Update

Well, it's been a while and there is a bit to say...nothing to exciting, but maybe grab a coffee and get comfortable.

To begin with I am still in Dharmsala/ Mcleod Ganj. I was suppose to be leaving tonight for Varanassi - but plans have changed (as they usually do).....but I will get to this in a while.
Let me go back a few weeks...
A few weeks ago I began my first Vipassana meditation course - which basically is a 10 day meditation course designed to guide people towards a better way of life.
I had been warned that the course was difficult, but it was a lot harder then I imagined....in a good way. For 10 days there was no speaking, no eye contact, and a strict schedule that included waking up at 4:00am each morning, meditating for over 10 hours each day and eating a strict vegetarian diet. To my surprise, it wasn't these things that were the difficult part. The hard part was dealing with all the mess that has built up over the last 27 years of my life. Like small volcanoes erupting, many things came to the surface that I didn't expect. It is obvious to me now that there is a huge connection between our minds and our bodies. Every reaction brings about more reactions...the cycle of craving and aversion seems never ending.
I spent most of the days wishing I could leave and hoping that at the end of my 10 days I would feel differently. I did and I managed to survive and have hopefully began to eliminate some of the 'misery' in my life.
This meditation technique is very different then any other I have practiced, and I am very grateful I have had this opportunity. I know it will be a part of my life from now on.
After the course ended, I had an opportunity to meet the people that I had been sitting next to for the past 10 days and have made some excellent friends.
It is amazing to meet people who are on the same 'path'.
Since the course ended on the 12th I have been hanging around the small town of Mcleod Ganj with some friends , shopping, taking walks up in the mountains,and basically enjoying all the good things that life has to offer.
This town is truly 'chill.
Yesterday I went to a beautiful waterfall (not the swimming kind...the water comes from the Himalayas...very very cold) and then spent a few hours discussing the meaning of life with a monk at a near by monastery.

As I mentioned, I was originally suppose to leave today to head south to Varanassi, but decided yesterday to change my plans. I have not been able to access my money from Canada (for whatever reason, my bank card isn't working in India) and thought it might be a sign for me to just sit tight for a few days here while I figure out the money situation.
So this morning I caught a bus down the mountain in search of an ATM that might accept my bank card... picture it....5 Tibetan monks, 2 small boys, 4 Indian men and me squeezed into a small minivan, speeding down the windy mountain roads as the sun is beginning to rise further into the morning sky. It feels like every driving experience in India could be my last.
We made it to the town of Dharmsala and to my surprise the only ATM there didn't accept my card either.

Luckily when I came back to Mcleod Ganj, all my money problems were solved with the help of my credit card and online banking (oh Thank you to the series of tubes that enabled this process - Sue are you laughing yet?)
Soooo....I need to make a few decisions. Where to go next???
I most likely will go with my original plan to Varanassi - especially since there is a big Indian holiday on the 21st - it would be fun to be in a large city for that.
But I have already decided to skip the south of India (for now) . There is just too much to see and enjoy here in the north (so much for booking train tickets in advance eh?)
But stay tuned...I guarantee things are about to get really exciting.

P.s. I have added a small amount of photos again, so check 'em out.