Monday 24th October 1983
After a good night’s kip, we laid in until about 09:00 hrs. talking about our mates at home and recalling old songs. Then we rose and bid farewell to Abdul and his brother. As expected, they “came the old soldier”, asking us to pay for the first “free” night and for a skimpy meal of omelettes and stale bread on that night.
We left after paying what we did owe, plus 10 Indian Rupees for sundries (a total of 180 Indian Rupees in total for our stay aboard the Gosani Palace). As we left, they still smiled and bid us recommend the place to our friends (some hope!). We were glad to be away. The only enjoyable part was the sleeping.
On the way to the Paradise Vegetarian Restaurant for brekkie we were hailed by an old boy on a bicycle who declared that he was “no businessman”, but a worker at the local hospital. He smiled broadly when he learned that we were English and welcomed us as “his sons”. Our feelings of refreshment at meeting a non-money-orientated soul were quickly dashed as he produced a folder and begged for a donation for his mission.
Breakfast complete, we set off for the Youth Hostel via the Foreign Parcel Post Office. After a long rigmarole George got his parcel to Kim dispensed with for 77 Indian Rupees and then we booked into the Hotel Allora, which was part of Srinagar Youth Hostel. 10 Indian Rupees secured us a clean 5-bed dormitory with an ice-cold shower.
Feeling a bit cleaner we walked back into town, and after a long browse in a good but expensive book shop, we booked our bus for tomorrow. Now we had time to kill before I picked up my sandals at 18:00 hrs. We had a good vegetable curry with warm naan bread in the Host Restaurant and went for a wander along the pony trail that bisected Dal Lake.
At one spot we sat peacefully in the rare sun on a grassy spot where the people actually lived, rather than on the tourist exhibition and exploitation side of the lake. We mused over plans for future Swagman parties and camping trips. I picked up my sandals at 18:15 hrs. and for a made-to-measure they were a bloody awful fit, and we dashed to the cinema just in time to see the movie Breaker Morant at 19:00 hrs.
The cinema was packed with locals and I was worried that this Aussie film had been dubbed into an Indian dialect. George asked if we were in the right screen, but the sea of blank faces and shrugged shoulders indicated that not one of them understood English. It shows the moronic nature of this pathetic race that they then sat through this totally English-speaking courts martial drama with no subtitles, without a jot of comprehension for the film that they had paid to see.
Breaker Morant is a 1980 Australian war drama film directed by Bruce Beresford, who co-wrote the screenplay based on Kenneth G. Ross 's 1978 play of the same name. The film concerns the 1902 court martial of lieutenants Harry Morant, Peter Handcock and George Witton; one of the first war crime prosecutions in British military history.
We enjoyed the film and then returned to a blacked-out dormitory to spend another cold night. We were supposed to have company, but our guests must have changed their minds – probably the smell!
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