Varanasi to New Delhi, India

Varanasi is an incredible, very old city with tiny, twisty little alleyways that are too small for traffic ... but motorbikes, cows, and 10 million people don't seem to care. It makes for a cramped space with lots of cow poop (most of it the runny kind that isn't fun to step in), but they offer a lot of shade from the blistering sun.

They call it Shiva's city (Shiva is the Hindu god of destruction), and it is home to the Ganges which sprouted from his hair. It's one of the holiest cities in India. There are Ghats (stairs leading down to the water from temples above) lining the river, leaving no room for anything else. The most well known of which is the "Burning Ghat" where people from all over India bring their dead to be cremated in open fires amongst many other burning piles, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Huge wood piles surround the ghat ... it takes 250kgs of wood to creamate one body. Any part that doesn't burn (mostly ladies hip bones) gets tossed into the river. People drink holy river water, next to a dead body being cleansed, next to 100 people bathing and laundry being done. It's quite a sight.

We are going home soon, so we are in full scale buying mode. Anything we might want, we tried to pick up in Varinasi so we didn't have to spend any more time in Delhi than we have to. Although, as it turns out, we are stuck in Delhi due to the flights being full. And we might even end up in London before we get to Chicago. But we should still have a couple of weeks in Chicago before we finish our trip, so their will be a couple more blog entries before the end of this travel maddness.

New Delhi to Agra, India

We finally made it out of Katmandu ... ended up having to fly. The buses weren't going on the day that we left (I still don't think they are running). But, other than that, we got to Delhi with minimal hitches. Our flight got in 2 hours before my parents and after a bit of confusion we finally all met in the bar of our hotel for a well needed drink.

My parents got us a room at the hotel where they stayed ... which was quite a treat! I think Chris and I enjoyed the hot shower the most (although the flat screen TV was a close second). In Delhi, we visited the Red Fort and Dana's parents got a taste of real Indian food for the 1st time. Inevitably we ate too much. Also visited Jama Masjid a day after the bombing. A bit of a sobering experience. But make sure to keep your eyes on news ... we were all interviewed by a few different local channels asking us for comments.

The next morning, we introduced them to the wonders of the Indian railways and all of the smells that go with it. But everyone survived and we made it to Agra. We had a big day and saw Agra fort and the Taj Mahal for sunset. Dad bought a beautiful inlaid soapstone box which he used his impressive bargaining skills to obtain ... he's a natural!

We hired a car to get out to Fatehpur Sikri (an abandoned Mughal city) the next day. While not quite as impressive as the Taj, it was still very interesting and relaxing (after you are able to slip past the throngs of guides that accost you at the front gate).

After too short of a visit, they left back to Chicago. And we head on to Varanasi.

Katmandu, Nepal

Made it to Nepal after 3 mind numbing days of overnight trains and
buses. We got into Katmandu and the next day were on a 9 hour (but only
75km) butt numbing bus ride on a road that looked more like the Rubicon
Trail than a national highway. Well, we made it, and hiked into to
Langtang National Park the next day. The 2nd day we reached Kanjin,
right in the heart of the Himalayan range. The next morning we woke up
early to hike up Kanjin Ri (4500m) where we were rewarded with
spectacular views. It snowed a few inches the night before which did
wonders for the visibility (April is known to be a very hazy time).
We were pressed for time, so we did 6 days worth of hiking in 4 days...
but then Chris got sick. Not sure still what it was, but it had all the
symtoms of altitude sickness, so we were weary about heading up any
higher (although we were only at 2500m). Now we think it was those
great stomach bugs striking again. On the plus side, the family that
owned the guest house we stayed at was great. We taught the boys Go
Fish and they took Dana up to see their grandparents in a nearby
village. After a 3 day rest, he was able to continue, but we had to
cut our trip short. I guess it gives us another reason to head back to
Nepal.
We are back in Katmandu and have plans to leave tomorrow. Things here
are a bit up in the air because of the nationwide strike. No buses are
running. We were lucky to make it back to Katmandu. If it wasn't for
a few Israelies that were dead set on being in Katmandu for Passover,
we would still be in the mountains! They arranged a tourist bus with
all the proper governmental stamps and signatures allowing us access to
the closed roads. One way or the other we will be in Delhi on the 15th
to meet Dana's folks!