FUN-photos: Incredible & Insane India – 42 Crazy & Chaotic Days – Part 1

December 24, 2016 by · Comments Off on FUN-photos: Incredible & Insane India – 42 Crazy & Chaotic Days – Part 1 

  • We covered a lot of territory…from the tippy top in the Himalayas…and ending … at the very end… literally! …in the city of Trivandrum.

First 22 Days – Bustling Bombay…our Himalayan high…Dizzying Delhi… Awesome Agra with its Majestic Taj Mahal and Red Fort Complex…Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary…Rathambore Reserve… in search of the ever elusive tigers…which remained just that…Jaipur Palaces…Pushkar Camel Fair…Commanding Kumbhalgarh Fort… Jain Temple Treat…Unbelievable Udaipur…and Very Sacred – Very Special – Varanasi…where we celebrated Dev Dewali on the Ganges.

FUN-festival – Dev Diwali Delight!

November 18, 2016 by · Comments Off on FUN-festival – Dev Diwali Delight! 

  • The Festival of Lights of the Gods…

…is only celebrated in Varanasi…

…15 days after the country celebrates Diwali…

…when the moon is full.

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Can you spot her baby?

  • Steps of all the ghats on the riverfront…

…are lit with more than a million earthen lamps (diyas)…

…in honor of Ganga, the Ganges…

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…and its presiding goddess…

…so popular that this city of 3 million…

…swells to a whopping 5 million.

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Final Finishing Touch

  • Glad to be in a boat…

…with only a dozen of us…

…away from the hoards of people on land…

…but that quickly faded…

…as more and more boats arrived…

…all jockeying for position…

…until we were totally enveloped…

…by a sea of boats…

…merging with the river bank…

…and making the river seem nonexistent.

FUN-Bonus – We were booked at the Taj in Varanasi but because they were oversold we got an upgrade to their Nadesar Palace next door. Only 10 rooms/suites and sweet it was! I just LOVE when that happens.

FUN-travel: Very Sacred – Very Special – Varanasi

November 17, 2016 by · Comments Off on FUN-travel: Very Sacred – Very Special – Varanasi 

  • Regarded as the spiritual capital of India… the city draws Hindu pilgrims… who bathe in the Ganges River’s sacred waters… believed to have the power of washing away all of one’s sins.

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  • Dating to 11th century B.C…at more than 3000 years old… makes it the oldest “living city”…and where Hindu’s come to die.
  • Shrouded in white cloth…then wrapped in bright orange…the body is set on a bed of thick wooden logs…with more logs placed on top…before being lit from the eternal flame…by the eldest son.

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  • And thus begins the cremation process…that ends when the final flame dies out…and all that’s left are the ashes… and where each day between 200 and 300 souls…hope to achieve absolute salvaton.
  • As I stood on the banks of the Ganges…in the midst of their morning rituals…my thought was how it all felt…so natural…so peaceful…so loving…and such a special experience.

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FUN-travel Tip – Watch your step and watch “where” you step as… cows, camels, dogs, goats, pigs, sheep & water buffalo …are the Rulers of the Roads…and the highways…and the streets…and the alleys…and the steps…