Well, its been no secret that both Dean and I have found India quite challenging! Having said that we also have very fond memories of our time here. The people for the most part have been friendly, polite, helpful and always very interested (too interested maybe?!) and despite hearing so many horror stories of how we should never trust an Indian we have generally felt that everyone has been super honest and trustworthy.   There have been a few entrepreneurial Indians that have charged us inflated white skin prices sure, but at the same time it must be said that we’ve also had a few meals given to us free!

The food has been really nice, albeit very heavy! We’ve eaten predominantly vegetarian (and haven’t missed meat a bit) and preferred the food in the north, One thing we’ve been disappointed about is that Indian food isn’t very spicy -there is definitely no vindaloo in local areas here! We’re looking forward to eating fresh food again and a diet that has less oil and butter! Saying that, we have already checked the menu on line of our local Indian restaurant at home to see if they serve the dishes we have come to like, and they do! We are also very happy to say that after eating on the streets, pretty much wherever, for two months in India neither of us have got sick!  We drink the water they give us, we eat food that is prepared around flies, eat on dishes that are cleaned by water only and eat raw cucumber and tomatoes if they are provided (the only fresh veg we have managed to get). I am saying this with one day left in the country… Maybe a little cocky too soon…?!

The very different means of communicating has made some things hard and I still dont feel any clearer when I get a head waggled at me for a yes or no question. The quick twist of the wrists generally means no so we can only assume the waggle means yes… but we are never very confident about it.

We are currently having a few days in a nicer than normal hotel in Amritsar. Dean has to do some work on the bike and tomorrow we’ll visit The Golden Temple. Amritsar isnt a particularly nice city but there are a large majority of Sikhs here and we find them nice people. They dont discriminate between caste, sex or religion so its a nice energy to be around.

Despite being a little nervous about spending 3 weeks in Pakistan, I am really excited to be in a new country! When you enter a new country it feels like you get a refill of enthusiasm, interest and patience, and depending on how you are recieved depends on how long those  things last… this is how it feels for me anyway! We have only heard amazing things about Pakistan and its people so we are looking forward to meeting them! My only hope is that they have much better driving skills than the Indians and use their horns less… fingers crossed!!