July 13, 2006
"To Iran or not to Iran" that was the question. My body seemed to be against continued travel where my mind was still into continuing through Iran and Turkey because they were right next door to Pakistan but there is no direct bus or train to Iran and instead there would be a lot of backtracking south before heading west to Iran which would take at least a few days of travel.
In Islamabad I went out to the Shah Faisal Mosque which was an interesting looking mosque. The next day I went back to the Iranian embassy to find out that it would take 10 working days to process my visa which was basically 2 weeks so I knew at that point I was heading back to Thailand to finish off this trip. I grabbed the next bus back to Lahore and stayed the night there and then Sunday I headed out to the bus station to grab a bus to India but found out it was closed on Sunday and there would be no bus to India until Wednesday so I grabbed an autorickshaw to the Pakistan/India border. As I checked out of Pakistan customs and left that side of the border I walked through a 50 meter space before coming to the India border side and there were bleechers on the right hand side to seat lots of people and it is then I remembered that at the end of everyday at the border when it closes at 4:30pm there is a big show between the India guards and the Pakistan guards where they out shout, out march and try to intimidate the other side which is a huge tourist attraction in itself but I was more interested in getting on to Amritsar than to hang around for that.
As I entered the India side of the border to go through customs I met an older Indian man with his wife who had lived in Germany for the past 45 years and have just recently been transferred to live in Pakistan since July 1st for a Paper company and he told me they belong to the Jain religion and are strict vegetarians and tell me there are no vegetarian restaurants in Pakistan so they got a 6 month multi entry visa for India so every week they cross the border to just go for lunch at one of the many vegetarian restaurants in Amritsar. They asked me if I wanted to share a cab and I said sure and as we get to Amritsar I decide I would go with them to their vegetarian restaurant since my stomach is beginning to feel sick since I entered India 30 minutes before (must have been a psychological thing). The Vegetarian restaurant food was delicious with roti bread and black bean dip and other stuff. We enjoyed each others company and they refuse to let me pay for my food or even my half of the taxi fare.
Amritsar is where Alexander the Greats army finally quit on him at the Hyphasis river around 325BC. Amritsar has been at the center of terrible Indian events like in 1919 when peaceful Indian protestors were protesting the arrest of Gandi and the British fired upon 20,000 Indians killing 400. In 1984 some Sikh extremists took over the golden temple and were occupying it when Prime Minister Indira Gandi gave orders for military action which resulted in the death of hundreds of Sikhs. In that same year Indira Gandi was assassinated by her own Sikh bodyguards obviously in retaliation for this.
The Golden temple is in the middle of a huge lake/pool and white marble buildings surround the pool. You have to take off your shoes and were a head scarf to enter. The golden temple gives free room and board to pilgrims that want to stay there for a maximum 3 days and I was going to stay there just until that night and then grab a night train to Delhi but the Indian monsoon poured down just as I got there and people were drenched within 30 seconds of being out in the rain and the streets were flooded so I decided to head to the train station and leave for Delhi since I was soaked and felt like I had been swimming with my clothes on.
Once I got to the train station and was waiting in line I had a young guy pass in front of me and then went right up beside the guy at the window who was purchasing his ticket so I assumed he was with the guy until the guy leaves and this guy basically just budded in front of me to get his ticket. I found Indians and Pakistanis do this (budding in line) and it annoys the hell out of me so then I have an old sikh guy in his 50's with a turban and big beard and mustache try to do the same thing so I tap him on the shoulder and tell him to get to the back of the line which he does and then another old sikh man in his 50s with big mustache and beard and also wearing a turban tries the same thing but runs ahead of me when the window is free and jams his arm with his money in hand through the hole of the plexi glass to give to the cashier and immediately I grab his arm and yank it out of the hole and he gives me this surprised look as if he can't believe I just did that to him and I tell him to get to the back of the line and then 2 seconds later he darts back and does the exact same thing hoping the ticket cashier will get his money and just as the cashier is reaching for his money I grab him by the bicep and yank his arm out again but this time I give his bicep a sharp pinch with my fingers which is enough to cause tears to form in the eyes of old sikh men who didn't understand the first message about not budding. Well, needless to say he was out of there. He didn't even get in line but stormed out and probably went back home to tell his wife what some white foreigner did to him.
So I jumped on the train and got to Delhi at 5am. They have a flight center in Delhi and there flights were at least half the price as those in Islamabad. Going from Delhi to Bangkok was like going from a dirty pig-pen to paradise. This was the 5th time I have entered Thailand on this trip. As I walked down Khao san rd I heard my backpack rip a huge tear in the bag and then the whole backpack just fell off my back which was just another sign that this trip was near the end and even my backpack has had enough.
The next day I catch a bus at 8am and head to the closest island called Ko Samet and stay there two days to unwind and soak in the turquoise ocean water to detoxify from India. I don't have that India itch anymore.
So within 12 hours I will be on my return flight back to Canada so this will be my last email of this 6 month travelogue. Since I have begun traveling I have added other backpackers to this email list where they now make up 80% of the list! Many of you I traveled with for a day and a few of you I traveled with for a week or two and I enjoyed meeting and traveling with all of you. I may continue my trip through Iran and Turkey in a year or two but feel that it is going to take at least a good year to recover and soak in everything that I have seen and experienced on this trip. I have seen so much poverty and filth which are the conditions that most of the world population lives under I think I will be singing that Phil Collins song for awhile when I get back home that goes "Don't... Think twice..... It's another day for you and me in par-A-dise".
If anyone has any questions about any of the countries I have visited then feel free to email me anytime. I will send the remaining pictures out over the next few days.
Take care all!
Kevin
THE END
"To Iran or not to Iran" that was the question. My body seemed to be against continued travel where my mind was still into continuing through Iran and Turkey because they were right next door to Pakistan but there is no direct bus or train to Iran and instead there would be a lot of backtracking south before heading west to Iran which would take at least a few days of travel.
In Islamabad I went out to the Shah Faisal Mosque which was an interesting looking mosque. The next day I went back to the Iranian embassy to find out that it would take 10 working days to process my visa which was basically 2 weeks so I knew at that point I was heading back to Thailand to finish off this trip. I grabbed the next bus back to Lahore and stayed the night there and then Sunday I headed out to the bus station to grab a bus to India but found out it was closed on Sunday and there would be no bus to India until Wednesday so I grabbed an autorickshaw to the Pakistan/India border. As I checked out of Pakistan customs and left that side of the border I walked through a 50 meter space before coming to the India border side and there were bleechers on the right hand side to seat lots of people and it is then I remembered that at the end of everyday at the border when it closes at 4:30pm there is a big show between the India guards and the Pakistan guards where they out shout, out march and try to intimidate the other side which is a huge tourist attraction in itself but I was more interested in getting on to Amritsar than to hang around for that.
As I entered the India side of the border to go through customs I met an older Indian man with his wife who had lived in Germany for the past 45 years and have just recently been transferred to live in Pakistan since July 1st for a Paper company and he told me they belong to the Jain religion and are strict vegetarians and tell me there are no vegetarian restaurants in Pakistan so they got a 6 month multi entry visa for India so every week they cross the border to just go for lunch at one of the many vegetarian restaurants in Amritsar. They asked me if I wanted to share a cab and I said sure and as we get to Amritsar I decide I would go with them to their vegetarian restaurant since my stomach is beginning to feel sick since I entered India 30 minutes before (must have been a psychological thing). The Vegetarian restaurant food was delicious with roti bread and black bean dip and other stuff. We enjoyed each others company and they refuse to let me pay for my food or even my half of the taxi fare.
Amritsar is where Alexander the Greats army finally quit on him at the Hyphasis river around 325BC. Amritsar has been at the center of terrible Indian events like in 1919 when peaceful Indian protestors were protesting the arrest of Gandi and the British fired upon 20,000 Indians killing 400. In 1984 some Sikh extremists took over the golden temple and were occupying it when Prime Minister Indira Gandi gave orders for military action which resulted in the death of hundreds of Sikhs. In that same year Indira Gandi was assassinated by her own Sikh bodyguards obviously in retaliation for this.
The Golden temple is in the middle of a huge lake/pool and white marble buildings surround the pool. You have to take off your shoes and were a head scarf to enter. The golden temple gives free room and board to pilgrims that want to stay there for a maximum 3 days and I was going to stay there just until that night and then grab a night train to Delhi but the Indian monsoon poured down just as I got there and people were drenched within 30 seconds of being out in the rain and the streets were flooded so I decided to head to the train station and leave for Delhi since I was soaked and felt like I had been swimming with my clothes on.
Once I got to the train station and was waiting in line I had a young guy pass in front of me and then went right up beside the guy at the window who was purchasing his ticket so I assumed he was with the guy until the guy leaves and this guy basically just budded in front of me to get his ticket. I found Indians and Pakistanis do this (budding in line) and it annoys the hell out of me so then I have an old sikh guy in his 50's with a turban and big beard and mustache try to do the same thing so I tap him on the shoulder and tell him to get to the back of the line which he does and then another old sikh man in his 50s with big mustache and beard and also wearing a turban tries the same thing but runs ahead of me when the window is free and jams his arm with his money in hand through the hole of the plexi glass to give to the cashier and immediately I grab his arm and yank it out of the hole and he gives me this surprised look as if he can't believe I just did that to him and I tell him to get to the back of the line and then 2 seconds later he darts back and does the exact same thing hoping the ticket cashier will get his money and just as the cashier is reaching for his money I grab him by the bicep and yank his arm out again but this time I give his bicep a sharp pinch with my fingers which is enough to cause tears to form in the eyes of old sikh men who didn't understand the first message about not budding. Well, needless to say he was out of there. He didn't even get in line but stormed out and probably went back home to tell his wife what some white foreigner did to him.
So I jumped on the train and got to Delhi at 5am. They have a flight center in Delhi and there flights were at least half the price as those in Islamabad. Going from Delhi to Bangkok was like going from a dirty pig-pen to paradise. This was the 5th time I have entered Thailand on this trip. As I walked down Khao san rd I heard my backpack rip a huge tear in the bag and then the whole backpack just fell off my back which was just another sign that this trip was near the end and even my backpack has had enough.
The next day I catch a bus at 8am and head to the closest island called Ko Samet and stay there two days to unwind and soak in the turquoise ocean water to detoxify from India. I don't have that India itch anymore.
So within 12 hours I will be on my return flight back to Canada so this will be my last email of this 6 month travelogue. Since I have begun traveling I have added other backpackers to this email list where they now make up 80% of the list! Many of you I traveled with for a day and a few of you I traveled with for a week or two and I enjoyed meeting and traveling with all of you. I may continue my trip through Iran and Turkey in a year or two but feel that it is going to take at least a good year to recover and soak in everything that I have seen and experienced on this trip. I have seen so much poverty and filth which are the conditions that most of the world population lives under I think I will be singing that Phil Collins song for awhile when I get back home that goes "Don't... Think twice..... It's another day for you and me in par-A-dise".
If anyone has any questions about any of the countries I have visited then feel free to email me anytime. I will send the remaining pictures out over the next few days.
Take care all!
Kevin
THE END
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