Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Friday, June 10, 2011
सुंदर सांप और एक नदी (Beautiful Snake and a River)
Namaste Readers!
I have just returned home from a wonderful five day trip up and around the Tons river in the Uttarkashi District. The trip was simply fantastic and I want to share some of my highlights with you all. The days were filled with hikes, rafting, swimming in river pools and capturing the most gorgeous creature I have ever seen on camera.
We were based in a camp set up by the Himalayan River Runners company on a little beach alongside the mighty Tons river. The camp provided awesome tents to sleep in which were comfortable and home to some lovely big spiders and scorpions. We were treated to delectable food, an array of sports to play and a nice little rope course. The campsite was littered with some fun boulders to climb and was a sea of cannabis plants filling the air with their sweet aroma and attracting some fine creatures (especially extra large wasps) to their enticing scent.
From here we set out on day adventures to soak in the beautiful surroundings of the Garhwal Himalaya. On one of the days we took an excellent hike through many villages to a freezing cold waterfall surrounded by cliffs and a huge variety of wildlife. I spent a long time swimming and making the most of this wonderful place. Of course the highlight for me was finding a Himalayan Pit Viper coiled up by the rivers edge, however I did not manage to snap any photos of it in time. Watching the villages live out there day to day life and trying to communicate with some of the hard workers in my very poor hindi was also a highlight!
I was lucky enough to get three wonderful runs in the rafts down the Tons river. The river was world class and provides over 90 km of grade 3,4 and 5 rapids. However due to students we stuck to the grade 3 section which is around an 11km run. The scenery on the rafting trips was spectacular with stunning peaks rising from either side of the river and a never ending maze of beautiful rapids gushing over never ending boulder fields. Great fun for all!
Now my highlight of the trip was most definitely the incredible wildlife spotted on this trip. I got nice and close to four jackals, found the smallest frogs I have ever seen, sited two snakes (caught one), played with giant toads, was dazzled by an array of multicolored dragonflies, saw more species of butterflies than you could shake a stick at and dont even get me started on the number of incredible birds we saw! However the best find was the White Lipped Viper. This incredibly toxic snake was found in our wood pile when collecting fire wood. I heard one of the cooks yell Saap and run at full speed away from the pile. Of course the word Saap (snake) was a clear calling for me to run as fast as I possibly could TO the pile. I was delighted to see a bright green snake with golden eyes gazing up at me hissing its tongue out. We managed to pick it up with a stick and take some lovely photos of this creature without getting bitten which could easily have been fatal due to the fact that there is no antivenum within five hours of the camp site. The most interesting thing to note about this snake is that it is not only very rare but supposedly found only in the eastern parts of India. I have sent photos to some famous snake experts in southern India who are very intrigued by this find. Well enough ranting about this beautiful snake and on with the photos I say!
I have just returned home from a wonderful five day trip up and around the Tons river in the Uttarkashi District. The trip was simply fantastic and I want to share some of my highlights with you all. The days were filled with hikes, rafting, swimming in river pools and capturing the most gorgeous creature I have ever seen on camera.
We were based in a camp set up by the Himalayan River Runners company on a little beach alongside the mighty Tons river. The camp provided awesome tents to sleep in which were comfortable and home to some lovely big spiders and scorpions. We were treated to delectable food, an array of sports to play and a nice little rope course. The campsite was littered with some fun boulders to climb and was a sea of cannabis plants filling the air with their sweet aroma and attracting some fine creatures (especially extra large wasps) to their enticing scent.
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| Our campsite! |
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| Sea of green. |
From here we set out on day adventures to soak in the beautiful surroundings of the Garhwal Himalaya. On one of the days we took an excellent hike through many villages to a freezing cold waterfall surrounded by cliffs and a huge variety of wildlife. I spent a long time swimming and making the most of this wonderful place. Of course the highlight for me was finding a Himalayan Pit Viper coiled up by the rivers edge, however I did not manage to snap any photos of it in time. Watching the villages live out there day to day life and trying to communicate with some of the hard workers in my very poor hindi was also a highlight!
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| Approaching a Village |
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| As always a gorgeous couple of village children! |
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| Sap catcher to make glue! |
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| Ladies hard at work in the fields. |
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| The lovely waterfall and swimming hole. |
I was lucky enough to get three wonderful runs in the rafts down the Tons river. The river was world class and provides over 90 km of grade 3,4 and 5 rapids. However due to students we stuck to the grade 3 section which is around an 11km run. The scenery on the rafting trips was spectacular with stunning peaks rising from either side of the river and a never ending maze of beautiful rapids gushing over never ending boulder fields. Great fun for all!
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| Students preparing to jump on the river. |
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| Not the best time to take a photos. Vipers coil before they unleash fury! |
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| Taking a snap from a safer distance. |
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| Trying to snap a macro at a far to close range for comfort! |
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| A cute frog who will one day probably be eaten by a viper! |
Well thats all from me for now!
Peace and love to all our family and friends....
Friday, June 3, 2011
An Incredible Women!
Namaste Readers!
Before coming to India it was made very clear to me by Emerald that she is simply coming to support me in my job and my passion for moving to India. Since being here it has become so apparent to me that I simply could not be here without her. Emerald is super flexible, super understanding, super caring and has been an absolute inspiration to me since arriving in this country. She has blown my mind in the way in which she relates between cultures and fits in so naturally into such a different place than we are used to. For all of you that know Emerald, this was a huge move for her and I am sure you remember her concerns before coming over. I just thought that this would be a wonderful way to inform all of our loved ones that she is fitting in well, doing her job to the best of her ability, riding motorbikes with three people on them wearing no helmet and being the best wife in the universe.
I also thought that this would be a fantastic time to post up some photos of this amazing women in her first Sari.
Thanks for reading about the best women in the world and you will hear from us soon with adventures from Nanda Devi, Dharamsala, Manali and Shimla!
Before coming to India it was made very clear to me by Emerald that she is simply coming to support me in my job and my passion for moving to India. Since being here it has become so apparent to me that I simply could not be here without her. Emerald is super flexible, super understanding, super caring and has been an absolute inspiration to me since arriving in this country. She has blown my mind in the way in which she relates between cultures and fits in so naturally into such a different place than we are used to. For all of you that know Emerald, this was a huge move for her and I am sure you remember her concerns before coming over. I just thought that this would be a wonderful way to inform all of our loved ones that she is fitting in well, doing her job to the best of her ability, riding motorbikes with three people on them wearing no helmet and being the best wife in the universe.
I also thought that this would be a fantastic time to post up some photos of this amazing women in her first Sari.
Thanks for reading about the best women in the world and you will hear from us soon with adventures from Nanda Devi, Dharamsala, Manali and Shimla!
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Amritsar, Punjab baby!
Namaste,
During our easter break we made a getaway to the beautiful Amritsar with the main purpose of spending some quality time at the infamous Golden Temple and to view some sweet nationalism at the India/Pakistan border closure.
Straight after the school day ended we jumped on a taxi to go catch our overnight train from Dehradun. The train was simply fantastic. This was our first time going first class (non ac) which so happens to be cheap and extremely awesome. With four beds, four people, a locking door and open windows what more could one want! I spent hours on end just staring in awe out the window watching India function in its organised yet chaotic state. I could never get bored of sitting outside of the craziness and just witnessing how people live on a day to day basis here in India.
On arrival we were all very tired.... After a hard time finding a good cheap place to stay we finally came across a nice lil place that overlooked one of the busiest streets in Amritsar. Noisey yes... But once again a place to sit and just witness the street life.
The 'Golden Temple' was everything and more than we expected. It would be to hard to describe in words the beauty and aura that the place has. It is the most important and holy place to the sikh people and I can see why. The whole area is immaculate and the feelings of peace and tranquilty you feel inside the temples walls is unmatched. its so hard to fathom the importance and the history of this special place. We spent long moments just 'being' and soaking in the gorgeous punjab music drifting in the airways while watching the sun set and the marble become cool beneath our bodies. Definately an experience that will never be forgotten. We found the warm smiles, the friendly community found within the temple and the incredible galleries showing the history of the temple and the sikh people extremely moving. The history of the place is so huge and extremely interesting. Although it was very emotionally draining at timesdue to the amount of lives lost to the british and other relegious groups for such unjust reasons.
Here are some photos of the 'Golden Temple'... Although photos never do justice to such incredible places like this!
We also really enjoyed visiting the Sri Durgiana temple which was kind of a Hindu knock off version of the Golden Temple. Very similar structure but no way near as beautiful. Although the early morning rickshaw ride, the live music and beautiful solid silver doors with intricate designs of Hindu gods carved into them made it well worth the visit.
On our final evening in Amritsar we set out to witness the infamous border closure between Pakistan and India. I have never seen such a ridiculous yet entertaining form of nationalism. Every night they have a huge ceremony which attracts hundreds of people to come and cheer on there country all over the closing of th border each night. The area kind of looks like the set up for a big sports tournament. On the Indian side you can see people running the flag down the middle of the road and loud chants are being screamed out from the bleachers. "Hindustan, Hindustan, Hindustan"! There is also a loud and obnoxious girls only dance party that takes place to celebrate this wonderful event when the two countries are seperated for the night. This is only then to be drowned out by the Pakistan side yelling out and parading there flags on the other side of the border. Finally a trumpet is blown and the ceremony begins.... Out come the tremendous costumes including wonderful peacock hats. Both sides have a routine that is perfectly synchronised and well practiced. This includes some ridiculous marching, stamping the ground so hard that you think there legs have broken and of course virtually kicking themselves in the face in signs of angst. Finally both parties reach the gate and there is a quick handshake between the two countries that you would miss if you blinked your eyes. The flags are then lowered at the same time while both sides of the border go wild. The gates are then slammed at full speed as the police march back to their little huts. LONG LIVE HINDUSTAN!
Thanks for reading!!!
During our easter break we made a getaway to the beautiful Amritsar with the main purpose of spending some quality time at the infamous Golden Temple and to view some sweet nationalism at the India/Pakistan border closure.
Straight after the school day ended we jumped on a taxi to go catch our overnight train from Dehradun. The train was simply fantastic. This was our first time going first class (non ac) which so happens to be cheap and extremely awesome. With four beds, four people, a locking door and open windows what more could one want! I spent hours on end just staring in awe out the window watching India function in its organised yet chaotic state. I could never get bored of sitting outside of the craziness and just witnessing how people live on a day to day basis here in India.
On arrival we were all very tired.... After a hard time finding a good cheap place to stay we finally came across a nice lil place that overlooked one of the busiest streets in Amritsar. Noisey yes... But once again a place to sit and just witness the street life.
The 'Golden Temple' was everything and more than we expected. It would be to hard to describe in words the beauty and aura that the place has. It is the most important and holy place to the sikh people and I can see why. The whole area is immaculate and the feelings of peace and tranquilty you feel inside the temples walls is unmatched. its so hard to fathom the importance and the history of this special place. We spent long moments just 'being' and soaking in the gorgeous punjab music drifting in the airways while watching the sun set and the marble become cool beneath our bodies. Definately an experience that will never be forgotten. We found the warm smiles, the friendly community found within the temple and the incredible galleries showing the history of the temple and the sikh people extremely moving. The history of the place is so huge and extremely interesting. Although it was very emotionally draining at timesdue to the amount of lives lost to the british and other relegious groups for such unjust reasons.
Here are some photos of the 'Golden Temple'... Although photos never do justice to such incredible places like this!
We also really enjoyed visiting the Sri Durgiana temple which was kind of a Hindu knock off version of the Golden Temple. Very similar structure but no way near as beautiful. Although the early morning rickshaw ride, the live music and beautiful solid silver doors with intricate designs of Hindu gods carved into them made it well worth the visit.
On our final evening in Amritsar we set out to witness the infamous border closure between Pakistan and India. I have never seen such a ridiculous yet entertaining form of nationalism. Every night they have a huge ceremony which attracts hundreds of people to come and cheer on there country all over the closing of th border each night. The area kind of looks like the set up for a big sports tournament. On the Indian side you can see people running the flag down the middle of the road and loud chants are being screamed out from the bleachers. "Hindustan, Hindustan, Hindustan"! There is also a loud and obnoxious girls only dance party that takes place to celebrate this wonderful event when the two countries are seperated for the night. This is only then to be drowned out by the Pakistan side yelling out and parading there flags on the other side of the border. Finally a trumpet is blown and the ceremony begins.... Out come the tremendous costumes including wonderful peacock hats. Both sides have a routine that is perfectly synchronised and well practiced. This includes some ridiculous marching, stamping the ground so hard that you think there legs have broken and of course virtually kicking themselves in the face in signs of angst. Finally both parties reach the gate and there is a quick handshake between the two countries that you would miss if you blinked your eyes. The flags are then lowered at the same time while both sides of the border go wild. The gates are then slammed at full speed as the police march back to their little huts. LONG LIVE HINDUSTAN!
Monday, April 11, 2011
Nag Tibba
Namaste readers!
Outdoor Education within Woodstock School is finally coming to life. We just took out a bunch of dedicated students on a four day hike up Nag Tibba (10,000ft) during the quarter break. The students are now required to complete sixty hours of outdoor education during grades 11 and 12. The courses run by the Hanifl Centre are now curriculum based, credit bearing and required as a graduation requirement which is a huge improvement from when I first arrived here. Looks like my hard work is paying off!
The hike went really well and we focused on fostering an environmental ethic within each of the students that would help them to create a moral code for how the treat and think about the delicate environment we live in here. This was done through serious discussions on the effects that people have had on the Nag Tibba region through careless farming, unnecessary forest fires and human waste etc. The students were required to write up an assignment on what we can do as individuals to help protect the flora/fauna, help educate the villagers and what steps the government should be taking in order to preserve what we still have.
The hike also focussed on specific camping skills, leadership techniques, team work, trail technique, cooking using pressure stoves and how to follow leave no trace principles.
All the students did extremely well and had a valuable experience that they wont be forgetting about anytime soon....
Here are some pics from this wonderful time:
Thanks for reading!
Outdoor Education within Woodstock School is finally coming to life. We just took out a bunch of dedicated students on a four day hike up Nag Tibba (10,000ft) during the quarter break. The students are now required to complete sixty hours of outdoor education during grades 11 and 12. The courses run by the Hanifl Centre are now curriculum based, credit bearing and required as a graduation requirement which is a huge improvement from when I first arrived here. Looks like my hard work is paying off!
The hike went really well and we focused on fostering an environmental ethic within each of the students that would help them to create a moral code for how the treat and think about the delicate environment we live in here. This was done through serious discussions on the effects that people have had on the Nag Tibba region through careless farming, unnecessary forest fires and human waste etc. The students were required to write up an assignment on what we can do as individuals to help protect the flora/fauna, help educate the villagers and what steps the government should be taking in order to preserve what we still have.
The hike also focussed on specific camping skills, leadership techniques, team work, trail technique, cooking using pressure stoves and how to follow leave no trace principles.
All the students did extremely well and had a valuable experience that they wont be forgetting about anytime soon....
Here are some pics from this wonderful time:
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| The beautiful Common Peacock from the Swallowtail family |
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| Mudpuddling Swallowtails |
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| Just below the summit of Nag Tibba |
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| Enjoying learning |
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| A bit of fun in the sun |
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| Yes I can still flip even at 10,000 ft |
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| Tumbling in the snow! |
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| One of the MANY wonderful Woodstock students |
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| Soaking it in |
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| Climbing a wonderful Deodar Cedar |
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| Lovely villages close to Deolsari |
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| Some fun games in the woods |
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| Some of the most gorgeous children in the universe. Purity at its finest! |
Arty Party
This past weekend we were invited to Paul and Nan's joint 'Art Department' birthday party. The invitation stated that we must come dressed as a piece of art (drawing, painting, sculpture, architecture, photograph…) so we put on our thinking caps.
Ben had been gifted a pair of tight shorts, almost like biking shorts from his father. The great thing about these shorts were that they contained the famous Michael Angelo's sculpture, 'The David's' crown jewels. So it was decided that Ben would come dressed as one of the most famous statues in the world.
After much deliberation over M.C. Escher, Salvidor Dali and the like, Emerald decided to look into Pop Art, in particular Roy Lichtenstein's 'Girls'. Our friend Emily also decided to join the pop culture and became transformed into the 'Crying Girl'.
The party was like a living art house, with characters from Frida Kahlo to two 'Girl with the pearl earring'
Photos care of Mr. Paul Gerberding
After much deliberation over M.C. Escher, Salvidor Dali and the like, Emerald decided to look into Pop Art, in particular Roy Lichtenstein's 'Girls'. Our friend Emily also decided to join the pop culture and became transformed into the 'Crying Girl'.
The party was like a living art house, with characters from Frida Kahlo to two 'Girl with the pearl earring'
Photos care of Mr. Paul Gerberding
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