the world is an oyster

Tibet: Tingri – Shigatse – Gyantse random pics

uranchan — Sat, 09 Apr 2011 13:51:37 +0000

Yak family on the shore of Yam Dork lake

sebelum berangkat, border Nepal – China. Snow storm awaited us in Tibet

more mountains mountains mountais, the first pass.. around 4000 m something

Dried sheep meat, taste good to me. Kesehatan tidak dijamin…

Glo & Andi males makan Chow Mein .. hihihi

monasteries in Shigatse & Gyantse

An unnamed mountain & Yam Dork lake…. beautiful scenic 3 days drive

Tibet, here we come!

uranchan — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 18:18:57 +0000

Finally, after 3 days being in limbo, not knowing whether we can enter get separate visa or not, and then visa application got rejected, finally today we got the visa for Tibet! And tomorrow we’re leaving at 5 AM. So goodbye Kathmandu, it’s been great staying here, but we’re ready to move on!

Aarti Puja – Haridwar

uranchan — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 17:40:24 +0000

Still the same place, in Har-Ki Pauri but in the afternoon, around 6.30 PM people flock here to take part in the Aarti Puja ceremony. Religious music played from the speakers while the priest performs the dance ritual, burning of the offering and float it to the river. After that everyone can float offering to the Gangga.

Har-Ki Pauri – Haridwar

uranchan — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 04:19:22 +0000

Quite a change of climate from Dharamsala, this is the holy & very hot city of Haridwar, and this area is called Har-Ki Pauri, where people from all over India flock to bathe in the ghats of the Ganges. Surprisingly the water here is of clear turquoise color – well i don’t know about the bacterial count, but Hindus believe if you bathe in this river your sins will be purged (so who cares about little bacs, rite?) . Plenty of plastic jug seller to bring the water home. (Sorry guys, will not be bringing u any holy water). The beautiful ghats are so colorful during the day, women spread saris across the floor to dry them.

The view from the train Chakki Bank – Haridwar

uranchan — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 03:54:34 +0000

What i like about train rides in India is the fact that you have to get up at 5 AM, because you will reach the destination in 30 minutes, and then you see this beautiful view outside.

What i don’t like about the train rides are fighting for your berth (bed) and perverts jerking off (I heard stories, and actually saw one.. eeek).

But the beauty always beat the ugly

Adventure in Old Delhi Train Station

uranchan — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 14:31:15 +0000

This is probably not the worst train station in the world, but at least it can be in second place! There are more people in this station than there are flies in the garbage bin. Well, just see the pictures. I actually had to run from one end of the train to the other end, and run back coz i couldn’t find my car, even though there’s this guy who was sent to help me find it, he was nice, carried my bag, but he couldn’t speak a word of English! Screaming “Move it! Move it!” for my way, jumping from one cartwheel to another, sprained my ass (iya pantat saya suka keseleo kalo ngga pemanasan dulu), squatting in pain, trying to call my escort who’s already 10 meters away -“Kheeem!!”- finally he heard me, run back to me, points at his watch “Time, time!”.. oh noooo my train is leaving and i don’t have a compartment yet!!! Hop i jump, running again, this time asked the train manager for “Help! I can’t find my car! AC3!” He pointed it out, searched for my name on the list sticked out next to the car door. Yes it’s there, thank God. Got in, found my seat number –58-. Sat down between 4 Indian men. Before i could barely catch my breath, drenched in sweat, one of the men pointed to the upper berth. “If you don’t mind..” he said. Hell, of course i mind goddamnit, i just got to my seat. Gimme a minute willya! (well dalam hati dong ngomongnya). But i held on to my seat, and it was all good. They were nice men, going to Pathankot for the wedding of thir nephew, and i spent the next 10 hours with them.

This is AC2, went in the wrong cart, mine was AC3 (3 tiers of berth/bed). Next is the side berth, and on the right is the toilet.. not a bad toilet, but you need a good balance when the train is moving.

The view around 5 AM in nowhere, just before i arrive in Pathankot.

Finally, town of Pathankot, arrived 6 AM. After this i took a 4 hours bus to Mc Leod Ganj, Dharamsala.

Akshardham Temple

uranchan — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 14:00:11 +0000

Just before leaving for Dharamsala on March 6th, my super cool host Pooja & her son Shiven took me to Akshardham Temple, one of the largest Hindu Temple complex in India. This temple is dedicated for Bhagwan Swaminarayan –a Hindu saint- and it’s really beautiful. It’s made out of carved red stones, looks like terracotta but I’m not sure, and all of the walls were carved by 11000 artists. The entrance in free, but the queue and security was quite long and really strict, you can’t bring a marker in, let alone a camera. But please check out their website to see what this magnificent temple is all about. www.akshardham.com

McLeod Ganj

uranchan — Sun, 13 Mar 2011 07:49:27 +0000

Beautiful town of McLeod Ganj with the Himalayas on the back.

Picturessss

uranchan — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 18:12:49 +0000

Me at Red Fort today!

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New Delhi!!!!

uranchan — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 16:05:50 +0000

After arrival at the “Changi looking” Terminal 3, Aparna who picked me up said “Wulan, the airport is the best of Delhi that you will see…”…. Aaaand so far is true.

I was surprised as how the traffic is 10 times worse than Jakarta.. seriously people, this city is crazier & full of surprises. I saw pigs on the road, 10s of them, dogs & cows – of course. The whole place feels like a giant wet market. Luckily this huge city has a superb Metro line

So far it’s great, i’ll post some pics later