Sahi River View Guesthouse Varanasi

... prevented any sun actually showing off the magnificent tomb. After ambling around the Taj and surrounding area we called it a morning and headed back to another terrace restaurant for breakie and more amazing views. We decided that other than the Taj and the Fort (which we visited later in the afternoon) we didn’t need to spend much more time in Agra, so we jumped on another night train and headed to Khajuraho. Khajuraho is famous for its Karma Sutra carved temples, which were ...

... the Ghats in a matter of moments. From here you can see the true face of Varanasi. Its colours and life, and most certainly why historians still struggle to pin its earliest date of origin. That said, it is widely believed to be one of the oldest cities in the world; and strong traces of this can seen in the form of ancient fort and palace fronts that edge some of the Ghats.<br>A ghat is basically a long set of steps that in this case leads directly into the ...

... of stars based on both the lunar and solar calendar. The Astrologers in Varanasi are considered extremely authoritative and politicians and businessmen are known to consult them before making any critical decisions. Of course, a traditional Indian marriage can not be arranged until the astrologist matches the horoscope of the bride and groom. Jyotishcharya is based on the Hindu philosophy that one's actions and fortunes are pre-determined by a cosmic design, that design ...

... a flute teacher so i could learn to play my bansuri, a well crafted, six holed teak and rosewood flute that i've been carrying since Auroville. We were greeted at the music school by an oddball young man with a chopped up afro haristyle and a woman. They were sitting on the floor and the lady was expertly playing a classical sitar using her fingers and a metal wire pick to pluck the strings and create wonderful sounds. I booked in for a session with the flute teacher ...

... on less than a dollar a day, 200 rupees can mean quite a bit. Not that I believed for an instant that he helped the sick and dying in the area or that any of that money would go towards buying 'expensive wood'.<br><br>As I said before, Varanasi is one dirty city. I'm sick again here and have been suffering through some pretty severe diarrhea, but that just seems to be the norm in India. Dirty as it is, though, it's certainly not boring. <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br ><br><br>

... that can only be solved through the money they make from tourism. Yesterday we flew to Varanasi. The airport system was strange, nobody even asked to see our passports once! And the conveyor belt was five metres long with over 70 people crowding round it and a sheer drop at the end so if you didn't grab your bag before it reached the end your ...

... our bags a couple of hundred yards the other side of the border, where a bus was waiting to take us on the 10 hour drive to Varanassi. <br><br> Very long day of travel with only a couple of brief toilet and food stops to break the monotony. Mostly rural countryside with ...