The most amazing thing has been happening for the last two weeks! We arrived to this hotel, near McLeodganj, the Little Tibet of India, on the way to the high peaks of Chamba and Dalhouise. It was really late when we arrived and everybody was so tired we just took the first room that was presented to us on a road hotel, near town. We are not in town properly and not in the hills either, the hotel is located in between towns and the guests are all passers-by, drivers, and tourists on a journey break on their way to Delhi, Manali, Kullu, Ladakh.

It is a place for stopping, resting, filling up with good food, taking a hot shower and going on to your final destination. It's well located in the centre of all routes, it suits every traveller coming from north or south, linking both on a well deserved road break. Now, as any road hotel in any country , there is nothing special about or around it, there's just the building erected on the roads, born after curve after curve of emptiness, mountains and pine trees. What do you know?

We stayed here!!!

Yes, we dismissed our driver and we're bloody staying here more then we ever stayed in any hotel in India, and more then any other of their guests ever stayed !!! Everyone is really surprised about the duration or reasons of our stay. As a matter of fact even we are!
But that's travelling! If you follow your heart you will end up doing things you could never had planed and things you don't even know why you do!

Now, it does feel a bit strange that we stayed here, we first felt confused and guilty about not going accord to our planns, up the hills to one of the touristic hill resorts of the Hymalaias (the most touristic state of India, forget GOA, this is REALLY touristic!!!) Is this even India?
We do wonder about Manali, Dalhouise, Leh, Kullu, Kasa- all the destinations on the lOnely Planet, on The Routard, on every single guide, book or map of north India- What is there, how beautiful it must be, just 200km around the corner, let's just take one of the routes, no matter which, and go!
Reality is, none of those places are really calling us, and we chose to stay here a few days till deciding where to, and ended up caught in the nets of a road hotel!

Shiva, the son of the hotel owner, is very happy about us staying here. He is a young guy and runs the place amazingly well. He has a large face, strong bones, he is tall and offers a constant smile not only to us but to everybody else. In the first two days he remained quiet and humble like most indian men do, serving us dinner with a grateful and profound smile and asking if we needed him to arrange us a car to take us somewhere, where would we be going?
We told him we didn't know where to go, so we would stay, if he didn't mind, and surprised, he looked down deep into our eyes, and filled himself with admiration, owe, gratitude, and true happiness. He was almost into tears when he said "you are most welcome madames", and he was bonding there and then with both of us. A bond, that is so indian, so strong and unquestionable, so protective and real it never leaves you, your heart gets grounded, your soul expanded! He felt kind of honoured we were staying here, in his nowhere hotel.
He touched his chest with his hand, and looked down to my feet, a gesture of respect, most common in India, and he offered us two washed bath towels!

In the morning after, Guji, one of the restaurant waiters, a short tibetan guy, so humble he will never look you straight in the eyes, offered himself to show us a trek to a lake, 10kms away. We accepted happily, because what else are you gonna do on a road hotel, and so he showed us the beginning of the forest path, and then returned to the hotel, saying: "just keep always your right! Never turn left, always right and lake you'll see! Thank you madame ji, thank you..." He put his hands together in prayer position and kept stepping back, doing many bows on his way, never turning his back on us. I tried to thank HIM, after all he showed us the way, but he kept saying "thank you, thank you" and kept bowing so, I quit and just carried on, to put an end to the awkward moment.
Very well ! Always keep right ! That sounds easy, so into the forest we went and wow! how amazing it is to be deep in the forest, you walk silently and all around you there are birds, and other animals we can't see, but we feel are there, every step brings life into you. Of course we saw monkeys,and very beautiful distinct bird species but I'm sure there was much more outthere. The pathway took us to amazing viewpoints where we could see the mountains all around us, imposing and divine, covered in snow, embroided on a blue sky.

In the forest there was always a little hindu temple here and there, and buddhist tibetan coloured flags attached to the trees. It gave a sense of sacred and divine into our way, it conforted us to see a sign of humanity in such a long deserted pathway! We walked for about five hours! Of course, it wasn't 10km away, it never is, they don't even understand measures but we knew it would be fine, because if they sent us here, they themselves would make sure we would return. Why?
Because this is India, the country of the heart, and here people take care of each other. And they liked us, we were their long term guests and when you become a long term guest you become family, "sista", it's what they call me, "didi" (auntie) they call Jacqui- and when you're family in India, you have the highest status because that is the most important and precious thing in their culture- family!

So, we carried on the walk, submersed by the magical paths, the stunning views, the powerful sounds, the subtle smells and finally we did arrive to a dreamlike lake! A large dark lake surrounded by mountains, just like a poster picture, such as the many hanging on indian kitchens, with golden subtitles or titles on them saying" accept what god gives you in the path", a classical kitch sweet _expression.

On our way back, we met Arvind, a musician, sitar player from Varanasi. He talked with us for a while in his private english school accent, explainning a quicker way to return and informed us he was doing a concert that night, down in Dharamsala. So, after a shower, we headed there and went to the concert. It was beautiful!
On the break, Arvind saw us and very excited to meet his audience came to us:" You like it?"' -yes, is gre...- I started saying, but he was so excited, he quickly interrupted me :" it's great concert, haanji?"- he said - "I'm feeling the great feelings. My dream, Ana, since child is to live on stage. You understand? Really, on stage, all life, there"- he said, pointing at the stage, his eyes on fire, the whole body gesticulating full of energy, pleasure and excitment.
"I do understand", I mumbled just to be interrupted suddenly again, his voice reduced to a low tone, and whispering he goes:" You know, I go crazy when I'm there, completely crazy! It's not me anymore, something happens!!!"... his eyes twisted in a kind of mysterious way and he ran back to his stage and picked up the sitar.

Silence returned to the room and the sound of classical indian music filled the space. I don't know if any of you know classical indian music, but the ones who have ever been in a concert, know how our body gives up, in that special indian surrender, gets into a trance mode, and travels through inter dimensional routes while listening to the exquisite, calming and unique sounds of tabla, sitar and chanting.
You might be thinking I smoked some special substance before getting there, but that's because you don't know since I came to India I completelly fully and proudly stopped smoking. Everything. I don't touch and don't think will ever be able to touch any sort of drugs ever again. And that's because I found out you Really don't need them to have a good time.

So, there I was all high on classical music, when a burst of clapping brought me back to reality. The concert was finished, and I was so seduced by it, I went to ask Arvind to teach me how to sing as lovely as he did, and that's when we booked singing indian classical music classes, that I've been daily attending.

On on our way to his house in the other day, we found out there's an ayurvedic centre just next to him and we went for a full body cleaning massage. We loved it so much we registered for a full body cleaning treatment and now we have daily oil massage, a special diet, yoga every morning at 6am , and a special oil up our asses for "full cleaning madames jis, you will have the great feelings, all chackras opening, all life changing, all bodies new bodies, most and best transformation...very good jis very good!!!" according to our doctor!!!
The first days of treatment were filled with farting business but now we are really feeling the effects, we feel open, light, great and healthy so we actually decided to undertake an ayurvedic month course. " Sure, I teach you" said the doctor, " of course, you learning ayurveda you changing your life. New life coming madames. Drink this." And he gave us a very discusting drink to our hands.
Next day, the doctor showed us his wifes arrangements in his house so that they could provide us a room for us to take while doing our course, which completely surprised us. So we will be fully commited from June onwards, learning and living with an ayurvedic family in a really indian traditional way (and bed !!!!- hard mat on the floor!!!)

We returned to our road hotel and met up with other travellers on their way to their full on destinations. "where are you two off to?" , they say eating their banana pancakes..."nowhere", we say smiling, our faces filled with an inexplicable excitment.
"what do you mean nowhere?'
"we're staying here."
"HERE????"
"yes, here."
They look at us with a curious face, and either think us stupid or crazy, or that we're probably lieing for an even more stupid reason.

The waiter comes and brings our tea, and wincks his eye to us. A Bollywood hit starts shouting at the speakers and we smile and listen to all the tourists trying to enlighten our trip, advising us to go here and there, and do this, that and the other.
We look at Shiva and Guji's humble faces and we know we will be staying here, we know this is right for us, to remain here, meet these people and collect their stories, memories and short frames of touristic attractions we don't aim to meet anymore.

Our travel came to a transformation point. Some would say it is now finished.
This is the last place before getting back to Delhi airport to catch our flight back to London; but really is it finished?

Because we feel it just really started. Right here: in the most unplanned, uncovered, illicit place in India- a road hotel lost somewhere in the mountains, on a no name land- facing but not yet reaching the Hymalaias!

And why do we stay?
Is it for the singing or ayurvedic courses? Is it because we like our hosts? Is it because we're tired of travelling and this is it, we reached our limit?
No, I don't think any of these reasons are right.

We are here because our heart feels this magnetism for this moment here and now.
We are here, in between, to feel the passers by, the calmness of staying in a place where everybody else is moving, where everything changes daily, a place of leaving.

We are here, because we could only stay somewhere you're not supposed to stay. Somewhere where detachement and impermanence are masters, where roads meet, and cars just pass.

Where nothing remains, except memory. And this is indeed, where we came to finish our trip...to get use to the idea of leaving, to cry and hide the melancholic strong pain growing daily in our hearts because we will miss so much our dear INDIAJI !!!!!!