More from the Mountains
I’m still in Manali and, like yesterday, I had a wonderful time exploring the nearby mountains today. Matteo and I came across another waterfall that was even bigger and better than the first (we could even walk behind it), and we also saw a herd of sheep grazing on the hillside. Quite quaint.
On the way back into the village, we noticed a group of boys playing volleyball. It was good to see that they had a ball again– yesterday, when we passed by the same boys, one struck the ball too hard and it rolled down the mountainside. Volleyball games can end quickly in the Himalayas.
We also returned to the shop of our new Kashmiri friend, Nisar, and shared some chai and conversation. I found out that, at 24, he is about the same age as Matteo and I (from his attitude, I thought he was much older!), and our great conversation left Matteo and I even more disappointed about not being around to go to Kashmir with him in the near future. Despite that, we were thrilled to have made such an interesting friend. I’ve started to notice (and have felt frustrated by the fact) that when you travel quickly through towns as a tourist, you can often miss opportunities for meaningful exchanges with people…conversations that really give you a glimpse of what life is like in the places that you are seeing. It was good to have a conversation that went beyond the basics — in India, that often consists of “Where are you from?” “What is your name?” “Ok, bye!”– and I hope I meet many other people like Nisar during the rest of my travels.
Tomorrow, I will leave Manali for a very long and probably uncomfortable bus ride down the mountains to Delhi, from which I will go to other cities across the plains. We are traveling through India during the hottest time of the year, so I’m a little nervous about leaving the cool Himalayan air and pleasant little villages for hundred-degree weather and dusty city streets, but I’m determined to see as much of India as I can before we leave for East Africa…which will be in less than a month. How time flies!
Tags: India, RTW 07/08
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