fun with a yellow 100mm rubber ball.

Juggling. I am focussing my attention across three disciplines which is slow but steady...3 ball, club and contact. My arm muscles and concentration are improving and I have made some new friends in the form of Lincoln Juggling Club. Juggling is the way forwards.

I would also like to sway you to read a fantastic blog by my new Glastonbury friend Sara, she is the only person I've ever met, who I firmly believe could actually be a fairy in disguise. By any terms this means you should take notice of all the important things she has to say...i wish i was a giant anteater... 

On to business...
So far this adventurous calling has not let me down, I'm having a fantastic year. With the festival season drawing to a close, signifying the end of what I have come to class as 'Summer' it is time to assess the mission. I have completed my initially confirmed adventure plans:


'So far the the adventures I have lined up are:
- to travel with my sister adventurous-times.blogspot.com from Kathmandu, Nepal to Goa, India.
- to Skydive for charity http://www.justgiving.com/giselle-Silvester any sponsorship would be much appreciated!
- to have a brilliant Summer of festivals.'

These and many more adventures have been amazing.


Although my general aim is not to snub any new frontier be it learning to recognise garden bird sounds, learning to balance a sphere on my head or swimming in the north sea at 6am (all of which are wondrous adventures I've embarked on in the last month), I feel things become more purposeful and that I can tackle bigger challenges with a hard and fast focus. So I am confirming some plans and tickling the mission with more ferocity:

- To live in London. One of the most terrifying, enticing crazy places in the world is right on my doorstep, riddled with challenge and adventure like its got warts. If I am to embrace all the world has to offer I will start in the homeland and pitch The Big Smoke as my challenger.

- To run a marathon. After a few months merely stating that 'I'd like to run a marathon' and thinking about it a lot, which definitely wont help me achieve it, I have decided to take on a 24 week plan. Week 1 in progress.
I am yet to commit to a run but if anyone has one and is planning, or would also like to put some focus in to this with me, then let me know and we can take steps together. After this I want to Joggle a marathon...I wont be satisfied that true adventure has been fulfilled unless i do.

- to finally go to a secret cinema event...secret surprises are always exciting!

Massive Love
The Adventurous Future Spice Shop Owner. 

They definitely drink whisky in Heaven.

I can see it now... all the happy colourful folk sat around a toasty fire at dawn (because that's the best time of day) reminiscing about their past lives, playing music, sharing secrets, eating all the most delicious foods from around the world followed by swigging of the finest whisky ever imagined. Undeniably heaven.

Nothing in particular has happened today except for the introduction of some amazing new music in to my life. One of my new festival friends, fondly known as Monkey Boy, set me up an ingenious little thing called a dropbox, where we can share files. He has promised to send me an album of the week because my favourite way to learn about new music is from others. The first instalment came today and, ultimately, I am in love:

Eulogy for Evolution by Ólafur Arnalds. 
If anyone has listened to The Single Man soundtrack, it reminds me of this. Mostly strings and piano, you can't go wrong with evocative violin, I will probably listen to little else all week!


Today has been a day for daydreaming, juggling and listening to beauty.

The New Obsession

P.S If anyone else fancies supplying me with a constant stream of music please do!

Fresh Irish air

So, I'm currently in Ireland, Parrot sitting on the beautiful Donegal coast. Inside I've got Jack the African Grey and Buttercup the budgie for conversation and when I step out of the door it is just me and the Atlantic ocean, the wind is salty and cool with a hint of cow from the field across the way. I can bird watch to my hearts content, herons, sea gulls, sparrows, blue tits, swallows, maybe a sparrow hawk if I'm lucky, and frequent visits from 'Matilda' the hooded crow with her boyfriend, and 'Tup Tup' the pheasant with his hens. Perfect.'The freshest air in Europe' my Granddad says, and it feels it.

A wee reminder that I'm fundraising for the wonderful charity Read International, I will be jumping out of a plane in July. If you can spare even £1 that would be fantastic, you can find out more and donate direct to the charity online at http://www.justgiving.com/Giselle-Silvester , it takes a few seconds an will really be appreciated by me, the team and the people of Tanzania.

Massive love to Everyone
xxx

Jaipur pushes us to the peak of irritation.

My first diary entry of the day was written in the angriest implicative tone of voice possible...

'Alicia has lost our first aid kit, I still have the drugs (paracetamol etc.).

We both have sore feet and need plasters!'

It is followed rather quickly with a sense of self congratulation, 

'All is fine, I found it on the bed after all.'

After this minor fiasco we take our usual walk into town with the relentless rickshaw drivers and tour guides snapping at our heels the whole way. The sun is sweltering and I feel much like a shrivelled tomato worthy of a Mediterranean dinner. 

Happy Birthday Tom Bristow x

Alicia 'Do you think if I marry an optician I can get cheap glasses?' 'Why dont you just marry a rich man?'

2/4/11
After our meander into and out of town yesterday we were ravenous. Unfortunately or fortunately, however you want to see it, we walked into Nero's which happens to have the iciest air-conditioning and the iciest iced tea I have ever known. It also happens to be rather pricey but what can you do when you have entered the room? The alternate of stepping back outside into the scorching sun was worth paying to avoid, so we stayed and had a pricey yet delicious meal.

3/4/11
HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!
The walk to town was in no way improved and we have come to the conclusion there is nothing you can do in Jaipur to deter the rickshaw drivers and young men from pestering you. We resiliently plough forth and make our way to 'The Palace of Winds' or 'Hawa Mahal'

'you look like shakira' , 'nice boobs' , 'shit, wakka wakka', ''what country is missing you' 'can i take your photo, can i have a kiss?'...Jaipur, the city apparently inhabited by the most irritating men in the world.

1st April, am sad to miss April fools day :( because it is one of the best days of the year, i suspect it may not be met with such jollity by ususpecting Indians. We didnt do very much today  except walk around and watch the 9pm movie  (the TV signal is fixed).

2nd April, We had breakfast at our hotel...the only good thing about  being at this hotel is we can order room service to our clean room.   I was entertained by a TV advert that told me something was 'Bloody cool'. We  spent our first day wondering around...the city is busy!!! Out of all the places we have been this is by far the worst place for rickshaw drivers, they relentlessly follow you down the street, sure that you cannot possibly walk two kilometers and as soon as you shake off one, another appears. The streets are also swarmed with young men asking you for chai and 'why do you always say no?' it makes getting from a to b, trying at best.

I did however love walking through the bazaars, the streets within the pink city (named because it is pinkish) are well ordered and so its almost like a crazy open air department store (really bad analogy). The textiles area was my favorite because the street was just a throng of colour and sequins. Dazzling.

In these streets though, there are some really harrowing moments that take you away. As a tourist it  becomes easy to rush around, metaphorically closing your eyes, there is a stray dog, pile of  rubbish and beggar on every corner, it would be too easy to breakdown and become absorbed with the sadness here so you put up a wall and walk by because you're not really sure what to do, but sometimes it really hits you whether you want to let it or not. In Jaipur we walked past a guy staring at the ground and following his gaze, saw a thin old man, there is a clear difference between a sleeping man and a dead body and if this man was alive, he was barely hanging on. A few more people came over and began to look so we walked away. You cannot escape from anything here, life, death, ecstasy, misery, it is all thrust into your face in the most unforgiving way you can imagine.

The shop has a name!

31/03/11
On the move again, we begin our day with a bus journey from Agra to Jaipur, Rajasthan! I am begining to enjoy the bus journeys alot, i find it relaxing to sit with or without music plaing and just think and today was a day of revelation. My future spice shop has a name...'Typical Spice Shoppy' inspired by this trip to India and my enjoyment every time I see a good sign...'Agra marble shoppy',' Typical restaurant', 'decent guesthouse', 'Ok guesthouse,' 'John is here' (I suspect 'join us here' was intended though john may very well be there' , I believe this name is perfect.

In Agra we discovered our first 'Cafe Coffee Day' which is an Indian coffee chain...who would have thought it takes a trip to India for my to finally succumb to a coffee chain, but the aircon was sooooo good! We got takeaway spinach and sweetcorn sandwiches and some biscuits for our journey. I unfortunately lost half of my sandwich to the bus curtains due to a badly times sneeze...its ok nobody noticed except Alicia. I am now on to a fresh notebook, which means I'm catching up on the blog! The first page is filled with my spice shop ramblings, a little doodle and a declaration of love for the 5rs pen I bought in Nepal, I also state that anything is possible in India and nothing is a surprise after seeing a man showering in the doorway of his bus. Literally the only thing that would shock me would be the discovery that someone is not trying to openly overcharge me!

On the bus today I see a sign..'BEWARE. ALL ROADS LEAD TO HELL'...this is not a happy thought so i hope that this sign is very wrong. There is a man and a little boy on the bus and they are the sweetest thing I have ever seen...I have also never seen eyelashes like theirs!

We arrive in Jaipur and find our way easily to some hotels...they are all claiming to be a rip off. We eventually settle on an ok price for a room and stay at hotel Kalayan. We are elated to find our rooms spotlessly clean, including a television!WOW. Unfortunately we soon come to realise that we would rather have a grubby room and useful friendly staff...this hotel was a bit of mental struggle (more so than usual).

This evening we settled down to relax and watch the 9pm movie...after a few minutes the TV signal went...Alicia nearly broke down. I enjoy India's unpredictability.

Massive love to home xxx

Me 'I like the Taj mahal' Alicia 'I like the toilets...i mean dogs'

Agra. Alicia is ill again...on entering the site the first thing she says 'what if I am sick on the Taj Mahal?', we began walking slowly but due to sitting, then standing, then sitting my trousers split...I search my bag  for some safety pins, no such forward planning.... not wanting to sit anymore, this is when we separated... it means in my most unsympathetic manner I can walk around the Taj in peace...we both admit that this time alone time was great. My irritating superstitious mind is given a boost again when I look down and see on the floor... a safety pin, the Taj is showing me some love :) I can now pin my trouser leg up! Magic.

The Taj is probably the tourist hub of India, we are charged 750rs to see the Taj when locals are charged something like 25rs but in my opinion despite the crowds and the unashamed tourist quota it was worth it. For those who dont know the story it was built in memory of Shah Jahan's most loved wife who died in childbirth, he had it built in her memory to be the most beautiful building in the world and I actually think it is. It is nigh on perfectly symmetrical and has no backdrop but the sky, which makes it dazzling from a distance and as you get closer it honestly gets more impressive. My favorite part was the interior chamber, the stone work was immense and beautiful...literally every part of this building is perfect. My only complaint was the night time illumination, though i suppose if it was illuminated you would not get the brilliant moonlight to the same effect. Magnificent.

As we leave, I meet Alicia from the toilets, we watch some dogs playing. I confessed my love for the monument, Alicia subconsciously confesses her love for the toilets. Back at the hotel India have won their game against Pakistan, Happy Times! We watch some rather disappointing fireworks from our roof, one in particular gained a response from me 'Well that was a fail of a pancake...I mean firework'. Clearly we are both losing our minds, I didn't even eat a pancake that day.

On to Rajasthan, The Land of The Kings. :)

Varanasi is like a dream

Varanasi has taken hold and I am now literally dreaming of the place...the night before we left I had a crazydream about getting completely lost in the galleys...worrying!

This morning we got up early, 5ish, and went for the required Ganges boat ride. Wonderful. The sun over the river that flows from the feet of vishnu, or maybe descends from a hair of shiva (there isnt much concrete evidence defining which story ois most accurate) was beautiful. many people had made the effort and the water was filled with boats. We rowed (not us literally, that would have been a catastrophe of circles) up and down the river for an hour, passing the ghats with people bathing, bodies burning, prayer and birds soaring low. One man dressed in white and meditating by the water looked completely at peace with the world.

The wind is up today so it feels much cooler, which is nice, although I love it her I am eagerly awaiting Rajasthan. Our train to Agra was an overnight one so we spent the day chilling and reading. Although tolkien is great I was distracted frequently by fear of monkey attack. One came close but was more interested in turnign on the tap and having a drink before vainly checking himself out in the mirror...'still got it!'

Our first sleeper train where we intend to sleep...what excitement! I could not believe how cold the carriage was at night thank god for my thick pashmina and hoodie.  We arrived at 7am to get our first glimpse of the impressive Taj Mahal!

Not enough hours in the day to blog. Varanasi continued

It seems Varanasi (Benares) has been the most intriguing place to date, so much so that my notebook for this period consists of very little. Maybe it was just too interesting to describe in words.

notes I made:
- Thought man said 'you are strange' ...he didnt
- There are tonnes of fish basking along the edge of the river, I wonder what they are?
- its peaceful even in the chaos
- They are mating cows on the main ghat...not sure the female is happy as she is tied to a post and the man keeps pulling or hitting the bull.
- tried drinking water from the bottle how indian's do it...raised from the mouth and pour it in...catastrophe...I am now covered in water.
- cutest puppy in the world just got up and sat down in the river.
- i love the flutter of paper kites.
- Man politely offered us some opium and good hash...apparently its good enough for the sadhus, I am not a sadhu.
- Alicia is definitely more angry than me.
- man walked past and said 'you like sun?' 'yes' 'ok happy day'
- people have tried a variety of photo tactics...some just ask...some take a photo of a friend with us in the background. I feel bad for famous folk.
- lots of people bathing.
- I am definitely glad velcro is not silent because i can hear if my bag is being opened.
- Broke indian man named Mowgli's heart apparently, by not going for chai with him...sorry dude.
- I worry waaaay too much.
- Varanasi has a brilliant sunset, kites fill the sky and the city is silhouetted by and orange glow.
- i think mary poppins would like it here.
- Went to evening ceremony, it happens every night at around 630pm. A wonderful show of prayer/puja at the main ghat, the river is filed with candles and boats, people fill the ghat, everywhere is colour and smoke and music.
- alicia's mustache hurts
- evening on the rooftop, people are sat playing music together. we played yahtzee.
- Two more days in Varanasi to go.