Varanasi…

 We farewelled our bus driver the night before, so this morning it was cars to take us to the Lucknow rail station.  It is a major city so it was a very large station.  If you think of the images of indian train stations you have seen in movies such as Lion, then you have some idea.   At 6 am there was a mass of people moving around - up and down stairs, between platforms, sleeping on the ground on platforms and in any corner you can thing of…I’m sure it is a 24/7 thing.  

Avidesh Ji guided us expertly through the maize of people and we found our platform.  We were definitely an oddity - I saw now other white faces and we were inspected by many.  Some were too shy to make eye contact, while others gave a nod or a smile.  

We were lucky - we had an air conditioned booked seat passage - while the other carriages were filled with bench seats and it was first in best dressed.   It was still slightly uncomfortable - the seats were hard, yet we had tray tables.  The toilets were ‘an experience’ with one western toilet for the carriage and three squat toilets.  Needless to say we all held on as long as we could!   

THe views from the trains were of agricultural land - more wheat fields and we seemed to leave the lush greenery to more brown beige wheat that was ready for harvesting.  There little farm houses with people doing their daily chores - feeding animals, washing, sweeping etc.  As we entered nearer to Varangian, the buildings became bigger - more stories although as in many other countries they look half finished with reinforcing steel sticking out of columns, and no sides to upper story rooms - perhaps waiting for more money to finish buildings???

Varanassi was the last stop so the train emptied and it was bedlam!   A wave of people all made their way to the stairs/escalators and it was hundreds deep and probably 30 people wide all trying to get up the stairs - we were told where the elevator was and so made out way there.  We then walked outside to find our transport to the hotel…leaving the concrete of the station, we suddenly found ourselves trying to drag our bags through a fine dusty sand in the carpark which caused havoc with some of the less rugged luggage.  

Our hotel is called Clarks.  It’s hard to gauge its age…but guessing maybe 40years.  The doorman wears elaborate Indian dress with a dress turban…very colonial.  We were all pleased to have a little time in the aircon to freshen before hitting the streets to visit Sarnath.  

Sarnath is located about 10 km from Varanasi, and is the primary Buddhist pilgrimage site where Lord Buddha delivered his first sermon. There is the temple, called Mulagandha Kuta Vihar and also the Dhamekh Stupa and we observed many visiting international monks and nuns from monasteries praying and visiting. 

There is also the Bodhi Tree in Sarnath which is a sacred tree located in the courtyard of Mulgandha Kuta Vihar. It was planed in 1931 and is said to be placed on the site where Buddha gave his first sermon.

 

Dinner was in the garden of a local hotel - many on the tour are now suffering from Delhi Belly, so there was lots of plain food consumed amongst swatting the mozzies away!

Looking at Lucknow

 After the Taj Mahal early morning, we returned to the hotel for breakfast before climbing into our trusty bus with Hamlal Ji at the wheel.   I am always surprised how people gravitate to the same seat…we now have our places!  

First stop was a rug making facility that Intrepid sponsor.  Apparently it is a dying art.  We saw workers at looms and there was a very in-depth explanation of the process before the hard sell set in.  The weavers earn 2250 Rupies per square foot.  We saw one group of three working on a carpet about 8x6 ft and they were about 1/3 of the way through….it had taken them 4 months to that point!  

 I manage to extricate myself as the Delhi Belly has zapped all my energy, however I watched from a distance!  One of our group purchased a carpet and it will be posted for free to arrive in 15 days to the USA!   The rugs were beautiful and felt gorgeous under foot however I can’t imagine on at the farm any time soon.  

It was back on the bus, after our beautiful tour leader Avdesh Ji purchased more hydro lite for me!  It was a long trip to Lucknow and we didn’t arrive until 6ish.  I managed to have a fresh coconut at one of our TnT (toilet and tea) stops - beautiful Sam on our trip is a nurse clinician and recommended it as good source of potassium which might help!

We all remarked at the changing landscape - Rajasthan was very dry - the fields looked dry and there were what we thing many small fields surround by low mounding walls (we think to keep moisture from runoff) where as in Uttar Pradesh it appear much more fertile - lots more green rattan than beige wheat.  Crops of potatoes; millet; mustard, wheat, some form of pea were evident.  More people were seen in fields and more and larger trees were growing.  

Coming into Lucknow we instantly went from fields to roadside stalls selling all kinds of things. In the outskirts there were small housing compounds lining the road where there were rows and stacks of cow/buffalo dung patties.  These are used for fuel!  We were driving past this very simple and basic lifestyle on a six lane overpass!  The contrast was staggering.  

Before we knew it we were in the city proper - lots of large art deco colonial buildings - Legislative Assemblies; military compounds, public offices with imposing facades, large trees, lots of green.  The traffic then became as it has in every other town/city we have been in - very busy, noisy and chaotic!

Dinner for the group was a Sheroes - a cafe that supports survivors of Acid Attack.  Again unfortunately the DB got the better of me and I had dry biscuits and hydro lite and an early night and given it was day 4, some antibiotics!

We assembled at a leisurely time this morning, having had a breakfast in the hotel buffet area (me with toast only!) and then jumped into the bus with Hamlal Ji and a new guide Anil to visit some of the sighs of Lucknow.    During morning traffic, I was again struck by the contrasts and cleanliness of this city.  While you do not see the rubbish piling, you do see the poverty of ordinary Lucknowites - you see it in the transport, the road side stalls, the clothes they wear and the areas of the city…from one corner to another at times you seem to span the spectrum.  

We visited what is known as the British Residency Compound….once a 34 acre compound built in the early 1700s by the Newab who moved the capital of the province to Lucknow.  In the mid 1800s it was taken over by the British as part of the East India Company arrangement and housed the execs of that company.   It was the site of the Siege of Lucknow, part of the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Lucknow was recaptured by the East India Company in March 1858. The Residency suffered extensive damage during the fighting, and has been in ruins ever since.  We all commented on how nice it was to walk amongst trees and enjoy the peace and quite, not having realised how noisy and busy things had been since arriving in Delhi…one get slightly acclimatised to it and it is only when those stimulations are reduced that you realise …a bit like boiling a frog!

We then went to Bara Imambara - a gathering hall for Shia Muslims and part of the mosque complex. Built in 1784, it is the world's second largest imambara.  It is a single span dome hall that was used as a gathering place…the Newab had a special room at one end, and in the balconies hidden from view above sat his Concubines and Wives who viewed proceedings…a little like a kings audience space.  

In leading to the viewing balconies there is a labyrinth maze…we ascended some very steep steps and walked around what were like tunnels to see the balconies but also to access the roof top.  The views were spectacular!  

  

   

This evening we attended the home of Ishi to experience Awadhi home cooking - it consisted of vegetarian biryanis and other beautiful delicacies…a real taste experience!

Leaving our cooking hosts, we hit the street to get our bus back to the hotel….here is a video of what the street was like…at around 8,30 pm…just organised chaos!

All aboard for Agra and the Taj Mahal

Today we left Jaipur.  It was a a rainy start with a huge rain storm starting just as we were gathering with our luggage on the portico of the hotel.  I have to say it was not looking great for Agra later in the day and I wondered how we would cope with that.  

We boarded our bus and headed east moving from Rajasthan (Land of the King) to Uttar Praddesh (northern province) which is where Agra is located.   On the way we stopped for a TnT break and had tea and then our guide Avidhesh Ji organised for us to have lunch at his brother’s guest house in Bharatpur.  

At the guesthouse we were greeted with flower petals and marigold garlands and made to feel very special.  The meal was Thalli - a round platter filled with individual bowls of various contents and chapati.  Although….my stomach is still not the best so I opted to stick with boiled rice and yoghurt and just had little bits of other things.  

After lunch we proceeded to Agra….it seems much cleaner than many of the other cities - the streets certainly seemed to have been swept as there are no piles of rubbish that can be spotted on the main streets that we drove down.  There is still endless traffic, road side stalls selling fresh local produce and the hole in the wall shops continuously.  

After checking into our hotel we bused it to Agra Fort. The seat of the Mughal Empire and and UNESCO World Heritage site, it is a large red sandstone fort with lots of walls, two motes and a series of impressive feature to deter invaders such as rolling alleys for pouring hot oil and rolling large stones towards invaders, optical illusions to given invaders a false sense of direction.  

This fort had the similar features as the Amber Fort - a public space, and vip space and a private space.  At some point (I can’t remember where) it moved from red standstone to white marble and as we moved higher we got glimpses of the Taj Mahal. The white marble was part of the renovation by Shah Jahan - the king who built the Taj Mahal for his third wife.  

Later that evening the crew had a dinner at the hotel…unfortunately I have succumbed to Delhi Belly so it was dry biscuits and hydra lites for dinner!

The next morning we rose early to get to the Taj Mahal for sunrise…scheduled at 6.17 am.  It really was the perfect time to be there - the weather was cool, the crowds were low (still many people) and we had the chance to stop and look in awe without being pushed forward.    

Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal as a mausoleum for his third wife.  She was a Muslim and gave him a number of children and she apparently was his favourite.  She died due to haemorrhage in childbirth of her 14th child (in 17 years!!!).  It took him some time find the perfect place for the monument - he located it on the river bank and as it was in ‘watery’ ground it necessitate hydraulic pylons to reach bed rock to save sinking.  Apparently the pylons are made of ebony wood and surrounded by bricks and cement to stabilise.  The minarets on lean 2degrees outward as a safeguard so they wont fall onto the main building.   

It is absolutely stunning….there is something about the light on the marble that gives it the most serene feeling - photos just dont seem to do it justice.  The grave inside is a little bit of a let down perhaps because it is smaller and the crowds and noise don’t induce a respectful feeling.  I felt much better outside wandering.  

The gardens are green, the water reflects the sky and there are very naughty monkeys that steal things from tourists for food, and also will attack if you are eye contact.   I saw one tour guide get attacked and bitten on the back!

There are other building in the complex…beautiful gates, a guest house and a mosque.  I was surprised at the scale.  I also felt sorry for the other three wife’s #1, #2 and #4…they didn’t get a mausoleum- they are just buried at the other gates!