Circuit of India: Days 11 and 12 in Haridwar

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I arrived in Haridwar at 11:43pm last night after a rather bone-jarring six hour drive. My flight was late out of Varinasi as we had a political Minister on board so security was extra tight. It also took 45 minutes to get the luggage unloaded so I didn’t hit the road until 5:45pm, an hour later than I hoped. My driver was good and we made decent time.

I checked into my hotel and hit the sack pretty quickly. I was still a little wound up from the road so it took me a while to fall asleep. Plus, the sheets were a little funky and had some strange spots on them, but it was too late to get them changed. I kept trying not to think about it which wasn't easy

I got up this morning and had a masala dosa for breakfast. It tasted good at the time…

Haridwar is another famous and holy Hindu city in India as the Ganges descends from the Himalayas and begins its journey through the plains in Haridwar. It’s a pilgrimage site and, similar to Varinasi, there are temples and ghats long the river. My room opens onto a public balcony which directly overlooks the river! We also have our own private ghat, although I won’t be bathing or drinking from there. The water is moving much more quickly here and therefore seems a bit cleaner. There’s a temple next door and there were lots of people bathing there this morning. This afternoon, people were doing their laundry.

I first went to the main ghat, Har-ki-Pauri, named after the supposed footprints of Vishnu visible there. It was very crowded with lots of people bathing in the river. There’s a Mother Ganga temple there as well as lots of people selling religious offerings, jewelry, idols, etc. There are also many people begging, including quite a few kids. I was standing on a bridge over the river and noticed another tourist being bothered by a little girl who appeared to be about eight. We shared an eye roll and then she saw me and came running over. She was a little parrot and repeated back whatever I said. It was impressive at first and then just annoying. She followed me for quite a ways and was finally run off by a man who took pity on me. There were people with official credentials collecting money as well and they were giving receipts. They kept asking for my passport, but I didn’t think would be a good idea to whip it out with so many people around. I donated to one of the charity boxes along the river instead. I walked around a bit and then got overwhelmed by the crowd and headed back to the parking lot. I thought I remembered where the car was and headed that way. I stopped at a stand to buy a cold Coke and this old Hindu holy man dressed in orange came up and asked for money. I said no and he then asked for a cup of tea so I said OK. He appeared very old with long whitish hair and a long beard. He had a friend with him so I bought them both a cup of tea which only cost eight rupees.

I was in the parking lot looking for that car and still being asked for money. All of the cars look alike so it’s hard to locate the exact one. I had the license plate number from the driver, but, as it turned out, he gave me the wrong one! I was approached by another holy man who had a snake around his neck! I didn’t see it at first, but then it scared me. He thought it was sunny and started to follow me. I was dodging cars and was too quick for him. I thought I was safe until I came upon another holy man with an even bigger snake! I told him no and he left me along. I was disoriented at this point so I called the driver and asked where the car was. I’m pretty easy to spot here so I figured he could find me more easily than I could find him. He “helpfully” replied that the car was where he parked it! I said that I was having trouble and asked him to please look for me. I was only a row over and he did find me quickly. I told him about the snakes which he thought was funny. When we got to the car, I also told him that he had given me the wrong license plate which he apologized for.

We next went to the Mansa Devi Temple which sits high on a hilltop overlooking Haridwar. You can either hike up or take the ropeway or gondola up. It was hot so I went for the gondola. I got pushed and shoved in line trying to get a ticket and then I went into the waiting area. The line was huge and it was almost an hour long! At least it was organized: they herded us into holding pens with half chairs and then locked us in when it was full! There were fans so it wasn’t too hot, but I started to not feel so good and was having second thoughts about the dosa. Luckily, my pen was called and we passed the bathroom on the way so I was about to stop. Once I got in my car, the ride to the top was pleasant. Once inside the temple, however, it was packed with people and it was back to pushing and shoving. I had to take my shoes off and decided it was pretty dirty so I took my socks off too. To get to the main part of the temple, it was back to the cow shoots. I don’t understand the need to shove and stand right on top of someone when there’s no where to go! Men push, women push - I eve had kids pushing me. I have taken to standing sideways with my elbows out just to protect myself! It only helps a little, but every little bit counts. I understand why people get trampled here frequently in crowds! I just read an article in the newspaper that says 10 people die every day on Mumbai’s trains, either from falling between the train and the platform, or falling out of an overcrowded train, or by taking a shortcut across the tracks and getting run over or electrocuted.

I finally was able to get past the God and Goddess displays and get a little breathing room. There were monkeys on the outside of the temple begging for food, especially this sweetened puffed rice that’s used as an offering. I got my shoes back for just one rupee (!) and headed out. It took about 30 minutes to get onto a gondola and down. I walked back to the hotel and continued to regret the dosa.

I was planning to go to the evening aarti (prayer service) at the Har-ki-Pauri, but decided that I was done with the crowds for the day. I’m down river so the floating candles and other offerings should pass this way. I may try a little dinner since I’m hungry again.

Tomorrow I’m heading to Rishikesh, Haridwar’s twin city and only 20km away. There are two rope suspension bridges over the river that I’d like to cross as well as more ghats and temples. A little bit north of the city is Shivpuri where the “Glass House on the Ganges” is located. It could be a good place for lunch.

I think two days in Haridwar/Rishikesh is one day too many! There’s just not much to see… There’s only limited internet access (and I had to sit at the hotel’s registration desk to use it), but there is cable TV with HBO. I hate to just stay in my room and watch TV, but it’s quiet and no one tries to sell me anything! I’m down to only one book as I had no idea how much time I’d spend reading. I looked for a bookshop today, but they were all religious books. The hotel doesn’t have a book exchange like many others do. I’ll look again tomorrow.

I met an American woman at dinner tonight who is also traveling alone. We ate together and had an interesting conversation. She came to India to work in Chennai for three months and has now been here for three years! She works for an Indian company with a wholly owned subsidiary in the US. She actually works for the US-based company which gets her around the employment visa issues. She has a multi-entry business visa so she just needs to leave India once every six months (even just for a weekend) and then come back in. She gets paid in the US, in US dollars and has US benefits. Her salary is 75% of what it would be in the US so she’s doing quite well by staying there. Her housing, provided by the company, is a 10 minute walk to work and she has screens on her windows! She’s had a great experience and it’s nice to know that things can be different!

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Photos

Sign on the Hotel Balcony
You know I wanted to leave all of my clothes hanging outside!

Har-ki-Pauri Ghat
The main ghat in Haridwar is known as Har-K-Pauri, nmed after the supposed footprints of Vishnu at the site. Hundreds of people come here each day to bathe, pray, and attend the evening aarti.

Har-ki-Pauri Ghat
The orange temple is dedicated to Shiva from whose hair the Ganges originated.

Langur Monkey Outside the Mansa Devi Temple
The Mansa Devi Temple sits high on a hill overlooking Haridwar and is reached via a ropeway of gondolas. Lots of monkets hang around outside the temple and beg for food, especially the sweetened, puffed rice offering. They have been known to reah through the bas in their quest.

Dusshera Statues: Before
Statues of Ravana, the demon-king and ether his son or his brother

Dusshera Statues: After
Ravan and his son/brother meet there end as they are defeated by Ram