More on Singers....

Surprised myself in Singers by checking into a dorm. 'A dorm?' I hear you cry in amazement. Yep, a dorm. Not very 'flashpacker' esq I know but I decided to take the bull by the horns so to speak and experience life on the other side. Figured as I turn 35 soon (NOTE HINT - 12th April) I should get in there before I 'graduate' to the grannies dorm. Also to be brutally honest with you I had it on good authority that 'Westerners' frequent hostels and the thought of more European humour really appealed what with me having spent the last five months in India surrounded by...well, Indians. Not that I didn't enjoy mostly every moment but it's nice to have a change...and I'm all about change at the mo.

Decided to stay at The Inn Crowd in Little India - free breakfast, lockers, internet...felt a bit strange all this free stuff but I went with it...although you had to cook your own breakfast so I obviously didn't benefit from that freebie seeing as I am alergic to cooking.

So for two nights I slept on the bottom bunk with eight other people in the room. And as lady luck would have it I also met two lovely people - Alex (who is actually Swedish but she had such an amazing English accent I was like 'which part of London are you from?'...) and the lovely Richard (who actually is British).

And dorm life was good. For two days that is. Alex was slightly horrified at the fact a Japanese guy over 40 was sleeping in the same dorm. He snored and farted throughout the night and naturally we were all suffered as a consequence. Still I couldn't help feeling a bit sorry for him. Poor guy - he was really friendly. Obviously seeing as I am heading rather more quickly than I'd like towards the door of 40 I actually felt myself starting to resonate with him; travelling on his own and...well, that was about it but anyway I was having a compassionate moment and decided to go with it. Suddenly reality smacked me in the face. 'You're not quite there yet, Neen' I told myself. Horrified with my 'over 40 sympathy' dalliance I pulled myself together 'sod the old bastard' I thought...while I could still get away with such a comment...

Ended up spending the day looking around Singers with Richard (see pic above)which was where I finally admitted to the fact that I'm unable to read a map. Yep, I've been travelling for nine months now and I've only just been able to accept the fact I have no real idea where I'm going most of the time. In fact thinking about it I'm lucky to be alive. The way I read a map ie not at all I should for all intense and purposes be at the bottom of the Bengal sea..I have no idea.

Sadly for Richard he experienced this first hand when I made him - I can be very persuasive when I think I know where I'm going...so much so that I actually believe it myself - walk up and down Orchid Road several times. Admittedly it wasn't the worst street in the world to walk up and down. We stepped out in front of Gucci, Prada and the like a number of times but even I got a bit bored with myself repeadedly saying 'shite, I think this is the wrong way again, lets go back'.

Now I'd know Richard about one hour when I started inflicting this slow form of torcher on him. You know the kind when you've only just met the person so you don't want to offend. Typical British politness - if Richard had been German he would've told me I was wrong and crap right away! By the seventh time I'd taken us down the same road I looked over at Richard and could tell he was thinking 'is she for real'...I sighed and did something I never usually do. I admitted I was wrong. And I didn't know where I was going.

Hi, my name is Nina - sometimes I am wrong and usually I don't know where I'm going'. Perhaps a new mantra?

I gingerly gave the map to Richard as I said; 'you should read it and besides I can't really read maps so you know you shouldn't have let me try to direct us anyway'....I squirmed when I heard myself saying this - he smirked and gently removed the map from my grip...

Pics above are of me and Richard plus me at the Fountain of Wealth which I obviously had to have a pic of me with it - felt is would be a positive omen...here's hoping!