Diary & Travel Reports by Simon Milward
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00/07/25 India making me laugh and cry
Tue, 25 Jul 2000 22:34:17 +0000 |
2k/07/17 Whitewater frights
2k/07/12
2k/06/12
2k/06/02
2k/03/28
2k/03/08
2k/02/19
2k/02/09
2k/01/28
2k/01/21
2k/01/10
99/12/26
99/12/26
99/12/23
99/10/
99/09/23
99/09/06
99/07/28
99/07/17
99/07/11
99/06/12
99/05/04
99/04/10 |
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Singapore 25.7.00 Arrived here two days ago, cost total $600 from Kathmandu (thanks Singapore Airlines for the good discount) bit of a culture shock: clinically clean, modern, expensive. Fingers crossed Indonesia is next, via the Western Islands only (so Mum Dad don't worry I'll stay away from the fighting islands and yes I'm fine).
Don't blame me for the long lines of this, it's a feature of Psion's, you might have to reformat it. Simon Varanasi India 4.6.00
Anyway I don't hate India, yesterday's comments were made after a long hot ride and whilst sometimes Indians can make your blood boil, they can also be so sweet. Normally India takes a half dozen visits to appreciate!
New Delhi 14.5.00
Delhi on the line here, just came down to the plains from India's Himalayan mountains. Been going round the press and govt. ministries trying to get together some cash, will lay in hard to the companies tomorrow as there's a front page colour article of he Millennium Ride out on the newstands. After Lahore (Pakistan) I arrived at the border with India. The daily border ceremony, which has the feel of a garden party, takes place at 6pm - an hour after the border closes. Elaborately dressed guards from India and Pakistan parade around swinging legs even higher than Basil Faulty doing the German sketch in Faulty Towers, and it all happens at 60mph, it was hilarious. At moments they stopped and glared at each other viciously across the line, looking like they might run up and punch the other. Each manouvre was applauded by onlookers on each side. I would never have believed such a thing could take place, particulary when the two countries have been at near war for so long.
I was photographed with the 14th Dalai Lama (exiled Head of State and Tibetan Buddhism) telling him of the Millennium Ride at one of his public blessing ceremonies (he got through over 500 people in less than an hour). He is a very gentle man with an enormously contagious smile, he is smiling all the time, as do the rest of the hundreds of monks and nuns up there. I made some great friends here, like St Jon the American Harley-rider now on an Enfield, a Swiss music composer who spent 80% of his life just drifting through this part of Asia, an Australian woman riding a 650 BMW to Europe, and a work of art restorer from London. There was also a, er, touch of romance. From there I rode via Mandi to Manali, at 2200m, the 1970s 'in place' for hippies, and got a few hours of free rafting in on the way - a bit tame though. The Himachal Pradesh Tourist Development Corporation gave me a room for three nights. Nirvana (www.nirvanamanali.com) made some video footage, quite funny in places, and the footage is avaiable if any TV types want it, email Jeff via the website above. I met the regional Enfield Club President who was very well switiched on to legal and legislatory matters - we'll put him on the FEMA mailing list. The only bikes I saw up here, apart from millions of 3 wheel ricksaws, are Enfields, the 350 and 500. The factory had to increase the price and decrease power to meet various new limits (sounds familiar...?) There is no national club. But I hope to be speaking to the factory and the FIM people to see what rights work can be done. I've had no pressure to wear a helmet in India, well only from some 'concerned citizens' . . ! IN DELHI
On my bike I inspected the rear wheel cush drive rubbers this week, they are basically OK. But the left rear shock is leaking oil - are you a shock dealer with some super dooper ones you want to sacrifice? It's now done 24,000km, 20,000 on this ride. The tracker was working great until the antennas were stolen, I've asked CLS to rush down another one. (Also stolen was the spare inner tube and bike cover, welcome to India.) Yesterday I was persuaded to the barber and was given the full treatment, including massage and as good as shaving off my beard. First time for 18 years with no beard - I'm getting younger!
15 people on both sides (Indians/Kashmiris) are killed each day, as it's been for 9 years, and yesterday militants shot a minister. They say Clinton let them down badly during his recent visit because he could have prevented another 10 years of bloodshed. There is too much killing in this world and it would be nice to get some truth fairness and transparency in all this going on. In the face of adversity I'm very impressed at the Kashmiri's faith that one day they will be given the vote already promised them. Better not upset the Indians too much though if I want to raise some money here. |
COMMUNICATIONS. In Pakistan I got the unblock code for the Motorola Tri-band (it works worldwide, but coudn't use it till I got here to Delhi as this was the next area where British Telecom has a local agreement.) That's why this email has long lines, it's being done on the Psion5mx (many thanks to Computech London for that and Palm-Tec for hard case making the whole thing so far Simon-proof). I don't have to to blag free time at net cafes now, I can do it on top of a mountain or underneath the udders of a nearby cow. (It's amazing to see the cows everywhere, main 90kmh highways included, they just wander everywhere causing havoc with traffic or chomping at market stands.) I'm going to keep an eye on costs though (via my brother by email), roaming is very expensive and British Telecom refused to cover any of the costs. But anyway, I'm all set up here now, can usually connect after 3 or 4 goes and sent the first digital pic to Uschla for
www.millennium-ride.com, of me !
at Delhi Gate. The Motorola and Psion talk by infrared 'eyes'.
Also connectivity means I can get the diary down quickly and sent to Suzanne for the book and she doesn't have to battle with my handwriting. The Psion's Agenda program is great for plotting the fundraising stopovers (beats a mobile paper office where everything is blown everywhere by the fans which you cannot do without) and the database to which if I don't transfer all the business cards they'll get sodden with sweat These are all parts of Psion's system as is the email program and web browser and is a great little device. I have a range of adaptors and it runs off any mains electricity anywhere, upto now anyway.
The digital camera is a Kodak DC240, I bought that, it uses the same memory disk as the Psion so emailing them is simple . Does anyone want to sponsor a big capacity memory disk? All the early (Sinai) digital pics and the Dalai Lama ones were high resolution (I had it on the wrong setting) and was my only camera option available at the time. Emailing hi-res costs too much so I'm going to send home the full disk's worth and sort it out when I get there. Anyway now there're 3 cameras, the other two are: the Cairo $10 one which is being used for slides, developed en route, some of which I'll take along in case of any Rotay Club fundraising presentation or something (which reminds me...), and the Olympus 115, great all-rounder, the films of which are sent to Germany for processing/scanning and sending on to some magazines, thanks to Chris & Marty Cartoons.
The Motorola, Psion and Kodak digital can all run off the bike, along with my compressor, light and AA battery charger. I just need to get a tape deck sorted so that I can practise the blues on the harp!
All the best
Simon, with a funny feeling chin
Varanasi 3 June 2000
[57kB 600x402] [397kB 1772x1177]ROUNDABOUT MADNESS |
Contact with motorcycle producers was also fruitless, I wanted to talk of global motorcycle issues (spelled out in my faxes to nearly all of them) and ask for some sponsorship. Level of interest? Zero.
I soon realised my mistake, should have gone to Bombay for fundraising, and Madras for Enfield, plonked myself down on their doorstep. Problem is it is now flooded.
BOYCOTT THE TAJ MAHAL
[164kB 1157x1172]TAJ MAHAL |
it was at the Taj that I had a very interesting discussion with a lady who believed not in the caste system, and a man (Brahmin, the top caste) who clearly did. Discouraged by government, the caste system for hundreds of years compelled people to certain types of jobs for their whole life, once born into a caste you could not get out. There is still ample evidence of this unfair arrangement especially outside the cities.
Kanpur was the next city en route to Varanasi which had an office of the Times of India. They took the BOYCOTT THE TAJ story and photo. Kanpur lifted my spirits about India though, virtually no tourists come there so so it had a genuine feel. Someone bought me a drink at the first stop and Rajish appeared on his scooter to get me sorted. I had a long discussion with the newspaper guys about all of my India observations, they explained that the country is only 50 years old and that corruption was a legacy of the British. (That was a new one on me!)
Then it was the ride to here, which, as I said was just brilliant. Here is the real India. And my last days in the torrid heat beore going back to the mountains to get outa the South Asia subcontinent from Kathmandu. To where? Let's see what the airlines offer! Someone said it rains in the evenings there right now, oh such joy!
I'm drinking five litres per day, but peeing is rare and then very yellow. I keep on stubbing my bad toe in these flipflops, my cheap light alternative to the biking boots.
Goodnight
Simon
[190kB 1157x1172]Simon in Kashmiri clothes |
Electronic press photos available Martin Kaemper mkaemper@presseteam.de with thanks to Chris & Marty
photos © Simon Milward
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