[cyberhippie]

Here's a few more snaps from the last trip, in Almora etc etc

Flickr Uttarakhand

[kullukid]

cyberhippie, on Jul 6 2008, 11:13 PM, said:

Here's a few more snaps from the last trip, in Almora etc etc

Flickr Uttarakhand

Thanks CH , great selection, loved the ones of Almora town....took me right back there! & the ones of Jageshwar Temple & the mountain views are stunning. I see you got to the gates of the Maharishi/Beatles Ashram, did you go inside? KK

[AlanD]

Just did the slideshow on flickr - thanks for posting. I also found the Almora photos very interesting - quite old houses! I've been through the town a couple of times but only between buses and have completely missed the old part of town. It looks worth staying around for a few days, if not in town, then nearby. Missed Jageshwar also on previous visits so will have to remedy that.

Would be interested to also know where you stayed in Rishikesh on your last visit as we will definitely be there sometime in November.

[kullukid]

AlanD, on Jul 7 2008, 01:17 PM, said:

Would be interested to also know where you stayed in Rishikesh on your last visit as we will definitely be there sometime in November.

Hi Alan, in Jan this year i stayed at Bank Top which is an area set on the hillside of Rishi between Ramjhula & Laksmanjhula with a cluster of half a dozen guesthouses of varying prices, which seem verreee popular with western travellers. I stayed at Bhandari swiss cottage which has wonderful distant views of Ganga & an excellent travellers restaurant cum German Bakery. It's very convenient for walking to either Jhula, rates are from Rs2-600 the higher floors with the best views are the dearest. In fact i'm heading back there in about 1mths time. Here it is; KK

http://www.bhandaris...e.com/index.asp

[AlanD]

Thanks for that info KK. We have always stayed on the Swarg Ashram side, mainly because there is quick access to the jungle behind, where we tend to spent quite a lot of time birdwatching but it looks a nice place and we will certainly keep it in mind

[cyberhippie]

kullukid, on Jul 7 2008, 10:14 AM, said:

Thanks CH , great selection, loved the ones of Almora town....took me right back there! & the ones of Jageshwar Temple & the mountain views are stunning. I see you got to the gates of the Maharishi/Beatles Ashram, did you go inside? KK

Thanks KK, never made it inside the Beatles ashram the forest department "official was looking for 100 Rps each, may have been a Scottish case of "short arms, long pockets"
Nah just didn't want to fill his pockets.........

AlanD, on Jul 7 2008, 01:17 PM, said:

Just did the slideshow on flickr - thanks for posting. I also found the Almora photos very interesting - quite old houses! I've been through the town a couple of times but only between buses and have completely missed the old part of town. It looks worth staying around for a few days, if not in town, then nearby. Missed Jageshwar also on previous visits so will have to remedy that.

Almora has to be one of the nicest malls I've visited. These were all taken along the mall, no traffic, a working market, cobbles and some wonderful old Kumaoni architecture, oh and a temple or two.
Jageshwar is magical Alan you really have to visit, Tara's Guest House is basic but adequate and the food is plain kumaoni fare, to be found all over, dal, sabjhi and rice.
It looks down over the village and was where I got the inspiration for this. Arjun's Travels
If you've still got a night's camping/budget in you (you're of good traveling stock so........) PM for me details of a wonderful wee place near the "burn" and a rock pool. All housed in a traditional Kumaoni house!!!
Almora, whilst a wonderful hill station really suffers (like all hill stations) from the modern blight of  traffic. We stay up in the hills above the town, a wonderful spot Alan and if the weather is right a great spot for a bit of bird watching. We've seen a wide variety up here, if you want a list just say but you're far better at this than us amateurs but trust me it is very rewarding.
The views out onto the Nanda Devi Trishul Panchuli range are distant but vivid enough and the foreground of ever changing colors only enhances the beauty.
Try to stay in Papparsalli or Kasar Devi...........

Again Pm me for details but I'll link you to a wee teaser.... our house in the middle of our street

AlanD, on Jul 7 2008, 01:17 PM, said:

Would be interested to also know where you stayed in Rishikesh on your last visit as we will definitely be there sometime in November.

kullukid, on Jul 7 2008, 02:12 PM, said:

Hi Alan, in Jan this year i stayed at Bank Top which is an area set on the hillside of Rishi between Ramjhula & Laksmanjhula with a cluster of half a dozen guesthouses of varying prices, which seem verreee popular with western travellers. I stayed at Bhandari swiss cottage which has wonderful distant views of Ganga & an excellent travellers restaurant cum German Bakery. It's very convenient for walking to either Jhula, rates are from Rs2-600 the higher floors with the best views are the dearest. In fact i'm heading back there in about 1mths time. Here it is; KK

http://www.bhandaris...e.com/index.asp

Same as that, stayed up in "high Bank" (or is it top bank??)

In a little place past the Bandari Swiss Cottage , right on the corner before you mount the steps upto the Hill Top Hotel and the " New Bandari Swiss Cottage.
Nice enough family and decent budget accomodation.
The Swiss cottages are superior though, that's for sure. The layout of the New Bandari Swiss Cottage, is superb, not great views down into Lakshman Jula but a wonderful peaceful setting and as good a restaurant as the more frequented  Swiss cottage below.
On the Rishikesh Town side of the Ganges
It's a 10 minute walk down to the bridge at Lakshman Jula, interesting enough, 25 minutes will get you along the road lining the Ganges heading up river. From here the birds are less dense than in Swargashram but a good spotter..............
Rishikesh will likely surprise you Alan, it's now a cosy place fro travellers (The Italian is no more???). Good places to eat, money change etc etc. I was of the feeling that some of the atmosphere of a very spiritual place had been diverted by all this, the pilgrims are still there of course, the bells still ring out, aarti still takes place, sadhus aplenty but, I dunno it seemed to have been cheapened for the faithful. Let's see what you think and I'd be glad to get Kullukid's views on this???
Great bookshop just across the bridge on the High Bank side and good music/DVD shop

Food at the Swiss cottage twins is great, and down in Lakshman Jula the Thalis looked so much better than the sad ones, both here and Swargashram use to serve up (Choti Wallah excluded)

[WonderWomanUSA]

I, too, loved the photos of old Almora and I think, if Bangladesh falls through, I'll go up there for a few days. I've always loved Almora, and at one time used to stay at Snow View Estates. I don't know if I could climb that hill now, so might have to stay downtown with the traffic .. we'll see.

[kullukid]

cyberhippie, on Jul 7 2008, 08:26 PM, said:

Thanks KK, never made it inside the Beatles ashram the forest department "official was looking for 100 Rps each, may have been a Scottish case of "short arms, long pockets"
Nah just didn't want to fill his pockets.........

Rishikesh will likely surprise you Alan, it's now a cosy place fro travellers (The Italian is no more???). Good places to eat, money change etc etc. I was of the feeling that some of the atmosphere of a very spiritual place had been diverted by all this, the pilgrims are still there of course, the bells still ring out, aarti still takes place, sadhus aplenty but, I dunno it seemed to have been cheapened for the faithful. Let's see what you think and I'd be glad to get Kullukid's views on this???
Great bookshop just across the bridge on the High Bank side and good music/DVD shop

I'm not Scottish, but I managed to get in without paying!      The guard/gateman usually leaves about 4.30, leaving just enough time to have a look around before sunset. Here's a link to my pic's of the Maharishi's/Beatles Ashram;

http://www.gourmetin...p...ic=4539&hl=

And here's some of Rishi/Haridwar;

http://www.gourmetin...?showtopic=4559

CH, I enjoyed my stay at Bhandari Swiss Cottage, although when I first arrived I thought i'd somehow stepped out of India & into Ojai California! It was full of what i call "The Beautiful People"   who seemed to spend all day on one course or another,from massage to yoga to cooking to dancing etc, most of them had landed in Delhi & jumped on the first train to Rishi where they intended to stay until it was time to fly home again.....Oh well! Each to his own, I suppose.

It was my first time back in Rishi, after 10yrs & yes the place as changed/grown considerably,i hardly recognised some parts. However regarding the Spiritual vibe/atmosphere, I think i felt the reverse to you CH. When i first visited 10yrs ago, my travelling partner who'd been to Rishi yrs before described it as "DisneyLand for Hindu's" & at the time i had to agree with him, it all seemed verreee false & OTT. However this time i got a much deeper Spiritual vibe from the place & was reluctant to leave, in fact i enjoyed it so much i'm heading back there next month. I think the spiritual vibe of a place has more to do with the individual within (or some would say the lack of individuality of the individual ) than the place without, or maybe one compliments/brings out the other??
I'm not suggesting you ain't Spiritual & I AM by the way CH.       KK

[cyberhippie]

The vibe is still there KK I was more thinking of how the place seems to be catering more and more to tourists/seekers, Lakshman Jula looks a lot like Pushkar these days. Lots of shops selling touristy tat and restaurants for the same people.
Pushy shop owners and a general businessy attitude that wasn't apparent just 5 years ago. Pilgrims were quite far down the pecking order as businesses swallowed the $$$$$$.
I remember when it was hard to get a decent meal in Rishikesh, not now...............
It seemed a shame to me, let's not forget what Rishikesh is all about and it ain't the Beatles or money!!

Even the visitors have changed, a yoga teacher there said that there are more[i] fly by night[s/i] now and a lot less people willing to expend the time and energy to really get behind Yoga/meditation.
The spiritual supermarket gone wrong?
Crime is also a big factor now in Rishikesh, from rape to fraud, popularity sure changes things.

Having said all that I would still go back there again and again. I'm just of the opinion that Rishikesh should be a bit more respected for what it is, rather than what you can earn from it.

[AlanD]

KK and cyberhippie - thanks for the up to date information on Rishikesh. It's 4 years since we were last there and it seems to have changed a bit since then. One of the things we liked about Rishikesh (East side of the Ganges) was the relaxed atmoshere and the lack of pressure from shopkeepers and others - the only place it was really noticeable then was at the end of the Lakshman Jula bridge but even then it seemed to be aimed at Indian pilgrims rather than foreign tourists. In the Swarg Ashram area there was never any hassle or pressure and we always enjoyed walking around the lanes and through the ashrams, so I hope that area has kept its relaxed ambience.

Although we like the spiritual atmosphere of the place we are not believers in any religion. For us it's a place to relax from the travelling and the big towns and cities, with all the basic amenities and some really nice natural countryside around. We spend a good part of every day there walking in the jungles behind or walking by the river - hopefully the jungle hasn't been chopped down in the last four years? Most of the foreigners we met there four years ago were on courses of various kinds and had come to India specifically for that reason and as KK says it was probably the only place in India that they were going to visit.

We will see in a few months just how much the place has changed and I'll certainly put my thoughts down on this thread.

[kullukid]

cyberhippie, on Jul 8 2008, 06:02 PM, said:

The vibe is still there KK I was more thinking of how the place seems to be catering more and more to tourists/seekers, Lakshman Jula looks a lot like Pushkar these days. Lots of shops selling touristy tat and restaurants for the same people.
Pushy shop owners and a general businessy attitude that wasn't apparent just 5 years ago. Pilgrims were quite far down the pecking order as businesses swallowed the $$$$$$.
I remember when it was hard to get a decent meal in Rishikesh, not now...............


Having said all that I would still go back there again and again. I'm just of the opinion that Rishikesh should be a bit more respected for what it is, rather than what you can earn from it.

Well, that's the same all over India CH, especially at Spiritual places. I agree about the increase in tourist facilities,but didn't find anyone pushy,but saying that apart from a couple of bookshops i didn't really do many shops, which are just full of the usual cheap plastic trinketry. Maybe my head was too in the "Vibe clouds" to notice??  
The "Vibe" will always be there CH, it's about the symbolic geographical position of Rishi & the amount of Sages that have practised Spiritual austerities & penances there plus the constant flow of Spiritual types leaving their "Good Vibrations" there over the centuries. I don't think any amount of shops & trendy cafes can alter this.

Here's some info on the Symbolic Geography of Rishi & the surrounding Himalayas of Kedarkhand;

Rishi kesh = Sages Hair,the matted locks of Shiva.

  http://www.jyotirlin...panchakedar.htm

http://www.dollsofindia.com/ganga.htm

[Midnite Toker]

A nice saunter through the photos, CH. Quite a lot of lovely mountain profiles. That wee place in Pappar Sali does look different in the hotter weather!

About the ashram in Rishikesh - I wish I'd had kullukid's info about the gateman when I was there. Ended up legging it over the wall and getting scratched by briars.

[kullukid]

Only a short visit, but had a great time in Rishi. Stayed at High Bank again, attended Ganga Aarti at Parmarth Ashram & Triveni Ghat the following night, also visited small Temple Called Kungapuri on the road to Chamba, pic's to follow on my return.  KK