India continued...

I’m getting annoyed with our guide, and just India in general. I worry that I’m turning into that stereotypical American "why can't they do things the way we do things..." I’ve been travelling too long. I think what I’ve learned is that 4-5 weeks is my max, and I really shouldn't travel to hot hot countries. However, today was a good day.

This morning we got up and were on the river at dawn in a large rowboat. We cruised up the Ganges watching the morning rituals at the ghats. Basically there are wide stairs--almost like football stadium bleachers--leading down to the water all along the banks. Each has a different name, and many have different purposes--some are for bathing, some are for cremating, some are only for people of certain sects, some were built by the gov't, some by maharajas, etc. People come down and bathe in the water--some just splash water on; others fully immerse themselves and seem to have a ritual. They pray, or dunk their heads a certain number of times, etc. A few use soap, and it's kind of funny to see them sitting on the steps lathering up. (also kind of sickening since you know how dirty the water is and you want to stop them as they put handfuls of the water in their mouth to drink or clean their teeth).

No one is naked... they strip down to their "under-under clothes"... sometimes wrapping a separate piece of cloth, or washing under what they're wearing, etc.

We passed by a few of the cremation ghats: on one there were the smoldering remains, and an another a body wrapped in a white shroud was stacked with wood ready to be burnt. There was also a crematorium, and I think the guide said it's cheaper to be cremated in there than out on the ghats where they use wood.

I thought that maybe Varanasi is where the movie Water took place (but it turns out it was Benares, which isn't far), in any event, it’s a heartbreaking but beautiful movie set in the 1930s maybe, about widows in India. Caroline and I saw it last spring at an indie theater in Charlottesville and both left sobbing.

Anyway, this afternoon I had a traditional ayurvedic massage, and it was excellent. It started with oil being poured on my head, then a scalp massage, and then a brisk full body massage with different oil. Very relaxing--I feel great!

Spent the rest of the afternoon repacking and watching Goonies on TV, and at sunset we set off on a big rowboat again to watch the sun set and do a Hindu flower ceremony. At night people don't bathe at the ghats, but they pray and there is music and chanting and usually some sort of fire. While waiting for it to get dark enough, we saw a few river dolphins surface near us. They’re such strange creatures--they really resemble marlins more than regular dolphins, and supposedly they're blind.

Once it was dark, our boat crew lit hundreds of little candles and placed them in these little bowls made of leaves, filled with flower petals (bougainvillea I think). When you release the little bowl into the water you make a wish. Soon there were hundreds of these little jewels floating away down the river and it was beautiful. It was a lovely peaceful night, with cool breezes and it was a perfect way to end the India portion of the trip.

We headed back to the banks, shopped a little, and had dinner. Tomorrow we leave at 5am for an 8-hour drive to the border. From there we hop a bus to Lumbini, and sightsee and spend the night there. The next morning we head to the national park/forest for a 2-day walk, before heading to Katmandu.

I’m torn about India. I expected to love it, and I don't know if my expectations were naive or if I’m just not in the right portion of India, or not here long enough, or coming to it in the wrong frame of mind. I love certain things about it, and I’m glad I came, but it wasn't the life-altering voyage I kind of thought it might be... of course, if you want life altering I guess you don't go on a 2 week tour--you wind through the country on your own with no exit date in sight. You don't resist, you assimilate. Maybe next time...

Okay, off to scavenge food for the journey tomorrow.