aryan is a Reiki Master and yoga teacher here. The place was really quiet, though it was only 9.30pm. Aryan said its because its been a lot wetter than usual and there’s less tourists, but also because foreigners dont want to come because of the Tibet Demonstrations. Those are peaceful, its not a safety issue, but according to Aryan, if the Indian Government finds a foreigner participating in the demos, that person will be put on a list and never get another visa to return to India. I think a lot of foeriegn visitors to Dharamsala are regular visitors coming for the meditation centres and Tibetan culture. As much as they may support the cause they wouldnt want to be shut out of India for life.

I follow that that cardinal rule of travel when far from home, up there with dont drink the water — avoid demonstrations, protests, rallies. In fact I havent seen one here yet. I think they happen at night, by candle-light but I have been sleeping a lot more than usual.

When I feel a bit more umff I’ll be off to explore this beautiful place.