October Weather

I think there is no better season than October in the Garhwal Himalayas. I wake up to the sun beating through my curtains unto my bed. The morning air is crisp and cool, but always cheerful with the welcoming sun. The afternoons are always the same: blue skies and warm temperatures. As the sun sets, the cold mountain air settles in and the stars shine brilliantly. No rain, no clouds, and hardly any wind. I've been taking in the wonderful season with daylight hours outside and twilight hours reading books by local writers, Bill Aitken and Ruskin Bond. I've found that I'm not the only one who enjoys this season:

October is the best trekking season when the golden days yield the full fragrance of harvested sap. The sky is a celestial blue and the air perfectly attuned to vigorous marches. Sun-dappled trees and the roar of rushing water coursing off the mountainside stimulate the taste of salt on one's lips while the sifting wind soothes any regret at the sweat. It is good to be alive in high Garhwal in October as the crickets fill the clear air with a deafening drone of plenitude. The intensity of the sky with a few puffed clouds abroad by early afternoon contrasts with the map-like spread of the fields below. Crops of ripening red buckwheat shock the eye as do the yellow stalks of scarlet coxcomb. The multihued greens of the jungle begin to enclose one's progress and range from the deep chrome of oak and dark viridian of spruce to the fresh gloss of chestnut and maple. (Bill Aitken, The Nanda Devi Affair)

This quote gets me particularly excited as I prepare for an 8-day Himalayan trek. I leave tomorrow morning with 11 high school students (11th and 12th Grade) and 3 chaperones. The trek is part of Activity Week, an annual event at Woodstock where students and staff take off on a variety of week-long field trips. Last year, I spent the week in a local village. Our trek is called Kuari Pass, or Curzon's Trail. I'll post more about it after the trip. For now, here are some of the outdoor adventures that have kept me busy in October:

Fairy Glen Activity Week Overnight: Practicing our packing skills with one of the Activity Week groups.

Witch's Hill Day Hike: Passing through Dhobi Ghat, the neighborhood where all the laundry men live and work.

Witch's Hill Day Hike: View of the hills to the east of Woodstock.

Fairy Glen Overnight #2: The perfect way to spend a day off!

Fairy Glen Overnight #2: We woke up to gorgeous views of the snow-capped mountains.

Fairy Glen Overnight #2: Keeping up the WCB tradition of leaving a cedar sprig at the campfire!

Flag Hill Day Hike: WCB friend Katie came to visit for 4 days!

Flag Hill Day Hike: Tibetan prayer flags waving with hills in the background.

Flag Hill Day Hike: View of the hills to the east of Woodstock.

Wedding Invite!

I received my first invitation to an Indian wedding last Friday. This is how it went:

Friday afternoon: I sit down in the Midlands Lounge to start my work shift. The other dorm parents point out that I have mail, which is always exciting. When I pick it up, it's a rather large and flashy envelope. Ronita and Jerusha see my confused face and laugh, "It's a wedding invite!" Well, that's surprising because I don't know any one who is getting married. Upon opening the invite, I scan the text for any clue of who these people might be. No luck. Ronita and Jerusha, who love to make fun of me, laugh harder and finally say, "It's Ram Chander's daughter!" Okay, so Ram Chander is the name of the grocery store that I frequent. I go a few times a month, usually spend about $60 USD a month on food, and have only a business relationship with the owner. Apparently, this overrides the facts that a) I don't even know the man's name (I refer to him as Mr. Ram Chander) and b) I have never thought nor known that he might have a daughter.

So, now knowing who the wedding is for, I look at the dates. There are three celebrations, only one of which is in Mussoorie. Well, maybe I can go to that? I take a second look at the date for the Mussoorie event: October 23. Um, that's TODAY. The times: 3-6pm. It's currently 4:30. If I got ready in 10 minutes, I'd be able to get to the event in probably 45 min, leaving me with about a half hour of celebration. Not worth it.

Saturday Afternoon: I walk into the bazaar with students and find myself at Ram Chander. I go to pay my bill and realize that I should probably congratulate the owner and apologize for not attending. I explain that I didn't get the invitation until the day of the celebration and on top of that I was working. He is visibly disappointed and a little offended that none of the Midlands staff (4 of us were invited) showed up. Um...

Saturday Night: I talk to the oldest Midlands dorm parent about the grocer's disgruntledness. She explains that Hindu weddings are very important and the family plans for years and years. Well, if that's the case, I feel like they could have maybe sent the invitations a bit earlier!

This is where I live!!!

Here's a short video tour of the Woodstock Hillside that I took as I was walking back from town. Enjoy!

Rishikesh Quarter Break

Although I technically didn't get any time off for Quarter Break, it sure felt like it! Dorm parents are required to work over the break, so Laura, Priya, and I decided to take our work to Rishikesh. We organized a trip for ourselves and 9 high school girls to go rafting, hiking, cycling, and shopping. We arranged our trip through an adventure camp, so everything was provided for us. There's nothing like getting paid to have fun and relax on the shores of the Ganges River!

Our plans remained flexible our first day as our 2-3 hour car ride slowly got longer and longer. First it was a car accident that blocked the main thoroughfare, then it was a landslide that made the road impassable. After sitting in the car for 7ish hours, we turned around and stayed in a nearby hotel for the night. The next morning we successfully made it to Leopard Beach Tented Camp...ahhhh.


The tented camp had a long sandy beach with about 20 tents for guests. There are also two shade tents where we ate meals, held our safety briefings, and just hung out. There are also outhouses, a volleyball court, and then some of the staff/kitchen tents. Overall, it was wonderfully simple.


Chaperones! We were greeted with marigold garlands and tea. We were happy :)


Girls excited to be on the sandy beaches of the Ganga.


Our tents! The were very basic, but nice: two cots, night stand, and coir matting. The best part was that we got candy on our pillows everyday!


Our days started early at 6am, when the mist was just clearing from the river. After tea, we had yoga class and then a big breakfast. Such a perfect way to start a day!


Yoga as the sun came through the hills onto the Ganga.


Our first day at the camp consisted of a morning walk to a local village. It was a beautiful walk with nice views of farmland and riverbank. After our walk, we swam and played volleyball. Then, we were briefed in rafting safety and headed out for our first rafting adventure. There were a few Grade 1 and 2 rapids to warm us up. We also went cliff jumping, which was very fun. The last stretch of rafting took us through Rishikesh itself. It was fun to see the city from the water.


A walk through a village.


Women drying rice.


Rafting! We were split into two rafting groups and had two river guides per raft. The guides were fantastic.


Cliff Jumping!


Balance games while floating through Rishikesh.


My raft group after our first day.


The following day we did more rafting (Grade 3), had lots of free time, and went rock climbing in the evening. The last day was the most exciting, with Grade 4 rapids and more cliff jumping. In the afternoon, we went into the city of Rishikesh for sightseeing, shopping, and good food. In the evening, we headed to Camp Tuskar, another camp in Rajaji National Forest.


Bridge painter on Laxman Jhula. Notice how he's wearing a life jacket just in case...


Monkeys watch the passersby on Laxman Jhula.


Ram Jhula in the distance.


Our last day consisted of a morning walk through the forest and the banks of the Ganges. We saw leopard tracks and some kind of deer/antelope. After that, we went cycling through the park and through some of the local villages before heading back to Woodstock.


Morning "safari" walk.


Bike ride through Rajaji National Park.