Up in the Himalayas!

A house on the banks of the River Ganga, above Rishikesh and Haridwar, sparkling ice cold water and lovely white sand. Add to that the best food I have had in the longest time, limited communication with those back home, as cell phones don’t work there, some good wine, a bonfire every night, and of course, not to forget the famous white water rafting. Put these together, and it adds up to my trip to the mountains (again!) a few days ago.
I went off to the mountains last week for 2-3 days, and had a great time. The “Jungli Murghas” and the Great Himalayan Hornbills were regular visitors to the house. Of course, the leopard that has been sighted numerous times around the house did not deign to allow us a peek at him, though we considered actively going to look for him. The bonfire each night went on for hours as did the conversations around it. And the food!! The cook employed by the owners of the house is, I am convinced, a magician. Everything he touched just turned to gold! And the local pandit who insisted upon coming to the temple in the house and waking us all up to the sound of his conch shell and incessant bell ringing was a great favorite, as everyone suddenly wanted tikas on their foreheads to start their day!
The trip was, however, not uneventful. On the 2nd day that I was there, we decided to go rafting. The boat arrived on time right outside the house. There were two Nepalese boys who were going to take us down the rapids. Everything was going just fine; rafting really is a ball….untill we reached a fairly gentle rapid, into which one of the Nepalese boys decided to jump. He swam through the rapid while I watched on enviously. I wanted to do that too! So after a quick conversation with the other Nepalese chap, I swung my legs over the side of the boat and let go. Impulse.
Cold.
I froze. Literally. For the first time I knew what being paralysed was all about. I couldn’t move a muscle; not even a finger. And the worst part was that my lungs seemed to be paralysed as well. At least that’s how it seemed to me, considering that I couldn’t breathe. Definitely unpleasant. In the end I was pulled into the boat, where I resumed watching the Nepalese boy in the water, swimming with the utmost ease. I guess I forgot to take into consideration the fact that he was much fitter than me, and probably used to the water temperature as well. I didn’t look before I leapt. Well, if nothing else, I’ll know better the next time…and will only jump into the Ganges in the summer months.
And like the grinning Nepalese chap said to me “Aap ke saare paap dhul gaye.”
My response? “Haan…Dhulai ho gayi!”

Diwali

Diyas, Candles, Crackers, Sweets. That’s more or less what Diwali is about. The diyas and candles are gorgeous and shouldn’t be given a miss no matter what. So are the little twinkle lights that a lot of people adorn their houses with. The twinkle lights, though pretty, are not musts, as the candles and diyas are.
On the other hand, crackers are just a mess. They have a merit to every 10 demerits. Frankly, I don’t know why we bother with them at all.
And the sweets; well, they’re all right, I guess, but I’m not much of a mithai person and so that aspect of Diwali doesn’t hold much appeal for me. Also, the sickening feeling you get after having gorged on them all night is one that I would readily forego.
So, all in all, apart from the lights, there is nothing about Diwali that is worth mentioning. Hold on….wasn’t that the original concept of Diwali to begin with?
I am so glad I spent Diwali the way I did this year. I went up to the hills, and stayed at a friend’s farm. In the evening we went for a drive and stopped at a chai waala on the top of a hill. We sat there and munched on chicken salami sandwiches. We were there long enough to catch the sunset, as well as the first of the Diwali crackers from the valley. Since we were on top of the hill, the crackers were actually bursting below us! On Diwali night, we lit tons of candles and diyas, and stared at how beautiful the house looked when decorated with them. There were no mithais, and no crackers, except for the ones that were being let off in the town. So while we did see some of the crackers, it was minus the mess and noise. The little bonfire we lit and the dinner we cooked ourselves completed the evening.
This Diwali was truly a festival of lights…..no more, no less.