After yesterday’s spectacular view of the Himalayas, today was always going to be an anticlimax. The lack of sleep probably contributed to this malaise.
I had a lazy morning. My homestay host, Alowkik, had suggested walking to the Peace Pagoda. He knew I didn’t want to see the pagoda but knew I wanted to do some walking.
The less busy route was a steep walk from the Clock Tower along Gandhi Road. It took about 45 minutes.
On the top, I spoke to a Belgian woman with an English woman. We spoke about the Belgian and English education system. The Belgian woman said that the Belgian system is not very meritorious compared to other countries.
As I was walking back, I saw a bench. I sat and had some fruit and nuts. There were several dogs surrounding me. They didn’t bother me. Most were asleep.
At one point, one of the dogs barked as he looked over the edge of the hillside. Immediately, all the sleeping dogs and the two awake came to him. The bark was a rallying cry. I wondered how the dogs could tell the difference between a random bark and one that meant “come here: someone is invading our territory”. I’d seen the same rallying cry in other parts of India too.
I continued walking back to the centre of town. Again, for the last time, I went to the Himalayan Coffee. Richard was there with a new friend from Australia. We had an enjoyable conversation, talking about the history of India.
On the way back, I passed through the busy main street and popped into Glenary’s. It was even busier in the evening.
The last photo below is the path to my homestay. It’s very easy to miss. It’s the left set of stairs going down. Even if you see it, you enter a maze of paths. Eventually, you find the beginning of the steps that take you up three floors to the homestay. That is why Alowkik came and got me on the first day!
