India - not for the faint hearted

Crossing the border into India we were met with beggars, cows, rubbish heaps, burning heaps in the road, dogs - and chaos. Was a basic introduction to what we would see and experience in Varanasi.

Varanasi is the oldest contiuosuly inhabited holy city in the world - all aimed around the River Ganges. The Hindu people believe this river is holy and people pilgrimage to drink or bath in this river. But on the sides of the river the dead are cremated (we witnessed 3 cremations on the ghats (sides of the river)) and further up the river dead bodies are thrown (pregnant women and children do not get cremated - instead they are bundled up and thrown in the river). Along with the pollution of this city and other dead animals, the river is disgusting.
We were met with views from the side of the Ganges which left us speechless but we braved a sunrise boat ride up the Ganges to see the people bathing in the water, cremations and the different ghats along the river.

 In the afternoon we went on another boat ride to watch the sunset together with the daily ritual of a dedication by 7 priests to the River Ganges. Although the sunset was pretty we could see these cremations along the river

I must say though i am glad i have been to this city, but i dont think i will be back. It was really interesting to see the river and the city and how so many people pilgrimage to the place but it was a bit too much for the westerners and we were happy to head on to the next stop.

We visited the second holy Buddhist place which is in India (the first one we went to in Lumbini where Buddha was born). This is Sarnath where Buddha did his first sermon to his 4 disciples under the tree. Around this area there are massive ruins which were built to honour this holy site of Buddha's sermon. This is James and I with the ruins in the background

After Sarnath we had to board our overnight train to Orchha. Fi and I were dreading this with the pillows, sheets and blankets that are given to all passengers. Can you imagine the germs and bed bugs. We opted for our own sleeping bag and bags for a pillow and i still managed to get bitten by some bugs. not ideal.

I had the top bunk, not the best night sleep and I was very happy to get off the next morning after a 15 hour train ride.

We are now in Orchha - a much smaller town than Varanasi but still the same chaos that seems to be the common theme in India. We are staying in tents which overlook the ancient 16th century palaces in this area - very pretty

We all decided to do the optional extra of a cooking class in a local families home, was the best food we have had in India. And we got a blessing going into their house which is why i have the red dot on my head :)

About to head off to Agra - very excited to see the Taj Mahal tomorrow!

Miss you all
Lots of love

End of Nepal

After visiting Pokhara, we headed to Chitwan National Park.
We went on an 'elephant safari' which was a new experience but after an hr and a half with 4 people stuck on the wooden platform on the elephant it was good to get off. Still doesn't beat an African safari... But we saw a rhino and baby up close which was good
Some people tried out the elephant washing in the river afterwards but the sceptic Sputh Africans watched from the bank of the river. Although they were convinced the water was clean, we didn't take our chances.
Chitwan was a great place to relax and take in the outdoor experience.
I especially enjoyed the local elephant who slept just across the fence overlooking my room.

After Chitwan we went to Lumbini. This is the birthplace of Buddha.
We celebrated Diwali here with fireworks and an evening walk in the local village. The local people have nothing but seem so happy with their life, very humbling to see

That was our last stop in Nepal before heading to India.
India has been an experience - I'll update in another blog

Hope you all are well
Love Carol

Nepal photos take 2

Pashupati - the holiest Hindu temple where you can see the cremations in the background

Everest - amazing view from the cockpit

Fi and me at Monkey temple in Kathmandu

Chitwan - elephant ride

Practising my meditation at the birth place of Buddha in Lumbini

Nepal

Our trip started off in Kathmandu, Nepal on Saturday.

What a crazy city. Met Fi and James at the hotel - they warned me what chaos the main square area was (they arrived in the morning and went exploring). I wasnt prepared for what i saw at all - i have never seen anything like it. Complete carnage. Small passage ways have thousands of people walking, market stall sellers, beggars, sellers of jewellery/flutes/anything, cars, rickshaws, goats, cows, motorbikes, bicycles, dogs, chickens. All in one place. Its mad. And everyone blows there horn all the time. Its also a complete mixture of smells - herbs&spices, curries, raw meat and fish lying open covered in flies and incense.

But its an amazing experience to try take this all in and everyone seems to be living in harmony with each other. I never felt threatened once. they are all so happy with what they are doing. Great to see the humbleness of the Nepalese people

The next morning we got up at 5am to go for the Everest flight. Unfortunately after taxiing down the runway they turned the plane round to tell us that there was no sighting of Everest due to cloud. We were very disappointed.

But decided to go to Pashupati - the holiest Hindu temple in the world (although Buddhists also worship there). We saw 2 cremations occuring on the side of the holy river, we even saw the person's toes (rest of the body is covered in bamboo and other material) ... dont think you would see that anywhere else in the world.

We tried again the next morning for Everest. This was our last chance to try get up to see it. We were very lucky as some of the flights before us were cancelled and we had an unbelieveable view of the Himalayas and the magnificent Everest. Was brilliant, definitely worth the hack of the domestic airport in Kathmandu.

After travelling 8 hours for only 200km's, we are now in Pokhara. Its a lakeside town and the 'adventure' city. We were up at 4:30am for a 30minute hike up the mountain to watch sunrise across the Anapurna mountain range. Then 6 of us from the group (there are 13 in total) hiked all the way down. Took us 2 hours. Beautiful walking down the mountain through the forest and rice fields.

After having done paragliding once in Turkey with Lee and Daabs, i decided that wasnt enough. So we all went off to go paragliding. Was amazing. But i think thats all the paragliding i will be doing in my life.

Very happy to be back down now, sitting in an internet cafe that overlooks the lakeside area - got to love my life right now :)

hope you all are well and happy
lots of love

Carol

ps had uploaded photos explaining these stories but computer crashed and just lost them... not ideal. maybe next time. bye for now