It's taken 2wks to get feed up with the harassment in Srinagar -- a new record for an Indian town. And what did it... not the little boy who put his hands between my legs, nor the 6 Army men that laughed about it... let me add that "Eve Teasing" (harassing women) carries a 5yr prison term if its against an Indian woman & a 7 yr term against a foreign woman, which is why the boy ran as fast as he could after he did it... nor was it even the head of the Tourist Police asking for sex when I tried to file a complaint against the Army that pushed me over the edge.

Rather it was a woman. And a highly educated woman at that. Was recently at a party with just women & when they all asked me if I'd like to marry a Kashmiri man I said maybe... next thing I know my hotel owner's wife tells me to stay away from her husband. She did go on to joke I'd never want him because he beats her... but the message was still clear. And all that was after I told her that her sisters were beautiful & she responded "you're only fair, we're beautiful". Bitch!

Two days later finally got the nerve to confront her... & thought I came up with a good one... told her that movies in my country show all Muslim men as terrorists. But by having a little trust in people I've learned that's far from the truth. So while all the blondes in Indian movies (& TV shows & even commercials) are depicted as whores, she needs to open up a little & learn that we're just like her. Although she kept saying she was only joking, think I may have gotten through to her.

But all of this combined... makes me want to leave. I've got plans for the weekend don't want to break but first thing Monday I'm headed to remote part of town to stay on a luxurious boat on a quiet lake where I'm planning to just hang on the chaise lounge & read for a few days. With one exception... a trip to town to file a complaint with the Tourism Minister against the head of the Tourist Police.