Journal Entry March 20

Right now I'm so filled with a joy beyond words. The journey so far has been amazing. I contribute that to two things, God and great travel companions.

I met up with Jess and Anna at the railway station around 9:15 pm and our train arrived by 9:20. Earlier in the day I checked on our PNR status (lets you know if you have seats and where) and got our seating (previously we were on a wait list, though we were confirmed) and was excited that we were all together. First yeah God! In our compartment were two very nice older men, very polite and just plain sweet.

There was a lot of tossing and turning that night, but we did all manage to get some sleep. Wake-up on the train is always a long process - Indians were already sleeping when we got on and some didn't wake until nearly 10 am! We brought plenty of food, so when a guy came by with chai we ate breakfast. It was a good thing we brought food because not one person came by with any food to sell.

For the most part, the trip was uneventful. Our travel companions left early, one before we woke. Two ladies sleeping in the aisle seats had taken up 1/2 the space under our seats with their luggage. I talked with the daughter and she said she is getting married in June, so they had been shopping for that. Also, she is a doctor and she needed a lot of books that were not available in her city. There were also two little boys who came to talk to us. One was about 13 and his 9 year old brother. At the age of 2, the younger boy started watching Ram somebody (a yogi) and learned some of his "moves". One included rolling his stomach and the other sucking his stomach in so that the sides of his abdominals cave in and his middle section (from this chest to the pelvis, about a 2" width) was rock solid. A little freaky, but quit a feat.

Albert's driver met us at the station in Raxaul and when we got to the car, Reema and Rhea (Albert and Pushpa's two daughters) as well as two of the children from the orphanage were waiting. It was wonderful.

Jess forgot to bring passport pics, so we stopped to get some taken. We had decided earlier to go through immigration that night, in case there were delays in the morning, so we were a little pressed for time. But I did have time to stop by and see Pushpa and the other kids. And what a surprise to see one of Pushpa's sisters and brother-in-law there!

On the Indian side of the border, the immigration office was closed. They had just left and were able to make a quick return. The guys (I've never seen that many there) were very good natured, joking, asking when we were coming back to India, where we'd been, what we thought of India, etc. I felt the best I've ever felt at the border crossing, able to joke back and keep it all lite. When all was said and done, we were processed with out the dreaded mandatory 2 month out stamp. :) Yea God!

Onto Nepal. We were now venturing on two rickshaws, the cars were not allowed over without paying a relatively high price. Immigration was also closed. We sat out front with the Nepali Army guys and they had called someone from immigration and were told it would be about 10 minutes. Wow, I didn't expect them to return. [The stars were out and as I gazed at them I marveled at how awesome God is.] Again, it was a group of guys that arrived. The main guy was hilarious, as he asked us for something for coming back, wanting to know where we wanted our visa sticker, etc. I told him he should be a comedian - they all laughed.

When we got to the hotel we gave the two boys who helped make sure we got in the right place (Ashish and Prikash) a handful each of American caramels (they have no idea what a treat they are, but they were so excited by them). We got check in and found the restaurant had already closed for the night - we knew we weren't in India any more! But they offered to bring us some food and let me tell you, that chicken sandwich was the best.

Jess and Anna slept well, me - not so much. My room was active with mosquitoes; not sure why I didn't remember repellent, but I did have some Avon Skin So Soft, which did a good job.

At 7 am they brought us chai and a message the two boys from Raxaul were waiting. How sweet, they came to help us get on the bus. And, by 8 am, that bus was underway, with us on it.

The then it's been fairly smooth (thought bumpy, as my hand writing will testify). I am so enjoying the ride. I have a shotgun seat and Jess & Anna are behind the driver. This will be so helpful when those curves start up. Two unexpected sights - a guy on a bicycle pulling a cart with some dead animal (maybe a cow or donkey). And the other was a motorcycle with a pole hanging 1.5 feet off either side of the cycle (width wise), tied to it, by their feet were 20+ live chickens.