A trip to Bhutan that led to Nepal - Guns, Buddha and BHP

ASHISHPALLOD · 2nd February 2010, 18:33

This is interesting stuff.
We want more and that should be fast.

buddha141 · 2nd February 2010, 22:06

Continuing from where I left off, and thanks to all the encouragement:

We realised that we were in really deep ****. Santosh was calm enough to tell me to try the lights and see if there was any battery left at all. The lights came on and I realised that the battery had eough juice in it to atleast charge my phone. I set it up for charging and about half an hour later started making calls again. In the mean time the fog got a little lighter but that made things a little more dangerous for us. We were parked on the highway with no way to illuminate ourselves or warn other drivers and we saw many trucks go very close to us and at a fair speed. After I was convinced that we had enough charge on the phone , I swithched the hazards on and left them on.

navan49 · 2nd February 2010, 22:17

Hi Buddha,

Good pictures. You should have given the name and place of the temple in the pictures. You will see many accidents and toppled vehicles on your way. Take care. Where are you today.

adc · 3rd February 2010, 16:28

This is gripping! Thats a handful of incidents and we still have Nepal left! Nepal situation is very very dicey nowadays - by thread title it seems you had again a whole lot of unique experiences there.

Again, absolutely fantastic narration, do continue soon.

buddha141 · 3rd February 2010, 17:57

Thanks for the encouragement guys.

Sorry for the delay guys, less time between office and fixing the car up again.

Time: 6:00 am 26th Jan
Place: Outside Varanasi on NH 2
ODO : 8285
Leg Distance: 42 Kms
Average Speed: 3 Kmph
Kilometers in Trip: 830

It was dawn soon and with the rising sun the fog cleared up a little and with that also came the realisation that we were not going to be able to make it to Bhutan. The mood was dark and the cold only made us more irritable. Soon we saw the Radisson car pull. A old white Amby and an equally young dusky driver.

The driver was Promod and he was as excitable as a puppy. It was obvious that the guy was inexperienced with the things he was saying. His solution ranged from jumpstarting the car without cables to towing the car with pyjama nada in the car ( honest guys). But the guys was not bad, I mean he was excitable but a good hearted guy.

Finally we had a cup of good good tea (Picture one with Promod and Santosh in the blanket) and decided to leave the Gypsy there and come back later with a mistry. We were given a running commentry on Benaras and the river Ganga and somewhere between Manikanta ghat and Promods taste in hindi films, the nights exaustion caught up with us and I nodded off to sleep only to wake up at the hotel (Picture 2)

At the hotel we were told it would take some time to get the room as the previous guests had not left yet so we had breakfast and went out for a walk. Reached UP Motors and realised they were opening up so pulled the first mechanic out and rushed back to the Gypsy. The mechanic tells us that the new refurbished alternator is not working as well. We pull it out and take it back to Chintu and get the old one back and get it fixed. Total cost 250 Rs.

By the time the car was fixed and taken back it was 1 pm. Left the car at UP motors for a full service and headed to the hotel. The room was ready and we checked in. Trust me guys the sight of a warm cosy room and a clean , gleaming bathroom was heaven. I spent about an hour in a hot tub and ordered a heavy lunch. Had a short nap and picked up the Gypsy.

We decided against driving in Varanasi due traffic (picture 3) and decided to visit the Ganga at night. we met a friendly auto guy at the enterance to the hotel and he took us on a full package of boat and auto. Reached the ghat just as the aarti was on (Picture 4, sorry for the blur). The Ganga looked resplendent at night. The lights from the ghats bouncing off it made it look magical (Picture 5). We also went past the Manikanta ghat where dead bodies were being burnt (Picture 6) I believe the fire here has not been extinguished for a hundreds of years.

Reached back to the hotel and dropped dead asleep.

KSM-Vtec · 4th February 2010, 10:05

This sounds like a "Breakdown guide for Dummies"...lol really interesting, keep them coming. Great Stuff!!!

sbraj · 4th February 2010, 10:30

This travelogue is bringing me a different perspective. I usually travel with a plan. But reading this travelogue makes me realize that the plan itself may become a burden sometimes. Plan comes in the way of enjoying the drive at times.

buddha141, I am now glued to your travelogue.

Detailed recall of events with thoughts - amazing!!!

Way to go.

Blur · 4th February 2010, 10:47

Buddha, superb travelogue man! Subscribed!

Love your narration. And the pics too (esp the blurred headlights in the fog)

Keep ot coming, fast!

anupam00 · 4th February 2010, 11:10

Nice Travel log & wonderful description.

Thanks

buddha141 · 5th February 2010, 09:01

Back again. Thanks for everyones messages.

We woke up the next day very refreshed and sat down for a discussion. What to do now? Bhutan was out of question as we had no time to reach Bhutan and make it back to Delhi by Sunday when Santo had his flight back to Hyderabad. Maps were pulled out and about 30 secs later we decided on Nepal.

We still had a couple of things to do before we left tho and hurried out to meet our auto fella , Golu, for breakfast at Minto House opp the Taj. This place is fabulous. 4 bucks a poori street food and it is delicious. A must have in Varanasi. After that was a quick ride to Kashi Vishwanath temple.

A word of caution here. Please be EXTREMELY vigilant and do not fall for any religious blackmail. Points to remember

1: Do not engage any touts or priests outside the temple. Go alone.
2: Follow the queues, disregard anyone that tells you otherwise. The queues are short anyways.
3: Pay any money on your comfort level. When I tried to pay 50 Rs at one place the priest actually told me that 'mata cant accept that much 500 please'. bull s***. God will never have a rate list so dont oblige.
4: All money or wallets in front pockets.
5: No mobiles or cameras or any electronics . Its better to leave them in the hotel or in the car. There is a rip off locker system that we fell prey to. 150 to keep my mobile for an hour. Looters!
6: No need for any pooja samagri, irrespective of what anyone tells you.
There is no system of regular puja there so what ever you take will have to be self placed at the lord and ir swept away in a minute.

We lost about 2500 RS each in this fiasco and left the place utterly disgusted and felt less holier than we arrived.

We reached the hotel back and packed our bags and after a quick word with the travel desk headed out to Nepal via the Sonali border via Ghorakhpur.

Picture 1: Bread Toast at Minto House
Picture 2: Temple
Picture 3: Me ( Chunna lagwane ke baad)
Picture 4: The 'Blue Bikini"
Picture 5: The final route we took.

MX6 · 5th February 2010, 12:16

Good tips about Varanasi there. I've started planning a drive to Kashi early next year now itself.
Also, did you require any special permits for driving in Nepal? Pardon me, There's been too many travelogues after the new year vacations that I'm finding it difficult to recollect what I read.

diiesoline · 5th February 2010, 18:31

I am lovin' this write up. Its nothing like the travelogues I have read before.

Two very brave souls struggling to make this trip a success against all odds. Bravo!! Bring the rest of it on ASAP. I am about to chew off all my nails

"Blue Bikini" I only wish she would be a little more considerate and all would end well. But hell she sure got some spice in to your trip and I suspect you are never going to forget this one.

vasanthn21 · 5th February 2010, 21:40

funny and interesting!

I have heard somewhere," things always look funny as long as it happens with others"

I wouldn't be finding it funny if this happened to me

I had experienced the "choona lagwaana" part when I had been to Agra to see Taj. So I understand how you would have felt after coming back from the temple.

In your first post, you mentioned your "91 Gypsy", do you mean it is a 1991 model? or do you mean something else. I am sorry, I do not have any idea about Gypsies

buddha141 · 5th February 2010, 23:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by MX6

Good tips about Varanasi there. I've started planning a drive to Kashi early next year now itself.
Also, did you require any special permits for driving in Nepal? Pardon me, There's been too many travelogues after the new year vacations that I'm finding it difficult to recollect what I read.

I have just posted a detailed post in the Routes/Queries section. Waiting for approval so cant share the link. Please check there.

Vinotys · 5th December 2014, 14:39

@buddha141, what happened after this? Where is the rest of the story?

2nd February 2010, 18:33	#16
ASHISHPALLOD Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: MH42 Posts: 2,006 Thanked: 334 Times	This is interesting stuff. We want more and that should be fast.
	() Thanks

2nd February 2010, 22:06	#17
buddha141 Newbie Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 20 Thanked: 22 Times	Continuing from where I left off, and thanks to all the encouragement: We realised that we were in really deep ****. Santosh was calm enough to tell me to try the lights and see if there was any battery left at all. The lights came on and I realised that the battery had eough juice in it to atleast charge my phone. I set it up for charging and about half an hour later started making calls again. In the mean time the fog got a little lighter but that made things a little more dangerous for us. We were parked on the highway with no way to illuminate ourselves or warn other drivers and we saw many trucks go very close to us and at a fair speed. After I was convinced that we had enough charge on the phone , I swithched the hazards on and left them on. Attached Thumbnails
	() Thanks

2nd February 2010, 22:17	#18
navan49 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: CHENNAI Posts: 1,000 Thanked: 73 Times View My Garage	Hi Buddha, Good pictures. You should have given the name and place of the temple in the pictures. You will see many accidents and toppled vehicles on your way. Take care. Where are you today.
	() Thanks

3rd February 2010, 16:28	#19
adc Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Kolkata Posts: 1,352 Thanked: 2,289 Times View My Garage	This is gripping! Thats a handful of incidents and we still have Nepal left! Nepal situation is very very dicey nowadays - by thread title it seems you had again a whole lot of unique experiences there. Again, absolutely fantastic narration, do continue soon.
	() Thanks

3rd February 2010, 17:57	#20
buddha141 Newbie Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 20 Thanked: 22 Times	Thanks for the encouragement guys. Sorry for the delay guys, less time between office and fixing the car up again. Time: 6:00 am 26th Jan Place: Outside Varanasi on NH 2 ODO : 8285 Leg Distance: 42 Kms Average Speed: 3 Kmph Kilometers in Trip: 830 It was dawn soon and with the rising sun the fog cleared up a little and with that also came the realisation that we were not going to be able to make it to Bhutan. The mood was dark and the cold only made us more irritable. Soon we saw the Radisson car pull. A old white Amby and an equally young dusky driver. The driver was Promod and he was as excitable as a puppy. It was obvious that the guy was inexperienced with the things he was saying. His solution ranged from jumpstarting the car without cables to towing the car with pyjama nada in the car ( honest guys). But the guys was not bad, I mean he was excitable but a good hearted guy. Finally we had a cup of good good tea (Picture one with Promod and Santosh in the blanket) and decided to leave the Gypsy there and come back later with a mistry. We were given a running commentry on Benaras and the river Ganga and somewhere between Manikanta ghat and Promods taste in hindi films, the nights exaustion caught up with us and I nodded off to sleep only to wake up at the hotel (Picture 2) At the hotel we were told it would take some time to get the room as the previous guests had not left yet so we had breakfast and went out for a walk. Reached UP Motors and realised they were opening up so pulled the first mechanic out and rushed back to the Gypsy. The mechanic tells us that the new refurbished alternator is not working as well. We pull it out and take it back to Chintu and get the old one back and get it fixed. Total cost 250 Rs. By the time the car was fixed and taken back it was 1 pm. Left the car at UP motors for a full service and headed to the hotel. The room was ready and we checked in. Trust me guys the sight of a warm cosy room and a clean , gleaming bathroom was heaven. I spent about an hour in a hot tub and ordered a heavy lunch. Had a short nap and picked up the Gypsy. We decided against driving in Varanasi due traffic (picture 3) and decided to visit the Ganga at night. we met a friendly auto guy at the enterance to the hotel and he took us on a full package of boat and auto. Reached the ghat just as the aarti was on (Picture 4, sorry for the blur). The Ganga looked resplendent at night. The lights from the ghats bouncing off it made it look magical (Picture 5). We also went past the Manikanta ghat where dead bodies were being burnt (Picture 6) I believe the fire here has not been extinguished for a hundreds of years. Reached back to the hotel and dropped dead asleep. Attached Thumbnails
	() Thanks

4th February 2010, 10:05	#21
KSM-Vtec Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: MH-02-India-Bombay-Bandra Posts: 1,562 Thanked: 446 Times View My Garage	This sounds like a "Breakdown guide for Dummies"...lol really interesting, keep them coming. Great Stuff!!!
	() Thanks

4th February 2010, 10:30	#22
sbraj Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: B L R / T V M Posts: 1,071 Thanked: 9 Times	This travelogue is bringing me a different perspective. I usually travel with a plan. But reading this travelogue makes me realize that the plan itself may become a burden sometimes. Plan comes in the way of enjoying the drive at times. buddha141, I am now glued to your travelogue. Detailed recall of events with thoughts - amazing!!! Way to go.
	() Thanks

4th February 2010, 10:47	#23
Blur BHPian Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Mumbai Posts: 173 Thanked: 19 Times	A gripping tale! Buddha, superb travelogue man! Subscribed! Love your narration. And the pics too (esp the blurred headlights in the fog) Keep ot coming, fast!
	() Thanks

4th February 2010, 11:10	#24
anupam00 BHPian Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: NOIDA Posts: 218 Thanked: 425 Times	Nice Travel log & wonderful description. Thanks
	() Thanks

5th February 2010, 09:01	#25
buddha141 Newbie Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 20 Thanked: 22 Times	Back again. Thanks for everyones messages. We woke up the next day very refreshed and sat down for a discussion. What to do now? Bhutan was out of question as we had no time to reach Bhutan and make it back to Delhi by Sunday when Santo had his flight back to Hyderabad. Maps were pulled out and about 30 secs later we decided on Nepal. We still had a couple of things to do before we left tho and hurried out to meet our auto fella , Golu, for breakfast at Minto House opp the Taj. This place is fabulous. 4 bucks a poori street food and it is delicious. A must have in Varanasi. After that was a quick ride to Kashi Vishwanath temple. A word of caution here. Please be EXTREMELY vigilant and do not fall for any religious blackmail. Points to remember 1: Do not engage any touts or priests outside the temple. Go alone. 2: Follow the queues, disregard anyone that tells you otherwise. The queues are short anyways. 3: Pay any money on your comfort level. When I tried to pay 50 Rs at one place the priest actually told me that 'mata cant accept that much 500 please'. bull s***. God will never have a rate list so dont oblige. 4: All money or wallets in front pockets. 5: No mobiles or cameras or any electronics . Its better to leave them in the hotel or in the car. There is a rip off locker system that we fell prey to. 150 to keep my mobile for an hour. Looters! 6: No need for any pooja samagri, irrespective of what anyone tells you. There is no system of regular puja there so what ever you take will have to be self placed at the lord and ir swept away in a minute. We lost about 2500 RS each in this fiasco and left the place utterly disgusted and felt less holier than we arrived. We reached the hotel back and packed our bags and after a quick word with the travel desk headed out to Nepal via the Sonali border via Ghorakhpur. Picture 1: Bread Toast at Minto House Picture 2: Temple Picture 3: Me ( Chunna lagwane ke baad) Picture 4: The 'Blue Bikini" Picture 5: The final route we took. Attached Thumbnails
	() Thanks

5th February 2010, 12:16	#26
MX6 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: City of seven islands. Posts: 2,877 Thanked: 231 Times	Good tips about Varanasi there. I've started planning a drive to Kashi early next year now itself. Also, did you require any special permits for driving in Nepal? Pardon me, There's been too many travelogues after the new year vacations that I'm finding it difficult to recollect what I read.
	() Thanks

5th February 2010, 18:31	#27
diiesoline BHPian Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Noida Posts: 37 Thanked: 0 Times	Bravo! I am lovin' this write up. Its nothing like the travelogues I have read before. Two very brave souls struggling to make this trip a success against all odds. Bravo!! Bring the rest of it on ASAP. I am about to chew off all my nails "Blue Bikini" I only wish she would be a little more considerate and all would end well. But hell she sure got some spice in to your trip and I suspect you are never going to forget this one.
	() Thanks

5th February 2010, 21:40	#28
vasanthn21 BHPian Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 811 Thanked: 521 Times View My Garage	funny and interesting! I have heard somewhere," things always look funny as long as it happens with others" I wouldn't be finding it funny if this happened to me I had experienced the "choona lagwaana" part when I had been to Agra to see Taj. So I understand how you would have felt after coming back from the temple. In your first post, you mentioned your "91 Gypsy", do you mean it is a 1991 model? or do you mean something else. I am sorry, I do not have any idea about Gypsies
	() Thanks

5th December 2014, 14:39	#30
Vinotys Newbie Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: Chennai. Posts: 18 Thanked: 2 Times	Re: A trip to Bhutan that led to Nepal - Guns, Buddha and BHP @buddha141, what happened after this? Where is the rest of the story?
	() Thanks