Blogs from Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, India, Asia - page 13

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Asia » India » Uttarakhand » Rishikesh February 19th 2009

Ah hello again, So sadly Rishikesh is now just another memory in my already over brimming mind. I left unexpectedly after meeting a group of travelers who were coming to Delhi. They were leaving for delhi the next night, so I scrambled to tie up loose ends in the city, experience every last second of the happiness that Rishikesh brought me, and then set out with 3 Brits, a Spaniard, a Chilean, and an Indian dog named Melina... But first, let me recap on the last days spent in magical Rishikesh. After leaving the ashram me and my 60 year old friend Jane, who is possibly the most amazing person I have met thus far, got a hotel in the center of the town. I dedicated the mornings to going to participate in satsung with the ... read more
Prem Baba
The infamous monkey (or one like him)
A Gem

Asia » India » Uttarakhand » Rishikesh February 12th 2009

Wow! I can't believe that it has been almost 3 weeks since I posted on here. It really feels like it was yesterday that I was last on here. Well aolt has happened in the last weeks. Randall, Brittney and I travelled to Orccha, and then Varanasi, and then I parted ways with them, spent a few more days there and came up to a yoga retreat at an ashram in Rishikesh. Iv'e covered alot of ground already but it feels like I have barely brushed the tip of the iceberg. This counrty is so incredibly large and diverse, each state containing a completely different scenery than the next. And the people are all so unique to the place they live. I am now in Rishikesh in Uttarakhand state. It is a small little religious town ... read more
The Beatles' Ashram
Standing in the Ganges
Meditation

Asia » India » Uttarakhand » Rishikesh February 5th 2009

Mumbai - Rishikesh On 23rd January 2009, I headed from Mumbai to visit Rishikesh. Being an avid traveler, I had gathered enough information about Rishikesh. I had the local map, demographic details and weather information. I had heard from numerous people that Rishikesh is a nice place. However, I was amazed when I reached. After living in Mumbai for years, the place is nothing short of Heaven. The landscape is straight out of an artist's canvas. The Ganges is a beautiful green and the skyline a clear blue, occasionally spotted with white fluffy clouds. Best of all, people are warm and friendly. A two hour flight helps me cover the 1400 km distance from Mumbai to Delhi. Delhi to Haridwar is 195 Kms and as Haridwar does not have an airport, I took the overnight ... read more
Banks of river Ganga
The mountains and Ganga flowing
The temple at Lakshman Jhula

Asia » India » Uttarakhand » Rishikesh December 20th 2008

Okay. Me and Colin have finally arrived in Rishikesh--and considering what we went through to get here, and how long it took us, we're pretty proud of ourselves. Not only that, but after the oppressive smog and derpessing dirtiness of Delhi, this place is a refreshing haven of nature and scenery and fresh air. At this altitude the Ganges river is actually clean and beautiful--a sort of glacial greenish color--and flows at a pretty fast pace. It has none of the infected sewage look that we saw in Varanasi, which is pretty nice. All around us the Himalayan hills rise up into green forests, and the sky is actually blue and sunny whenever the clouds break. We found our ashram, which is one that the Lonely Planet recommends for "serious students" and describes as being "austere." ... read more

Asia » India » Uttarakhand » Rishikesh December 19th 2008

After a Helter Skelter busride from Jaipur we arrived to the peaceful valley of Reshikesh, where the Ganges flows out of the Himalaya's into the plains... A very holy place for Hindu's with many Ashrams included the now defunct Maherishi's Asram where the Beatles stayed in 1968. On the first day we stayed in Ram Jhula which is where all the ashram's are because we had been travelling for a long long long time and I said to Leith "I'm so tired i've hardly slept a wink", so we found the first reasonable guesthouse and decided to stay there for the night. There a loads of Saadhu's in Reshikesh, which are men with big beards and orange robes who are supposedly very devout hindu's who have given up all possesions in the search for enlightement or ... read more
Cooking lessons
Snake charmer
Himalaya's from Reshikesh foothills

Asia » India » Uttarakhand » Rishikesh December 6th 2008

Right been putting this one off for ages so just going to do it, arrived Richikesh shattered so after paying for the trek checked into the nearest hotel and slept. Woke up that evening and tried to get my hands on some warm clothes, where we were going, camping at 3200m the night temperatures would be down to minus 5 Celsius so kinda wanted to get some thermals, no joy though, should have had hiking boots as well because we would have hiking through snow, but didn’t get those either, so I was relying on my trusty pumas that served me well through the piles of elephant crap at prayer, but not exactly built for conquering. Did manage to buy a coat made locally in the village that looked decent enough and more importantly I’d wear ... read more
View from second camp
Me fein agus mo fear sneachta
Da Gang

Asia » India » Uttarakhand » Rishikesh December 5th 2008

I mentioned to Zakari that we should take advantage of our last day in Derhadun and go check out Rishikesh, which is only about an hour or two drive away. He agreed and I talked to the school who arrainged for a driver right away. I told Sandeep that we're going to Rishikesh and that he needs to come with us. Especially since he wont have anything to do since his students won't be in class. So after some convincing he agreed. I really enjoyed myself. We insisted that our driver, Raj, join us and he was a lot of fun as well. The whole time we were laughing and joking, Sandeep became our photographer. Which was so funny because all you heard was 'click, click, click'. So I was off the hook and didn't have ... read more
A youth hostal
possible traffic jam
Lakshman Jhalu

Asia » India » Uttarakhand » Rishikesh November 30th 2008

So I'm now in Rishikesh after getting the 6 hour train to Haridwar, it's about an hour away on bus. Haridwar was enjoyable, it's the Hindu's 2nd most religious cities (they have 4) they celebrate seunset and sunrise, lots of chanting, preying and fire !! though they like taking your cash at the same time !! Rishikesh is a backpakers haven with loads of crusties...could be back in brissol !! Good views here though, cheap and quiet so I'm off white water rafting cos I'm bored already. Had a conversation with a westener for the 1st time in a week today...thought I was going to go mental for a while...Shimla, Amritsa and Haridwar were alomost completely devoid of any english speaking westeners... Anyway I'm off to Delhi on Tuesday and then the Taj Mahal on Wednesday ... read more
Rishikesh

Asia » India » Uttarakhand » Rishikesh November 29th 2008

Rishikesh calls itself the Yoga Capital of the World. It could well be true. There is a whole lotta yoga going on there. Like Varanasi, Rishikesh is located along the banks of the Ganges River, however that is about where the similarities end. Rishikesh is a quiet (well, as far as India goes), clean, laid-back place where nearly everyone left us alone! A welcome break after Rajasthan and another quick stop in crazy Delhi. Rishikesh is located near where the clean-ish Ganges emerges from the Himalayan foothills. It is an ideal place to chill out, take a course, eat salad, do some yoga or meditation during a stay at an ashram. Being holy town, Rishikesh is dry (no booze) and very vegetarian: no eggs or meat. Although we did discover that one part of town inexplicably ... read more
holy cows hanging by the river
deceptively cute monkeys
sunset & sadu

Asia » India » Uttarakhand » Rishikesh November 20th 2008

I was awoken today in my hotel by the ubiquitous ringing of bells and mantra chanting. Laying in my bed, my good old stolen British airways blanket draped over me to protect me from frosty morning air I had to smile... not so many places in the world where you are woken up this way. I am starting to recognise many of the mantras, often find myself subconsciously humming them. Yesterday in our final ceremony at the Phool Chatti ashram where I stayed for the past week, we chanted one of them 108 times, sitting around a small fire, each with a little dish of seven different types of sacred wood shavings which we took a pinch of (using only middle, third finger and thumb - important, although not sure why) and threw in the fire ... read more




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