Varanasi, 01-04 December 2009

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I would have enjoyed Varanasi much more if I hadn't been too sick to see much of it (more on that in the next entry). As it stands, I have very little to say about it, other than that I wish I had been sick somewhere else, because its a really cool place with a great vibe.

Getting there was a bit of a mish: we travelled by bus from Jaipur to Delhi, and then by train from Delhi to Varanasi: another overnighter, and then some... the three of us (we'd said a temporary goodbye to Laura in Jaipur, as she was heading first to Agra before Varanasi) were all very glad to have arrived. Our accommodation was at Shanti Guesthouse near Manikarnika Ghat, the main of several burning ghats, to which a constant stream of shrouded bodies were being carried through the streets in procession. Varanasi is a very holy city, and being cremated here is held by Hindus to be very auspicious. It was very interesting to watch the procedures, and we enjoyed a stroll along the many ghats that line the Ganges, though by this stage I was already beginning to feel under the weather, so perhaps didn't enjoy it as much as Hero and Deb.

We also tracked down the "Brown Bread Bakery" that I had read about, and were very happy to chill out for a while in the recessed seating areas, chatting with the Nepalese workers about Nepalese politics - they got pretty heated with each other at some stages! Like everywhere, there is division and differences of perspective on what the situation is like, what its causes are, and what should or could be done to improve it.

I think flushed with the excitement of being in such a beautiful and good-vibe place (after the hassles of Jaipur), Hero was super keen for an evening boat trip, so we organised that and set off - rather slowly! - in a rowboat on the Ganges. I remember feeling rather miserable and sick and cold, though not wanting to ruin the experience for the other two. I struggled through dinner afterwards, at a restaurant that also provided evening entertainment. We were expecting to hear some traditional music, but hadn't banked on the very strange - we think very high - dancer. I have to say; it definitely was entertaining.

And it wasn't all that long after this that my illness really started to kick in, so unfortunately that's about all I can tell you about Varanasi. Not much, and not especially exciting. I am sure Hero can probably provide a little more elaboration in some other entry. What I can tell you is my experience of being sick.. I'll write it in a separate blog so you can choose whether or not you want to hear about it!

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