From That to This

The kids had a long weekend to commemorate Gandhi's birthday and a few teacher in service days built in so we decided to make the most of our time here and planned a trip.  We were glad that Thailand made its way back into our available trips and happily slipped away for four days in Bangkok.  We sang "One Night in Bangkok" a few nights in a row.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9mwELXPGbA
We enjoyed the weekend market where we bought some fun t-shirts, long pants and a nice backpackers pack for the long school trip scheduled for the end of this month.  We visited the Grand Palace where, just like we were warned, we were greeted with "authorities" who told us the palace was closed to tourists.  So we walked past these information carriers and bought our ticket to the Grand Palace and Emerald Buddha.  I had taken some beautiful pictures of the palace area and we rode along the river in a boat taxi to the Reclining Buddha where we saw another temple but somewhere along the way my camera wiped out the sim card or the sim card malfunctioned and I lost everything we had on that card.  Take our word for it, it's well worth the trip to see and experience these places.

This is a picture of our pineapple chicken fried rice and an iced tea we enjoyed at a restaurant in the weekend market that had some very welcoming AC.  Because I used my phone for this photo it was not wiped out during the sim card incident.
We tried to see as much as we could in four days.  The ancient city had bikes and facade buildings for the kids to enjoy.  Living in India we just don't find biking enjoyable like we used to but here we were given bikes to travel throughout this remade city area.  We also did some grocery shopping at Villa Market to purchase those items which are hard to buy or too expensive in our part of the world right now.
Our whole Gandhi celebration ended with our return flight to Delhi and complaints from kid three of a head ache.  He started running a fever Tuesday evening upon arrival and was wisked into the doctor's office on Wednesday to confirm our fears.  He has dengue fever.  Not always the most trusted source but here is more information about dengue http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dengue  At the end of the day, after a person is diagnosed with dengue one must wait it out to pass.  Like any virus, complications may arrise and then be addressed but for the most part, drink plenty of liquids, get lots of rest and let the kid who does not have celiac enjoy whatever foods he chooses while he is ill, ignoring the gluten free zone rules for now.
We went from that to this.

 

Be Our Guest: part 1

This is a three part series.  So far this blog has been about my perspective for our family's adventure.  The next three posts, all part of the same trip/series are from the Mister's perspective.  Literally since most of this is through the lens of the cameras on this trip.  He researched, planned, and plotted maps, organized, and finally booked his dream motorcycle ride through the Himalayas from Manali to Leh.  In these pictures he will show you his experience.

 

Welcome Mister as he writes about his Himalayan motorcycle adventure.

 

Part 1:

 

Day 1: A view from our Hotel in Manali. We flew from Delhi to Manali and took a cab to Anu Autoworks where we had reserved 500cc Royal Enfields for our trip.  First day was spent getting acclimatized and familiar with our motorcycles. We spent a few hours driving around Manali and making sure the bikes worked. A couple minor tweaks, but the bikes seemed fine.

Day 2: Above we are getting our bikes packed up and ready to head north. We also hired a mechanic to ride along with us. Originally, I did not intend to bring a mechanic but if you rented three or more bikes the company required that you hire a mechanic to travel with you. 

It turns out the mechanic was a really good idea. We have our first breakdown within the first half of the day. I don't recall exactly what the issue was, but we stopped for a photo op and this bike never started again. Here is the mechanic coasting down hill to trade out the broken down bike for a replacement.

Waiting by the side of the road for the replacement bike. Here, a few water buffalo are being herded down the road. It took the mechanic a couple hours to come back with a new bike.  When he returned, we excitedly mounted back up an prepared to head out.  Then my bike caught on fire.  We made a quick decision to take his bike and send him back for a SECOND replacement bike. We headed up the mountain with our remaining three bikes and one of us riding the mechanics bike.

On our way up Rohtang Pass.  The small yellow tents at the bottom of the hill (in the center of the picture) are in the spot where we waited for the replacement bikes.

 

And then....there was mud. While we were waiting for the replacement bikes, it was raining on Rohtang Pass.  We road/pushed bikes through hours of mud like this.

 

Pushing bikes through mud is hard work.  Added stressor was the altitude of  approximately13,000 feet. This shot is the mechanics bike standing on it's own, rear tire wedged in mud. One or two of us would get to a decent spot on the road ahead, park, then slog back down through the mud to push whoever was stuck. I think we all agreed it was one of the most physically and mentally challenging things we had done in many years.

Here you see some of the other "traffic" on the road.

Over the Pass!  The roads and the view improve...for a while. We continued on and were attempting to make it to a town called Keylong. However, eventually the rain started again, the sun went down and there was a landslide that blocked the road to Keylong. That night is a whole story of it's own. I did things on a motorcycle that I promised myself I would never do. For example, for quite some time I rode without a headlight, in the rain, at night, on a road that barely passed as a trail. On one side of us was a fifty foot drop to a raging river. I have always said it's a fine line between hard core and stupid. Suffice it to say, I think we may have crossed the line that night.

Day 3:  This is the view we had the morning of Day 3. After we finally gave up on Keylong, our mechanic brought us to a camp that was not too far back down the road. These tent/cabins don't look like much but it had a dry bed, electric light and a flush toilet. It was pretty heavenly after the day we just had.

Our accommodations just outside of Keylong.  The sun came out and we had a couple hours to dry our wet gear before we got back on the road.

Early morning view from the road side.

A river crossing.

Not much traffic out here. The riding on this day was outstanding and just about exactly what I hoped for. The scenery was great and the roads were, at times, pretty good.

A pit stop for our first and only flat tire. (The mechanic pays off again.)  The timing was convenient because there was another landslide just ahead of us. Luckily, there was a road crew nearby.  It took them a couple hours and some explosives to clear the road. We found a nice shady spot by the side of the road and just hung out for a while. The large container sitting by the road is one of our gas containers. Just outside of Keylong, not far from the spot we slept, was the last gas station until Leh. We had to top off at that station and also bring along some extra gallons to make sure we could get all the way to Leh.

Accommodations for our third night at a spot called Sarchu.  High plains at 14,000 feet.  It was a tough night of sleep but at least another warm dry bed.

This is our camp's kitchen/headquarters. 

(trip continued in Be Our Guest part 2 & part 3)

Be Our Guest: part 2

Continuation of Be Our Guest:
Part 2:

Day 4: Our early morning view of the valley around Sarchu. Little did we know we had a another big day ahead of us.

Climbing again. This shot was taken from the top of a series of hairpin turns called the "Gata Loops." (Google it.) I forget how many there are but it's something like 21 or so. It was great fun and a fast and serious climb.

The next pass was at 15,547 feet, not even particularly high for the route. Most of the the passes have these little piles of stones on top. Travelers stop for a small rest and pile them up. I believe they are supposed to be like a small Buddhist Stupa. To me, they seemed like kind of Zen "I was here."

Lachungla pass, 16,616 feet...starting to get up there. Unfortunately, between Nakeela pass and Lachungla pass, one of our gang took a spill and broke his leg. Some good Samaritans brought him down the pass in their car and we administered what first aid we could. We put a pretty good splint on his leg and tried to quickly come up with a plan. Luckily, an Australian biker and his girlfriend, who we befriended back in Keylong, were passing by and gave him a couple Vicodin to ease the pain. We loaded him in a small bus that was passing by and set off to try and get him some medical help. The nearest "town" on the road was Pang. We were told there was a small Indian Army base where we may find a doctor.

The Indian Army Base in Pang. (Yes, that's all of it). A medic gave our buddy a shot for pain but that was really all they had to offer. From Pang it was still about a 5 or 6 hours ride to Leh where we were told we could find a "hospital."  The Indian Army guys commandeered a bus that was passing through and we sent him on his way again.

The third mountain pass of the day was Taglangla Pass at 17,582 feet.  "Unbelievable, is not it?"

At this pass we decided to wait for our buddy's "medevac" and cheer him on as he drove through.

To our pleasant surprise, his bus stopped for a rest and we had a quick reunion at 17,582 feet. Our whole gang made it to Taglangla together but it was still a long way to Leh. We took one very cool photo of all of us at Taglangla pass, then back on the road.

We made it to Leh and the "hospital" was good for one thing. It confirmed what we already knew...broken leg. The x-ray has  two shots of the broken leg on it but you don't need to be a trained technician to read it.  The "hospital' in Leh, much like the rain soaked landslide before Keylong, is a whole story unto itself. But a few quick details about the "hospital." There was no power when we arrived so we had to wait in the dark until the power came back before we could take the x-ray. The "technician" had our mechanic, the cab driver and me cut my buddy's boot off of him in order to take the x-ray. (I used my Dad's old leatherman. Thanks Dad!) Waiting with us in the emergency ward was a young kid with no pants and a horrible case of dysentery. When dysentery kid left he was replaced by the next "emergency" which was an old man who had clearly expired hours earlier. He shared our room with us for a while. The doc told my buddy he needed surgery and should stay in the hospital overnight.  Buddy said, "Nope! Take me to the hotel!"  Which we did, but not before they tried to wheel him out of the "hospital" in a wheelchair that was missing one front wheel.  Not very functional, so the mechanic and I carried him to the cab.

Day 5: We found a great hotel in Leh and spent day 5 trying to make our patient comfortable. There were a lot of phone calls to rearrange his flights, set up doctors appointments and bring concerned family and friends up to speed. That's no cast on his leg. He had to leave it in a broken state, only splinted to stop movement, and fly back to the states for surgery. He's a tough guy and he never complained, except a little bit about the quality of care in the Leh "hospital".

(trip continued in Be Our Guest: part 3)

 

Be Our Guest: part 3

Continuation of Be Our Guest:

 

Part 3:

 

Day 6: First thing in the morning our casualty was evacuated to Delhi, where he was seen by a real doctor in a real hospital, then put on a plane for the states. About a dozen screws and a metal plate later, he's recovering nicely, but it's gonna take some time.  The rest of us still had a day to kill in Leh, so we saw some sights. Above is a valley just outside of Leh.

A few kilometers further outside of Leh was Phyang Monastery. This portion was under construction and the monks let us in to take a few photos. Very cool.

The Dali Lama spends a lot of time in this part of India and has a house just south of Leh.  He wasn't home at the time, but some nice Tibetan guy showed us around anyway.

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A few more scenes from in and around Leh. The place is really cool and would not mind returning again someday for a little more sight seeing. Himalayan mountain towns have a very cool, mellow vibe about them.



"Shanti Stupa" in Leh. There are several of these Stupas around the world that were built by a Japanese Buddhist organization to promote peace. This one was on a hilltop just behind our hotel. When the family visited Nepal some time ago (Kathmandu & Pokhara blog 10/2011) we visited the Shanti Stupa just outside of Pokhara.

Leh Palace. An old palace, mostly in ruins now. However, you can walk through and climb over most of it and get some pretty cool views of Leh.

We flew back from Leh to Delhi only three of us now after seven days in the Himalayas as scheduled. 

Long Time, No see

The two younger kids traveled ahead of the others but eventually we all arrived in the US.  We toured new areas, visited known areas, drove ourselves across states, flew to different airports and visited, visited, visited.  For the most part we parked ourselves in one spot, announced our arrival and saw who we could see.  Thank you for the visits to all those we did see and sorry we did not cross paths to those we missed on this trip through.  We accomplished what we aimed to do; We came, we saw and we left in place.
We came to the US, to the many areas we visited.  Some old (known) areas and others new (first time destinations).  We visited family and friends, caught up on things that have happened since we left one and a half years ago and just enjoyed what we thought we had been missing.
We enjoyed two beautiful family reunions, both sides of the family.  On Mom's side (my side) all six of my siblings and their spouses and children, Grandma and Grandpa all met at a lake home and enjoyed a family weekend all together.  All the cousins played late night games in the dark, had big sleep togethers in the garage and roasted marshmallows at the camp fire.  We of course took a color coded family picture and I was able to meet the baby that was born while we were away.
On Dad's side (the Mister) we enjoyed time at Mom's with Younger Brother and his wife and two girls.  The five cousins played and enjoyed time together as kids and we all told stories and memories of Grandpa while we cried, laughed and celebrated his life together as a tender family unit.  Grandpa loved it because most of our celebration was outdoors with perfect weather.
Our final destination was University life and move in.  Kid One had moved into her new home at the dorms of her chosen University.  We feel it is the perfect match for this kid's needs.  It's really great that a University so large can bring so many people together to make it all just right for my little girl.  I was the last to leave the US so I could tuck Kid One into her University life then I too finally arrived back To Delhi We Go.
All is well in the US and we all enjoyed our visit but it was good to get home to India and settle into what we know as our home.  Kid Middle and Three have started back into their school routine at the American Embassy School and we are reuniting with the many friends we have made here but have missed throughout the summer break.
Hello India and friends, Long Time, No See!

Lemonade Stand

Remember when we were kids and we would make a pitcher of koolade, write on a big sign "Lemonade 25¢" and then set up a table near the best intersection for stopping vehicles, it was like a popularity contest, how many people will stop for us today?
Temperatures have been above 100 for weeks now.  Lately the temperature range has been about 103 to 116 Fahrenheit.  And truly when the temperature is that hot you notice the difference of 103 or 116.  It's HOT and then it's brutally HOT.  Breezes during temperatures like this feel as refreshing as a blast furnace would about then.  AC is the only way our family chooses to survive the heat.  From the AC house into the AC car.  Drive to the AC location and stay there until we need to brave the heat and return to the AC car to go back to our AC house.  Not much adventure in that.
This fine Saturday afternoon, it is only 12:30pm mind you, the temperature has already risen to a balmy 108 Fahrenheit and I can see our guard waving his hat in front of himself to get a slight relief  as I sit inside my AC house and the lemonade stand of my youth comes to mind. 
Kids Middle and Three are gone for the summer and we have some lemonade concentrate, their drink of choice during the summer, in the freezer.  So I made a quick pitcher of the refreshing drink, grabbed a pile of paper cups we have from our last party. Then I trodded down three flights of stairs with pitcher and cups in hand and began pouring a refreshing glass of lemonade for the guard at our gate, guards from the neighbors' gates, the driver and others that begin to flock to the "lemonade stand" inside our gate area.  The same feeling of my youth and that of our children's youth.  Pour a glass and they will come, they also begin to smile.  All those gathered are happy to take a cup for themselves, most nod with appreciation.  One woman asks for her cup to be filled "more" to the top so she can take it across the street to the construction sight (there is one on every corner, right).  I pour until my pitcher is empty and my glasses are all used up.  Perfect ratio of lemonade for the number of cups, almost as if I have done this before.
"Stay hydrated" I say as I trod back up three flights and sit inside our AC house.  It was probably more fun for me because I was able to take a break from the work inside the house. 
By the way, I did NOT charge 25¢ per glass.  Hardly a martyr by any stretch of the imagination. 
Below I have attached the weather link from BBC for your entertainment.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/1261481

Shopping

I have somewhat limited myself in the shopping in Delhi up until my mom arrived for a visit.  Not that my mom is a big shopper but she does love a bargain.  While Mom was here we shopped at Cottage Emporium, ACSA vendors, Santushti, flower market, Hauz Khas Village, C-Block Market, produce market, Sarojini, Khan Market, Old Delhi spice market and most successfully at Parhar Ganj.  It was great fun for all of us.  We bought treats and trinkets for family and friends, scarves in every color of the rainbow, clothes for all sizes from baby to XXL, we bought cups and tea, spices, pottery and clothes, hankies and belts and we bought glasses for Mom.  She has not had a new pair of glasses in almost 15 years so she treated herself to two new pairs.  It was so fun to see her revel in the bargains and even get into bargaining herself.  Kid One taught Grandma that whatever price is quoted, cut it in half and go from there, unless it is fixed prices.  Unfortunately Kid One was also so busy with end of the year events, get together and required classes that she was not able to join us in most of our bargain shopping.  Kid Middle and Kid Three attended Parhar Ganj with our trip and returned with some fun bargains of their own.  We will see how well the helicopter actually works but it was worth the $20 to see the delight on the faces of both Kid Three and the man who sold it.
All the kids have said one thing they miss from the US is Target.  After we stock up on the things we need from Target this summer it will be fun to come back to India and do our bargaining for the things we can get from here, and for the most part at a much better price.