Hotel New Ashok Katra

... A body floats just meters away. To the right, smoke rises from the burning bodies at Manikarnika Ghat, a 24hr open "crematorium" where 200-300 bodies arrive and are burned in a day. We stood watching a burning last night, fascinated by the simplicity and ease of it all.
Here, on the banks of the Ganges, life and death really do go hand in hand.

... at the cremation bit (after watching for a while) it was all very relaxed the locals were very calm about the continuous cremations - there are about 300 every day - which made us very relaxed about it too.

In the evening we watched the Puja which was the daily end of day prayer ceremony which was lots of candles, incense and chanting - all seemed very mysterious and holy but 20 mins was enough.

Well it was bound to happen sooner or later, but after eating the results of our cooking class and boarding the night train from Orchha to Allahabad I got really sick. We were in an open sleeping car (not private) and I could not sleep. Let me tell you throwing up in the bathroom in the middle of the night on a jarring, jerking train is not fun. Another girl named Alisha and I were too sick to travel, and especially too sick to do the rowboat "cruise" and camping trip on the Ganges so we ...

A night on a hard mud hut schoolroom floor provided rest after a 125km ride over gravel, sand, potholes, a mountain and some tarmac. It was beautiful 'though, from Uttar Pradesh into Madhya Pradesh; Gangetic plain to highland drama and down. Rocky outcrops with silhouetted monkeys and eagles against deep, long valleys and peaks turning blue into the distance greeted us on completion of a gruelling, annoyingly steep, long and bumpy slog up a tabletop mountain that ...

Allahabad, also known as Prayag, the "Holiest of Holies" is the site of the Kumbh Mela and Ardh Kumbh Mela, held in turn every six years. These festivals are the largest in the world, attracting millions of pilgrims. On January 19, the day of the new moon, when the moon and the sun concurrently enter the sign of Kumbh (Aquarius, the water bearer), Vedic astrologers proclaim the holiest of holy bathing time, when the mythical Saraswati River comes to life, joining the confluence ...

Hello Again, So we are still alive and well but we have broken away from our Intrepid group a day early--thought we would skip the overnight train back to Delhi--tried that already once before and it wasn't the most fun. Instead we caught a flight from Varanasi to Delhi this afternoon for 499 rupees (about $10 US) and checked back in at the Swati. We will be heading to Goa tomorrow morning and will therefore be extending our time in Goa by two days. Can't wait to get to the ...

... the river and walked the streets window shopping and dodging cows all over the streets. Bought a small handmade foam bunny rabbit this guy was selling on the street. Very surreal looking but quite ingenious use of common materials! Heading to Varinasi tomorrow for the last few days of my tour. Hopefully I'll locate a faster internet connection soon...I know you all are on the edge of your seats for the Kama Sutra pictures! Cheers : )

... Makes me want to learn more about how India gained Independence from Brittan in the 40's and the decision to partition Pakistan from India--all I know about the time period is from my Lonely Planet guide and from watching "Gandhi!"

... and bathing in the holy water of this magnificent river - but everyone seems to accept this now. Hundreds of tourists. This afternoon we will visit the "Chowk" or market area but it will not be very comfortable for us. We are just walking dollars in this type of area.

... flow flowers, ashes of the dead, etc. What I was impressed most in Varanasi was the peaceful sight of Ganga in the rising sun. Though I'm not a Hindu, I felt calm on a small boat being part of the holy sight. But in the daytime, people changed awfully. When I walked down to Ganga by myself, I had to go through thousands of beggars, struggle with sellers who insistently pressed things that I ...