Day 259- After a long journey on the night train we arrived in Varanasi. Varanasi is widely known around the world as the place where people are burned on the Ghats (steps leading to the river's bank). With this in mind I knew it would definitely be worth the intense transitioning we were doing to close out India. We arrived in the early afternoon and the city was bustling. It may have been the most people, cars, tuk tuks, cows, goats, honks, smells and stares that we'd had yet. We were happy to arrive at the serene and peaceful side of town where we'd be spending our nights, at the Yoga Mandir Ashram. After a hot shower and meal, we set out to discover our surroundings.
Day 260- We had an action packed day ahead of us and there was no time to waste. It began with a walk over to the Assi Ghat. On our way there, I stopped and took a photo of our lovely little Ashram and home.
We took a rickshaw to the main Ghat and walked around, admiring the sheer mass of people doing their daily business.
Shops, chai stools and walking salesmen flowed through the streets like water down a river. Cars and bikes honked and whizzed past every few seconds and seemingly angry cows roamed the streets with authority.
When we finally made it through all that madness without purchasing anything, getting clipped by a bike or being charged by a cow, we began our descent down the steps to the Dashashwamedh Ghat, also known as the Main Ghat.
The Ghats are the leading attraction of Varanasi and 87 of them surround the Ganges. Each one has its use but most are used for bathing or puja (chanting) ceremonies and two others are purely cremation ghats. The main ghat is the grandest of all, decorated for daily Arthi (fire) ceremonies making it the starting point for most Varanasi discoveries.
These boats either take visitors for trips down the river or serve as extra seating during the Arthi ceremonies, once the sun goes down.
The men below prepare and bless their offerings for the ceremony.
Three baba's chill on the ghats while a water buffalo heads to the river for a cooling soak.
One of my favorite things do was to sit and watch the men and women bathing in the Ganga. Locals and pilgrims make their ways to the rivers everyday for a healing bath.
We found a restaurant with a great view called Ganpati restaurant and ordered up some Indian Thali. The buildings line the river's edge for miles and miles.
I loved the view of all the stacked buildings and homes. Who knows where one ends and another begins?
As the sun fell, chants and mantras filled the air and we knew the Arthi ceremony would soon be underway. We noticed many people finding seats along the main ghat stairs so we found a seat near the river and waited. We really had no idea what we were in for but we had noticed the lengthly preparations for the ceremony taking place hours before. If I have learned anything from going to Disneyland with my in laws, it's that if there is a lineup, just get in it and figure our what it's for later. Slowly, the concrete was covered with saris and lungis and in no time at all we were surrounded by thousands of people.
More like over 100,000 people. Oh and did I mention that they do these every night... and every night around 100,000 people are in attendance? The amount of energy that surrounded us was electric!
Saddhu leaving the ceremony.
Day 260- We had an action packed day ahead of us and there was no time to waste. It began with a walk over to the Assi Ghat. On our way there, I stopped and took a photo of our lovely little Ashram and home.
The walks anywhere never get old. He's comming right at uuuuuuuuuuuus!!
Homes, that also operate as shops, line the side of the road.
We organized a boat to take us up the river. We wanted to see Varanasi from a different perspective and that's what we got. We started at the Assi Ghat, which is one of the main bathing ghats and paddled all the way to the Main Ghat.
Above are more men and boys bathing, having fun while they do it.
Mike wanted a second chance at the paan (Indian chewing tobacco) after his last incident, so when our boat driver asked Mike if he wanted some, he didn't hesitate.
HOW could he not hesitate??? Is my glare not scary enough... I'm gonna have to work on that.
Paan is often sold in a leaf and as it turns out, Mike must have quadrupled a normal serving the first time because most of the concoction was actually supposed to be made up of minty leaves and roots.
You can't see my face but I'm pretty sure I'm working on my disapproving stare! It still needs work.
Eventually we came across the two ghats that are reserved solely for cremations. It is hard to explain how it felt to see human bodies getting lit on fire at the river's edge. It is one thing to think about and an entirely different sensation when faced with it. A truly unique moment in my life. You can see the flames burning high in the bottom right corner of the photo below, sending these souls to the afterlife.
For obvious reasons, it is frowned upon to take close up photos of these ceremonies. I don't think I would be interested in this even if it were encouraged but I did find the whole thing fascinating and took a few shots from the boat.
Stacks and stacks of wood are built up like forts on every open piece of concrete. Families buy what they can afford to aid in the send off of their loved ones and unfortunately, sometimes it's not enough to finish the job. Possibly the more shocking sight was the men bathing no more than 15 feet downstream from the cremation site.
Seeing the ghats from the river really was an entirely different experience than on land. It was tranquil and calming. The only noise came from the boys splashing in the water and the crackle of the firewood, both were a beautiful addition to our day.
Varanasi was another place that was 'the real India'. Although, this authentic experience was much better received than the last one.
Oh yea that's a healthy looking mama!
We found a cute little cafe called Varanasi Cafe with delicious fresh salads and homemade pasta, so we stopped for lunch. Oh and our view was the most perfect assortment of advertisements that was nothing short of a beautiful piece of art. Oh and don't miss who is hanging out at the bottom right.
After lunch we made an appointment with an astrologer. Varanasi is a mecca for astrology and has one of the best astrology universities in the world.
Next, we found a little chai shop. The owner, who spoke french and english on top of his own language, let us sample many different chai spices before serving up a tasty chai for our enjoyment.
It was Easter Sunday and we had scoped out a church the day prior that had Easter mass on it's schedule for 6pm. We entered and took our place amongst the locals, refusing the old ladies offers to take their seats. The church was quickly filled with colourful saris.
First time I've ever sat on the floor of a church! It was only a few minutes into the mass before I realized that the songs were not of the typical catholic nature. They were perhaps a little too upbeat, with a lot of clapping and many many 'Alleluias' and 'Thank you Jesus''. We had found ourselves in a Christian church of some sorts and although Catholicism is a sect of Christianity, we couldn't help but feel just a little out of place.
Day 261- I had my astrology appointment first thing in the morning. On the way there, the driver stopped and picked up a Saddhu... then we stopped and picked up another... and theeen, well, just have a look and see below! haha The funniest thing was that they would not sit in the back with us even though we offered and had plenty of space. Apparently, it is ok to pick up additional fares on the way as long as they all sit on the drivers lap.
As we walked along the narrow lanes to our appointment, we got distracted by some adorable creatures. These little guys have a nack for jumping on things and we were blessed to see them in action.
The video is a little long but worth every second!
I hear Calgary is getting goats to eat the weeds at some of Calgary's parks! I cannot wait!
The astrologer was eerily accurate and gave me some insight into many things I definitely need to work on to ensure a happy future. Apparently, If I fail to improve myself I will face some pretty unfortunate outcomes in the next 20 years, or so he warned me.
On the way back to our hood, we passed through a traffic circle. The same traffic circle we'd passed many times over the past few days. Getting across the lanes is like real life frogger and it's incredible how easily everything flows together.
We found a little cafe near the Assi Ghat for coffee and lunch and I reflected on all the information the astrology reading gave me.
On the way home we stopped out front of our home to admire the water buffalo relaxing in the water. The massive animals never cease to amaze me given their sheer size and peaceful nature.
I love the photo below. A couple bathes in the water along with three giant beasts and two befriended birds.
We went back to our Ashram and I was feeling inspired, so I led Mike through a yoga class with me.
While Mike and I took turns packing, we each got an Indian head massage from the Guru at the Ashram who also had a massage therapist certificate from Germany and was darn proud of it.
We left late at night with the sweetest tuk tuk driver who drove us to the train station. He was even kind enough to turn around, without complaint, when he received a phone call from the Ashram to tell us that we'd left my iPad behind!!! We must have had an angel on our side because that would have been a great, as in really bad or terrible or un-great, loss for the sake of my blog. On our second trip back to the train station the driver engaged us in conversation, like many other tuk tuk drivers so often did. I can say one thing for sure, I've never been asked so many times in my life if Mike and I are going to have children, not even from Mike's dad, than I did in India. The Indians do love making babies! And everytime, they follow the question up with 'yes, babies are good, you must make baby'.
Day 262- We rode the train all night and all day, arriving in Delhi in the afternoon. Although it was on time to pick us up, it got delayed at some point throughout the 15 hour journey. On our way to the hotel I caught another of my favourite photos so far. These little cuties gave us smiles for a few blocks.
We got to Sai Miracle Hotel in the Pahar Ganj district of Delhi and it felt so good to be back to our familiar hotel. We did a whole bunch of last minute shopping, then relaxed in our room until it was time to sleep. However, I was getting my third bout of Delhi belly so sleep wasn't going to be the peaceful endeavour I had hoped for.
In a few hours we would be leaving India and it hurt my heart to admit it. India and I had had a love affair and I didn't want it to end. As we repeated over and over throughout our trip, 'India doesn't give you what you want it gives you what you need'. Simply spending an extended period of time here taught us patience, tolerance, acceptance, trust, empathy, compassion, gratefulness, self awareness and love. It opened my eyes to an entirely new world of possibilities. It gave me the support and strength I needed to work through some of my life's greatest struggles and I believe that I became a better person because of it. I felt like India flipped me inside out, exposing all of my darkest demons. I mentioned before that unlike many others, I didn't come to India for an 'Eat Pray Love moment', I wasn't on a journey of self discovery and in fact, coming into India, I was quite happy with the person I was. This did not matter because when I left India, I did so with a tool box full of ideas and techniques to make me a better version of myself. Mike also learned a lot about himself and admits that he is excited to implement some of the healthy living into his life back home. We are healthier and happier and have India to thank for it. Thanks India, can't wait until we see each other again.
Namaste.
