Blasts in Hyderabad

[gilmore]

Mike,

I wouldn't worry about the explosions too much. They rarely kill Westerners in that part of the world, and when they do they are very sorry.

Two years ago I was in Nepal when the troubles between the king and parliament were at their height. The Muab, the Maoist guerrillas, had declared a general strike and were shooting anyone who drove a vehicle with an engine, so I had to take a rickshaw for a trip of about 22 km. We came to a bridge that was blocked by a row of large stones. As I helped the driver lift the rikshaw over it, I noticed a bomb wrapped in red cloth with wires running from it, and a civilian nearby who was trying to look nonchalant. I remembered hearing that the army had a policy of leaving bomb in place, since they were likely to explode in the process of being removed, and they tied down at least a few of the guerillas who had to keep an eye on it.

The bomb peeking through the blockade of stones.


The guerilla declined to have his photo being taken with me, so I had to be content with a couple of pix of the lovely little river that the bridge crossed.

Looking toward the north:


and to the south:


Nonetheless, the lack of pollution, the quiet, the lack of traffic, screeching brakes and the usual cacophony of horns was wonderful. It could have been 1,000 years ago.