Заметки на манжетах кругосветного путешественника

1 декабря 2004 года лауреат нашего клуба Миша Цельман отправился в кругосветное путешествие, и мы с большим удовольствием публикуем на сети его путевые заметки.

"You are converting from tourist into a traveler"

Tue, 31 May 2005 07:24:32 -0700 (PDT)
Note 13 - India

Dear friends,
I'm sitting in the airport in Delhi and typing my last note from India (at least the last Note of this season in India). It is almost +45C outside, but the airport is air-conditioned and despite the fact that my plane leaves only in 12 hours I prefer the cool air of the airport. It was also very hot in Rishikesh, where I once again spent a few days before coming to Delhi to fly away from India. Just a couple of nights ago I woke up in the middle of the night in Rishikesh and wrote the following in my little notepad. more

Sun, 1 May 2005 07:45:20 -0700 (PDT)
Note 12 - India

Dear friends,
I have recently returned from a 10 day trek to the Indian Himalayas. To be more precise, I have trekked through the region just to the south-east of the famous Nanda Devi - the tallest mountain wholly in India. There are many historical accounts of the dramatic Nanda Devi ascents, but right now the mountain itself and the immediate surroundings are closed off for public access. But I got more than a glimpse of the immense East wall of the mountain, which (the wall) is by itself over 4000m tall. The mountain itself is just under 8000 meters tall. As everything in India, this trip was testing my ability to adapt to rapid changes in the plans and itineraries, but in the end everything worked out just great. I was simply happy to be there, in the valleys and hills between magical Himalayan summits. more

Fri, 25 Mar 2005 03:24:33 -0800 (PST)
Note 11 - India

Dear friends,
It's been almost a month since I arrived to the town of Rishikesh and I have not travelled since then. This is a place, were instead of exploring the worlds of people and nature, one explores the other worlds, those of the body, the mind and the soul. I know that to many of you these words may seem unnatural and they would sound unnatural and superficial to me as well, had I not been here, in India, in Rishikesh doing just that. As the people here say half-jokingly: "In India, anything is possible, sir" and shake their head from side to side in a very indian way.more

Date: Sun, 6 Mar 2005 04:05:58 -0800 (PST)
Note 10 - India

Dear friends,
I just realized that already 10 days passed since I have sent the last trip note. I'm still in the town of Rishikesh that I have started describing in my previous note. If in Pushkar I have converted from tourist into a traveller, here in Rishikesh I'm becoming more of a student. A student of yoga, a student of meditation, a student of ayurveda, a student of people communication, a student of acceptance of life as it is. Not that I'm actively engaged in each of those disciplines. In some, I am and some just come as a part of overall experience. This is the second time in my life when I realize how much absence of a return ticket or a return deadline changes the way we experience things while away from home. There is no "have to do", "have to see", "should not miss", etc... The thinking becomes more clear, and there are no worries about day-to-day chores. I think I'm beginning to understand some of the eastern ways of life and thought. more

Date: Fri, 25 Feb 2005 03:28:46 -0800 (PST)
Note 9 - India

Dear friends,
I feel like I have not written anything for ages, even though only 10 days have passed since I sent the last trip note. Just yesterday evening I have arrived to Rishikesh - the amazing town/village in the very early foothills of the Himalayas, where the Ganges river takes its source. The river, still clean, flows through the Rishikesh which is placed in a very scenic location in the narrow river valley with temples and houses spanning both shores and long suspension bridges connecting them. The river is wide and fast. There are some middle grade rapids and the river is about 100-200 meters wide. The town of Rishikesh is known as THE meditation and yoga center of India and the world. It is full of yoga ashrams, youga centers, meditation centers, classes for beginners and classes for youga teachers from all over the world. This is the place where Maharishi started, this is the place that Beatles visited for meditation classes, this is the place where Osho comes to do his teachings and many other most world famous yogis and meditation teachers teach and practice. more

Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2005 10:27:37 -0800 (PST)
Note 8 - India

Dear friends,
In my previous message (Note 7) I left off promising to tell you about the traditional indian wedding I was invited to attend by some total strangers. The guy who invited me was from the groom's side and so that was the side of the wedding I've seen the most. We first drove out of the city to the groom's house, and found him on a very decorated horse going to a local temple. After a really brief visit to the temple he disappeared somewhere and then everyone from the groom's side was loaded on buses and cars (about 6-8 people per really tiny car) and driven back to the outskirts of the city, where groom on the horse was ready to go in the weding procession. more

Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2005 22:33:48 -0800 (PST)
Note 7 - India

Hello friends,
Only a few days passed since I arrived in India, but the pace is so fast here that I feel like I already have too much to write about. On arrival Delhi hits you hard. It hits all your senses at the same time: the smell, the hearing, the touch, the sight, the taste, the spice, the brain. You get a complete sensory overload right from the airport. And if you are an unlucky traveler like me and are not picked up from the airport by your hotel and it is a night time, then you can experience the whole list of schemes used for extracting money from travellers in one single taxi ride. more

Date: Sun, 6 Feb 2005 01:30:53 -0800 (PST)
Note 6 (Australia)

Dear friends,
I have been travelling in Australia for 3+ weeks now and tmorrow night I'll be leaving to India. While sightseeing in Australia has been on my agenda, the main purpose of stopping over here has been to see my cousin and her son in Melbourne. I have not seen them for 13 years and was waiting to meet them after all those years. We had a really happy family reunion, but as this would probably interest a much smaller circle than this distribution, I’ll skip the details. more

Date: Wed, 12 Jan 2005 19:31:06 -0800 (PST)
Note 5 (New Zealand)

Hello Friends,
This is my last day in New Zealand. Tomorrow early morning I'm flying out to Australia. It is finally sunny in New Zealand, but it is also a time to leave. I have a feeling that I had enough of New Zealand exploration. For the past 2 weeks I have been travelling around the North Island after arriving to Wellington by a ferry that crosses the Cook Straight between the South and Norht Islands. more

Date: Mon, 27 Dec 2004 23:38:12 -0800 (PST)
Note 4 (New Zealand)

Hello Friends,
I'm in the city of Nelson, that is on the Northern shore of Southern Island of New Zealand. Our attempt to get some more climbing and maybe even climb mt. Cook or mt. Tasman has failed due to the bad weather. After we got down from mt. Aspiring climb and rested for a day, we drove to the Fox Glacier Village, that is located at the base of mt. Cook mountain range. From there we hoped to get a heli-ride to the hut and then spend 8-10 days in a high mountain hut climbing the nighboring peaks. Well... The weather decided otherwise.more

Date: Tue, 21 Dec 2004 16:26:20 -0800 (PST)
Subject: Note 3 (New Zealand)

Dear friends,
I have just returned from an 8 day climbing trip back to civilization. Our goal was to climb mt. Aspiring (3047m) by a classic SW ridge route (NZ grade 3+, French D+). The weather was the major factor and we've been unlucky with the weather so far. It's mostly raining at the low elevations and snowing with gale force winds higher up. Climbing in New Zealand is probably close similar to climbing conditions in Patagonia. more

Date: Sat, 11 Dec 2004 19:45:35 -0800 (PST)
Subject: Note 2 (New Zealand)

Hello friends,
I just returned from Kepler Tramp - a 4 day trek through the mountains and forests on the south tip of the south island of New Zealand. "Tramp" is the word that New Zealanders use for hiking. So we did some "tramping". The tramps go along well maintained trails and you can sleep at the huts which have bunk beds and kitchen areas with gas stoves and water. All you need to bring is some food to cook, sleeping bag and some rain gear and warm clothes. So you travel light and have a chance to look at the scenery which is quite beautiful despite the not so great weather. But we've got lucky as it rains much less than it is predicted. The distances between huts are relatively short: 15-17 kilometers although some days require over 1000meters elevaition gains, so you arrive early and have the whole afternoon to chat with fellow trampers from all over the world, read a bit and do radial hikes from the hut. more

Date: Sat, 4 Dec 2004 18:38:24 -0800 (PST)
From: Michael Tselman
Subject: Note 1 (New Zealand)

Hello friends,
As most of you know, I quit the job and started a long journey through Asia, South Pacific and other parts of the world. This is the first one of a hopefully long series of travel notes that I will try to keep on writing from my extended journey.
Just over 30 hours and a set of changing planes takes me from New York to Christchurch, New Zealand. This is where my journey begins. It is the December 3rd when I arrive - the first days of summer here. I'm met by rainy weather, low clouds and strong winds. more