Varanasi

After our jaunt in Nepal it was off to India! However, to be honest we were did so with mildly heavy hearts as we had to say goodbye to family before we left. We had spent the last two weeks traveling with Jennie and had a great week with family, so while we were excited to start our Indian travels we were rather sad to see family go. But on we had to go, so on we went! Our first stop in this whirlwind trip through India was Varanasi (the holiest city in India). What a way to begin.

A holy cow in the holy city...

Read the rest...
Our trip to Varanasi really begins with lengthy trip it took us to get there. We had recently spent more time on buses than either of us cared to but with that in mind there is really only one option (or one that we could afford) to get to Varanasi and that was more buses. First one has to leave Kathmandu and head towards the border and process that is a 10 hour bus ride. But fortunately for us the bus route has the ONLY AC bus in Nepal. This brought some solace in the fact that we had to ride another bus, the idea that at least it was a tourist bus and air conditioned (man I love AC buses... or at least man I tolerate AC buses better than non-AC). Also, on our bus ride out we finally got our first really clear view of the Himalayans which was nice. So after that full day bus ride we still have another full day of travel to reach Varanasi. The next day was long, bumpy, and consisted mostly of us sitting in a local Indian bus (the rest I'm trying to block out. I didn't know you could have a capacity of how much of a form of transport one can ride before going nuts but I'm about at that threshold with buses).

Preparing to board the bus at Kathmandu and gearing up for a long ride with a "twin" banana... who knew these things existed?

So after two solid days of bus we finally arrive in Varanasi. Varanasi has quite the reputation on the backpacker circuit and not because of the great views. It has a reputation as a tough town, a town you don't walk around at night and where you are especially on your guard against getting ripped off. In Hinduism it is the holiest city but for many backpackers it is fascinating, challenging, but also the source where things can go wrong. (nothing went wrong for us though) And it still draws hordes of people who come to see the ghats and so we thought we'd join the throngs of people.

However, Varanasi was as interesting of a city and lived up to the expectations I had in my head. Varanasi is the city of ghats (steps that lead down into the river Ganges), old twisting streets, and cow shit. The Ghats are a series of steps that lead down from the road into the river and on these steps men and women come to bath, to play, to purify themselves, and to die. Most of the ghats serve the earlier functions... places where local Hindus can come to bath themselves and play in the Holiest of Hindu rivers, they come to purify themselves. However, some also come to the Ganges to die, they get cremated and then have their ashes strewn upon the river, thereby helping their next life.

A view of the Ghats. The steps continue down into the river, so that way the river is always accessible.

A view of the ghats during the morning (the busiest time). They are just jammed full during the busy times, bathing, playing, cleansing.

We happened to be in Varanasi during on of the major festivals (it lasts all month). During this festival men (mostly all men) wear all orange and make a pilgrimage to Varanasi to bath in the Ghats. They were scattered throughout our few days at Varanasi and there was always some troop of men running down to the ghats. Here they are simply sitting on a tractor which is pulling a wagon upon which is an array of 20 speakers playing some kind of Bollywood like tune that I couldn't understand.

On top of the ghats (which are fascinating) there is the old section of Varanasi, a twisting maze of old streets (and the most confusing section of a setting I've been). The streets defy any sense of order as they snake their way through groups of buildings and temples. The streets are closed off to everything aside from foot traffic (which is good considering they are only 4 feet wide) and lack any clear sense of direction. There are no main streets, instead it's following one winding street to another, to another, and yet another before reaching your destination. We went on several walks through the old section and they were always interesting, we normally ended up where we wanted though it often took us a while.

Me with a cow on the narrow streets of the old city. The cows were fine like this but they got really fun when they laid down sideways blocking all traffic.

One of our hotels rooms. It was tiny but cheap! I think it cost about... three dollars.

A sunset view of the Ghats. It really was beautiful.

And how can we go to Varanasi without talking about the cow shit (and shit is really the appropriate word for it). Cows are sacred in Hinduism and as such can't be hurt and are given free reign to go where they wish. It just so turns out that where they want to go in Varanasi is the old city, with its narrow winding streets. So adding to the challenge of moving around the crowded winding street is the continually trying to avoid the lovely side effects of having cows (do holy cows have holy poop?). Then it will rain, allowing the cow remnants to have a more broad effect as they cover the streets.

The old city at night. It was poorly lit and with lots of twists and turns. Very cool... just don't stay out past 10:00.

In the end Varanasi was a good time. It wasn't overly clean, travel was far from easy, but it was a rather unique experience that we both enjoyed (and also nothing bad happened to us). I don't know if I have a burning passion to return to Varanasi but it was an interesting place to visit and experience... though I don't miss the cows.

Originally started by Megan but written by Josh... in case the gramatical mistakes didn't give it away.