Google Maps is not that accurate in India (Day 22 of the world trip)

September 26, 2019

Yesterday, just before going to sleep, there was a small success! I killed one of those annoying mosquitoes and judging by the spot it left on the bathroom tiles, it had a good drink from Jonas and me ;-) So, bravely, I let the blanket aside more often tonight. I could sleep well without the extra warmth, but I still got two mosquito bites. As a "revenge," this morning I killed another mosquito, hoping that we had eliminated all the culprits. We will find out tonight. I still have enough Fenistil left :D

Before the yoga session this morning, I took some time to go through the 14 Hyongs so that I wouldn't forget them :) When Ajay came up to the roof at 7:00 a.m., he just laughed and talked about Kung Fu. Yeah... the classic. A kick and a punch and suddenly it's karate :D But it's funny and totally okay ;-)

Then he announced that we would do the splits today, the forward split. In my best times, I can even do it, but of course, we had to go through the sun salutation warm-up first. We also prepared for the splits during that warm-up, but I couldn't satisfy Ajay. I think he is just "old school." No pain, no gain. While that is basically true, there is also a limit that should not be exceeded, especially when it comes to stretching exercises. I dare to say that I know my limit quite well. Pain, yes, but if it becomes unhealthy, that's when I stop. It doesn't help if he pulls and pushes because I sabotage it by still holding back. I would explain it to him, but I don't think he would understand. Passive stretching seems to be popular here. The result is what counts, especially so that you can assert yourself as a teacher, for example. Whether it crackles or if you strain/overstretch your tendons, is initially irrelevant...

But yes. Yoga is really cool in itself, but if we continue, maybe we will make it less "Indian"^^

As always, we had chai (they seem to write it that way here, just like I wrote it in the Turkey travel blogs at the beginning? :D) after yoga, and this time we also got an invitation to have lunch. Ajay's mother, who is normally "in the village," is here, and apparently there will be good food ;-) Ajay said there will probably be something with rice, and Jonas and I are already looking forward to it! I just hope the food won't be too spicy. We don't want to be impolite and reject most of the dishes if they are too spicy :O

After our usual breakfast here (toast, chocolate spread, banana <3), the plan was to go to the other side of the street and up into the forest, where there should be a small waterfall. At least that's what Maps.me claimed ;-)

So, we crossed the bridge, where begging women approached us and one even pinched Jonas' stomach, and then we walked along the road to the right. Eventually, we would have to turn left and then go into the forest. Of course! To our surprise, this side of the street was even more touristy than ours, at least this main street/pedestrian zone that you reach after the bridge.

There are also many hostels here that specifically target backpackers and fewer yoga retreats and ashrams. But it could just be our perception. Anyway, the backpackers we saw, just like most other tourists here, have long hair, beard, barefoot, and hippie clothing. The women have dreadlocks or wear their long, curly hair loose, wear loose pants, and tight, short tops. They are often barefoot or wearing sandals or flip-flops. These tourists often stop at the stands where you can buy bracelets, saris, or even pieces of wood that are supposed to have healing powers. Okay... We don't want to offend anyone, but these alternative, esoteric things are not really our thing and often seem like pure money-making. But yes. If you believe in it, it might actually help, and then it's great again :) To each their own.

Well, in any case, we walked along the road for quite a while without turning left as planned. Somewhere in that direction, there is an ashram where the Beatles stayed back then, and since we were so close, we wanted to maybe check it out. After about twenty minutes or so, we arrived at an intersection and stopped to look for directions, but it didn't last long because a young beggar boy came up to us and followed us as we walked away.

On this topic: Yes, the poverty that is associated with India is definitely present here. It is terrible to see under what conditions some people live (have to live). How people deal with it when they see it is completely different. We were aware beforehand that we would also see poverty during our trip, and of course, it doesn't leave us untouched when we realize the luxury we live in and how rich we are as Europeans. Many people may think that we should give something to the beggars here or that we could round up our bills excessively at restaurants or small street vendors. We do give a tip in an appropriate amount, but there are no other forms of "donations" from our side. Are we being stingy? I don't know. Jonas and I have debated this before, but I saw a report a while ago that addressed the topic. In many poor countries, needy people flock to tourist areas to earn money because someone told them that it is a good income. The local sells his bracelets for 20 rupees (fictional values) and a tourist, out of love/compassion/to ease their conscience, gives 50 rupees and doesn't want any change. The next tourist who comes by is offered the same bracelet for 30 or 40 rupees, and the local tells acquaintances again that you can make a lot of money from tourism. Thus, more and more people from rural areas come to the (tourist) cities, which harms the country itself because these people are missing in their original professions (e.g. as farmers).

It is commendable to give something, but we have decided for ourselves not to give our money "at random." Others may handle it differently, and that is perfectly fine (!!!), but we do it our own way. We buy from small farmers on the side of the road and in the "kiosk" instead of the big supermarket (which doesn't exist here in Tapovan anyway :p). It's never enough, but it's a start :)

Back to the hike ;-) So, we turned around, went back, and eventually took a road according to Maps.me. Then we wandered through the alleys that are not all marked on the map and eventually, an Indian in white attire approached us and asked if we needed help. We told him where we wanted to go, and he told us that he didn't know of any waterfall in that area, and then he said the phrase that I chose as the title :D Of course, we knew that not all the narrow streets were marked, especially considering that there is a lot of construction going on here too! But somehow, there was still hope to head in the general direction ;-) A little disappointed, we went back towards the hostel and then took another path, which is supposed to be a hiking trail to a temple. Here again, we wandered through the alleyways without finding this path we were looking for, and in the end, we gave up and turned back...

In total, we were out for nearly 2.5 hours, which was nice for strolling around, but it didn't turn into hiking :D Also, it started raining - the monsoon is just over here. Despite a bit of thunder and a black-gray sky, it only turned into a shower^^

Still, we stayed here for now, and Jonas tried to transfer the money to the trek provider. Sounds simple, but it wasn't! :O Besides the difficulty of getting internet reception here, it is also not so easy to transfer money from a German account to an Indian account. Our provider suggested that we register with a transfer service, but the registration wasn't that simple... While I lazily lay around (it's still incredibly hot despite the rain...), Jonas dealt with it, and after just 90 minutes, it finally worked :D So, this trek is now confirmed :O Now we just have to organize ourselves to be at the Dehradun bus station on Sunday morning at 7:00 a.m. Apparently, you have to take a rickshaw to Rishikesh Center and from there, take a bus to Dehradun. We still have to find out how long it takes and how much it costs :D

Well, India is not Europe after all ;-)

Update:

The food was amazing. We were seated on a cushioned bench and then served. There was rice, roti (a type of flatbread), and then two dishes whose names we might receive via WhatsApp^^ One had lentils, and the other was a potato-pumpkin stew. Everything is vegetarian here and really great! Initially, we (just like in Konya) weren't sure how to eat it all. Thankfully, Ajay was there to demonstrate it ;)

In the lentil dish, you only dip the bread, and in the pumpkin dish, you scoop it up with a piece of flatbread and then eat it. There were no napkins or drinks, which is very unusual for us Europeans, but it was also a cool experience :) Jonas wanted it extra spicy, so Ajay gave him a red pepper (which is probably a chili?), and Jonas happily ate it. Only when Ajay left the room did he make a face and admit that it was super spicy :D :D He didn't refuse any of the refills, so now we're sitting here, and he's stuffed while I'm feeling great ;) Especially the pumpkin dish was my favorite <3