The Hide Out - day one pt2

Phill here - We thought it would be easier breaking this up into chunks rather than posting one massive blog on this place.
After lunch me and gem went out for a wander around the little village that we were staying in. This is all rural farmland and the community is a tribal one living off the land in a very simple way that hasn't really changed in a few hundred years.
The landscape is stunning, incredibly lush and full of the sounds of birds, chickens and kids playing in the street, and the feint ring of a cow bell in the fields.



It was really peaceful strolling through the village and the fields.

This is a panoramic pic, not sure how it will come out when you click on it but worth a try

Wen we got back after our walk we engaged ourselves in some strenuous relaxation.
About 6ish we were invited to do some yoga with Hemant, his mother and the two housemaids. This isn't really my cup of tea, but Gem adores yoga so i took one for the team and joined in. Surprisingly i enjoyed it! It had gone dark by now so everywhere was candlelit, and there was a really nice cool breeze wafting in.
Tea this evening was a really nice selection of lentil daahl, red rice with chilli and lime, ochra, steamed beetroot, cucumber salad with chaat masala and some freshly baked roti. It is purely vegetarian here with a strong lean towards fresh raw foods, i thought i would spend two days 'getting by' but actually the food has been lovely, really tasty and with a good bit of spice!











We sat infront of the fire to eat, sitting cross legged for more than 5 minutes is flipping painful and i ended up pretty much lying on the floor!

We ate tea quite late, so by the time we had finished eating, and chatting, and sipping our herbal chai it was nearly 11 so we decided to go to bed.

Location:Jhadpoli Village, Thappar Pada, district Thane

The Hide Out - day one pt1

Gem here, phills asleep!!!
So we left the airport in a jeep style car after seeing a bit of paper with our names in green pen being held by Mr Pinto.....the man we were expecting to pick us up to take us the two hour drive into the tribal village of Jhadpoli and to the place we were to stay for two nights.....The Hideout.
I managed to get some sleep in the back of the car and woke up when the car had been stopped at a so called toll to pay some money to a load of tribal men. As it turns out this group of men were getting everyone who passed and used the road to pay some money to them so that they could have a festival celebration, apparently some big shot diplomat was going to use the road that day and so the money goes towards a festival and this is common practice!! Odd.
We arrived at the Hideout at about midday after driving through acres of countryside, through hamlets of tribes etc. We were greeted by Hemant, a well traveled philanthropist and yogi with a real sense of spirituality with the belief that raw food can cure all ailments. He is a genuinely lovely guy with a welcoming heart, kind face and nature. He has spent the last 25 years building the Hideout up in a really eco friendly way, he recycles everything, re uses, no food goes to waste, his mum lives here too, he eats healthy wholesome raw foods from the land and has a large fruit and herb farm. The place is amazing!! Truly fantastic. We loved six senses in Vietnam but here we have loved it because we have just stopped. Literally. We have been snoozing on the hammocks, blogging, reading, eating, doing yoga and thats about it today apart from we did venture out for a walk into the village to have a wander and get stared at. We did some yoga with Hemant, his mum, aunt and two lady helpers/workers which was lovely in the early evening.
This place is not for people wanting luxury, it is not for people who expect electricity all day, or hot water, white towels, toilet roll etc. The place is back to basics in those things. There is only electricity for some of the day, bring your own toilet paper and towels ( we hadn't realised this so borrowed towels and used wet wipes) and expect there to be no hot water. However, this place has alot going for it.It is simply stunning and without wanting to sound too much like a hippy it has a really good energy. You can spend your time just chilling and lounging around, sitting in a hammock, doing what you please. You can go and help out in the kitchen preparing the fruit and veg that has literally just been harvested from the farm, and learn how they make interesting raw food salads and make lentil dahl and gluten free breads. We ate so well today and I don't mean because there was loads of it or it was posh food or anything. We arrived and were greeted with a glass of freshly pressed hibiscus juice which was very welcome after two hours in a hot car / post flight / post very long and crazy night out ( the upside is that the copious amounts of salsa dancing we did may have burnt off a few calories, I'm missing my daily exercise!) . The juice was lovely. We got to our room ....
There are a few different choices at the Hideout as far as accommodation. You can stay in a brick house, eco cottage or camp out in the forest. We chose the brick house. We had chosen the eco cottage but after a summer of being munched by midges in my own country and what with the nurse saying we did not need to take anti malaria tablets I changed my mind at the last minute and opted for the brick house as the eco cottage just had a cow dung roof with a tree log frame just like the main building so it didnt have any windows or doors, just open space with a bed in the middle. The brick house was mostly made out of brick and cow dung/clay but it still had open windows but it had a door. The ceiling was open tiles on top of bamboo struts. The bathroom was a very simple bamboo towel rail, western style toilet ( or pot as its known here), a simple slow flow shower and sink. There was a frog near the toilet when i went to go to the loo so i ended up putting it back out of the window, a few years ago I may have had a screaming fit!! Don't get me wrong I am terrified of spiders, cockroaches, lizards...most things that crawl or buzz for that matter and i must have sweet blood as they all love me and bite me. And camping, nature and the outdoors is certainly not my fave thing but I like to experience new things, get out of my comfort zone once in a while so thats what we did. The mosquito net supported by four bamboo canes around the bed had a few holes in so i had a bear grills idea of putting plasters over the holes



and we also slept individually in the bed under a mosquito net each wrapped around us, i got munched regardless!! They seem to like my bum and thighs! I thought they were just after blood and not fat. If someone really likes privacy and security while away then this place is not for them. There is no safe and no key for the door, you operate on a trust basis. The windows are open frames and have thin material used as drapes so they can be seen through but again, you appreciate and understand that other people know it is a window to a room and wont look through.
After we had chucked the frog out of the window we sat down for lunch with Hemant, his mum and aunt. Lunch was delicious, i was so impressed. We had fresh salads, chutneys, rice flower chapatti, lentils, rice and other things that were yummy that i don't remember the names of, along with herbal tea with added lemon juice and jhagaree ( don't know how to spell it but it is a natural molasses) followed by a couple of energy balls made out of natural sugars and nuts, Phill loved them! (Yep they are like mini snickers)

The way that things are prepared by the two young ladies ( staff members, one 19 and the other 22, tribal women from local communities) is brilliant. They sit on the floor to roll the breads, they grate and grind and even make spaghetti out of cucumbers and beetroots. There are plenty of nuts, seeds, lentils, beans and salad sprouts used and it is all done in such a calm and precise manner.


After lunch we sat with Hemant and chatted about the place, how he travelled the world, how he sold belts in Europe and purchased the land of the hideout and started to plant trees 25 years ago and it took something like 19 years to hear the birds come. His story is amazing, he is inspiring. Ok, i find a few things he touches on a bit far fetched. Where as i believe that everything happens for a reason, you choose to take certain paths and meet certain people he goes deeper and beyond that and thinks we are all connected and we can all be more intuitive. I dont think many people are intuitive, i am a bit but not like those communities in the tribal hamlets, they have to be and they know no different. We then went on to talk about children, home births, hypnobirths etc and his take on all of that was interesting and we agreed on it.

Location:Jhadpoli Village, Thappar Pada, district Thane

On our way to Mumbai

PHEW we made it! I thought I had lost the plot a bit there but have regained myself now!
Our night out in Hauz Khas was fantastic!
We went to a really cool bar called the Smokehouse Deli that was recommended to us by Prashant, it was well decorated and had the best air con so far. (Trust me, air con is your friend when it's still 33deg at 9:00pm)
They still need to work on the entrance though.




After some drinks, and meeting the Indian Ben Howard, weaves on to another recommendation, 'out of the box' it was sold to us as an amazing Shisha bar, but it turned out to be a top night of Salsa dancing!
We sat upstairs initially which was really cool and full of wicker lanterns, (air con average).

Now at this point we should have gone home, and we did actually make it out of the door, but only as far as the cash machine by which time we had both convinced each other that drinking through it was the best course of action.
So we went back into out of the box, and salsa'd our butts off until the wee small hours. I did get kicked in the back by a girl who was being flung around by her partner but it was all good.

We got up ridiculously early after about 2 hours sleep, finished packing our bags and went down, a bit late, to our taxi for the airport.
Thankfully the roads are fairly quiet at this time of the day so we get to the airport in good time.
After checking in, we realise food is required otherwise it's going to get messy, so we went to the food hall and ordered the quintessential Indian breakfast.... Costa toasted sandwiches and a latte! We practically inhale them then head downstairs to wait for our gate to open. As you can see we were not a pretty sight.

The flight was fine apart from being used as a pillow, Gem slept through it, and she started snoring lol.

Random bits

On the way home from the train station after having gone to Agra for the day we got an auto rickshaw to take us back to the Defence Colony. Oh my god!! He was the craziest driver and we thought we had met some crazy drivers in morocco and in vietnam but this guy was mad. He kept taking the corners really quickly, far too quickly and it felt like the thing was being tested out on top gear to see how much it would take to topple sideways. I was sitting as far over as i possibly could so that if i needed to jump out then i could but actually this guy was not only crazy when it came to going round corners he was also speedy gonzales so theres noway i would have been able to jump out. It was a mixture of scary and blummin hilarious, i think Phill was more scared than me as i love jet skis and it was kind of like going really fast on one whilst trying to dodge loads of cars and pot holes. The roads here are terrible, they really need to invest some money in them.
The rickshaw driver that took us to Hauz Khas was very upfront with us that he asked us that if we were stopped by police that we should say that we were going by the meter, this is what the locals do and we should also do so as not to be taken for a ride so to speak, just because we are tourists. Well, when he said this i thought...cheeky sausage...we had agreed to pay 100 rupees for the journey and as we began it i noticed that the meter was going alot slower than that and we had been driving for about 15mins and it was at 35rupees. By the time we got the Hauz khas it was 65 rupees and it had taken about 20-25 mins and the guy had been a very good driver and so i gave him 150 rupees and he looked so shocked. I would have liked to have explained why to him but he didnt speak very much english . I fully appreciate that he was taking the mick in the first place but i liked his honesty, i would do exactly the same if i was in his position. The meter system for the rick shaws is crazy, it is set far too cheap for them to make enough money, especially when they are operating out of the defence colony area which i now know to be a very affluent area with apartments worth 1million dollars and houses about 10 million dollars!!!! Yes that much!! I thought they would be like 100k but apparently the lawyers here can earn 50,000 dollars in a day if they are a top QC and the lower end lawyers are earning 100k and above.

Location:Delhi/mumbai

Night out in Hauz Khas Village

Tonight was a FANTASTIC and TERRIBLE idea in equal measure!

We got back from the cooking class at around 4:30, and whilst Gem published a chunk of blog posts, i had another little snooze! After finalising a few plans with guesthouses etc we got changed and headed out to Hauz Khas village which we had heard was quite an up and coming place to go see, so we hopped into a auto-rickshaw and paid the pricely sum of £1 to be taken the 4 miles to the village. When i say 'village' its more of an urban area with a small strip of about 200 metres that is packed with really funky boutique shops and quirky little cafes and restaurants. There is still quite a bit of work happening here but you can tell that if they get it right, in two to three years it will be a really trendy area to stay and go socialising.









The photos don't do it any justice at all, but please do take my word for it.

Now for the fun bit..... We are getting a plane at 7:55 the following morning, so we need to get our taxi at 5am, meaning a 4:15am wake up call. We had planned to have an early night.....however. Gem had a better idea.

"Lets get drunk and go dancing"

So we did!

After a couple of 'old fashioned's' and wines in the Smokehouse Deli, we went up to 'out of the box' for too many drinks to remember, and some seriously epic salsa dancing!
I think we got to bed around 2am this morning, im not entirely sure as i think i am a bit delirious as im sat typing this on the flight to Mumbai, i need sleep but the guy next to me has decided to use my shoulder as a pillow and no matter how hard i nudge him he keeps coming back to lean on me (when your not strong, and i will be there to help you carry on) yep see im a bit overtired.

Location:Hauz Khas Village

Mums cooking part 4

We didn't take photos of everything we made as we would have been interrupting the natural flow of the class, but believe me the final spread that was laid out on the 10ft long hand carved dining table, was very impressive indeed.

Mum making the Mutton Korma





The amount of Garlic and ginger paste used was a little scary, i bet you can smell us from here.


Paneer Butter Masala - this masala spiced sauce can be used for anything, chicken, fish whatever you like.


The finished Biryani


Gem rolling out her Paratha - no that is not a euphemism.







We sat at this gorgeous dining table eating the most wonderful indian meal, and i am not being cheesy when i say it genuinely felt like we had been invited round to a friends house for lunch. Prashant came and ate with us, and the four of us just sat chatting, me and gem sipping a chilled bottle of white wine that they had bought in especially for us.

We were given a wonderful gift of an authentic indian spice tin, and Gem got some bangels and bindi's.
We both came away totally stuffed, with a huge smile on our faces... This was a fab day and money well spent.

Location:Delhi

Mums cooking part 3

Chicken biryani - i have never tried making a Biryani before as i had always presumed them difficult to make especially getting the rice cooked properly, but now we have learned a foolproof way of doing it, and it tastes just as good as it looks.




Mutton Korma - what we think korma to be, that insipid yellow, bland curry sauce that is sickly sweet and has 0% spice, is a million miles away from a classic Rajasthan korma. This was slow cooked in a pressure cooker and was a tomato based masala, heavy with caramelised onions and bay leaf. It was stunning.





Phanri dessert - i ate two of these they were so good! You make a rice powder paste and stir it into whole milk, infuse the milk with green cardamom, and saffron, then bring it all to the boil, stirring continuously so it doesnt catch. Once it comes to the boil you reduce the heat, wait a minute and then bring it almost to the boil again, then turn the heat off.By this time it should be coating the back of the spoon and starting to thicken. Pour it into serving dishes and chill so that it sets like a soft custard / brulee consistency. Just before serving you slice some soaked almonds and sprinkle a touch of green cardamom powder.

Location:Delhi

Mums cookery class part 2

Firstly, as we were a 'special' couple on Anniversary, we exchanged garlands and i daubed some red powder on gems hairline to signify that she was mine, LOL. I sort of missed her forehead and dropped it all down her face and nose!





Mum talked us through the different types of Masala's that are used in Indian cuisine, and i had never realised that the term Masala simply means spices, and doesn't refer to a particular style of curry sauce!
Then she took us over to her work station and started to take us through the various courses, showing how she tempers the oils with masala before starting to cook, so that every layer of the dish is infused with a delicate balance of flavours.

First we made Pakoras as a snack that would traditionally be offered to
guests coming to the house.










Which we served with our fresh green chutney that had a wicked chilli kick to it.

Location:Delhi

Day 3 - Mums cooking class part 1

This morning we were picked up at 9:30 by a guy called Laxman and driven the hour or so to the Prasant farm. This is the family home of Prashant (Delhi Food Tour guy) and his parents, and was to be the setting for our authentic Indian home cooking class.
Its no understatement to say that this is the most opulent home either of us have ever been inside, they have got a flock of Peacocks on the front lawn for gods sake! PEACOCKS.



Indu (or to be known from now on as Mum) was to be our tutor for the day, and the setting was simply gorgeous.













We were shown how to cook some classic North Indian dishes:
Chicken Biryani - will defo be doing this back home
Paneer Butter masala - who knew Paneer could taste so bloody lovely
Mutton Korma - this was like no Korma sauce i have ever tasted
Vegetable Pakoras
Lentil Dhaal
Raita
Green chutney - coriander sauce with chilli
Paratha - flaky griddled bread
Phanri - gorgeous brulee-ish set milk dessert
Masala chai - hot sweet milky tea infused with green cardamom, fennel seeds and garam masala.

We have done a fair few cookery classes around the world up to now, and this was the most enjoyable so far, Mum was simply lovely! For a lady who has a team of staff to look after her multi-million dollar home, she is incredibly down-to-earth and witty, a really classy and elegant hostess.

Location:Prasant Farm

Funny stories from the Fort

Phill ... A weird thing happened when we were travelling in Vietnam, i was asked a few times if people could have their photo taken with me.... Seemingly because i was a white guy! Well if i thought that was odd, then the amount of attention Gemma drew in Agra was baffling. I am not kidding you when i say that people were hiding behind their friends with their cameras taking sneaky pics of her, guys were pretending to take a photo of something that just happened to be infront of, or next to where Gem was stood! One young girl out on a school trip just blatantly got her video camera out, pointed it at Gem and just recorded her walking along in the Taj Mahal.
People kept stopping us as we walked around and wanted to have their photo taken with us, even a couple who appeared to be having their wedding pics taken at the Taj!!!!!!
There was just the one time that Gem agreed, and that was at Agra Fort, she offered to take a group photo of some older ladies, as she was handing the camera back, one lady grabbed her by the arm and got her to sit down.

When she asked why they wanted her photo they just shrugged and laughed, then as we walked away they all burst out giggling like little girls, it was REALLY FREAKY.




There was also two young lads who were walking around the Taj at the same time as us, and i noticed that they were not really following us, but they went around at the same pace and any time i made eye contact with one of them he would smile really broadly and do the shakey-head thing, i wasnt concerned just thought it another one of those weird things. Then as we were walking down the final walkway out of the Taj i noticed them again walking alongside us, so i stopped and Gem pretended to fix her shoe, they also stopped and pretended to look at a tree! So me and Gem took the pi** out of them by copying them and stood staring at a tree. They realised we were onto them and they walked off, but then funnily enough this triggered a bit of a laugh between me and Gem making tenuous links to tree's, things
Iike... 'Those guys were BARKing up the wrong tree', 'they really needed to BRANCH out' and Gem came up with a corker about the guys beings SAP's and having to LEAF, my mate Neil would have been impressed.

Location:Agra fort

Day 2 Agra Fort

Still Gem here jiffling.......Phill is still asleep the lucky sausage. After the Taj Mahal Manish took us to a restaurant. We had already gone on trip advisor and decided where we would go to eat when in Agra but today we decided to go with the flow a bit more and put our faith and trust into this young man, after all he had lived in Agra all his life. I'm not daft, I know that he took us to a restaurant that pretty much all of the rickshaw drivers take tourists, I know this because I saw a couple of couples who I had seen before. Now, my normal instinct would have sent me packing the minute i saw what i thought was a mouse running across the floor but it may have been a little squirrel and they are no bother and the place looked clean, local people were eating, people were eating both meat and veg, the floor was clean ( more than can be said for most places we ate in Vietnam) and so were the staff and the waiter spoke english and was very polite so we stayed and prayed that we would be fine.....The restaurant was air conditioned, Phill was thankful of that as by then he had become a sweaty mess!!! We ordered two thalli's, one that had butter chicken and tikka chicken and the other selection was just veggie for me. It was really tasty and i tucked into the massive and stinky garlic naan and the dishes of paneer, lentil and cottage cheese dahl and veg pilau. Phill tried a mango lassi that was really lovely, it was kind of sharp at first and then just lovely and creamy.




Afterwards we had an Indian rice pudding that I could have eaten a huge bowl of as it was so nice. Phill then had an Indian coffee and I had a masala tea which was nice but I couldn't drink loads of it as it was so creamy and I could feel it going on my hips, yes of course it was the tea going on my hips and not the thalli or the naan!!!

After lunch (heavy) we were both feeling decidedly sleepy but headed straight to the Agra Forts. I really liked this place, I think I liked it more than the Taj Mahal actually. It has a nice relaxed feeling about it, it maybe that I preferred wondering around the forts because there was no rush, it didn't feel as touristy as the Taj Mahal. The forts where very impressive.

Location:Agra