Tud' Bennnnnnn

Cor we really do get attached to places round this world... Can't seem to leave Mocambique at all... what a grand time. Maputo has been a bit like Nottingham with people to meet all over the place and mad things happening right along. The folks are the friendliest and keep making us stay and go to parties and eat food and join them in their lives. Like India... hmmm...
Went to a great drumming party and to visit the children at an orphanage place with the rastaman Founder and his musical friends... roamed around this amazing Xipamanine market, the little 'chapas' (minibuses) all pound out music all day long. Found a Broadway-type place, the Mocambique Centro Culturale Franco with lovely gardens and FREE cinema!... went to the famous Africa Bar on Thursday night for live Mozambiquan music and LOTS of Bob Marley... and we know Maputo streets pretty well now.

Some more pikchers

Mozambique! a beautiful land

Some pictures... Maputo from across the bay - Ana's antennas say hello - dhows like one we sailed on from Vilanculos to Benguerra Island! - Barra beach, a totally + utterly secluded place where there was just the 3 of us and our hut aaaaah - and Ana carrying on the world tour of the pi pi pi song with children of Mozambique heheee....

busy..busy....busy..don't ask!!!!!!!!!!!!!

oh well!!!!!!!!!!!
what can we say?
here we are, in Africa, the 4 of us now!! Mildred, Hilda, Ethel, and of course Doris!!!!

This is just a quick catchup (which you´ll be relieved to know after that last insanely long post, sorry), we have been completely unable to update regularly...

we´ve had long and busy adventures, many big and delicious meals (yes this is an ongoing theme, the food of the world is too good).
now we are in vilanculos, a little happy town in mozambique with many new friends, yes we feel like home here. (we´ve found our house in inhambane, there is a big space for goats children and monkeys).

so just to say hello and all our love, peace and proposals, we will explain later.

Ciao,
Rash, aNa and Vicky
xXXXXx

MOMOS!

Dear friends, Ve are back! Sorry for zis long delay. We got occupied with stuff for a bit… so… here’s the next instalment…

RASH
Getting hotter… we had 3 weeks or so at school and I carried on showing the kidlets maps of the world, and dancing, and playing that wink murder game which they love. Also hangman and pictionary and extreme shouting (and bits of English). Ana brought the teeny ones to fever pitch with the pi pi pi song which is now a Serampore favourite, she’s getting requests in the street. Also she got addicted to mishti doi, this lovely sweet brown yoghurt you get in big clay pots.

Our teachers have stopped trouncing the children with sticks which is good… Dr Auntie Sequeria and Uncle Robin who run the school are well impressed and have decided Ana has to come back and take over after the summer. She is brilliant with the kids and really catches their interest – the regular teachers have this monotonous repetitive way of teaching (“A for A-pple, B for Ball…”) that makes you want to pull your teeth out and sends half the children into catatonic fits. Ana on the other hand stomps around shouting and being weird in Spanish and they can’t take their eyes or ears off her. Videos to follow. The teachers have introduced a bit more variety now after watching her…

We went for a night out in Calcutta with some kool kids (Auntie Nupur’s son Lattoo and his gang) – dancing clubs and late bars and all-night street eating. Twas well funny. One club, Bed, was proper strobey with a strange and addictive mix of trance and bhangra. And a paan-seller outside. Them kids was well up for it, they go screeching round Cal (as they call it) all night, 8 packed in a car on laps, hopping from bar to bar and stopping off for roti and dal and butter paneer at 2 in the morning. Brilliant. Although we two are getting old… had to go to bed at 5.

And we roamed various small towns of west Bengal, went to this lady’s place in a tiny village over the river, Nilganj, where they were renovating the house. She had a HUGE vegetable garden with a pond and coconut palms and betel nut trees and eggplant and galangal and celery and herbs and spices and flowers and about a million other things growing there. Went to the mela (fair) in Sheoraphuli, my Auntie Leila’s place, there was a tiny pirate ship and ferris wheel, little rides and huge piles of snacks and cheap clothes (so Ana went mad shopping again) and gangs of boys ogling the girls. And we wore saris a few times. Our Monimala kids had their sports day and I won the prize for hitting the pot with the big stick blindfolded. Haha!



Then we got on the train and headed for north…

March the 1st we took the Uttarbango (!!!) Express from Sealdah station in Calcutta for a station called New Jalpaiguri from where you can jump on the Toy Train to Darjeeling, the tea place in north Bengal. Which was the original idea… but it was the overnight train and that was enough time to make friends with an excitable Bengali man called Partho Roy who was travelling in our compartment with his mother and sister back to his hometown of Cooch Behar. He was super-joyous to meet us and ended up inviting us to come back to his with him. Which happily we did and thus got completely waylaid in our plans but had a fantabulous adventure… involving staying with his family for 4 days and being fed huge piles of rice and fish, swimming in his river, and being taken into the jungle to his wife Sunita’s place, Aliporduar (a green forest place with rhinos and elephants and MANY lovely folk, close to the north-eastern borders of India), where Ana was the first whitey that had been seen in the village in living memory. Ahahaha. About 50 people gathered round to goggle at her when we walked the lane in the evening, I was in hysterics with Sunita’s cousin Chotu behind the crowd while the Spaniard obligingly answered a stream of questions about where she came from and what service she was occupied in at England.

We finally left Partho and Sunita and their little boy Babu and took the bus from his sister’s place, Jalpaiguri (we met pretty much every branch of his family, now I know how Ana must’ve felt when we went to my dad’s place in Moradabad).
And we went to the border town of Jaigon, very important place for me, it is bisected by a huge ornate gate that leads into Bhutan and the town of Phuentsholing on the other side. The mountains suddenly appeared and it became really grey and hazy and mysterious-looking. We got off the bus and were in the midst of way more westy-looking people - girls and boys in jeans - then Nepali and Tibetan-looking people, and also a fair amount of villainous types with slicked hair and jeeps trying to lure you their way.
Anyway our goal was Bhutan. We decided to forget all that stuff about borders and visas and extortionate foreigner fees to enter Bhutan and strolled up to the gate where loads of people were wandering through. A guard greeted us with “where is your visa?” and we were like, “visa? We need a visa?” then they sent out a man who spoke Hindi. He told me that I could go through, cos I was Indian, but Ana – where was she from? I neeeearly said she was Indian too but clearly that wouldn’t work (she just hasn’t caught the sun enough, still, the loser) so I tried “she’s half Indian, we’re living in Calcutta, can’t we come in?”
“Er, no. (you fools). Foreigners need visa. Visa from your own country. She not go in.”
We stood with the dudes for a while looking persuasive and saying we’d come all the way specially. But relent they would not. So in the end we decided that I would go in for the evening and Ana would wander on the inside. It was sad but I had to go now I was here…
So I went to Bhutan!!! Woohooo! It was beautiful and peaceful… hazy grey-green hills and prayer flags across a river and I visited a lady in a wooden hut who thought I was mad but fed me tea anyway. There was a Buddhist temple with these red and yellow painted prayer wheels and monks spinning them round, and shops full of wool of every colour. Didn’t see no yaks though. Next time.

Note/moan on Bhutan and Indian tourism policies:
Apparently Indians can go into Bhutan freely for up to 10km and then they need a pass as well. It’s terrible this discrimination thing – all foreigners who LOOK foreign in India are charged high entry fees for places like Taj Mahal – e.g. me and my sister paid 20 rupees and Ana had to pay 750 – that is, 10 dollars. Not that you wouldn’t, and it’s still not that expensive – it’s just it’s such a big difference. Same system with Bhutan evidently – because I looked Indian, I could go in. The gate guys didn’t ask to look at my (British) passport, which was brilliant lucky as it meant I could achieve my going to Bhutan aim (at least for 3 hours!) – but I guess a bit unfair.

Next day we took the bus in the morning back to Siliguri (a horrid place full of pushy men all trying to get you to take their rickshaw/jeep/temple tour) and stayed the night (in a hotel belonging to seemingly the only nice man in the city). It’s the second largest city in Bengal after Calcutta, a big travel hub with train and bus stations and millions of tour operators organising trips to Sikkim and various other places.

And so finally a week after we left Serampore we got on our Toy Train to Darjeeling. It really lived up to its name and never really went faster than walking speed so took 8 hours to go up around the mountains (88km) – but was a great journey. We met a retired Indian couple who had just come back from America and then sat with an English pair of dudes, Barrie and Tor, who were ace. It got cooler and greyer and we wound through many tea gardens and steep hillsides and tiny villages before getting to Darjeeling about 5 in the evening. MMMMmm tea! And cold…

[to be continued]

meanwhile, QUICK FLASH UPDATE:
It’s the 24th of March, steamy hot, and we are leaving Serampore finally this evening, until next time… we have said sorry goodbyes to Monimala School and all the people we have met and made friends with. It has been an awesome, affecting, brilliant time here. We will return!
We’re getting the overnight train from Howrah tonight, to a place further down, on the coast in Orissa – Puri. Then we’ll head on from there to more southern places. We fly to South Africa on 9th April, from Mumbai – Frank, I will be visiting Comet Media there!

Just been packing out rucksacks… errrg terrifying. Stuff has doubled, against our wills. Vamos! Chelo! We’re off to the seaside! See you there!

aNa
Bueno, bueno……what can I say….? it’s been weeks since last time!!! so many adventures we’ve had!!!!!! Rash has explained it perfectly so I’m just gonna add a few bits and bobs, “TIKEY???”
Firstly………… Serampore what a place!!!! Specially the school where I’ve completely fallen in love with the kids, so much fun and so many things I‘ve learnt from them! that definitely I want to come back but that’s a different story that will be talked about, “PORE” which means later, you see guys? At the same time that you are having fun reading about us you are learning Hindi without even realising! ;o)
(you mean Bengali dude – Rash)



Anyway…. Our trip to the north was amazing and crazy, as Rash has said we ended up going to this family’s house that we just met in the train I know that might sound a bit crazy……….and yes!!!!!! you are right it was!!!!! We had such a good time, an unforgettable experience, it is really amazing that the whole family welcomed us so nicely and treated us as princesses, didn’t allow us to help them with anything not even picking up the table and that’s without mentioning the fact that they paid for everything! even for my mineral water!!!!! It seemed that they were delighted that we were hanging out with them and we were even more so, because they gave us the opportunity to experience things like having a bath in the river, fully clothed (our pyjamas), listening to some live folk music that they played for us and what can I say about having the privilege of being the first White stepping in Aliporduar village!!!!! don’t tell me that is not uber cool!!!!!

Now moving on and changing the subject what can I say about my frustrated intention of entering Bhutan without a visa???? Yes I must admit that we had high expectations about ourselves providing that Bhutan is one of the most strict places to get into, as they also asked you to pay $200 per day, don’t you think that is a bit too much? Us too, so basically we didn’t….. therefore the consequences were that I was a bit.……… what can I say…? Discriminated, and had to stay at the other side of the gate watching how my dearest Rash crossed the border to this mysterious country!!!!!! So yes we did separate for a few hours and in the meantime while she was exploring the long-awaited country she managed to bring me some spices and 2 beers de contrabando! check her out!!! Well amigos don’t think I wasted my time, while I was on the other side I went for a wander and ended up coming across with this weird market, surprise… surprise, it was full of second-hand western clothes!!!!! Thousands and thousands of piles of t-shirts, trousers, etc…. just had a look, as nothing caught my eye I decided to carry on walking, as I was feeling a bit lonely I decided to join this group of kids who were playing with marbles in the street!!! luckily and please don’t ask why, I had a marble myself so I took it out of my rucksack and showing it to them, said in my perfect Hindi, “auntie want to play, Tikey”? they looked at me a bit surprised but they accepted me in their gang so we played for a good 15 minutes but then we had to interrupt our game as we found ourselves surrounded by 50 people staring at me like crazy (I got photos to prove), still don‘t know why though, they might have thought that I was cheating or something………… anyway more or less that was my experience in Jaigon, at the other side of the border………..

El tren de juguete & Darjeeling, funny and long that’s the best way that I can think of to describe the journey!!!! The train was cute and small I think it’s been one of the few times in my life where I was happy to so small!!!!!! This time we made friends with the first white backpackers that we had seen, and they were………..English!!!!! bloody hell guys you’re worse than the Spaniards, you are everywhere ;0)!!!!! He he after 8 hours of chatting and laughs we became good buddies so we decided not just to share the Hotel but the room!!! The next morning or I should say night….? we had to wake up at 3 to go to Tiger Hill!!!! That’s the place to go to see the amazing views of the Himalayas!!!!

TO BE CONTINUED...

Hope all are superduper well everywhere, Lizzy BELATED HAPPY BIRTHDAY! did you have a fabulus one... also happy birthday to Sally and Lou and all the other birthdayers of the month of celebraaation woowoo!!!
xxx

Amardere bari-te aschben!

Rash
Now we are teachers! This week has been like refreshment. We have become old lady villagers in Serampore, taking Nani’s place in Monimala School and wandering in the sunshine whilst our beloved schoolchildren frolic around us tugging our hair and bringing us fish. Well, ok, no they haven’t brought us fish. But wouldn’t it be great if they did.

The sunshine bit and the old lady bit are true… and also we are now on our own which means cooking for ourselves rather than being fed to the gills like princesses. I have given Ana a lesson in the Indian spices! And she has cooked lunch! Cauliflower is in season and there are tiny little sweet red onions and then long thick green spring onions with flowers on the end, and potatoes are 6 rupees for half a kilo! You take a stroll in the evening stopping at your preferred subzi-wallah to get provisions. It is a vegetarian’s paradise. Also an eater’s paradise. We have been guzzling these rolls that everyone makes on the street stalls around this area, which are big round tasty parathas fried on massive black woks, with an egg cracked and fried on top of them, then stuffed with spicy chicken all mixed with chillies and onions. MMMMMgrmmmmmmm. You can have them without chicken too, fleshless people.

At school (we go in the mornings from 9.30-12.30) I have been teaching a class of children (bout 8-10 years old I think) to say ‘red lorry yellow lorry’ and some geography (‘Serampore is in WEST BENGAL!) and also getting them to tell me how they make curry because the girls can cook (they are kids who sort of run free on the street, their parents are out working all the time and didn’t send them to school before). We were going through the spices and I asked them where mustard came from and one girl said, ‘From the shop, Auntie!’
They are super-enthusiastic and there’s loads of clamour and bright eyes and jumping up and down. We played hopscotch on the roof and I showed them t’ai chi exercises. And they did loads of hindi film dances. Which was great (and hilarious). They are so little and excitable.


aNa
well…… for those who never believed that I could ever be on my own in a kitchen with a pan full of vegetables and oil without having a panic attack…… I did!!!! and actually Rash forgot to say that it was quite decent and also as U can check I didn’t kill her, so………..well done me!!!!!! anyway let’s move to some other things…….As Rash has said we’ve had become the 2 new teachers of Monimala school!!!!! the experience has been cool so far, Rash is with the older ones and myself with the little ones and although we hardly can understand each other (I mean the kids, not Rash) we still find the way of communicating through signs, body language and smiles which always work!!! The first day we worked was really amazing, I really enjoyed a lot, so did the children, but the second time it was bit of disappointment as it was the first school day for 4 three year-old kids and the teachers were quite harsh and un-empathetic with them so that upset and frustrated me but I tried to do my best and hopefully next week will be better!!!!! :o) Also because I’m planning to teach them my famous song of “the pi pi piiiiii”. For those who don’t know the “hit” make sure I sing it for you when I get back!!!!!
Today we are back in Calcutta for the weekend again staying at Auntie Nupur’s and company (bless their cotton socks) they’re becoming our adoptive family, they ever so nice and everyone here treats us as princesses!!!! Anyway we are back here because tonight we are planning going out with Lattoo (their son) to a party!!!!!! yujuuuuuu check us out!!!!!!! “Living India” is more than visiting temples, mosques, and finding buddha!!!!!!!! ;0)
Well AMIGOS that’s all from me today!!!!!! sending you love &hugs, aNaxxxxx

A Resplendent, Immortal Teardrop on the Cheek of Time

Today was a proper adventure day, Calcutta bus-hopping for miles around this honking, crazy, populous, glinting city. We saw a huge hospital, teeming with folk and smells, went to a cancer research institute and met a woman running a breast cancer support group, Hitaishini. There were about 12 women in one tiny office, making some massive commotion as they spoke to patients and explained to us what they were doing (counselling, physical care, helping provide medical treatment and food to patients as most are poor and from rural areas).

In the morning our first visit was to Salt Lake City where my mum’s friend Sunipa is running a little school for mentally disabled children where they had 15 minutes of prayers before school began, listening to Bengali Hindu prayer songs, then continued making sparkly banners for their 20th anniversary party on Saturday, with the help of various teachers.
In between all this we jumped on and off various rattling, battered blue and yellow and maroon buses, a few times on the wrong ones, with conductors banging on the sides and hollering out their patter of destinations. There is a goddamn lot of noise.
We swung all over the place in crushed hot wooden seats, and I started recognising roads. It’s a good city. People just get on with stuff here. And we have seen lots of people now, doing amazing good work, with genuine enthusiasm and joy, and not being paid. There’s a thriving comfortable middle-class ranging from globally-conscious, open-minded students who’ve grown up with Indian world views, to well-off doctors like the people we’re staying with, to the retired, who are all passing on resources they have. The principle of sharing the wealth and giving to those who need seems to be well in practice, even if the poverty and education problems are huge. Although Dr Sequoria (who runs the little school, MoniMala, that my grandmother was teaching at in Serampore) and her husband point out there are also a lot of givers who do it for the glory and recognition as well as the ones who do it very quietly and inconspicuously.
We went to the women of Hitaishini (the breast cancer support group) to see if we could get involved but obviously you need Bengali to do counselling here. It would be a thing to do if you were staying here for a while… that feeling of foolishness you get when you don’t know the bhasha (language) is coming over me here, I need to learn Bengali I reckon! I can speak Hindi some, but with a terrible accent and have to keep filling in with English words. Dohhhhhh.

Anyway, many of these groups and organisations are running on whatever donations they get – always looking for more funding.

The City of Joy

aNa
Here we are again staying at Auntie Nupur's, with Uncle Kunal… and their lovely son Lattoo…. and the 2 grannies…. and the ladies who help them with the cleaning and cooking…..to sum up we are again living with another 10 people!!!! they are lovely making sure we are ok I mean feeding us every half an hour!!!!!!! Who said you lose weight when you go to India?????!!!!! Bollecks!!!! Anyway….we tried to go to the cinema twice but for some strange reason we kept on missing the shows!!!!! The two of us!!!!! Weird innit?!!! ;o) anyway instead we ended up going for a boat ride and for a cold and nice….BEER!!!!!! That wasn’t an easy mission, as here there’s hardly any bars selling alcohol it seems that they prefer their chay (tea) always with some tasty and lovely snacks…..and SPICY of course! Anyway the only place we managed to find was the bar next door to the cinema (inside this big new and western style mall) it was dark and empty not many girls and the only ones were with their partners, not like us!! “2 strong independent women” ;o)

Saturday we went to the Kolkata book fair (the biggest one in Asia) and guess what was the theme this year…???? SPAIN yes these bloody Spaniards are everywhere!!!!! So believe it or not the Spanish stall was packed and with a long long queue so I went straight to the front asking if there were any Spanish writers, and the guy at the door realizing that I was one of them (Espanola) let me in straight away!!! some benefit I should have for being Espanola innit? The fair was huge and very crowded, of course we really enjoyed it!!
After that went back home for some food, we were starving imagine more than 3 hours without eating anything!!! But after dinner Rash didn’t feel too well so she stayed in and I went out with Lattoo on his bike! Check me out!!! We went to the only place in Calcutta where they play live music so it was a band playing covers they were really cool and it was shocking watching all these Indian guys requesting Nirvana!!! After that went to the only 24 hours restaurant in Calcutta where we met up with 2 of his friends, had some tea and kebabs and after that home on the bike again! yujuuuuu!!! what a night!!!!!
I LOVE INDIA, HAVE I TOLD YOU THAT BEFORE??

Rash
Sunday we went to a sports day with Amitav, a dude who runs an organisation that helps street children in Calcutta. We’re staying with Auntie Nupur, friend of my mum’s (everyone here is Auntie or Uncle whether related or not) and Amitav is an old friend of her family.
BANCHBO - his organisation - www.banchbo.com - run classes and do various activities with the kids. Next Saturday we’re gonna go with them to Sunderbans, a strange-sounding area near Calcutta that is half-water half-jungle, where the land meets the Bay of Bengal: “A mangrove forest that is home to a profusion of wildlife including Bengal tigers”, which are man-eating apparently. So we get to meet the animals and hang out with the children. Yeeha!

The Banchbo sports day was FAB. Reminded me a bit of the Screenplay e-games tournament cos there was absolute joy and riveted attention from all, both kids and grown-ups. We'll put up some pictures of it. Honest.

don't stop movin baby... pt2

rash
And now back to Calcutta again! Got here Friday morning on the Rajdhani Express, the overnight train from Delhi wahey. Cool fun – bunks and blankets and hot curry dinner. But it’s a bit of a posh train that one, the refreshment men brought tea in flasks, with tea bags, not in huge urns and little clay cups like when I was little. Next time!

aNa
Oh yes!!!! The train journey was a an experience itself, it was 17 hours from Delhi to Calcutta and I thought I was going to get dead bored but not at all, first you start making friends with your fellow passengers, offering us food and interrogating about our lives, past, present and future….and after that every 10 minutes you’ve got someone offering you tea (chai) or food!!!!! so how can you get bored…???!!!! then obviously the spare 5 minutes that you get we spent them reading!!!!!! what a journey!!! Looking forward to catching another train!!! ;o)
I LOVE INDIA

in the bosom of the clan

Then we went to Moradabad for a night, my dad’s ancestral home city. It’s a great big house with a chatth (roof) and a courtyard in the middle with a handpump for water. And about 40 cousins and a whole collection of aunts and uncles. Ana met them all, haha. Including Uncle Salim who turned up like a mystic, swathed in a huge beard. Excellent. Spaniard’s havin problems remembering names… but no matter, she made friends with them all.
It’s brilliant there cos my aunts just feed us the whole time, someone’s always cooking and making fresh rotis. We played badminton on the roof and sat talking to little cousins and looking at really old photos of my dad. When you go up on the roof there are kites bobbing everywhere over the city, all the buildings are packed close together and investigative red-arsed monkeys leap from roof to roof around the children.

aNa
Si si si!!!!! Moradabad was another experience!!!! almost from another dimension………hundreds of aunties, uncles, cousins everywhere, all of them wanted you to go to visit their home, eating their food….drinking their tea…..all of them looking forward to meeting you!!!! It was really nice and different, they were so interested in getting to know you that we even had conversations for about 15 minutes talking different languages! As some of them didn’t speak English and myself is still not very fluent in Urdu!!!! Anyway it was really very lovely, I’d never forget them, their spontaneity, kindness and generosity as every family give us farewell gifts!!!!
I LOVE INDIA!!!

don't stop movin baby... pt1

So we spent 8 days or so in Delhi with my family, being mad and speeding around all over the place. And showing Ana the sights that must be seen. Jama Masjid, the huge, beautiful old mosque of Old Delhi, at namaaz time at dusk (massive clamour of the prayer-call through loudspeakers and people rushing up the steps). Around that area is Chandni Chowk, a sprawl of bazaar streets selling silver jewellery (chandni means moonlight or silver in Hindi). Proper Arabian Nights-style set-up.

Also went trailing round Janpath – twice - a magnet-like shopping area with long rows of stalls selling cheap, enticing beads, bags, tops, wooden items and other assorted tat of the world. Supposedly quality Indian handicrafts. Even I, definitely an anti-shopper, found myself sucked in against my will. The Spaniard had an involved half-hour haggling session with 3 men at a pendant stall. She wanted 3 to put into necklaces and by the time we got back to her from the shoeshop the whole lot of them were working up into a frenzy of “please ma’am look ok take these 2 extra, 500 rupees’ and Ana clutching her forehead going “oh no I jus’ wan 3… or do i? wha-rrami dooin? Do I really want these?” Saira turned up and said 420 which was apparently not a good price to offer. “Yeh kya gandhi price hai?” (what dirty price is this?) says the stall man. “Chelo four 2 five dheydeejyai.” (ok go on giz 425 that’ll do).
We eventually managed to secure the purchases and leave, Ana looking thoroughly traumatised and clutching about 12 lumps of metal and stones. No, there were 3 beautiful ones among there. But she sat gazing worriedly into space in the taxi for the next half hour while the rest of us (me, my mother and Saira) argued about whether we should buy orange dusters for the house from the boy at the traffic lights and why Shiv Shankar (a driver the day before) hadn’t taken us to Red Fort the other day when it was only a bit further on from Raj Ghat. Ah, the endless, elaborate discussions. Its a favourite Indian pastime.

In Dilli (4,500 miles from Nottingham)

On the balcony
sat on cane chair in sunshine
whilst people make plans

Rash
We are such intrepid travellers that we have left everything useful in Serampore, thinking we were being reet clever taking little bags. Delhi is colder than we expected, all we came with was flip flops and thin tops. Jumpers are definitely needed. Everyone (meaning my assorted aunts and uncles) is shocked and horrified at our madness and tells us we can’t go to Agra (Taj Mahal city, gonna do a daytrip tomorrow) dressed like that. My dad gave me some rupees and told me to go get proper shoes and not come back without. So we went to Janpath… shoppers’ paradise. And I don’t even like shopping.
Ah well, you have to learn from these things.

Ana
Our first day in Delhi, we already visited another member of Rasheeqa’s family, this is making me feel like one ambassador with all this social life!!!!!!!!
The second day was the first time that the ‘three sisters’ (including myself, as now I’m one member more of this huge and lovely Indian family) have gone out by ourselves, we did a bit of seesights, visiting the Lotus Temple, a bit of shopping in Janpath, and ended up meeting Saira’s friend and going to a place where we could drink a few beers!!!! Yeah!!! I think we needed that, the last time we had alcohol was on the plane going to Bombay!!!!!!!
Tomorrow we are going to Moradabad, Rasheeqa’s dad’s village, apparently it’s about more than 20 people living in this house where we will be staying - see what happens…….

Saira
Complete & utter madness if u ask me. Lots of crazy Indians, FOOD, endless discussions about the different possible ways of doing things… the Spaniard has completely blended in with the paki parade, eating curry with her hands & hanging out with Sikhs, Muslims & Hindus alike! Fantastic. Bring on the over-sweet tea, billions of people & toilets in the ground… Salaam a’leikum!

in the indian way

We're in Serampore! An hour from Calcutta in the state of West Bengal. The village/town (can't tell which cos it seems like a village but spreads far and wide) where my grandma Nani was living till December. The vast river Hooghly (comes off the Ganga) passes slowly through it, just behind Nani's flat.
Ana is blending is nearly like a native, eating rice and dal and fish with her fingers like everyone else. We've already gatecrashed a random wedding that my cousin led us into, and been filled up with wedding feast. Spent the day in Calcutta city yesterday, and are flying to Delhi on Monday. Check us out!!!

We had 12 hours in Bombay on Wednesday between flights. Have not been to Topiwallah Lane yet Frank but I think we will go back there again so will visit the Comet Media people.
Had a great walk around a little villagey part near the sea where goats were frolicking oh yes, and babies running around and shiny vegetable markets and ladies washing their hair in the sunshine. Also went on a long mission round the docks trying to find out about catching a boat from Bombay to the east coast of Africa. Lots of people were looking bemused about it but we were taken in hand by the chivalrous Bhim (taxi driver) and his uncle who took us to various posh marble-topped offices. They told us there aren't really any ships going that way apart from cargo ones, but that the QE2 would be passing through in March. Hummm.

And apparently there is a 4-eared, 8-legged goat in the Indian Museum in Calcutta!!!!!! Hai caramba. Must go there.

We do have loadsa pictures also but on the laptop, and the Cyber Cafe ladies here will not let us plug that in to their network. We will try get those on next week when we can use the laptop in Delhi.
But I have just spotted two lads in here playing Halo online, Jamie. Hehe.

And heeeeere's Ana!

Rash has explained everything very clearly so there's not much left to say but that this is really amazing, her family lovely and I'm happy!!!!!!! will write again soon as now we must go to have tea with a lovely lady and her husband, she is the one who runs a little school in the village so we'll try to convince her that we are nice girls so we maybe be able to stay here and help her out for a while. we'll keep U posted though!!

Laters dudes, hope all are well, much love

xxx

the beginning

Boo!

Mmm sweet gluey yam. i made weird food for our last night in Sneinton, Nottingham. White sweet potato from Vic Centre Market and foul medammas beany stuff and red stuffed peppers full of soya mince and 'spanische fleige' which seems to mean spanish fly but looks like bulgur wheat. Topped with halloumi. AGGGHHHH MMMMM. Spanish fly is the name for some sexual ailment ain't it.

Ana is packing and me n Noel are watching her from the sofa. She keeps saying 'super bollix' and looking shocked when I'm saying I'm only taking 2 pairs of trousers.
I've got to pack too.
And move that shelf into the bathroom. HA! And I will do it. Don't try and stop me.

Tomorrow!