Goodbye India, we're going to miss you....sort of (Varanasi & Kolkata)

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After a long day of travelling and waiting around...which seems to be the only thing we've done recently, it was nice to wonder around somewhere generally interesting for a change.

My first impression of Varanasi, on my last trip, wasn't a good one. It's like India 2.0! There's more traffic, more salesmen, more scams, more thief’s, more Sadhus...etc the list goes on. Oh and it stinks.



Built on the shores of the famous Ganges (Ganga to locals) by Shiva (the god of destruction) it's one of the oldest living cities in the world. People have lived here for thousands of years none stop...and I can't imagine the way of life has changed too much. Everything centres around the Ganges, or more specifically the Ghats (steps) that are situated all along the riverbank. Ghats are used all over India for funeral ceremonies. Varanasi just happens to be the holiest place. It's believed by Hindus that if you die in Varanasi and have your body/ashes rested/scattered in the Ganges you achieve “Moksha” which is where your soul goes to heaven.

As such Varanasi is awash with people waiting to die, what a pleasant thought.



Just before I give you some more information I just want to point out that the Ganges is one of the most polluted water bodies in the world. I can't remember what the measurement is exactly, but I was once told that in legal drinking water you're allowed like five bits of faecal matter per “bit”, in the Ganges there's 3000 bits of faecal matter per “bit” (“bit” is in reference to the measurement I can't remember).



So there's the main burning Ghat where everyone is (good guess!) cremated. There's different height burning areas and different types of wood. Where you get cremated depends on a few different things; finance, social stature and caste.

The caste system is a kind of social hierarchy where depending on what caste you're born into you're basically better or worse than other people. “Brahmins” are the top class, the higher the caste the paler their skin generally. Brahmins are usually rich, have good jobs and education. The bottom caste is the “untouchables”, however a recent change in law means that no one is technically an untouchable anymore.



The castes come from the god Brahman, the “Brahmins” are from his head, each caste (I don't know all their names) has a different section of the body, until finally the untouchables are the feet.



So depending on how much money you and you're family have got you'll get cremated high up on the top steps with sandalwood (5000rs per kilo), the poorest people get cremated on the bottom steps with regular wood (1000rs per kilo) and if you've got no money, family or friends then your body is simply taken to the middle of the Ganges on a boat, and dropped to the bottom with rocks tied around it.



As part of the ceremony the males from the friends and family wash their selves in the Ganges by dunking three times each!

Not only this there's people just jumping in for a swim and some people drink it!

Me and Dave were offered some “Ganga water” when getting blessed in Delhi....safe to say we swerved that one. Good job too the way our stomachs are holding up!



We stayed in Zostel again (450rs A/C dorm) and it was a short walk to the Ghats. We followed the map they provided which walked us through the “old city”. Loads of really tiny little paths in between buildings all crammed in together, open drains....you get the picture. Despite the smell it's quite cool wandering through the little streets, it feels really “India”.



The next stop on the agenda was another dip into culture, and a trip to “Blue Lassi Shop”.

As I mentioned before Varanasi is Shiva's city, he created it. Shiva is a mother f*cking O.G. (“original gangster” for the oldies (does it count if I star a letter out mum?)) he's the god of destruction and almost always depicted with either a chillum or a bowl of Bhang. A chillum if you didn't Google it the other week is the Indian way of smoking cannabis, it's a pipe which can vary in size which you stuff the plant into the end, light up and toke back.

Bhang is a concoction of weed into an edible/drinkable substance, usually consumed in a lassi (like a milkshake) or in cookies.



Because of this the consumption of weed is overlooked in India but especially In Varanasi, with the Sadhus being the main users. Although the same rules don't apply to hashish which is looked upon as an actual drug...go figure...

Bhang is basically legal throughout much of the north of India and consumed in government run shops (but still spoke about under your breath). It comes in three strengths low, medium and strong.

Everyone and the guide book says take caution, don't have the strongest one, even if you're a seasoned smoker. I heard stories of people freaking out and having a “bad trip”. So naturally, me being me, I chose the strongest.

It didn't taste so great but it did the job, although I think the people who freaked out must have been soft, I was just really stoned. A retreat to the room after a couple of hours was a good idea, I didn't fancy re-enacting Leonardo DiCaprio's scene from Wolf of Wall street when he crawls to the car, through the streets of Varanasi.



According to Hinduism weed and bhang helps you adjust your consciousness and better understand and connect with Shiva. I can't really argue with that logic...



Congratulations Varanasi, you're not as bad as I thought.



The day after we were getting the train overnight to Kolkata to fly to Myanmar. So I decided to have another strong Bhang lassi and sleep the journey away.

This turned out to be a catastrophic decision. Somewhere between leaving the platform and taking my seat on the train my wallet either fell out of my pocket or was stolen. Bank card and driving license gone! I'm not blaming the bhang for this, but it might not have happened had I been more aware.



Luckily it wasn't the end of the world, I only lost 1500rs, I had data on my phone so I was able to call home and get the card cancelled. I've got a new card and driving license on the way to home and my parents can send it to FedEx or DHL for my collection at whatever city I happen to be heading to.



The day in Kolkata was spent running around trying to get documents for the fight printed and finding a phone to make an international call to the bank so they could send another card home. It didn't really look like too much was happening there anyway, just another standard Indian city.



So I'm sat writing this in the airport in Dharka, Bangladesh. We flew last night for 28 minutes! From Kolkata to Dharka, so we could wait 15 hours to get the next flight for about two and half hours to Yangon, Myanmar. Nightmare! We had to arrive at the airport three hours early because it was an international flight...and its the shortest flight I've ever been on!



And so ends another chapter in India. I'll definitely be back in the not too distant future because I've still not seen the North! It's too big and interesting for it's own good!

After four months it was was starting to wear thin though, so we're both looking forward to a change in scenery and culture.



Myanmar has only recently opened it's borders to foreign tourists so it's going to be very cool! Hopefully with some respite from salesmen too because no one hassles you in Myanmar from what we've heard!





Goodbye India, It's been a crazy four months!

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