India #2 :: September-November 2007

Varanasi/Dharamsala/Rishikesh/Haridwar

On my way south to India by bus from Kathmandu, I spent 2 days at Buddha's birthplace, Lumbini, Nepal. about a dozen buddhist monasteries & temples from various cultures celebrating Buddhahood! This tree & pool is about 50 metres from the exact birthplace of Mr. Buddha!

India trip #2 ::

1) Varanasi – the oldest living city in the world where the big holy river Ganges flows & flows while dead bodies burn & lives yurn as this timeless sequence turns & turns. building & temples decay as young children play where the past has not yet met the future. many still living the old ways. took a few boat rides at dawn to witness the burnings & puja rituals

where the big holy river Ganges flows & flows while dead bodies burn & lives yurn as this timeless

tibetan buddhists protest march in dharmsala about china's new absurd law
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of prayer, music, candles & much devotion (they do this everyday in places along the Ganga like here, Rishikesh, Haridwar & actually most people in India do a little puja offering daily). I had no intention of buying silk but after they showed me the beautiful scarfs & fabric I had no choice. Maybe they hypnotized me? Good salespeople! “Just come look, you don’t have to buy!”. They got me!

Only 2 days here but worth the visit to see a city where people believe that if they die here, they will be liberated from rebirth, moksha, mukti, liberation at last. Guess that’s why it’s so crowded!

anandamayi ashram in haridwar with 10 swamis leading meditation & talks
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2) Dharamsala #2 – back full circle to where I started a year ago. 2 more weeks here (2 months total now). Volunteer at Rogpa Tibetan daycare an amazing & fun experience! Found a Tibetan 2 year old boy & his mom that I will sponsor (actually Tibetans don’t want handouts & value their independence so I will sponsor the mothers paychecks for new craft center job being created instead of just giving $). Good times visiting friend Sivadas & his yoga sangha gals, dinner at Korean restaurant 2x with fun groups, more yoga with Sivadas, a nice room I rented from him with balcony for hammock (oh yeah!), meeting Japanese friend Risa & hiking to Triund & overnight there again…beautiful mountainside!

one of my favorite india pics
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Tibetan protest rally march 2 km to Dharamsala with about 800-1000 people to protest Chinese dictating rules for their Tibetan Buddhism religion. And more good Tibetan food!

Momo’s & Thukpa soup, oh my!

3) Rishikesh #2 – came back with sole , soul purpose of studying serious yoga 2 month intensive at Trika school. Intense it was! 200 hours of yoga in 2 months, most don’t do in a year. More than physical yoga, this school taught us the full path of yoga with kriyas (cleansing techniques), dhautis, bhandas, mudras, meditation initiation using mantra (silent mantra internally chanting), macrobiotic diet, tantric sex, energy yin/yang polarity, health, healing, etc…

93 year old french man who has been at anandamayi's ashram for over 35 years!
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Never a dull moment! This school has 50+ month program in Thailand on tropical island that I will get teachers training in 3 month program & perhaps visit periodically/annually for more. Finally found my mystery school! You cannot find this information systematically given with group practice, lectures & papers daily to keep you on the path to self-discovery. www.AgamaYoga.com

4) Haridwar – Anandamayi Ashram , 4 days/nights at yogaashram nearby. came at right time, 7 day discourse retreat with 10 swami masters leading meditation & teachings, kirtan & bhajans & pujas daily. Good timing! Feel the energy is very high here! Guess meditating all day

1000 year old book in Tibetan Library archives Dharamsala

Kathmandoo-doo :: volunteering, trekking & life in Nepal

Yeti Airlines (yeti is an asian sasquatch that many people have seen in the Himalayas)

I was in Nepal for 6 weeks, 4 of those volunteering, another 2 weeks trekking in the Tibetan regions of north Nepal's Himalayan area called Annapurna Conservation Area.

I began like this:

While planning an escape from my expensive 4 months in Europe I decided to come to Nepal and volunteer before going back to India for yoga school. I found INFO Nepal (www.infonepal.org) by looking on the internet and chose them because I liked the colors of their webpage (really!), well…also they had a quick same-day reply back to me and good communication!

wild Kathmandu streets of Thamel, notice Yeti Health & Massage!
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I arrived in Kathmandu July 13th, 2007 and was happily greeted at the airport by INFO Nepal staff and over the next 5 days taken sightseeing, out for dinner, and received five days of very helpful Nepali language lessons as well. While in Kathmandu I was also greeted by Nepal's ferocious rainy daily gauranteed monsoon weather. It was something i unfortunately overlooked before coming here, but oh well at least i've avoided the hordes of tourists that show up in September-December! Some of the sights our group visited are the legendary so-called Monkey Temple (due to all the monkeys hanging out), real name Swayambhunath which is a holy Buddhist stupa where big Buddha himself is said to have spent time at (this is his neighborhood ya know...from birthplace in Lumbini, Nepal to Bodhgaya, India to Kathmandu he roamed). Back then the enlightened masters could only walk to reach new people & areas to spread their message. Nowadays, we have living saints such as Dalai Lama & Amma traveling the corners of the world sharing their wisdom & transformational energy, but perhaps as they say, most real gurus choose to stay out of the public and live unknown secluded lifes as hermits with a few students. This Swayambhunath temple on top of a big hill is also a holy Hindu site and is interesting for the convergence of both religions. Legend says that this whole Kathmandu Valley was a big flooded water basin , with this holy mountain just having one lotus on top and covered by water until some god (i forget which one?) made the area dry out & declared this the holiest spot. Another holy holy site we went to is Pratishapath, which is like a mini-Varanasi version of burning bodies in ghats on another dirty river. Unfornately foreigners could not go inside the temples at both of these places so we were limited to walking around and seeing everything from limited views. Another sightseeing must see our volunteer group visited was Durbar Square, the old Kathmandu center of temples & royal buildings built in various centuries, many big paghoda style-red, brown, & black with intricate wood carvings. Finally we went to Boudhanath stupa, a mecca for Buddhist, especially Tibetan Buddhists and Tibetan refugees. Huge stupa (white circular temple which symbolizes the 5 elements and is said to be very helpful for prayer as it contains inside the relics of their highest lamas & 1000's of prayers, a kind of time capsule for praying). The stupa is surrounded by the new religion of materialism-lots of Tibetan shops circling the area selling Tibetan crafts, bells, clothes, and the likes. I bought an umbrella, cause it was dumping down heaps of rain that could make you go insane!

My host family, Tikaram & some of his 5 children.
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Kathmandoo-doo, as I have renamed it, is one very interesting ancient city. It is a cross-cultural crossroads of many ethnicities such as Tibetans, Tamang, Gorkhas (famous for their joining British army and being fierce warriors), Newari & dozens of others all mingling in this true melting pot where Tibet, China & India converge & form Nepal. Walking around the streets you cannot help but get a feeling that this place is an absolute madhouse! Swarms of local taxi hounds approach you offering their cars, bicycle rickshaws & others offering you "hash, mr....you smoke, want buy tiger balm?" At first it's not so bad, but after India (which is worse for this constant pestering & desperation) and after many weeks ...it gets very old & becomes difficult not to react in rudeness to their intrusions of space. But one must realize, it is coming from a desperate economy & not their faults they have been raised into this rudeness. Another thing i discovered is that congested traffic makes congested lungs! Respiratory tract infection (which 25% of travelers get) is common due to the clouds of black smoke coming from nearly every car, bus, truck & motorcycle. You need a mask here, maybe even a gas mask! The noise pollution is very bad too-honk, honk, honking becomes the normal sound of daily grinds as you wind around the many roads of Nepal & India. Its because the population is so high here, density of metropolis life causes the urge to honk somebody off the road. We westerners think its rude & uncalled for, but it is actually necessary to keep people out of the way when taxiing through narrow streets-don't wanna run over any feets! While walking around here you can see signs such as "Yeti Airlines", and "Yeti Health &

Sirjana Secondary School, where i volunteered for 2 weeks, very disciplined here, but not in class!
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Massage" (see photos) proving that the legend of the Yeti lives on (the

yeti is a type of sasquatch ape man spotted many times in the mountains

of these lands). You see, this is a very mysterious place full of

ancient secrets, myths, legends & lore. Some make-believe, some

i think pink is in! the female teachers at Sirjana school.
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true & others left unknown to the mystery of this universe. It is common to come across little shops with tables of fresh animal kills for sale, such as big pig & goat heads, huge blobs of bloody unidentified meats, and other flesh for sale. very strange to see on the road with all the dust & garbage piles nearby! would anybody really want to eat this? you are what ya eat! anyhow, those garbage piles were everywhere in Kathmandoo-doo! And piles of doo-doo too, hence the new city name. I read in the papers that there is another protest, this time against picking up the garbage heaps, i believe being led by the agitating Maoist party (communist dedicated to turning Nepal into the ideals of Mao, Lenin & some new ideas). This has caused some eye diseases & other sicknesses to spread around the city!

my trekking guide, Naresh, in the Tibetan Plateau desert region of north Nepal. we wanted to take helicopter back, but walked 13 days instead!
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I saw a few people that had the puffed up red eyes and one told me his doctor said this was caused by the garbage problem. They have no trash bins on the streets here, just the ole pile method...which isn't working! I hope things change here soon as these people deserve a government that funds good city infrastructure, which would include not only garbage bins & trucks, but fixing all these potholed roads, & banning the mixture of kerosene into gas that is causing the black smoke from vehicles! So, you take 2 million + people and add all these factors and you get the dark side of Kathmandoo-doo. On the bright side, it is an exciting place with many good restaurants serving international food for pennies, live local bands playing tunes 7 days a week, & a people that are genuinely good-natured and glad to have you here.

Om Mani Padme Hum Tibetan buddhist mantra carved on rock next to some guy.
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After 5 days of this sightseeing, eating, and many language lessons we went to a village and each stayed in a seperate house with host-family. Going to Dhulikel for 2 days immersed me into village life and was a great experience in itself. My placement in Naudanda was an amazing experience as well. I taught English to 3-4 classes each day (breaks in between) at Sirjana Secondary School, located about 1 hour northwest from Pokhara near the trailheads famous for trekking.

I stayed for 2 weeks with the principal of the school, Tikaram, and his big

the reward view after 3 days in hot deserts, 5 days in rainy jungle mountains, woo-laa...the 20,000 ft + ranges emerge from the clouds!
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family of 4 daugters (ages 7, 9, 13, 15) and one son Pratik (1.5 yrs old….finally had a son on the last try!!!). And what a sweet boy with a radiant smile and great little laugh he has. I was instantly his big-brother ("dai" in Nepali) and made part of the family! Tikaram is probably middle-class for Nepal as he owns his own 3 storey home with a store on the bottom, rooms for his family (and my own room) on 2nd floor, and the top floor is rented out to a family. They have a tv with satellite so many English channels such as HBO, Cinemax, CNN, etc for relaxing after a day at the school. I was here during the heavy rainy monsoon season of July and August so literally there was not much else to do then (unless you like hiking in mud with leeches on the steep slippery hills nearby). Bring lots of books!

Kathmandoo-doo shop altar of masks, crystals...
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Everyday I would usually get up around 7am and read, yoga, meditate until 8am or so, then the tv room was available. At 9am I would eat breakfast with Tikaram, and as a traditional Nepali family that means dhal bhat only, everyday, morning and evening. (I really love my western breakfast so I brought bags of mueslix and ate that with milk or curd, and dhal bhat for lunch and dinner…so still eating it twice a day!).

After breakfast we drove his motorcycle (almost everyday raining) 30 minutes up some mountain roads and one backroad to the remotely located little school. I found the teachers to be all very likeable, friendly, and socialable people! The kids were extremely excited to have me there and every class I entered was with a standing greeting they are taught to say to respect the teachers. They were pretty well behaved, most of the time! The class sizes ranged from 8 to 58 kids per class (the biggest being when a few teachers were sick and I took over a combined class…bring a megaphone for that loud chaos!). I generally used the books that they use for my teaching method, but always made time for some new games or other methods that would be kind of spontaneous.

wonderful Tibetan monks in Kathmandu that i taught english to before leaving to India.
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They love games…that's for sure! I brought stickers to give out to the winning teams, which they really loved. I also helped begin to organize methods for learning typing using their low-fi computers and typing educational software. I encouraged them that this was a very useful important tool for living in these current times. I showed off my fast skills and the fact that you don’t have to look at your hands and "hunt and peck" each letter, and thereby encouraged them that they too can type this fast in 6 to 9 months of serious practice. Before this computer class (which an older German man is doing 3 days a week) it was just chaos and 'messing around' each day. I felt this was as important as learning good English, to type is to communicate faster, save time, and perhaps secure a job with a little more income. Also not just learning English typing , but Nepali. Of course, only 3 of their 9 computers had these typing software, but soon they will have on all. My gift to the school (which by the way you will be expected and a little pressured by Tikaram and staff to give) was a few educational cd-roms. My last day their I found out that the government just approved to have the school rebuilt beginning December 2007, so that is very very good news as many rooms were leaking rain, very dirty and this will be a major improvement!

And remember what Ghandi said…"Be the change in the world you want to see" (was that Ghandi? Did I get that quote right? Anyway…)

13 days trekking in the Annapurna Conservation Area, half of the legendary trek called the 'Annapurna Circuit". I chose to fly from Pokhara in a small plane for 25 minutes to Jomsom village in the desert Tibetan plateau regions of north north Nepal (about 25 km from Tibet border). This region, and many other north areas of India & Nepal are full of Tibetan culture, some refugees, but many have inhabited these lands for centuries if not day one. With my hired guide, 20 year old Naresh, we walked through the ancient village & into dry canyons along the Kali Gadhaki river a few hours to Kagbeni, where we got room & called it a day. Next morning we hiked 4 hard hours or so up the desert hills (no trees here!) to the holy hindu & buddhist temple & village of Muktinath. Here little purple flames come out of the earth & water & are seen as an act of Shiva, & worshipped as such. We walked here, then past the "Bob Marley Lodge" back to our guesthouse for a 2nd night stay. We continued on for 3 days of this desert heat & sun, with a view teasing views of the big snowy peaks beyond, followed by 6 days of grey & rainy jungle mountain trekking with no views of the major HImalayan ranges that hid beneath the clouds! Until...Ghorepani & Gundruk village our 11th, 12th & 13th day...we were finally blessed with the vision of these 20,000+ feet monster mountains! Meeting other trekkers along the way and sharing traveling stories, playing cards, & reading lots of books made this trip a relaxing and interesting adventure.

On the 6 hour drive back on the "tourist" bus from Pokhara to Kathmandu we winded and grinded through many mountains, over many rivers (both using bridges and for the smaller ones just going for it!), and finally got back to stinky Kathmandoo-doo. Here I saw a lady on the outskirts of town along the highway (many of these shacks, homes, little shops just live the noisest life along these roads...not ideal). She was sitting down and had her baby getting milk from her breast in one hand, and puffing on a cigarette with the other. I couldnt believe what I was seeing. That was a first! wish i got a picture..

Outside the Indian Embassy, as I anticipated my return to Mother India (a place I both love & despise), I overheard a young western traveler explaining "the army makes you crazy. The catch-22 is you can get out of it by becoming or pretending to be crazy." Many Israeli travelers know this as they are all required to do service in their army & many travel to escape or recupperate. I talked with one beautiful brunette young Israeli lady for awhile while waiting in line. She lives in a kibbutz. I have just finished reading "Exodus" by Leon Uris and am really fascinated with the history of Jewish people & the forming of Israel as they reclaimed their original lands. Very very interesting & I hope to visit their someday. She told me that Israeli's now only get 2 months after their first 6 months for Indian visas as so many have set up homes in India & overstay their time. Most citizens can go 6 months, leave to Nepal, and return 6 months. US citizens can stay 10 years if they apply for special visa. I only want to return for 3 months maximum. The plan...10 hours south first to Lumbini, Nepal to see Buddha's birthplace, then 10 more hours south to Varanasi. The oldest living city and holiest of holy places in Hindu culture. The center of the universe where Shiva was born according to ancient Hindu texts. 1,700 years or more before Jesus walked the earth people mingled here. It has been destroyed by the Mughal invasion ,but the spirit is unconquerable. They say if you die here, you will not be reborn and instead go to HIndu heaven. THat is why they cremate the dead on their holiest of holy rivers, the Ganges, which is also the dirtiest of dirtiest!

After a day or two only in big, dirty, holy Varanasi i aim to get back to Dharamsala/McLeod Ganj, where i began this long journey last October. I want to spend 2 weeks there seeing Dalai Lama again, visiting Indian & Tibetan friends, practicing more massage (and receiving by being model!), and find a tibetan child to sponsor ($30 month means a life to them! i finally decided to go for it, as i know the Tibetans Children Village is honest & uses 100% $ wisely). Around Sept 20th i will return to Rishikesh for 2 months of intensive yoga at the awesome Trika yoga school (where i studied last November). My grand plan for returning to North America is to fly to Miami and meet my dad and drive across country for our 10th time together (the 1st time when i was 6 months old and these trips are what got me addicted to traveling!). For his 60th birthday present we may go to the Carribean or Hawaii for a few weeks before I return to the lovely but rainy pacific northwest & home in beautiful British Columbia. But...that's then, and this is NOW! One day at a time....

I truly hope that all of YOU, my friends & family, are enjoying your lives, finding meaning, living fully, experiencing good relationships, challenging yourselves to grow & doing what makes you blossom. I look forward to seeing you again upon return to the New World! I am truly excited, after 13 months & 3 more of being a nomad, to settle down again and have a room to call my own, a music studio instead of just my laptop, my old social work jobs and perhaps new one, and music events-community-etc..

But for now...off on another adventure!

Budapest :: thermal baths, yurt living, music fests and hitchhiking!

3 fellow Couchsurfers who greeted me upon arriving in Budapest at the train station & guided me back to our "Couch"...a 2 bedroom home a Hungarian man so kindly let us stay in FOR FREE! yay for www.Couchsurfing.com !!!

I finally left Krakow and Poland for good this trip. All in all about 2 of my 4 months were spent in Poland, mostly because of having a good friend and girlfriend there...it became home-base. Also, the Outrageous Bus Tour became an Outrageous Pain In The Ass for me, and all involved. The bus went through a series

of mechanics garages and was delayed 2 months past the initial May 1st launch. The big problem was that we never knew when it was going to be fixed-it was always next week...and then the next! After waiting patiently, and not so patiently for many weeks, I finally gave up and left on my own to Budapest. I wanted to experience

this is what Couchsurfing is all about! someone has spare room...and woo laa...sleep at last!
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more of East Europe and I heard nothing but good things about this old city and country. Besides, I had hope still that the bus would get fixed and meet me there at its first destination of the tour (but i wasnt holding my breath anymore).

I had a very smooth transition into Budapest as I was greeted by 3 couchsurfers at the train station and led to my hosts home. I stayed with Gyorgy and fellow couchsurfers for 2 nights, but then moved to Dora's apartment, another friendly couchsurfer because there I had the place to myself. The first night at Dora's we walked to the Buda castle grounds to her favorite viewpoint of the city. There we had a drink and talked til about midnight. I loved her irish-english-hungarian accent that she got from spending time in Ireland! She had to work at 7am the next morning and I felt bad for keeping her up, but she insisted we hang out. Turns out almost everybody I met in Budapest is working 2 or 3 jobs or going to university as well as a job. The gals that helped me out at Vista Travel were jealous of my travels. They were too busy working there to take such time off to afford to go all over the globe. Not to mention that the average minimum wage is about 2 euros an hour (compared to 8.50 euros an hour in UK). I felt rich and lucky that I can take this time off work to reflect, relax, and enjoy life in a non-rushed manner. At the same time...I am realizing that I actually miss working! I miss having a sense of purpose and fulfillment that a good job brings. I am in fact jealous of some of these

GyÓrgy, my first Budapest Couchsurfing host for 2 nights.
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people that are so career oriented. Perhaps later these people will have big jobs and be able to travel in the future when i'm still wondering what work to do to save up for the next trip!

After Dora's I decided to try my 3rd and final couchsurfer for Budapest, David Klein. Actually, he lives 30 minutes outside of Budapest in a big village named Erd. I had to take up Davids offer to host me as he lives in a big Mongolian yurt (the type i want to buy). He not only has a big yurt on the property, but a small house with kitchen, bathroom, office, and 3 turtles, and a very small hobbit-house to my very own! And...I had a place to sling my hammock! This was heaven indeed, for as stated earlier...I was tired of being a tourist over & over in big cities with old buildings. It was time for a retreat! But first...a yurt party! The night I got there David threw a party for about 30 guests. A gal ended up getting too drunk and sleeping on my bed, so I being the nice fellow I am, did not kick her out but slept in my hammock until she left. I slept the 2nd part of my morning back in my room and was woken up by a guy that I had special ordered some 'palinka' from. You see...palinka is one of the Hungarian specialties...stronger than vodka, very potent! His grandfather in the neighborhood makes it (turns out everybodys grandpa makes it!), so I felt it was a good idea to buy some. I stayed about a week out here enjoying reading books, catching up on internet stuff, and having many long philosophical talks with David. David is quite the character. He is a semi-celebrity here in Hungary as he has climbed Mt. Everest three times and is attempting summit again...without supplementary oxygen (only 100 of the 3000 who have reached summit has done it this way, he would be the first Hungarian). David also has a keen interest in India and has travelled extensively there. I was pleased to meet another kindred spirit on my travels.

McDonalds in the Old World. Are you really "Lovin It" ???
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I only went out to see one music show, but it was a good one! Anthony B played

his fresh styles of reggae and dancehall at this club on a boat, A3, which i went to with Dora. "mo' fiya! yagga yagga yo!"

By far, the highlight of my stay in Budapest was soaking in 3 thermal bath spas! On my 2nd day I went alone to the huge outdoor pools at the big park (forget the names now). These were nice, but the 2nd ones I visited, Rudas baths, were incredible!

These were inside a 500 year old Turkish building, and previous to the Turks were

Dora, my 2nd Budapest Couchsurfing host.
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modified by the Romans. Being inside these smaller pools was so timeless. looking up at the sun rays shining through portholes in the ceiling, going from bath to hot bath. I cant explain it anymore with words...look at this link i found of other peoples

pics of this amazing place:

http://flickr.com/search/?q=rudas%20bath&w=all

The third bath i went to was Gellert spa. This place was more posh and modern, but still oh so relaxing!

Mongolian yurt on property i stayed over one week outside Budapest...i want one..or two!
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I noticed something different about Hungary. For one, the people are much different than those in Poland. There is more of a free spirit that i sensed here, less conservative, more alive! Maybe it's the influence of the nomadic spirit of this people's past, combined with a high population of Roma (gypsy) people, and a history of Turkish influences as well? It very interesting that the Magyar people came in massive migrations from Central Asia and took over the region of Hungary around the time of 895 A.D. The Magyar language (the official language of Hungary) is not related to the Slavic languages in East Europe I had been hearing (Polish, Slovakian, etc..). In fact it is unrelated to most European languages, as Wiki says "As one of the small number of modern European languages that do not belong to the Indo-European language family, Hungarian has always been of great interest to linguists." The people not only came from Asia, but the Turks lived here for many centuries and had a great influence on the language and culture.

The hobbit house on the left is where is stayed, and kitchen-office-bathroom on right. Simple but effective housing!
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I decided to get out of the city and go to the No Mans Land gathering, an outdoor 4 day music gathering. I borrowed a tent and pads from David and took a bus to the site. There Summer came down from Krakow to join me on some more travels. This festival was mostly a trance gathering, but also had a stage with live bands and chillout djs, and another stage with breaks and more live bands. The highlight for me was seeing Gaudi, one of my favorite producers. He had a microphone hooked up to a megaphone and did some unique vocal stuff while playing his original songs on cd. I also enjoyed seeing Vibrasphere and a few other original live p.a. performances. It was a fun festival, but not as jolly as I expected, so Summer and I decided to go to the allmighty Fusion Festival near Berlin. This was about 10 hours from Budapest and Summer was on an extremely low budget, so...we hitchhiked instead of paying $115 euros for a train or $85euros for a bus. At first I resisted the idea of hitchhiking from Budapest to Berlin. I wanted things to be easy. I wanted to make it there by Thursday to leave my big bag at Ians in Berlin and go to the site with him. I wanted to be there Thursday afternoon so I didnt miss any good music.

Inside the yurt, my host David, has decorated it quite nicely...fireplace, cabinet, altar, bed, beanbags...
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But I surrendered to the unknown mystery and phenomenon we call hitchhiking!

Complete surrender and trust. Actually, hitchhiking teaches us alot of useful ways in life. To trust, let go of planning and live spontaneously, to be in the moment, to be self-sustainable, to live with a lighter eco-footprint, to enjoy nature and free things in life...etc. With this adventure we ended up getting 5 rides in cars, 1 in a diesel truck, and 1 small train ride to Munich. It took two and a half days full of ups and downs.

David, owner of yurt, famous Hungarian mt. Everest climber, and my host for week.
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The ups were getting quick rides the first day. One down was getting out early from a ride we had to central Germany because i thought my friend in Vienna had a ride to the festival for us...which he didnt and we were now

off course and slowed down an entire day. (damn...next time i travel in Europe

I need a SIM card that is good for all countries to communicate better with people).

Another up was camping just outside of gas station properties in the forest. yes...

Friday night yurt party!
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this was fun! Who says traveling in Europe has to be expensive? With couchsurfing

and hitchhiking you can travel and stay in Europe for what it costs to cook

your own food, have a few drinks, and other normal costs. I figure I have

been only spending about $10 to $20 a day here. It is cheaper for me to stay

Rudas furdo, my favorite thermal bath in Budapest!
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here than back home in Canada, where I have to pay rent and live for about $35 day

including bills,rent, food, etc...

So, we made it to Fusion Festival, and although I had to haul all of my bags there, and I missed the Heavyweight Dub Champions feat. Dr. Israel (which i really wanted to see!)...all was well. We found Ian easy enough in the crowd of 30,000 people and together Summer, Ian, and I had a great time checking out the diverse music at about 10 different stages! This whole festival takes place in an old Russian communist airport, with 5 of the stages inside the old hangars! Quite a unique venue! The hangars are decorated with various themes, one was completely devoted to cabaret, circus themes, and performance art. Others hosted live bands, one which I saw new dub artist Noiseshaper play with full band, and Masala SoundSystem (from Poland) played an incredible live set! Other stages set outdoors reminded me of Shambhala, with the "Dubstation" stage on imported sand (sorry, no river here) devoted to chill-out djs and bands all 4 days, and another stage which is like the "Ewok Village" hidden in the forest with tree forts and hammocks. I saw ModeSelektor , mc Tenor Fly with a ragga jungle dj, and some wicked wicked dubstep in this polydome stage! People say that Fusion Fest is the Burning Man of Europe, but really it is unique itself. Burning Man has more of a wild free spirit that only the Wild West in America can bring. Fusion Fest does not have the art installations, wacky costumes, and extreme vibe that Burning Man is famous for. But nevertheless...I had a fantastic time and highly recommend this festival to any lover of music and alternative culture!

another pic of Rudas...islamic architecture thanks to the Turks who built this in mid-1500s! mystical place!
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Oh and...we decided to hitchhike back to Berlin and got an easy ride right to Ian's doorstep!

After spending a few more days in Berlin, Summer and I parted ways again.

She took a job offer to sail the Mediterranean and help out on a big catamaran boat

for 4 months. I took off to Vienna to spend my last week in Europe in Austria.

I didnt do to much there so I will just briefly sum it up on this blog.

I arrived Saturday morning and was met by my friend Manu (whom i met in India).

He spontaneously offered me a dj gig with him that night in Salzburg for a multi-cultural event, "sommerszene07 - a festival featuring china and india". So, after

a few hours in Vienna, we were off on a 3 hour drive west to Salzburg and went

directly to the soundcheck and a late, late night of music and dance.

We ended up staying an extra day and night there so I got a chance to look around

this town with many big old white buildings, big white castle, and posh people.

Back in Vienna we went straight to the Dub Club weekly night at Flex club, a night

made famous from the Dub Club compilation cds of new dub-dancehall artists from

Vienna. It was so nice hearing these songs and more on the big soundsystem!

Maga Bo from Brazil was the headliner and he played a very original set of

global ragga-hiphop styles. The rest of my time in Vienna has just been about

getting ready for Nepal, spending lots of time on the internet, and walking around

the center of the city. Manu and I went to the spa yesterday to soak in the sauna (for a whopping 15euros we went into two steam rooms for an hour. i do this

for $2.40 back home, 15euros is about $23!). Tonight I will be recording a dj

set of originals, remixes and more for Manu's eCube radio show that will be aired

next week. And tomorrow...off to Nepal for my first visit there!

One week in Prague...Czech it out!

We arrived in Prague around Saturday 23:30 and were greeted by a nice fellow CouchSurfer, Argus. There happened to be a CouchSurfing Prague monthly party, so we went directly over to the pub where it was happening...with our bags on and all. We mingled with the other 20 or so couchsurfers, and after much discussion...and a few good Czech beers shoved in our hands, we decided to stay with Vitek instead of Argus, as he could host us for more days. We originally thought of staying in Prague for about 3 to 4 days, but ended up staying 6. The days we had chosen to see the big Prague castle happened to be the same days that George W. Bush was in town with his cronies, and the whole area was closed to the public. Damn! Now that's bad timing! You leave America to study other cultures and get away from your right wing conservative government...then they follow you to the other side of the world with their fear based war agendas. You see...Bush and Co. are here to propose

closer pic of castle
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an anti-missile defense system to be installed in Czech Republic and Poland. This would mean US military presence in the old Soviet east Europe republics. I read that 80% of the population here is against it, but that the government would probably allow it anyway to stay on friendly terms with US and get some of those uncle sam benefits. Russia president Vladimir Putin is not too happy about this.

He stated that he would have to start thinking about targeting European countries again if this were to happen.

wall of Absynth at a local liquor store
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Cold War II? WW III? Let us hope not.

As for Prague...I enjoyed looking around this old city. The old clocktower that puts on quite a puppet show every hour was cool. The old Charles bridge was nice... full of street performers, vendors, and happy tourists strolling along the car-free lanes. The mini-Eifell tower beheld a spectacularific view of the entire city!

But...i started to realize that I am getting bored with seeing the old buildings and old churches and old bridges of Europe...and that more thant sightseeing...getting to know people is more important to me. So...we organized another couchsurfing get-together! We hung out with some of our new couchsurfing friends and went out

the ole clocktower!
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for another big night drinking good ole Czech beer, the original Budweiser (much much better) and my new favorite, Kazel (so smooth!).

For our last day we decided to go to the countryside and canoe down a river for a 4 hour tour. We payed for Vitek to come along to show our gratitude for letting us stay at his place all week. It was nice getting out of the city and slowly cruising down

the river. Well...except for the few dozen times we kept spinning around accidentally

and thought we would tip over! All fun and games...

navigation is key...in a new city!

Amsterdam-It ! :: houseboat living, canal trip, etc..

9 days in Amsterdam. Amazing place! The most inspiring for me so far in Europe,

and my new absolute favorite city next to the Bay Area (which has more colorful people, more sun & beaches). For the record...my favorite cities in the world are:

1) San Francisco & whole Bay Area

2) Amsterdam

first impressions...amazed at the slanting old houses Amsterdam is famous for. character houses & wonderful archetecture!
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3) Honolulu

4) Vancouver, BC

5) Portland

...but from what people are telling me, Barcelona will soon take #1!

Amsterdam is also famous for its "Smart Shops" & "Coffeeshops"!
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Amsterdam-it! Another love/hate thing.

I fell in love first with the canals & houseboats here in Amsterdam. My friend Ben,

who is a documentary filmmaker (www.lunartproductions.com) invited me to stay

on his houseboat for my 9 days there. thank you Ben! I met Ben when he filmed our Iboga Therapy House center in Vancouver for his "Ibogaine" movie. I now have a new dream...(those who know me, know i have many dreams...but...maybe just maybe this one will come true?)...to live on a big houseboat for some period of my life. His boat as you can see in the picture is huge! 25meters. spacious inside with hardwood, nice furniture, 2 bedrooms, huge living room, nice kitchen, & all the post-modern necessities such as internet, tv, etc..and...your on the water! how cool!

where one can actually buy magic mushrooms & dozens of other psychoactive plants at a store! this is freezer full of various types of magic mushrooms for sale. No Self Service!
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Although this boat is not moveable at the moment (not even for the canals here),

some of the boats do have sails for the oceangoing trips. Imagine, living here,

then deciding to move to Barcelona & dock there, then ? ahh but...i get seasick!

:(

"When the doors of perception are cleansed...all will appear as it truly is...infinite"! (Aldous Huxley) I have decided to film all the amazing doors i encounter in the Old World! Oh and XXX does not mean porn in Netherlands but something of their 3 codes (more later).
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well...not if it's stationary!

On day 7 in Amsterdam Summer & I were invited by Ralph of www.couchsurfing.com to cruise around the canals in his old little fishing boat with 3 others. We brought instruments as he requested & had lunch, drinks, treats & a music jam while cruising around. He told us alot of history & took us on a 2.5 hour tour around...for free!

Thank you Ralph! Dank yu well! (spelling wrong i'm sure)

I next fell in love with the architecture. the slanted buildings that Amsterdam is famous for. The huge Old World buildings everywhere. AMS (Amsterdam) did not get bombed in WWII, unlike Rotterdam which was heavily devastated!

A little itsy bitsy tiny smart car parked next to a load of bikes. My aren't the Europeans sensible when it comes to being eco-friendly with transportation! no SUV's here!
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I was just in awe of all these old cool buildings...full of character! In contrast to Berlin, where i was previous to Amst., which was totally anihilated at the end of WWII and now does not have these character buildings of the early renaissance days.

I loved that sooooo many people ride bicycles here! A true bike culture, where

bikes rule the street. You really have to watch out when walking, a cyclone of

bicyclists will zoom by right in front of you. You get the hang of it after a few days.

SUmmer & I at Nomads arabic restaurant where i dj'd & sampled their apple herb flavours in da hookah!
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Our last 2 days there we rented a bike ($13 a day) & went for long bike rides

to the big parks & sometimes just weaving back & forth checking out the beautiful

streets & getting lost on purpose! Picnic in the big Vondelpark was nice with benches & big pond full of ducks!

I loved the music scene & creative energy in Amsterdam. I hear that many artist squats have been here throughout the years. Squats being buildings not being used that people take over & turn into a community or living space. Some have become established venues nowadays. SUch as the legendary Melkweg that we spent Friday night at, dancing our bums off to a night of Balkan Beatz! 2 absolutely incredible high energy Romanian live bands played that had lots of horns & amazing music that you just had to dance to!

Went for canal cruise for 2.5 hours in Ralphs small boat! Thanks Ralph!
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After that...I didn't think anybody could follow those acts, but dj Shantel (the man responsible for popularizing the balkan beats styles of modern balkan fusion) got up & dj'd a set of mostly his own Bucovina Club music! woo hoo!

See video I uploaded to MySpace.com/Blackhurst

my goodness this man knows how to have fun on stage! He invited 4 ladies

up onto the very table he was djing on. Then.....lo & behold....he goes up on the table in the middle of his songs & dances with them. He kept repeating...."Ohhhh

me & one of the legendary Dutch windmills...on our canal boat ride!
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Amsterdam. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh Amsterdam." with a funny grin & eastern european

charm. The ladies kept dancing for the whole hour or so & finally security came up to tell them to get down. SHantel would have nothing of that & waved the security away. For the grand finale this showman brought out a full bottle of Shmirnoff

vodka & gave all the people near stage shots, afterwards they lifted him up to

crowdsurf! INCREDIBLE night of Balkan Beats funky music!

another fine houseboat! man...now that's living! these things are huge inside too...don't be fooled!
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The following night I dj'd at Nomads arabic restaurant, see www.Myspace.com/Blackhurst for videos as well. A very mellow dinner & talking crowd, & not the

dancing type of gig. Nice place with lots of interesting people, a massage therapist

women going around tables, people smoking hookah pipes (see pic of me & summer), and really good expensive food. I got paid about 100euros so i was happy. And...Jimmy Jazz who booked me invited me back anytime i'm in town!

woo hoo!

ralph guiding us under one of dozens of bridges in canal boat trip!
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You have to love how this city ended the drug war years ago. Instead of putting countless millions of good people in jail for very minor 'soft drug' charges like possession of marijuana (which as you all know

puts millions in jail in the US for an herb that is less toxic than tobacco & alcohol, and has been used responsibly for recreation & medicine in many countries for many many centures until the US made it illegal during prohibition years).

Although not legal, it is tolerated & accepted by the government of Netherlands

The Old World charm!
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that marijuana, magic mushrooms, peyote, & dozens of other plant drugs can

be bought at little stores called "smart stores" or "coffee-shops" (where you can

actually sit & smoke after buying). Although I'm not much of a marijuana smoker,

I found Amsterdam absolutely fascinating in my uhh...cultural studies! What an experiment this place is!

From church tower we ascended!
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Amsterdam-it! AmsterDAM! The hate side of this coin for me was the Red Light Districit. I hated seeing all the women in windows selling themselves. Although

it's safer this way, it was still shocking to see. Very sleazy. I hated hearing that many innocent travelers got their purses & bags stolen while looking away from their dinner tables or walking down a dark alley. This happens alot here! Professional pickpocketers, although i'd vouch that India has more, & better...and also Barcelona from what I hear. Always, always watch your stuff like a hawk in these places.

one of the coolest smart shops!
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Summer's friend Ashley got her big bag stolen! Luckily it was returned with most of the stuff still in it! I hated how this place has got soooo touristy that it's all a gimmick. Sex, drugs, & no rock n' roll. prostitition & hard drugs. That's the dark side of Amsterdam & it's very very in your face when your walking around those dark narrow streets with sketchy characters staring you down. Apparently the whole central area of Amsterdam is under video surveillance now, after many many problems...Big Brother is now watching...and probably for the better in this case!

Rembrandt's house!
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Overall...I loved Amsterdam more than I disliked a few seedy blocks! Very inspired

to have spent the time there & looking forward to going back again for a few

days on the Outrageous Bus tour (www.outrageousTours.com)!

_______

I have big feet...but not that big!!!
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oh and....as far as global climate change, i hope all of you have seen Inconvenient

Truth or educated yourself to that same level...we can no longer deny that the

oceans are rising faster than previously imagined by far and will be 10-20 feet

higher in the next few decades or less (due to both poles melting ice very rapidly).

cool street art & graffitti styles in one of many dark alleys made lighter by art!

Burrrlin :: Mayday block parties, debauchery, etc...

7 days in Berlin. Burrrlin. Cold weather front came in about the same time I did.

In these days of global climate change where April heat waves bring May freezings,

don't expect anything to be as before.

I came to Berlin to check out the music scene, the art collectives & venue spaces, the history, & to visit my friend Ian (same guy that stayed with me & Michael for 6 weeks in Krakow) & his wife Sonja. I got to Berlin just in time to see one of my favorite musicians Deadbeat play a solo set at Club 103. I got in on the guestlist just for asking Scott, aka Deadbeat, before the show. His set was good but sounded the same as when I saw him 2 years ago so I was not as impressed. Great to hear on a big soundsystem like the club had though!

REVOLUTION...make everyday a party?
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The next day was none other than May Day & Berlin has one of the biggest celebrations in the world every May 1st for this day of workers rights! Only, the original meaning of May 1st I believe was more about lowering the work hours to 8 a day, 40 a week, women receiving fair equal wages, & children not working too young. In Berlin, I saw signs that said "Make Capitalism History" & "Revolution..." that seemed to suggest bringing communism back. Not sure if the movement here is now scattered into multiple directions or what but...Berliners sure know how to have fun & celebrate! It was a blockparty in Kruezberg central area that must have spanned 20 blocks & 3 big parks! Maybe 15 stages of music featuring bands such as Nomad Soundsystem (my favorite of the day...Turkish-Indian global beats), beat-boxing & mc battles (in German of course) for the hip-hops stages, a live reggae band & all day reggae djs with mcs (Germaican style yo!), and traditional Turkish

Yaam stage = Reggae, Dub, Dancehall fun! That singer was really good too!
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music all day at the Turk stage. Berlin has many Turkish immigrants so there is no shortage of places to buy Kebabs & Falafels! They own half of the stores! They even have a little-Turk town or too where you feel like a minority walking around their stores & neighborhoods.

Oh and...Berlin has an African population, unlike white Poland & those Slavic countries, and most of Canada as well! Felt good to be back in a diverse community. And diverse is an understatement for Berlin!

Berlin is known for it's cheap rent, which attracts many artists, musicians, & other

When drunk young adults take over a playground anything can happen.

lovers of free time & working less. Unfortunately there is a 20-25% unemployment rate in the area. The music scene here, of which i have a particular interest,

is strong & vibrant, attracting many international performers. There are tons of cool warehouse or art loft venues for shows, of them I only visited a few. One place was incredible (i didnt get the name) which was half of a huge building where a few different artist collectives have taken over the floors & have a bar, small cinema room, another bar outside with beach sand they brought in. The whole place was

Anarchists with vehicle homes 'squatting' & living in empty lots...& Berlin tolerates it! Cooool!
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covered with various art & lots of graffiti. Oh yeah, Berlin has some of the best

graffitti in the world...hands down! Also, the 'squatting' movement has been huge

here throughout the decades. For those that don't know (grandpa? ever been to a squat?) it is where people take over a building that is not being used & turn it into

a free living space or artist collective space. The owners of the buildings have to

Anarchists make fences too!
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maintain something or have a building being lived in for so many months, otherwise

"squatters rights" rule. Some get kicked out eventually, others stay for years, & a few become legal venues for music shows, bars, art galleries, etc...

More about this in Amsterdam blog as it has been popular there too.

My friend Ian lives in former East Berlin so I got to see the communist 'bloc' style

Yaam Soundsystem mobile...mobiles!
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buildings that define these streets in the name of Lenin. One street was haunting me...very wide & the same style of white marble 'blocs' going for blocks! It was

uniform, conforming to the communist norm. Nothing original, for this movement was not about independence & originality, but making all equals, including the

homes! I don't know how people can stand living on a busy street where the same apartments go for almost a mile. No character. Bland. Eery even! Just because communism is dead here, doesn't mean all signs of it have disappeared. Another thing I saw was this park that the Russians built after WWII & during their occupation

The riot police grace us with their LARGE presence! Reflectors make them look sci-fi! Love the "Fan-Tastic" sign in back!
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here. It had massive statues of their Russian heroes...built right here on German

land. I hear these 'gifts' to countries Russia liberated were common! Very ugly

park in my opinion. Lots of cement, huge statues, & everything very contained &

not wild like nature. Like a park should be.

Outside Ian's home. In the far right is empty skyscraper that stopped construction 17 years ago when communism here in East Berlin collapsed. And empty warehouses that squatters sometimes takeover!
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Unlike most tourists, I did not go on any guided tours or even to the museums.

I am interested in the history, but really not so into the museums now that i'm here.

Too dry, expensive, & i'd much rather get the history from meeting locals or

reading a good book. (know of any good German books i should read?)

So, I found myself seeing Berlin by riding around almost everyday on bicycles with

Ian. As for historic buildings, there are not more than a few big ones left after

the immense bombing toward the end of WWII. This city was annihilated &

you can easily see that compared to places like Krakow that were not bombed.

Another thing that stood out for about Berlin was that it is LEGAL to drink alcohol

in public. I think it is & always has been that way here, and many many people

celebrate this freedom. On the trains, trams, buses & walking around you will see people carrying big beers (the most common) & other drinks. Of course Germany

is famous for it's good quality & large selection of beers, some brands dating back more than 400 years! Octoberfest is not the only time Germans celebrate drinking beer...everyday seemed that way! The stores are stocked with a wide assortment

& the prices are cheap (1euro for big bottle, in Amsterdam they were 3euro & not

many choices). I'm not a huge drinker, but I like good quality beer here & there.

In Germany, I found myself drinking a little bit more than usual. But nothing too debaucherous. I'll save that for Amsterdam!