There are monks and monkeys everywhere!

We've had the loveliest day. This place is soo mellow. No one hassles you to buy stuff. When you look at things, there are no cries of "I give you good price! What price you pay?" Instead these gorgeous Tibetans simply smile and say "Thank you," They thank us for looking at their wares. Such a far cry from the rest of India.

We strolled down incredibly steep streets, stopping for fresh juice and popcorn. The views are stunning. The vibe is shanti. We're loving it! Kunsang was right with his theory - we weren't cold at all! In fact we were all completely overdressed and as we climbed back up the hill we were dripping with sweat! Seriously good exercise, walking round McLeod. You can feel calf burn in your legs!

We came home and had lunch on our terrace. It's really liberating to be able to cook for ourselves - I won't be saying that when I get back home, I'm sure!

Freya and I went and did yoga with this hilarious guy called Om. She did so brilliantly to keep a straight face. We began with some intense yoga breathing techniques with Om telling us to, "Focus your mind. Yoga class time is tension completely gone time. It is happy feel, relax feel, enjoy feel,"

I couldn't look at Freya for fear of giggling, but she took it all seriously. The class was fairly gentle, with a little too much lying down for me, but man, could Om do some crazy things with his body!

We met up with the others for another gorgeous meal, before heading over via the sweet stall on the corner of our road. The kids finally got some chocolate and Hamish continued with our unsuccessful pursuit of fresh milk for Martha. We've had a wild goose chase with people telling us we can buy it here, there and somewhere else. Great result tonight though! Hamish got chatting to the owner of the stall, Ragesh, who has agreed to bring us a litre of milk tomorrow morning from his own cow. "Now that's what I call fresh!" yelled Gus.

Freya has just made her first cup of tea for me, Martha is sleeping peacefully, Hamish has done a brilliant job of insulating our room and Fergus has just summed up McLeod saying, "This place is wicked. There are monks and monkeys everywhere!"

It's really very cold.

Not so sure about this place yet. I haven't been this cold at bedtime since we were trekking (oh, and perhaps when our boiler broke down last winter in a foot of snow). I lay in bed bursting for a wee but not wanting to brave the icy bathroom. There was a howling gale in the middle of the night that left poor Hamish up and down like a yoyo as he made regular checks on the kids (they hadn't wanted to lock themselves in, so despite wedging their door shut with a thin inflight magazine, we were worried that the wind would force its way in.) He also climbed up onto the roof at some unearthly hour to rescue the washing that I had hung there yesterday. I had visions of spotting clothes on distant roof tops: Martha's gorgeous cotton shirt, a prized Monsoon hand-me-down, that she's been living in, Gus' favourite (and more vitally ONLY) pair of shorts, my lovely comfy yoga pants, to name but a few.

I am now sitting in the cold light of day. I'm as close as can be to the oil fired radiator that has tried valiantly to warm our icebox through the night. Gus and Martha are sitting in bed under a mountain of blankets, watching Pink Panther and eating biscuits. This trip might have been very different without the iPad. It has bought us so much time and saved us from many difficult situations. It has been the ultimate distraction on long journeys.

Is it the essential bit of kit for a young family travelling? Of course we could have done it without it, but things mightn't have been so harmonious. They only have a couple of films on it, but it's the classic episodes of our iconic childhood cartoon that amuses them time and time again.

Hamish is now hammering thick blankets at our window in an attempt to keep in the heat. Kunsang, our gentle Buddhist host, tells me that it is all about how we think. If our brain tells us it's cold, our body's 'warming cell' shuts down and we feel even colder. If we tell ourselves we're warm, the reverse happens.

He is so very Zen. He and his wife both exude a deeply mellow and contented vibe. And boy is she strong (they both are). She's about my height and build, but she looks as though she is solid muscle - in a very soft and beautiful way, not with the harshness of a body builder. She made light work of carrying Hamish's really heavy bag up three flights of stairs.

Last night it snowed. Perhaps there is more to come. As we step outside in our kagools, can we test out the mind over matter theory?

We're in the mountains!

We're sitting on our balcony looking out over a remarkable view. McLeod Ganj spreads out before us, eagles circle on thermals at eye level, monkeys scuttle along the railings of our neighbours houses and the start of the mighty Himalaya rise up beyond it all, the ultimate snow-capped backdrop.

Our journey here was great. We dealt with New Delhi Station admirably. Freya had asked on several occasions, "Why have we got backpacks? Suitcases would've been fine," her questions were answered as, loaded to the hilt, we made our way through the madness of the station like seasoned travellers. The kids absolutely loved the overnight train. You'd have thought they were on the Orient Express! Very early this morning I opened a sleepy eye to see Gus awake, lying on his bunk looking out of the window. As dawn brought with it the most gorgeous pink sun to hang low in a misty rural landscape, he repeatedly muttered quietly to himself, "This is the most awesome thing ever,"

Getting off the train in Pathankot was such a contrast to the scene we had left behind in Delhi. It felt so chilled. We were met by Sanju, in another comfortable car and he drove us up winding mountain roads to our new home. We are staying with a lovely Tibetan family in what can only be described as a highly basic apartment. Hamish keeps saying, "It's got potential!"

It's absolutely freezing! The temperature is much like I imagine it is at home, only we have no luxuries like central heating and Hungarian goose down duvets. But hey, we've got thermals and really cool kids who just seem to notice the hardship. You know, time and time again, they amaze me with their oblivion to the grot.

It's lovely to see Tibetans again. They bring with them a beautiful peaceful vibe that is almost tangible. Infact this doesn't feel like India, well not as I know it. It is much more reminiscent of Nepal. How lucky our kids are to know this. Freya and I are going to find a yoga class and I have an urgent pull to the 'Dream Massage' I saw advertised in Nick's Italian cafe where we ate a gorgeous lunch.

Moving on...

So, our last day in Rajasthan. As I write, we are cruising along a fairly smooth road, the sun is hot and we are glad of the air con. Mo Shanti is the soundtrack to our journey. The girls are asleep in the back and Gus, poor thing is concentrating on not being ill. After a night in or near Jaipur, we arrive back in Delhi tomorrow and say goodbye to Gansham and his lovely car. He will take us to the train station where will experience our first taste of public transport with the kids. Already we have acquired extra bags from all that shopping!

We will take the overnight train up to the mountains. I'm not sure how that will be. I try not to think about my friend Laura's experience of a sleeper train when her son fell from the top bunk. In her case she was lucky enough to catch him. It would be very boring to arrive in Pathankot with broken bones.
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We've arrived in our most expensive and possibly grottiest hotel. It's on the road from Jaipur to Delhi. To be honest it's such a relief to get out of the car. We've sat in terrible traffic for what seems like hours. Trucks are not allowed into Delhi before 9pm which means that early evening on a major tributary into the city, is one long truckfest. The kids have amazed me once more. There hasn't been a single complaint or vague grumble today. On past experience though, does this mean we're in for a shocker tomorrow? There's a 3 hour drive followed by the overnight train up to the mountains. Sounds pretty grim, huh?

A late night thought from Pushkar

There have been moments on this trip where I have questioned our motivation. For us, it's not just about 'seeing' India. It's about our relationship with the place. I have wondered at times if we can actually share that with our kids. They live so much in the moment and seem oblivious to much of the stuff that sends my mind reeling. When we took them to places in Parhaganj, places that we had described to them with such passion, I realised that we had seen that through the eyes of backpackers. Now, seeing them through the eyes of a mother, it's a whole new picture. I've worried that walking along the streets of Pushkar (one of my most favourite past times in the world) is actually really full on for them. That restaurants that were cool hippy hangouts for us, might seem grotty to them. But it's not. They are charmed by it too, but for completely different reasons! Gus has bought himself a Rajput turban which he wears around the place. Freya gives the air of someone who has travelled for years, and Martha, well, she's as at home here as anywhere in the world. She skips and hops and sings her way through the madness!

Sisterhood in India

I've finally tapped into it. Always before I've struggled to find a sense of camaraderie  between me and the Indian women. There have been times in previous trips were something rubbish has happened and I felt let down by the women around me.  I was greeted with dismissal or without recognition. As a Westerner with the freedom and the financial means to travel, I was unfathomable. But now, as a mother, I am the same. Women everywhere make eye contact with me and exchange knowing looks. As I left the Rat Temple the other day with Martha crying in my arms, every woman I passed looked and smiled in sympathy or simply nodded with understanding that I was dealing with a difficult moment. It's lovely. I realise now how much it has bothered me previously.

In the past all my friendships I have made with the locals have been with men. On this trip, I hope I will learn to understand more what it is to be born a woman in India.

Hurray for Pushkar!

Today has been FANTASTIC! Our best day yet. We began with breakfast on the roof - we didn't like the restaurant, the sun was shining and the view s beautiful, so we asked to go out there. They couldn't have been happier to move out a table for us. I felt as though we were in an advert for Alpen or something. The kids ran up down the roof terrace with this incredible back drop, and the we all sat and watched the boy who helped bring our bags in galloping the horse around the field next to us. He's training him to rear up. It looks like a lot of fun.

We then wondered into town. We went down to the ghats along the lake and Hamish and I did puja, a strange ritual that involves chanting, placing petals into the lake and blessing your family. The kids watched, fascinated. Even Martha.

Freya used the holy water, thought to heal and purify the soul, to wash some cow poo off her foot, and then we walked along the main bizarre. It's still as much a shopper's paradise as it was a decade ago. So much gorgeous stuff, I didn't know where to look.

We found ourselves some treasures and then bought food supplies for our camel trek into the desert.

It was so brilliant. To think, yesterday we arrived here feeling tired, fed up and disappointed. Less than 24 hours later we were returning to our hotel on camels (or in Martha's case, asleep like a medieval princess aboad a sumptuous cart underneath her own decorated canopy) having ridden out to watch the sun set on Rajasthan, as we practised our latest sport, dune running.

I couldn't quite believe it. To be riding a camel next to Hamish in the desert felt so familiar, having spent two long days doing the same on our last visit. But to look around and see my three amazing kids by our side, well, it was something else. They were all equally enchanted by the experience.

It was the stuff of dreams...

I am now officially loving being back here in Pushkar. We all are.