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First stop on what turned out to be a two year trip. Read my trip report from three months in this fascinating country. (1994 to 1995)

India, part 1

Si_lad
2004-03-26 21:22:27

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all luxuries, but if the horn stops working you get it fixed immediately. The Horn is used to warn any vehicle that you are approaching, then to let then know you are about to pass. Once past, the vehicle you have passed will use the horn to let you know you are past. As you can imagine – this results in a LOT of horn blowing!

After four hours of horn blowing, mad overtaking, a few near-missed & some stick waving (from the co-pilots window at any vehicle that did not "obey" his horn), we stopped at a roadside resthouse.

The resthouse served us tea and cold drinks & offered us food – which looked and smelled great but we declined. There were lots of trucks parked up and I noticed the drivers were sleeping on the roofs under old sacks. When I asked where the toilet was, I was pointed to a field behind the roadhouse. As I waded into the foot long grass "toilet" field I noticed the grass was moving. I’m not sure if the movements were from snakes, rats or what, but I soon did my "business" and left. This was the next thing I learned about India.. taking a shit is not a relaxing pastime, as it can sometimes be in the west!

The next four hours to the Punjab were much more interesting. The sun came up and there were many things to see. Villages everywhere, men riding bikes with brightly coloured turbans (complete with wife and two kids on the same bike), dead cows being eaten by huge vultures, strange signs advertising "Godfather Beer" and other "macho" products. Just after 8 a.m. we arrived in Mojawal Majara – a small village near to the town of Balachour. This is where Kulwinder's family lived.

The Punjab Home from home.

The family we stayed with made us feel very welcome and after a lengthy sleep to recover from the long journey we sat down and ate and had a tour of the small village.

The house was a single story dwelling with ...