Raul and his Goonda's!

I've kind of gotten away from The lonely planet guide to India also known by some as "The Bible".It wasn't really giving me that old time religion that I be needing!Though the writers were quite right about Jammu in stating "you really have no reason to go there" The next stop was Dharamsala-this is where his holiness "The Dalai Lama" calls home.If I was going to make it to Dharamsala I didn't have any choice but to go through Jammu.Arriving at 10pm that evening I was certain there would be a connecting bus out that night.If the bible says there isn't a reason to stay here than there must be a bus leaving for Dharmsala at 10:05 in the pm.I wish I could tell everyone that I didn't have the pleasure to spend the night in Jammu or that the Bible was so wrong and the town provided me with spiritual riches beyond one's wildest dreams and comprehension.

Well I did spend the night in Jammu,and it was a living breathing hell!Stepping off the bus into complete and utter chaos I decided first find out the status of the next bus to Dharmsala.The next bus leaves tomorrow morning at 8am and conveniently there is a hotel right next to the bus station.I believe it's name was Palace Jammu but I could be making that up.I was greeted by this fat greasy Dodgy fellow named Raul,very Indian name.Running his pudgy fingers through his wet,greasy hair than extending his hand out to me,"hi,my name is Raul" I unwillingly shake his hand,than ponder if this is what shaking hands with a wet sponge might feel like.Getting to the point I tell him I need a room,the cheaper the better.He takes me on a tour of the hotel,this is when I notice we weren't alone and several of his goonda's had also come for the tour. So we enter the room and the first thing I notice is the unmade bed.Definitely not a good sign!I give him my 300 rupees and he leaves.I lift up the mattress and get an ear full from about a half dozen angry cockroaches who didn't appreciate the interruption. I believe there was a meeting of sorts going on and I wasn't invited.My next observation was the giant rat droppings above the toilet.This is also when I noticed the massive hole in the floor...just big enough for a giant rat to crawl through.So I sit on my bed pretending to read,one eye on the page and the other on that giant hole in the bathroom floor.I look up at the clock-it reads 5:32...by the state of the room I calculate that time stopped here at 5:32 December 3rd,1963.Did something just move in the bathroom?I hear a scream come from down the hall.I start to sweat....my whole body itches!!I need to get the fuck out of here right now!!Over the years I have become quite the expert at packing and unpacking my backpack.Tonight I will shatter all previous records!Grabbing my bag I bolt out of the room into total darkness not a Raul or a flickering light in sight.I stumble into a room tripping over a body either lying dead or sleeping on the floor,which makes perfect sense at the time.Realizing I still have my room key in hand and hoping I don't run into Raul or any of his goonda's,I leap through a magical door landing in an alley to the right of the hotel.I look at my wrist which reads 1 in the AM.I don't wear a watch and will likely never own one.Seven more hours till my bus for Dharmsala arrives.His Holiness awaits!