backup specs

i got my backup specs and some sunglasses today. there's a big knot of bone where the bridge of my perfectly formed nose used to be (another lingering annoyance from the eye thing) which makes choosing a set of specs an ordeal. i don't quite get why they put stickers on them - i can see sod all from my left eye and it didn't help that there were stickers over the right lens of each pair i tried on. i'll get them tomorrow and look like christopher biggins or something.

i managed to convince myself that a cheaper alternative to the 50 quid pack-chain thing to secure my pack on trains etc. was to get a rucksack liner and padlock. so i bought them, saving me £15. nice one, subway on the way home to celebrate.

i got home, put some stuff in it and locked it up. "hmm... how would someone get into that if they wanted to then? that reminds me, i really should get a pocketknife sorted..." *cough* i'll get the 50 quid pack-chain thingy when i pick up my specs tomorrow.

i should really get my visa sorted soon. i'm thinking next week, thursday sounds good. the high commission of india in london processes visa applications between 08:30 - 13:00 so i either need to get there on wednesday night by megabus and stay in a hotel (getting there at about 1am - damn having to work next week) or getting the early train. which costs a million pounds.

it begins - how will i get from a to b? how much will it cost? shall i go overnight so i don't need accommodation? why are virgin trains so expensive?

malaria and hinduism

there's malaria in goa, and also in the north-east of india. the north west and centre are relatively malaria-free. nice one.

i still have to take the tablets from the day or two before i head to goa, to 28 days after i leave the north-east. i've been a bit worried about taking these tablets as some can have worrying side effects. these ones make me more susceptible to sunlight which might mess up the plans for tannage. if there is any tannage to be had that is - hopefully goa won't let me down.

had some more jabs today, and now i'm eating too much hummous before curling up and reading about hinduism. it looks nuts, i think i'll like it

flickr

here's where i'll be uploading my photos

http://www.flickr.com/photos/davidouch/

nearly free

only 2 more days of this week, hopefully none of next week, and monday to wednesday the week after and i'm free. from work at least, i will have to wait until january for the real freedom.

gandhi's autobiography came today to keep me occupied when i'm not planning a route and finding places to stay - i'm a bit bored of wikitravel and lonely planet. i realised a week or so ago that i know nothing of gandhi, and i feel i really should if i want to understand anything about the way the india of today is the way it is. the mahabharata was interesting, but it is so far removed from reality to me at the moment it was quite difficult to find any meaning in it. luckily it's pretty thin (it's a heavily abridged version, the original runs to 9000 odd verses) so i'll take it with me and see how it takes after i've been in india awhile.

jabs again on monday

jabs

hepatitis A, rabies and japanese encephalitis so far (2/3 rounds)

just in case anyone was cultivating any to throw at me :)

£75 per bloody round though

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office

so.. being a tad freaked out about going to a country where "your senses will be constantly assaulted from the minute you arrive" i thought it would be a good idea to check out some Government advice.

http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1007029391116

i wanted to die when i read this.... they're taking the mick, surely?

EDIT: They've removed the funny part, something about false nails and hair dye or something...