Road travel in India is crazy and chaotic. There are no lights, no stopsigns, and no road rules. The motto for India travel- "you need a good car, good horn, and good luck!" Cars scratch each other and drivers do not even stop! Old local buses are almost tipping over because of worn out shocks.
Horns peeping constantly, Tuk-Tuks weaving in and out of traffic, chaos on the road; loads of old bikes, rickshaws, everyone cutting off each other. Sacred cows are lying in the middle of street and people crossing without even looking. Watch out! The noise is deafening. My ears are ringing. Accidents are frequent!
Corruption and payoffs are constant! Anyone with a little power, will make someone else's life miserable for a few rupees.
Sacred cows leave fresh deposits everywhere you step. In the old city with narrow, winding allies, I have to hug one of the walls to get by the many cows just hanging out.
Holy men in colorful red and orange robes and pilgrims on devotional walks are everywhere. Hundreds and thousands of miles from home, they are driven by a devine experience with Hindu God Shiva in the numerous temples around every corner. They live and sleep by the river.
Wood fires smells throughout Varanaci and corpses draped in decorative ceremonial coverings are part of the solemn atmosphere. Death is about freeing the suffering soul from the endless births and deaths in the Hindu reincarnation beliefs. In other words, death in Varanaci is a fast route to nirvana and hopefully enlightment.
Varanaci is to the Hindus what Jerusalem is to the Jews and Mecca is to the Muslims.
Cobra snakes pop out of straw baskets with their masters playing their flutes as I walk. I get terrified.
People constantly hound you to death-- boat, silk, message, taxi, rickshaw..........
I listened to some good sitar music.
Many people here are still condemned to their castes.
Beautiful sunrises over the Ganges River.
India with over a billion people and growing. The second largest country in the world after China.
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