21st of February, 2023.
Next day Thakur go to work in the morning, and is coming back around 5 p.m. to drop me off at Sam’s place, so I will spend the whole day with Anita. Sam and her husband gave me a lift when I was going up North, and invited me to stay with them on my way back South.
She makes me a peanut butter and jam sandwich and a delicious masala tea for breakfast. Then we chat for a while; I do some Sudoku from the Newspaper; I wash my clothes and they dry quite fast; Anita also washes her clothes and I help her to hang them outside; she makes very nice vegetables and chapati for lunch; then more delicious masala chai.
A friend and neighbour of Anita, Dajeet, invites us to come to her house. While Anita takes a shower to get ready, I iron her kurti. At Dajeet’s house we are served with pomegranate juice, samosas, Dhokla (a fermented spongy cake which is savory, from Haryana state) and coffee. We watch some television and I talk with the daughter-in-law, Amrit, who is a lovely young lady. Just before me and Anita leave, they give me a lovely plaid tunic. How thoughtful! And it is really what I needed because it has long sleeves and goes all the way to the knees.
Anita and Thakur keep asking me what do I need and what can they give to me also as a gift. I explain to them that I cannot carry more weight than I am already carrying. But because they really want to help in somehow (as they haven’t helped me a lot already), I tell them that, what I really need right now is a tooth brush and some tooth paste. They are happy to get me some before we leave.
When I call Sam to tell her we are on our way, she gives me some bad news. They have received a last-minute email from their work, and they have to go to a meeting in another town tomorrow morning. It makes me very sad because I came all the way to Chandigarh just so I could stay with them, as they asked before and as I promised I would.
When I meet Sam and Bharat again, more bad news. I cannot actually stay with them because some last-minute guests (relatives) came looking for some health assistance, so they will be going to the hospital / look after the children. How unfortunate! But what makes me even more sad is the fact that they arranged a hotel room for me instead. If only they had told me this earlier, I could’ve remained with Anita and Thakur. Of course, it’s not their fault either, it was just a wave of unexpected events. Unfortunately, there is nothing I can do now, so I stay in the hotel room.
Sam and her family come over to bring me some dinner and so we can chat a little bit. Their house is near to the hotel. I finally meet their son, Aadvik, who is a pearl! He is extremely cool and made for an artistic / celebrity life. I cannot wait to see what a popular influencer he will become.
Anyway, with all these changes, I also change my route. I decide to skip Rishikesh completely and also not trying to visit one National Park which is located very close to it, where I would try to see the Bengal tigers for free. Rishikesh is considered the capital of Yoga in India, yes, but for my way of travelling it doesn’t really make much sense going there.
Next morning, after giving the left-overs of my dinner to a skinny dog staying outside the hotel (which she totally refused to eat, by the way), I start walking towards the road to Rajasthan. I ask for a piece of cardboard in a small shop and I write Jaisalmer.
Ah, Rajasthan…
10 Years Around the World 