That's it, I'm not following any more sports

Formula 1's drama filled 2007 season has finally come to an end. Although I'm appalled at the behavior of some of the teams this season (cough...Mercedes McLaren... cough), I am happy that Kimi and Ferrari ended up on top. Not that Ferrari doesn't have the biggest budget (pure speculation) for their F1 teams, but they at least weren't caught outright cheating.

But the "boys behaving badly" fest is not over yet. As if they hadn't completely disgraced themselves already, McLaren lodged one last protest to attempt to place their own Lewis Hamilton atop the points standing.

Don't get me wrong, Hamilton did a great job this season, especially since he was a rookie, but when a top team like McLaren gets caught stealing design secrets from their main rival, Ferrari, it tarnishes even the most valiant efforts.

McLaren is protesting the temperature of the fuel that was used in the Williams and BMW cars, saying it was too cool (ultimately making it more dense and allowing more fuel into the tank...). If the FIA decides to grant them this protest and disqualify the Williams and BMW entries, Lewis Hamilton would ultimately triumph in the points standings. As a side note, McLaren lost the team competition after being disqualified, stripped of all its constructors points and being fined $100 million.

This begs the question in my mind, has racing always been wrought with cheating? I remember reading a book about racing in the era of Mark Donahue when everyone cheated in little ways. Specifically, there was a certain story where he and his team erected a 30 foot fueling tower that used a gravity feed to fuel his race car quicker than other teams... or where they acid dipped their chassis to make it lighter than the competitors. When the race officials caught on to either tactic, they quickly adapted the rules to outlaw said behaviors, yet the racing continued. As technology increases, the rules get tighter, budgets increase, the cheating gets more and more "clever." But stealing another team's design book? That's neither inventive nor original. It's flat out cheating. Come on Ron Dennis, are you out of ideas?

In other news, the Spiker team has been sold to some Indian Billionaires, and will be renamed Team "Force India". Good luck gentlemen with the ex Jordan-Midland-Spiker cars. May the Force of Shah Rukh Kahn's rock hard abs and ad-nausium dance sequences be with you.

The $2 Haircut

As it goes, one will need haircuts throughout the year to maintain some resemblance to a kempt human being. With all the emphasis on screening out terrorists at the airport checkpoints these days, I figured it's best to stay well shaved and groomed when passing through customs. With my last haircut in Dubai 2.5 months ago, it was high time for another one.

We booked a hotel in Varanasi that, without being a 5 star dripping opulence resort, had a nice array of massage and salon services. Upon checking in, I was handed the salon services menu and noticed that a "gentleman's haircut" was 50 Rupees ($1.25). For that price, how could you go wrong? (I also noticed that a "gentleman's head shave was 60 Rupees) I thought the guy would take out the clippers, put on the #2 attachment and go to town. I was slightly mistaken.

As with most services that we encounter, you first must resist the up sell. When requesting the haircut, you're made aware of "this package deal" and "that special deal" which tries to lump in massages, facials, leg waxing, etc along with your basic haircut. Once they got the point that I was interested only in a hair cut, we had to clarify the issue of hair cut vs. head shave. To make sure they were on the same page with me, I pointed to my existing hair and made a shortening gesture with my fingers. I then pointed to my bald forehead and said "NO, not like this" They all laughed and we got down to business.

I sat down in the chair and the barber put the cloth on me, tucking it into my collar like they do in the states. He then proceeded to pull out the biggest, rustiest pair of scissors that I'd ever seen. These scissors were like those craft scissors everyone used in grade school, you know, the metal ones with the black painted handle that hurt your hand if you cut for extended periods of time. (If he missed, I was going to lose and ear or need a tetnus shot.) With the aid of two combs, he managed to work the hair shorter on one side of my head then the other, never stopping the cutting motion of the scissors, even when he wasn't cutting hair. It was like someone had plugged in his hand and not until the hair cut was over did he stop the "swish swish" of the scissors.

For the crudeness of tools he had to use, I got a dy-no-mite haircut. For the edges of my hairline, no electric trimmers were needed, he had a straight razor for that. The hair continued to come off as he finished a rough cut, then proceeded to go back and touch up certain areas he wasn't happy with. A true professional, I thought. When he finished up, I almost jumped out of the chair, but hesitated for a second. I'm glad I did, because he then proceeded to massage my scalp, face, shoulders, arms and hands for the next 15 minutes. Last, but not least, he picked up the scissors again and trimmed my ear hair. I chuckled, beacause that's what Zef used to do as the last part of a haircut back in Michigan. Zef also charges $25, this guy $1.25.

I tipped him and hopped down, pleased as punch at the bargain I'd found on my haircut. I might not be shopping for bargains on goods to take back with us to the states, but I felt like I'd found the bargain of the century on my haircut.

~S

Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Fire

Well, we've been able to leave Nepal and are now in India, New Delhi to be exact. We took a flight to Varanasi, the most holy Hindu city in India, and briefly saw the Ganges river (well beyond gross), then flew to Delhi. For the past couple days we've been bumming around Delhi, seeing the sites, avoiding the touts and figuring out ways to make our money last.

At first glance, from where we're staying up in the Karol Bagh district, Delhi looks like any other 3rd world city - trash in the streets, open air markets, tons of car horns, three wheeled auto rickshaws, and tons of people going about daily life. However, on our adventures today, we found another side to Delhi, a much prettier side.

For starters, Delhi has just installed a mass transit system. This half above ground, half subway system is fast, efficient, affordable, and CLEAN. There are tons of people riding it at all hours of the day and night and it's not even completed yet. There's 4 more stages of installation to go before it's scheduled to be completed.

There's a road that goes between the Parliament House and the India Gate (see photo album for exact pictures) that's got grassy areas on each side of it. This makes for great picnicking areas for locals and also a great place to play a pick up game of Cricket.

They've really done a nice job of preserving the forests and gardens of Delhi. You'll be walking around and come upon a very green piece of land, right in the middle of the city.

There's a ton of old building and monuments scattered around. One of the coolest ones, we can't figure out what it was. Walking around it, there were no signs, it was fenced off and looked like the crumbling remains of a old British Fort. It's not labeled on our map either. Anyone know what the ruins are right next to the Delhi High Court?

This city really comes alive when the sun goes down. There's lights and music playing in the streets, people are out eating, shopping or socializing. I felt completely safe walking around at night.

There's such diversity in Delhi, 5 Star hotels right next to the poorest slums. I guess when you cram 13 million of all different income levels into one geographical areas, it's bound to happen. It's got kind of a neat vibe to it.

~S

Still in Nepal

The beauty of a skeleton flight schedule is the flexibility in travel plans. We were able to hang around Kathmandu waiting for the political situation to settle down a bit before traveling to Western Nepal for our CARE project visits. And now are headed into a meditation retreat before moving on to India.

Just as the rest of the countries we have visited, Nepal teaches us something new each day. Despite the continuous flip-flop in the government status, you can see hope in everyone's eyes. I even venture to say that when you walk the streets you feel peace and happiness in the core of the nation.

Trekking seems to be the main tourist attraction here and I do think it would be a blast to reach the base camp at Mt. Everest but we'll have to wait until next time when we are properly prepared. That is if there is a next time considering the cost of traveling here if you're coming from the US with the sole purpose of trekking. We've observed the working of a "budget" trekking tour and believe that it is a miserable experience. Our suggestion to anyone considering a trek here in Nepal is to spend the extra cash for a reputable agency and have a chance at actually enjoying yourself.

~J