Of hippy togs, cannabis and memories of swinging sixties (FEATURE) By Ruth David, Indo-Asian News Service
Manali (Himachal Pradesh), Sep 7 (IANS) Drug dos, foreigners with dreadlocks, shops packed with hippy attire and other relics of the swinging sixties live on in this Indian hill station of abundant apple orchards and rivers of melted snow. Walk up the winding lane leading to the popular healing sulphur springs here, and you will be greeted by posters inviting you to "an evening of fantasy", or a "session of pleasure." And of course there is graffiti aplenty hailing reggae king Bob Marley, one of the most well known followers of Rastafarianism, an alternative religion whose believers are marked by their dreadlocks, their love of nature, and a penchant for drugs. In places like these, there are lines of small stores selling hippy attire -- brightly coloured shirts, scarves, transparent skirts and the likes. Shops also hawk various beads and baubles. Vivek, who owns one of the clothes stalls, said he catered mainly to foreigners who flocked to the hill station from approximately the beginning of August and kept coming till the winter ended. "Places that sell the hats, mufflers and woollen stuff this hill station is known for are located in the main market. But since our usual patrons rarely visit it, it makes little sense to set up shop there," he explained in impeccable English. Although he said he got his wares from across the border in Tibet, a lot of it looked suspiciously similar to garments sold in the busy markets of export rejects in the capital New Delhi and other Indian metropolises. Outside Vivek's shop sat Austrian nurse Peter Blake, waiting patiently as his wife went through several sessions of trying on outfits and haggling with Vivek. Blake said he and his wife were on a long holiday that included visits to places like Malaysia, Singapore and Tibet. The couple first visited Kullu Manali last year and fell in love with the place, where locals traversing mountain roads quench their thirst from tiny tributaries of the swift, treacherous Himalayan river Beas that meanders through the town. And where in the summer and spring, trees laden with plums, apples and cherries seem to be growing at every nook and corner. However, Kullu Manali's enchanting environs aren't the only reason why foreigners flock here. The Kullu Valley, where cannabis is cultivated in the wild, is known to be the hub of a bustling drug trade. Reports say many foreigners have settled here to pursue this lucrative activity. While police officials recover hordes of drugs on a regular basis, some confess that the magnitude and spread of the problem makes it difficult to completely stop the trade in narcotics. Be it for narcotics or nature, Kullu Manali remains an ever-popular holiday destination. So pervasive is the presence of foreigners, especially Israelis -- many of who visit India after completing their compulsory military training -- that many food joints advertise kosher food. Said Karan Singh, the owner of a small roadside food joint: "I'm ready to experiment with any cuisine to rake in the money. And since so many foreigners throng the streets of Kullu Manali, I decided to make them happy and me wealthy by serving their kind of food." --Indo-Asian News Service ########################################################################## # Send submissions for Goanet to [EMAIL PROTECTED] # # PLEASE remember to stay on-topic (related to Goa), and avoid top-posts # # More details on Goanet at http://joingoanet.shorturl.com/ # # Please keep your discussion/tone polite, to reflect respect to others # ##########################################################################
