Varanasi!

Hi!

I'm in Varanasi now, formerly also known as Benares. It's the place where the Hindus come to bathe in the Ganges River, and is the holiest of all Hindu Sites. Really dirty place, but it's an awesome experience. The alleyways are amazing, you can really get lost in them! And the number of touts and people trying to sell you stuff is just incredible! Bargaining skills are a definite must have over here. I'm quite happy that so far, I've been able to cut the price of my purchases by a factor of 3 at least. =)

The river boat ride is incredible - especially during sunset and sunrise. Took loads of pictures, but can't load them here. Will do that once I find a decent computer, perhaps in Bombay.

Prior to Varanasi, I had a day trip to Agra. Taj Mahal was AWESOME!! Once again, I'll leave it to the pictures, which will have to come later.

Oh yeah, in Agra, I was nearly scammed. Made friends with a local chap at the New Delhi Railway Station who also happened to be going to Agra. This guy was telling me he's a student, really interested in meeting foreigners blablabla. I kept my suspicions to myself and just played along. Once we arrived in Agra, he wanted to bring me for a drink. When I refused, he just wanted to bring me to a nearby place so that HE can take a drink. As we walked out of the station, we were suddenly encircled by a huge bunch of taix drivers. The drivers started arguing in Hindi with the chap, pushing him around. I've gotta admit, I was feeling quite uneasy. A man then asked me whether the guy was my friend and whether I met him on the train journey. I said, yeah and he pointed out that the chap was actually a scammer who would drug me and then take all my belongings. He's been to jail 3 times. Finally, the chap still had the guts to shake my hands confidently and leave. Phew! Talk about being fortunate! You really have to have your wits about with you in India. It's really good training. Basically, if you fail, you lose everything. =)

Anyhow, I've got to go, internet time is expensive here. Namaste!

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