I'm not finding myself....

Day two in McLeod in Northern India and home of his Holiness the Dalia Lama. To say I'm over excited and utterly thrilled to be here would be a massive understatement. I've planned this particular part of my travels with military prescion. I've dreamt of being here and now I am it's everything I expected it to be and more.

The contrast from here to Delhi is unimaginable and a huge relief. Chris decided to join me on this leg and I think he's pretty taken by it too. It's very peaceful. The backdrop for the little village are the mountains, the sky is a beautiful clear blue and the people are lovely. Real mix of Tibetans and Indians which seems to work well.

Thankfully Chris is more than happy to leave me to my own devices and go off trekking while I fully immerse myself in everything I promised myself I would do ie. yoga, meditation, astrology predictions by a Tibetan monk, gening up on DL and Buddhism.

I'm staying at OM guest house which makes me smile every time I think about it. Oh the irony. It's a friendly family run hotel, clean, good food and the veranda overlooks the valley. Perfect.

It's not too touristy here either. Admittedly there are a few people who are clearly embracing the look and are in danger of perhaps staying here rather longer than they should but all in all it's pretty chilled. I love it.

I've been deliberating whether to do the 10 day SILENT meditation retreat at the monastery. I've been really debating whether to do it and have decided not to for a number of reasons:

1.) I'm not looking to find myself. I've already found myself - I'm now accessorizing.
2.) I'd have to share a room with someone and not speak to them. I'd have to remain in complete silence which I would find rude and irritating...if not a bit boring.
3.) I have a massive problem with rules and/or strict programmes where I'm told what to do - it brings out the worst in me
4.) I like this characteristic and fear 10 days in silence under a strict programme may ruin this characteristic I've grown to like about myself - despite the fact it often gets me in trouble i.e. disapproving looks from the monks in Chiang Mai when they found out I'd absconded one evening and fraternized with the outside world!
5.) I like to talk a lot.

So I've decided to stay put for a while. I've befriended a yoga master so I'm practising yoga and meditation on a daily basis, reading virtually every book I can get my hand on about DL and also hanging out with a rather cute Tibetan guy who trekked across the Himalayas for a month to get here to escape the Chinese authorities - all in the name of research of course!

This is my kind of accessorizing!

Dirty Delhi

I never thought I'd say this about anywhere I would visit but I have to say Delhi is the worst place on earth. I think I'm in hell. I can't wait to leave.

They say that Delhi is an assult on all your senses - this actually a phrase which immediately makes me roll my eyes and urges me to contain a snort of distgust as, having read it in the LP guide, virtually every traveller I've met to date has tried to pass it off as their own opinon of the city.

Delhi doesn't just assult you though, it attacks you. It violates you. If Dehli were a man it would be the type of guy women run from. They kind of guy who uses the same underpants for a week, expects his mum to do his washing even though he's lived alone for a number of years, gobs on the floor and expects you to buy him a drink for the pleasure of experiencing all his disgusting ways. In a nutshell it's a filthy, dirty shit hole. Never ever come here. It's vile. The pollution is out of control, something I've never experienced before. As you head towards the city you can see the smog sitting virtually above the buildings. You can barely see the sky. The atmosphere is thick with dirt and yellow smog. You instantly start coughing when you arrive and your eyes sting too.

I'm really struggling to find anything positive to say about this place. Even walking up the road is a hassle. If you try and go anywhere via a tuk tuk it's stressful. First the driver pretends to know where he's going, then when he realises you don't want to go to an emporium shopping he ups the previously agreed price. Then you have to go through the whole negotiation again pulled up on the side of a busy main road, horns beeping, dirty gushing in your face. Failing that, you have the pleasure of being driven around in the dirty smog for at least an hour while the driver pretends to know where he's going. It's vile. Normally these little 'challenges' don't both me but when it's stifling hot and your eyes are stinging....let's just say I've been very close to screaming a number of times.

Travelling to Old Dehli train station in the back of a tuk tuk was yet another gloryfing experience - I actually tried to take a photo of the market we drove through but the polution is so bad the picture was specaled. VILE.

I was already feeling pretty emotinal having just said goodbye to Brooke and Kylie who I'd been travelling with for the past two months. I was gutted saying good bye to them both and had to hold back the tears. Unbeknown to me I would shortly have a perfect situation to unleash my emotions.

I nearly lost it at the tuk tuk driver when we pulled up at New Dehli train station rather than OLD Dehli train station and was told it was going to cost us double what we'd been previously told to get there. I was seriously seething about it though, in fact raging would be a better way to describe my reaction. Chris - guy I meet on the way to Agra who decided for some unknown reason that he'd like to travel around north India with me...a decision I suspect he's now regretting - bore an expression of fear as I ranted about how we were being ripped off, how I hate tuk tuk drivers and I couldn't wait to leave Delhi. Thankfully he calmed me down and therefore ensured us and our luggage being thrown out on to the street. I had to have yet another word with myself because at the end of the day we needed the driver more than he needed us and frankly for the pricely additional cost if a pound it really didn't matter. This added to the fact the tuk tuk driver has a crap job and has to endure the polutin and general madness on a daily basis. I could leave, he couldn't. So basically shut up neen!

There's light at the end of the tunnel though - I leave tonight on a train heading for Dharamsala, home of the Daili Lama. I intend to meditate, maybe go on a 10 day meditation/yoga retreat, make friends with the DL's secretary (already developed an email friendship - in my mind anyway!) and hopefully get to meet his Holiness too. Rock and roll.

One of the wonders of the world

The Taj Mahal was utterly impressive. More so than I thought. The architecture and the fact everything in its grounds is completely symmetrical was, in the flesh, awe inspiring. I literally stood and stared at it in amazement for few minutes when I first saw it. It's beautiful. Stunning. In fact I can't really find the words to justify how utterly gorgeous it is.

There was a professinal photographer lurking around so I seized the opportunity to have my picture taken on the very same bench as Diana Princess of Wales. I tried to emulate the wimsical look she did so well but sadly couldn't. It was more a cheesy tourist pose. Still I'm expecting the picture to have pride of place on my parents mantle piece!!

Any how there I was gazzing at the Taj trying to avoid the lingering starres and giggles of prepubesent Indian boys when who shoud I literally bump into but Mick Jagger. Hilar. Surprisingly he went compeletly un noticed aside from a few westerners gorping at him. His assistant got a bit jumpy when he clocked us taking pic of him which I rather enjoyed watching.

I had a bit of a celeb moment myself. It was probably one of the most funniest moments of my life. There I was standing there, doing some serious people watching when I noticed a young lad of about seven sitting with his family pointing a camera in my direction. Naturally I assumed I was in his way so I moved. Suddenly he and his family are shouting 'no, no we want take picture of you'...I was more than happy to oblige. On went my celeb esq sunnies, my wrap was thrown causually over my shoulder and I assumed pose position, taking great care to ensure my chin was dipped down. Before I knew it I was having my picture taken with the little boys sister, father, mother, then the whole family. It was hilarous. (see pic above!) I didn't have heart to ask why they wanted a photo of me - in fact I shudder to think...I told myself that they didn't look like the kind of family to collect pictures of dog like looking foreigners - the truth is often over rated!!

Saving souls in Varanasi

To be honest I didn't really have a massive expectation about Varanasi. I obviously wanted to go there, it's the mecca for Hindu's, one of the oldest cities in the world and one of the most spiritual too - the holy city of India. That said watching families cremate their loved ones on the banks of the Ganges seemed slightly strange to me. Almost vauyeristic. I didn't really know what to expect or more to the point how I'd feel about it. Not sure how I would've felt if 50 or so tourists started taking photos of my grandmothers funeral!

According to the Hindu mythology, Varanasi liberates soul from human body to the ultimate. It is the Ganga Ghats of Varanasi that complement the concept of divinity. Ghats of Ganga are perhaps the holiest spots of Varanasi. The Ganga Ghats at Varanasi are full of pilgrims who flock to the place to take a dip in the holy Ganges, which is believed to absolve one from all sins.

The whole dipping in the Ganges completely freaked me out. My sides nearly split with laughter when a guy told me he was going to bath in the Ganges as another guy he'd met previously had boasted about how he'd done it. 'LIAR' I roared at the poor unsuspecting guy. He was only telling me what he was thinking of doing poor man. Bathing in the Ganges isn't the wisest thing to do seeing as the water is sepetic but hey it wasn't as though he was about to committ murder!! I naturally took great delight in telling the wannabe bathing Ganges man that he would probably end up in hospital for many, many months if he even so much as dipped his toe in the water. He looked horrified. I inwardly applauded myself at saving a soul!!

Sun rise and sun set floating down a the Ganges in a wooden fishing boat was breath taking. Dare I say a real moment. For me watching the sun set over the Ganges was most memorable. We sailed down the Ganges as a sitar (classical Indian guitar) played classical Indian music. Very sereen and peaceful and definately out of the norm in terms of how I usually would spend a Friday night - which would normally include a large amount of vodka, a few packets of Marly's and telling someone how they should live their life and/or offering relationship advice of which I know so much about!!

Travelling through Nepal into India

Travelling down from Kathmandu to Lumbini on the boarder of Nepal and India was fabulous. I stopped off along the way at Chitwan National Park. It was amazing. Vast scenery, with a real local feel to it, like going back in time.

I went on an elephant ride and saw six wild Rhinos - very 'out of Africa' moment - fantastic. I also visited a local tribal village - Thuru - and met some of the local children. A very humbling experience. The families don't live in brick houses but huts made out of mud and ox manure - all the children wanted were pens and for me to take their photo - which they loved. These people have so little. No running water directly into their homes, electricity. On one hand you I wished I could change their situation but on the other I couldn't help thinking that sometimes you just can't change things. They are what they are and if even if you did makes changes would it necessarily make it any better?

Lumbini is the birth place of Buddha so for me was a fabulous experience and definitely a highlight. The area itself was very peaceful and there was a temple next to ruins which I popped into. As luck would have it sitting in the temple was a Buddhist Monk - BINGO. He wanted to bless me. DING, DING, DING, JACKPOT! I was in awe. Totally overwhelmed as not only had I visited the birth place of Buddha I was also blessed by a Buddhist Monk in the temple next to where Buddha was born. Just put this into context for you - for me it really doesn't get any better than that. I literally ticked a zillion boxes on my 'things I have to do before I die' list. I was elated. See pic above to see just how much!! FYI it's me and my healing hands (due to a reiki course) at the birth place of Buddha.

The journey from Lumini to Varanasi was long - over 10 hours, how nice - but the scenery more than made up for it. That and the 80's music which me, Kylie and Brooke insisted on playing on my ipod speakers (best leaving present ever!). Phil Collins singing 'you can't hurry love' rang through my ears as I lay my eyes on the Ganges for the first time! God love Phil.

Crossing over the boarder from one country to the next is always a bit of an eye opener as the atmosphere and the scenery almost changes immediately. You know as soon a you enter India. Different smells, mainly sandalwood burning, sounds - more honking of the horn and the enormous variety of colours ranging from the Saree's to the shop fronts. You also notice the stares. And I mean goorping stares from the men. It's really odd as you'd think they'd never seen a western woman before but nevertheless their jaws virtually drop to the floor when they see you and their gaze follows you for what seems like forever. Dark glasses help and the ability to shut yourself off from it. You get stared at no matter what so you have to get used to it. At least I definitely will as I intend to stay in India for a few months!!

The return of the ex

Bumping into an old friend while travelling is one thing, you often hear stories of people bumping into someone they haven't seen since school on a beach in Phi Phi. It happens. Seeing an ex boyf while you're travelling is something you'd rather didn't happen (naturally depending on the circumstances you split). However meeting a guy who's the combination of all your exes rolled into one is frankly quite scary. I had the pleasure of watching in horror as the personalities/characteristics of boyfriends past revealed themselves before me very recently.

I was actually feeling very chilled and still coming down from the sheer high of seeing the birth place of Buddha and being blessed by a Buddhist monk at the temple next to the birth place of Buddha in Lumbini, Nepal a few days earlier . I'd been meditating religiously each morning and completed stage one of my reiki course a week or so earlier while I was Kathmandu. My karma was fully in tact, my aura bright and beautiful and I was completely calm. Nothing toxic had passed my lips for weeks and my carb in take was at an all time low. I'd also had a few 'moments' as I watched the priests paying at the side of the Ganges and had also lit a floating lantern in memory of my grandmother and let it sail down the river. All clear signs that I was firmly on Happiness Highway, heading straight for the city of 'nice things will happen to you'. I was a magnet for all that's good and wholesome. And that included men. Or so I thought.

But that's just it isn't it...soon as you think you've got it sown up along comes something be it a man, boss, clingy female, bank manager to ruin your natural high. In my case it was a man. He was a combination of all my exes. There he was sitting right in front of me at a restaurant in Varanasi. Nice one Neen.

So there he was. Bold as brass. From the UK. From the regions - in this case Reading (warning bells - sorry to anyone from Reading), old but had a 'young outlook' read: immature. Dressed well: read vain, outgoing read: lout, likes to party read: drink/drug problem. Feisty read: short tempered and therefore violent verbal outbursts. Exciting read: mood swings. Family orientated read: still lives with his mum. Diverse career read: can't hold down a job. Financially fluid read: tight arse/crap with money.

Thankfully this time I didn't gladly skip down the road of looserville. Oddly enough in the last couple of months have enabled me to realise the benefits of 'nice men' and thankfully my last boyf meant I had the opportunity to walk on the path of 'nice, well adjusted man' and I've seen the light as they say. Or perhaps I should day boyf light. Maybe not. Anyway.

Mr Reading was everything I found horrifying about my romantic past and more. History can sometimes repeat itself and it's common knowledge one often seeks what one is used to no matter how horrible it was. So for the first couple of housrs I was definitely attracted to him. Then as the hours unfolded I realised that I wasn't flirting with an hilarous guy with a cheeky smile and glint in his eyes. I was actually socialising with all of my exes rolled into one. NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.

It was like my own personal horror film starring me and my love life. The lead character was myself. The evil character - my exes. It was hideous, horrifying but eventually quite cathartic. You see the benefits of seeing all your boyfs rolled into one person is naturally at first quite alarming. Once I got my head round the idea though I realised I was fully equipped as I'd been there, seen it, done it, got the tee, dvd, poster and book. I was armed and ready for battle.

It dawned on me as I sat opposite him gently nursing a vodka as he banged on about himself. I heard all about him, his friends, where he'd been travelling, who he liked, who he didn't. Watched as his mood change from happy and outgoing to slightly agressive and loutish with the more pints he sank. I sat back and watched him skip up to his room a few times during dinner, take over any conversation and watch his eyes glaze over when anyone talked about themselves.

Suddenly I was thinking OH MY GOD ALL OF MY NASTY EXES ARE RIGHT BEFORE ME! GET OUT, EVACUATE, DO NOT ENGAGE FURTHER, ENEMY AHEAD, DANGER, DANGER, DANGER. REMEMBER THE MUSIC SNOB, NSDMCUB, MAD MAN FROM SOUTHAMPTON, THE PHOTOGRAPHER...I won't go on...

It was a like an ephinany. It was probably how Buddha felt when he reached englighenment. How appt and surely good karma of seeing where he was born?!

So I did what any woman would do faced with this situation as she innocently drank a g&t - I got up and left!

Tibet - the roof top of the world

The day I saw 'Golden Child' starring Eddie Murphy was, to the horror of many, the day I decided I had to visit Nepal and Tibet. It looked amazing on screen. The film takes you to both countries and the amazing scenery coupled with a few choice one liners from Mr Murphy..well, it just sealed the deal! So to say I was excited when the plane touched down at Gongga airport in Tibet would be an understatement. I could harldy contain myself.

I actually decided to join a tour group to see Tibet. Usually the words 'organised' and 'group' send me running for the hills but seeing as I'm hardly au fait with Tibetean and Chinese langage - sadly as much as I like to try and kid myself I knew I wouldn't be able to get by with knowing 'hello, goodbye, thank you and where is the toilet?!! Plus the fact it's easier to travel around Tibet as part of a group - the Chinese prefer it. As it turns out the people I travelled with were fabulous. I guide, Nima and Pau Pau were great, didn't crowd us too much and did an amazing job.

Fortunately I was allocated the window seat on the left hand side of the plane which meant I had a birds eye view of the Himilayers and Mount Everest as we flew past. Before this I'd never, ever imagined I'd get excited about a mountain but low and behold there I was with my jaw on the floor doing a very good impression of an over zealous Japanese tourist with a camera as we flew past it.

Tibet is often described as the roof top of the world and for me it more than exceeded my expectations. Tibet was everything I expected and more. My head spun round for the entire time I was there. The scenery was luna, arid and breath taking. The people were so friendly and clearly resilient. Children would drop what they were doing as soon as they saw us and run up to say 'hello' and what seemed like stern stares from adults melted into beeming smiles as soon as you said 'hello' in Tibetean (tashee da lay - watch me as I hone the Tibetean language!).

The sights were something else. I'd dreamt of seeing the Palace Polata (where the Dalia Lama used to live) so when I saw it for the first time on the drive into Lhasa I got goose bumps. The contrasts throughout my trip were dramatic to say the least. One minute you'd see a 4x4 parked next to a horse and cart, a woman wearing a traditional Tibetan outfit next to a teenager in jeans and an off the shoulder tee or a monk helping a limping man cross the road. It was truly amazing and the atmostphere and given the hardship the country has suffered at the hands of the Chinese it's quite surprising the country has such a serene feel to it. Admittedly you can't help but feel the presence of the Chinese but if you choose to block it out (as I did) you get a sense of what Tibet used to be like.

That said sadly the evidence of the cultural genocide commited by the Chinese is all to apparent. For instance there used to be over 6 thousand monasteries before the 'cultural revolution' as the Chinese so eloquently refer to it. Now there are under 100. Over a million Monks and civilians were murdered, cultural buildings destroyed and since then slowly but surely the Chinese have tried to erode the Tibetan way or life. That was until they realised they were on to a money earner. But I'm not going to bore you with what I think about the Chinese in Tibet (more on that later!).

The fabled city of Lhasa was my first stop and it was utterly amazing. This was once an isolated city which is now a mixture of old and new. The palace itself had such an tranquil energy about it. Quite strange given the fact you had the Chinese guards breathing down your neck but if you blocked them out then you definitely get a better feel for the place. For me it was amazing to think the current and previous Dalia Lama's had walked the corridors. Fascinating in fact and I walked around it complete awe from start to finish.

Sadly the Chinese like to stamp their authority but sticking an ugly monument to the date of the occupation of Tibet right in front of the Palace, which everyone ignores. Worse still it's Tibetan Buddhist tradition for people to walk around a religious site clockwise so it's a massive shame the Chinese have insisted the entrance to the Palace means people have to walk around the place anti clock wise. Sadly Tibetan people aren't allowed to spend more than an house in the Palace to our lovely guide kindly suggested we walk around by ourselves to give us more time to absorb what the place had to offer.

Watching the Pilgrims and Monks go about their business at the Jokhang Temple, Sera and Drepung Monasteries was something I've never witnessed before. The Pilgrims walk for days to get to the Temple/monasteries. They then spend an enormous amount of time praying which involves raising their hand to prayer posit on, kneeling down on the floor, then reaching forward on the ground in a motion that looks very similar to breast stroke...VERY tiring!

The monks and the Sera Monasteries were something else in the sense that each afternoon they would gather in the court yard and debat. Nothing out of the ordinary there you may think. Except this was debating with a twist - they would shout at each other. If they disagreed the Monk asking the question would raise on leg and stamp it down at the other while claping at the same time. It was incredible to see hundreds of Monks shouting, stamping and claping at each other. What was also strange was while all of that was going on the place still had a really peaceful feel to it - very hard to describe.

The journey on the Friendship Highway - a spectacular road which traverses high mountain passes and crosses wide plateaus, connecting Lhasa with Kathmandu - was incredible. We travelled through Tibet’s richest farming areas, before crossing the Brahmaputra River as it wound its way down towards the Bay of Bengal many hundreds of kilometres away. In Tibet it flows at an altitude of 3939 metres above sea level, making it is the highest major river in the world - tick box!!

The people and scenery is what stood out for me the most. We drove within sight of towering peaks including Mount Everest and crossed five passes over 5,000 metres above sea level. Being that high above sea level meant the alitude sickness was pretty full on and ranged from massive pressurised, thumping head aches, to slurring my words (when I wasn't drinking!) and going to the loo the whole time which as far from ideal given the toilet situtation. The memory of trying to find a quiet spot at the foot of a mountain as goat herders and 4x4's drifted past me will stay with me forever!!

We then climbed to the Karo La (5010 metres) which is the same level as base camp at Mount Everest....not sure I'll be attempting to climb that given heady I felt there!! Still loved the hat I was wearing - see pic!!

The historic town of Gyantse, which served as the capital of a small kingdom in the 15th century was fabulous. I stood at the top of the stupar (Buddhist shrine) and gazed out over the Gyats. It was at the monastery next door that I was given the opportunity to meditate with a Tibetan Monk. He taught me the key elements of Tibetean Buddhist meditation, the mantra etc. It was so surreal. Aside from the fact I had to literally surpress my internal scream as I was so excited about the whole thing i.e. me in a temple, in front of a gaint golden buddha statu, sitting in fron of a Tibetean Monk, him teaching me (in Tibetean) how to meditate and my guide translating was more than I could take. My eyes nearly popped out of their sockets even though they were closed...nice image for you I'm sure!!

Shigatse, the second largest city in Tibet with a population of some 40,000 people was interesting. The Tashilhunpo Monastery is the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama, the most important incarnation for Tibetan Buddhists after the Dalai Lama. This totally blew me away although we were warned we had to be very careful with what we said as some of the monks are actually in cahoots with the authorities. Slightly alarming and you could spot the one's which were; the shoved past you and spent all their time on mobile phones!!

The bus ride to Shegar was incredible. In the morning we crossed the Jai Tsuo Pass with stunning views of the Himalayan peaks to the south. We then passed through the Shegar checkpoint and then cross the Tingri Plains before ascending to Lalung Leh (5050m). At this pass we had spectacular views to the east (weather permitting) of Everest (8850m), Lhotse (8516m), Makalu (8463m), Cho Oyu (8201m) and Gauri Shanker (7146m). To the west we could seeXixapangma (8013m), Langtang (7245m) and Dorje Lakpa (6980m). That’s five peaks, each over 8000 metres in height - amazing!!

The drive to the small town of Nyalam, near the border, was the most horrifying journey of my life. The road was still being built, it was on the cliff edge with no barriers and oh, did I mention the 250 metre drop to the bottom? Thankfully our bus driver was amazing. We arrived in one piece. Those behind us weren't so luck as about an hour there was a landslide...think that qualifies as a near death situ!

So all in all an amazing trip. A massive contrast from start to finish. The scenery, people are utterly amazing, inspiring and really friendly which frankly makes a massive change. Thankfully tourism has turned the country and its people into a suspicous cynical bunch.

I imagine it's extremely hard especially under the rule of the Chinese. It's actually something I found very hard to come to terms with. For instance I heard of some children, under the age of 10, who were thrown into prision for writing on a public wall....they disapeared two months ago and haven't been seen or heard from since. An elderly man gave a speech about the political situation in Tibet and has since been accused of 'separatism' and locked away. The list is endless.

The cultural ways of 50 years or so ago are still there. Just. Obviously the more people who visit Tibet, then the more likely they are to stay and the more people who are aware of the dreadful situtation the Tibeteans are going through under the iron rule of the Chinese ie. how would you like all the shop, road signs in your country to be written in another languge, the better. So go. Visit Tibet and see for yourself just how utterly, jaw droppingly gorgeous it is, the people and the overall atmosphere there. It's really quite breath taking.

Dealing with odd balls....

Doesn't matter where I go or what I do I always seem to manage to attract the odd balls. Whether I'm in London, Brighton, Phnom Penh or Lhasa the idiots who've lost their way to their village always seem to find their way to my door. The thing is that I wouldn't normally mind but recently these idiots have become quite devious and cunningly disguise themselves as reasonable people, dare I say even 'normal'.

Usually I can over look the odd strange person. Strange men I can handle, sadly because most of my exes fit into this category. It's the odd female traveller who rather worryingly turns out to resemble the strange character from single white female, who really concerns me.

I have to admit I've not come across the clingy female for quite sometime. In fact not since school. So you can imagine my surprise when I was presented with this species again when I was travelling.

At first she seemed pretty normal. Bit too over friendly perhaps but as I'm trying to stop my judgemental approach I discarded my initial thought. Note to self: always trust your instincts no matter how harsh they may seem.

At first she was great fun, liked a good laugh, on similar page to me or so it seemed. Alarm bells started to ring when she repeatedly said how alike we were....like she was looking into a mirror. Er, okay. I don't think so. She kept talking about how similar we were in attitude and outlook on life. Again, I don't think so. I would nervously laugh when she said this and tried to hide my immediate facial expression which was one of complete horror!

The all to familiar alarm bells started ringing again when she advised me on how touchy feely she was...her words not mine. She admitted her friends found it irritating which obviously begs the question of 'why continue to do it?'. It clearly hadn't occurred to her to stop though...mores the pity. She also banged on about how open she was as she had no problem with calling everyone 'darling' or 'babe'. Sorry, perhaps it's me but calling people 'darling' or 'babe' doesn't equate to being open. It just means you can't be arsed to say their names or worse still, can't remember them.

The next thing I know she's talking about going travelling with me. Now alarm bells are really ringing. I'd known her for 5 mins and she's talking about travelling with me for a few months. NOOOOOOOOOO. Again, I found myself laughing nervously and made a note to self to not mention any future plans.

Then there were the lingering stares. I'd look up from my book and she'd be staring at me. I'd catch her watching me on the bus, at dinner. It was really quite unnerving. Did I have spinach in my teeth? I'm I so odd looking at the moment that I warrant being stared at like one of the monkeys in London Zoo? No. Not at all. In fact I check my teeth meticulously after each meal and last time I looked in the mirror I wasn't looking too bad at all!

I tried to ignore it to start off with but by the end of the trip it got way too much. She really started to irritate me to the point where I couldn't even look at her. The odd squeeze of my leg, stroking my hair, trying to pick a hair off the front of my t-shirt when she could've just told me it was on there where my breast was, standing really close behind me...the list is endless...it just got really irritating to be honest. I have my personal space, please respect that thank you very much.

There was little I could do though as I was travelling with a group plus I didn't want to be horrible. I definitely didn't want to cause a scene. So I kept my mouth shut and got on with it. Don't get me wrong, she didn't ruin my trip. I just had to take a deep breath and ignore her irritating little ways for a few days. Like I said the odd balls always hide their strange ways until their feet are under the table. Then they strike. So it took me a while to see where she was really coming from. Well, 2 days. Plus I could take solace with other members of the group. So it was hardly the end of the world. Just irritating!!

By the end of the trip she was really starting to grate on my nerves. I actually caught her taking a photo of me while I sleeping. I mean really, I can't imagine anyone really wanting a record of me with my mouth open and dribbling but there you go....

Thankfully when we arrived at our last destination before we all went our separate ways. I also managed to bag a triple room with two other girls in the group. I knew this would cause trouble though. So it came as no surprise to me when she gave me the filthiest look and stropped off when I told her I was going to kip in with them. Jeeeeesus I felt like I was back at school again. If only I had the same complexion I told myself at least that would make it slightly better. But sadly no, I didn't have the school girl complexion to boot. I just had to deal with the childish outbursts of a 30 plus female who displayed slightly odd behaviour.

Since the outburst I've been able to keep my distance from her and duck the filthy looks and snide comments. That's the problem when you're travelling - if you come across a nutter you have to be very creative in terms of how you avoid them especially when you're in a small capital. You don't want cause a scene but then again at the same time you have to brace yourself for the next installment of 'how much can I annoy you today'...aren't people great?!

Toilet Traumas

This isn't the nicest thing I've had to post on my blog but I feel it's my duty to share the traumas I've been facing on a daily basis since arriving in Tibet. If you're reading this while eating then please don't. You may regret it.

I'd heard on the grapevine about the toilet situation in Asia. China had in fact been mentioned a number of times as having the worst loos on earth. I sympathised and quickly reassured myself that I didn't have to worry too much about it because I wasn't travelling to China. Of course I'd completely forgotten that Tibet is now part of the Republic of China. I soon remembered when I experienced what I can only refer to as a trauma. A trauma beyond all traumas and one I don't think I'll ever forget.

Now, I don't want to get on my high horse and maybe I am naive but one would assume that when you enter the country controlled by a 'superpower' sanitation wouldn't be a problem. Wrong.

Firstly let me get one thing straight. Tibet is an amazing country. I cannot begin to tell you how utterly amazed I have been by the sights and people; culturally it's by far the most inspiring and interesting country I've ever visited. I will save my rant on how Tibet has benefited from the Chinese taking over Tibet (it won't be long!) but you would think with the influx of tourists the government might improve the public toilet situation. Apparently not - well, it's not a money earner is it so why should they. A Chinese statue right in front of the Polata Place would benefit the people much more don't you think.

You see the public loos are open. And for those of you who haven't had the privilege of experiencing an 'open loo' let me elaborate. There is no sanitation. There is a whole in the ground. Worse that that you have to squat over a trough so you get the added benefit of seeing what everyone else is relieving themselves of. Even better there are no doors. You literally pee in front of everyone. And I mean everyone. Seeing a Westerner peeing is hilarious to most locals. Most of them don't have a tv so sadly I think this could be the next best thing judging from their hysterical laughs!!

The thing is the fact 10 or so Tibetans are laughing at you peeing isn't really a problem. You see you're too busy trying not to vomit at the stench from feces from your neighbour flowing down below you. You're also trying to avoid being stung by the huge bees flying around your ass. Gone are the days of relaxing on the loo, flicking through Heat or Glamour. Rolling my eyes at a piece of toilet paper on the floor of the loo is The Worseley or the fact the hand towels aren't quite the right shade of white in Claridges. Oh how I yearn for those days...

Now it's a military operation. Liberal application of Tiger Balm below your nostrils (so much that it's burns your skin) to try and prevent the stench from making you retch. Toilet roll already torn into pieces to avoid any dropping incidents or worse still losing your balance (could you imagine falling into the trough?). Ensuring your trousers are rolled up to avoid any back splash or even worse, the bottoms of your trousers falling into the piss around the squat. After the deed is down a quick exit, ensuring you don't slip, your trousers are done up and you're not vomiting. Breathing a sigh of relief as you exit the piss house and douse your hands with sanitiser. Welcome to my world!