Aha! I just now got your screen name. :-)

Mine??? Did you figure out that I am a junebug rather than a gun bug?

The Taj Gateway Hotel was adequate - clean with comfortable pillows, but again, not up to the standard of the Vivanta by Taj. Dinner was unremarkable.

Oh...forgot to mention that upon our arrival in Agra, we were met by a guide that Castle and King had arranged. While we had the option to hire a guide along with our driver, we had declined that option as we figured we'd hire guides along the way as needed and as desired. We were very surprised by the arrival of the guide, but we learned that Arvind felt that it would be best to have a guide in Agra and he provided the guide as a complimentary service for the two days we were there.

At 5:30 AM our guide met us at the hotel to accompany us to the Taj. We headed to the ticket booth where we purchased our tickets (750 rupees each), which were significantly more expensive than the price charged for Indian residents, but worth the price of doing business. This was true at all national monuments. The price of our ticket included a bottle of water each and foot coverings so that one did not need to take off their shoes.

The ticket booth is not at the entrance to the Taj. Vehicles are not allowed to enter the area around the Taj, so instead, one must take the motorized transport from the ticket booth to the end of the street where the Taj gate is located. We arrived at the gate at 5:45 and waited on two separate lines (one for men and one for woman) until 6:00, at which time the gates opened. One must go through a security check before entering the premises. I was concerned that we were not there early enough to get those great photos without people in them as the line was quite long, however, we found that people were all very courteous and if one waited their turn, there was plenty of photo opportunities to get a number of great pictures. I don't think you can go wrong photographing the Taj.

There are professional photographers on the premises who will offer to take your picture for a fee. They were also helpful in advising us where to take the best picture, as was our guide.

There is little I can say about the Taj that has not already been said. It is remarkable and a spectacular piece of architecture. We had done much reading prior to our trip, so we were familiar with the history and many of the details that our guide shared with us. Quite honestly, we felt that we would have done just as well just soaking up the beauty of the Taj without a guide, but it was a nice gesture on the part of Castle and King.

We were happy with our decision to fore go the guided tour throughout our trip as we were very happy with the audio guides when we used them and the few guides that we hired along the way. Guides were readily available at each location and for the most part, we like to simply wander, talk to people and go at our own pace, taking pictures and taking in the scenery. I am not going to remember all the details that many guides provide and I often find them to drone on endlessly.

Following our visit to the Taj, we went directly to the Red Fort. This fort is similar architecturally to the many forts that we had already seen and while we enjoyed it, we saw a familar pattern.

We returned back to the room at 10:00, still in time for breakfast and then to rest and catch up on some email. We arranged with the driver to be picked up at 12:30 to continue our journey to Gwalior.

More later - Gwalior was a terrific surprise.

Can't wait to hear more...

Hi June,
I'm enjoying your report immensely and am eager to hear more! I'm taking notes for our upcoming trip in February when we will visit some of the same places.

Thank you to those who are reading along. Here's the next installation:

Gwalior:

We left Agra about 12:30 and arrived in Gwalior approximately three hours later. The roads in India are not for the faint hearted and they are a real experience. There is always something interesting to look at - between the people, animals and vehicles. The roads are not in the best condition...perhaps that is being kind...they are in horrendous shape. If only the maharajas had put money into the roads and infrastructure rather than their forts and palaces. We understand there is still a great deal of corruption and the government spends little on road construction and repair. When we did see repair work being done, the level of enthusiasm by the workers seemed meager and work proceeds quite slowly.

Upon arriving at our hotel, the Usha Kiran Palace (a Taj property), we freshened up and decided to take a tuk tuk into town to explore the market area. After wandering a bit, we returned to the hotel, relaxed and had dinner on the premises. The hotel was lovely and we were given a free upgrade to a beautiful suite. As with the other Taj hotels, we were able to ask for our choice of pillow for maximum comfort. The grounds were also very pretty and there was a nice pool on the premises. The staff at this hotel was exceptional and we had a very pleasant stay here. During dinner the chef came out to meet us and helped us with our dinner selection. Beware of the spicy food at this restaurant - you may want to tell the waitstaff that you want very little spice. Day Two - coming soon.

I'm here too. Yesterday Aswan - today Istanbul. Looking forward to Varanasi.

Would it correct grammatically to refer to our dear OP and her husband as the 'dgunbuggers?'

Dogster - I'm not sure I like the sound of that! Glad to hear you are lurking in the background.

Day Two - Gwalior: When our driver picked us up at 10 AM to head for the Fort, we learned that he had been sleeping each night in his car to save the cost of a hotel room. I believe this is fairly typical for the drivers and the hotels seem to allow them to stay in the parking lot. We presumed that there are washing and bathroom facilities somewhere that the drivers are able to use. It sure made us feel awful to think that we were sleeping in a comfortable air-conditioned environment while he stayed in his car all night and day. Of course, we realize that he is one of the fortunate ones to have steady employment, but the meager existence and the struggle that these people face are overwhelming.

The Gwalior Fort is reputed to be one of the most invincible forts in India, its history stretching back over 1,000 years. Inside the fort walls are a number of palaces and temples, the highlight being the Man Mandir Palace. This magnificient fort looms majestically at a height of nearly 100 meters overlooking the city of Gwalior. We approached the fort by a steep winding road flanked by statues of Jain tirthankaras (one of 24 persons who have attained personal immortality through enlightenment) carved into the rock face. These were amazing and we later parked the car and spent time walking by these statues to examine them more closely.

The solid fort walls of sandstone enclose several marvels of medieval architecture including temples, palaces, and impressive gates. This fort was very different from the others we had visited as there was no Muslim influence. The front of the palace was decorated with pretty blue and yellow painted ducks and other animals. Cows grazed on the lawn in front of the palace and it was a very serene environment. On the bottom level of the palace was a dungeon where prisoners were held...now it is filled with bats. As in other palaces in India, there were separate living quarters for the maharaja and his many wives. We were taken by surprise by this fortress/palace complex and thoroughly enjoyed our time here. Few tourists flock to Gwalior, but it was one of the highlights of our trip.

Following our time at the Fort complex, we headed into Gwalior and stopped at the very modern mall to take our driver for lunch. We were told that malls are beginning to crop up throughout India, but they did not seem to be doing a great business.

After lunch we headed to the Jai Vilas Mahal, built by Indian Maharaja Jiyaji Rao Scindia and reminiscent of an Italian palazzo styled edifice combining Tuscan and Corinthian architectural styles. The present Maharaja still resides at the palace and that portion is blocked off from tourists. However a part of the palace houses the Scindia Museum, which displays royal memorabilia and a remarkable collection of artifacts from across the world.

A crystal staircase winds its way up to the spectacular Durbar Hall. Its arched ceiling is covered with fabulous gold leaf work and is illuminated by two of the world’s largest and most magnificent chandeliers, each weighing over three tons and holding 248 candles. It is said that the roof was tested in advance by 10 elephants brought there via a two-kilometre ramp! The chandeliers were gilded with 56 kilograms of gold. Spread out across this very hall is the largest carpet in Asia, made in the Gwalior Jail.

Crystal ware, Curios and Tiger hides line the beautiful hall.
The most fascinating item on display is the famous model train that circulates brandy, cigar and dry fruit around the table after dinner. Removing a container automatically reduces pressure on the track and stops the silver train.

Exhausted from a full day, at 4 pm we returned to our hotel which was just down the road from the Jai Vilas Mahal, where we relaxed until dinner time which we took in the lovely dining room at our hotel.

You will note that we rarely went out at night time. Besides being exhausted from the heat, the few times we were out, we noticed that there were very few woman around and we felt it was best to retire early. In actuality, even during the day, we noticed far more men mulling around than woman. It was a strange feeling for me and even my husband, when we realized I was one of the few woman out. This night too we remained in our hotel and we retired early as we would be heading out the following morning to Orccha.

Dgunbug, you are hogging all of the responses! :) I'm not getting much traction on my thread . . . What's a Sueblue to do?

So sorry sueblue - perhaps I will send the above poster to toe thread!!!

Can someone tell me how to remove the above posts?

You can click on the yellow/orange triangle to the right of the post to report it to the editors.
I already have... Hopefully they'll remove them soon!

thanks marcy

Gwalior sounds wonderful - wish it was on our itinerary.

It is awkward when you realize a driver is sleeping in the car while you're off in your lovely hotel. We've had that experience before and in addition to the guilt, the car starts to get a bit...er...stale with someone living in it that way. Kind of yuk.

loving it all

There was never any body odor and the car was immaculately taken care of. Just felt bad for the driver and it hit us that his job is tougher than it looks.

That's good! Yes, tough job and on rough roads even tougher.

>>>If only the maharajas had put money into the roads and infrastructure rather than their forts and palaces.

On the other hand, we probably wouldn't be so eager to go just for a bunch of good roads and infrastructure if there weren't any forts and palaces. :-)

(And yes, I was slow on the uptake re your screen name, dgunbug. Duh. I had a similar experience with Offwego. I had followed one of her threads for awhile, and in my head i was pronouncing the screen name as off-WAY-go. Until... she used it in a sentence along the line of... we finish our breakfast and then offwego! Oooohhhh! I'm actually reasonably intelligent but can be clueless at times.)

Back to Gwalior - I reviewed my pictures today and realized that I forgot to mention several interesting temples visited while in Gwalior on the second day.

Just below the upper fort area is the Gurdwara Datta Bandi Chhod Sikh Temple, built in memory of Guru Hargoboind Sahab, 6th Sikh Guru who was imprisoned there by Emperor Jehangir for over two years. We were instructed to wash our hands, take off our shoes and given orange bandanas as head coverings. After walking through an area of water which cleansed our feet, we proceeded up the stairs and into this temple which was very different from the Jain temples we had previously visited. Upon returning for our shoes, we were invited to share a meal with the Sikhs who open their food kitchen daily to feed anyone wishing to join them for a meal. We declined as it was not yet meal time and we did not want to wait. Also, we worried about getting sick from the food as we did not know the sanitary conditions under which the food was cooked. We enjoyed the experience of visiting this Sikh temple as it was different from the other temples we had visited thus far.

Nearby the Sikh Temple is the Sas-Bahu Ka Mandir Temple, built in the 11th Century. While many believe that they are dedicated to a mother-in-law (Sas) and daughter-in-law (Bahu), I learned afterward that this is not so, but rather that Sas-Bahu is the name traditionally given to two adjoining temples of different sizes. The larger of the two is profusely sculpted with graceful figures and intricate patterns. This is apparent in the interior where, above the sculpted walls and pillars, an elaborately carved lotus adorns the roof. We were alone visiting these temples and spent a great deal of time just admiring the carvings and artistry.

In the fortress area, elevating to a height of 100 feet high is the Teli Ka Mandir temple which was also built in the 11th Century. This Rajput temple is said to be the tallest and most stunning temple in the confines of the Gwalior Fort and it is dedicated to Lord Vishnu, however, it was closed to visitors while we were there.

Again, I highly recommend a visit to Gwalior. The people were extremely friendly and we loved wandering through the town in addition to seeing the Fortress/Palace Complex and temples. I don't understand why this town is not on the regular circuit of places to visit as it was quite interesting and one of my favorite places.

Sounds lovely..I don't think we have it in our sched. Oh well, next time.

We left Gwalior, heading to Orccha about 9 AM, stopping along the way at Sonagiri and Datia. The road conditions between Gwalior and Orchha were horrendous. Many spots were in disrepair with potholes everywhere. Often the road was only one lane wide with traffic going in two directions and three and four lanes made from the one. The going was slow and while it was only about 179 kilometers between the two cities, it took us about 6 hours with two short stops in between. We passed many small villages and people along the highway. There were buses stacked with people on the rooftop, carts pulled by oxen, donkeys, and horses, tractors, cars, trucks, and motorcycles. Pigs, cows, and dogs wandered the streets. There was never a dull moment. Nevertheless, the ride did seem endless.

Our first stop was Sonagiri, a city famous for its Jain temples and for being the holy site for the Digambar sect of the Jains. History says that King Nanganag Kumar had attained salvation and had been liberated from the cycles of death and life in this place. Thus, Jain saints who seek salvation or practice the paths to Nirvana flock to this place. This sacred Jain hill is home to 77 Jain temples, built in rows on the hill and its slopes, and date back to the 17th century.

Upon our arrival a Jain disciple greeted us at the lower gate of the temples and advised us that he would have to escort us to the temples. After removing our shoes and socks, we were led up a pathway leading to the various temples, all quite interesting and of varying designs. As we were led along the way, the Jain disciple explained a bit about Jainism, answering any questions we had. The ground was quite hot and at times difficult to walk on. It was all very interesting and worth the short visit.

Just a short distance away is Datia, where we visited the seven-storied palace built entirely of stone and brick by Raja Bir Singh Deo in 1614, and which is considered to be one of the finest examples of Bundela architecture in the country. We wandered the palace for a short time, but quite honestly, I don't recall it being that special and looking back at our pictures, it seems to be in need of a great deal of cleaning and sprucing up.

We arrived in the late afternoon at the Bundelkhand Riverside Hotel, which we had been told was one of the best hotels in Orchha. This heritage hotel had once a Maharaja's residence and the grounds seemed lovely. The room, however, was a great disappointment - the bathroom smelled like mothballs (which were in the sink), the air conditioning hardly worked and the room smelled musty. We had heard that the food was quite good, however, the next morning's breakfast was the worst we had experienced on our trip. There was no mini-bar in the room, no safe or complimentary bottles of water as was standard in all other hotels we had been in. The accommodations were such that it soured our stay in Orchha and we decided the next morning to check out a day early and proceed to Khujaharo.

After settling in the room, we decided to take a tuk tuk into town. Of course any time we wanted, our driver was available to us, however, after all the driving that he did, we preferred to let him rest and take a tuk tuk into town instead. Tuk tuks are quite inexpensive and it is generally fun to take them for short distances.

We wandered around the town of Orchha, planning to visit the main sites the next day. The children here were all very friendly and followed us around for quite some time, telling us that they wanted to practice their English. We forewarned them that we were not looking for a guide and that we did not wish to go to any shops, but they followed along anyway, insisting they had no alterior motives. We also forewarned them that we were not giving them money. Their English was actually quite impressive and we enjoyed talking to them until the end, when we got ready to depart for dinner and they asked for money and sodas. There was quite a large group of children and we told them it was impossible. One of the boys actually got angry and told my husband he was a "bad man". It is unfortunate that these children have an attitude that foreigners and especially Americans have tons of money and that they are expected to give it away to the poor children of India. These particular children did not look undernourished or shabby and it was obvious that they all received some degree of education. It was a most disappointing way of ending the time with them.

For dinner, we decided to eat at the Sheesh Mahal which is located in the fort area. The food was just fair. Dinner was accompanied by live Indian music. There was a light and music show just outside the Sheesh Mahal, but we decided to walk around the town a bit instead. Our return trip to the hotel was a real experience. We hired the tuk tuk driver from hell...he drove like a crazy man, could not find our hotel despite my husband trying to give him directions, and he crashed into a parked motorcycle, leaving the scene despite having caused damages. Upon finally arriving at our hotel after first having taken us to the wrong one, he demanded more money. Of course, we refused to pay him more than we had agreed upon.

The next morning, after checking that we were able to extend our hotel reservation for an additional night in Khujaharo, we checked out and proceeded to the Orchha Fort to visit the sites. One pass allows entry into all the sites and there are guides just outside the entrance. We hired a guide who showed us around the fort and palace area, we visited a temple and then proceeded to Khujaharo. Quite honestly, I don't think we gave Orchha enough time or justice, but my husband was annoyed by the children and the accommodations and was ready to move on. I don't remember thinking that the Palace and fortress area of Orchha was particularly impressive.

After several hours drive from Orchha, we arrived in Khajahuro and were delighted to arrive at the lovely Hotel Taj Chandela, a far cry from the Bundelkhand. By this time we were exhausted and we knew we had more than enough time to visit the sites in Khajahuro, so we decided to remain in the hotel where we had a nice dinner and relaxed. There is a billiards table in the hotel, so we played a few games of pool after dinner.

Khajuraho[1] is a small town located in the Bundelkhand region (Chhatarpur District) of Madhya Pradesh and is famous for groups of Hindu and Jain temples. These temples are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, famous for their beautiful and erotic rock carvings.

The temples of Khajuraho were built between 950 to 1050 A.D. during the Chandela dynasty of Central India. After the decline of the Chandela dynasty in 13th century, the temples were left under the cover of dense date palm trees for many years, which gave the city of Khajuraho its name, Khajur in Hindi means a date. In the ancient times it was known as Vatsa. In 1838, a British army engineer, Captain T.S. Burt rediscovered them. By that time only 22 of the original 85 temples had survived.

Our driver picked us up the next morning at 9 AM to visit the temples and we decided to begin at the Western Group of Temples as these are the richest and largest of the temple groups. We purchased our tickets, which covered the temples at the Western, Eastern & Southern groups along with the audio guides. Although the audio guide was good, my husband's set broke and I decided after a while that it was just information overload, preferring instead to just take in the beauty of the temples and the intricate carvings.

We were surprised by the grounds at the Western Temple. They were extremely well manicured and the area is set up as a beautiful park. The temples were fabulous and it was difficult to avoid taking a million pictures from different angles. We returned to our hotel after spending several hours at the Western Temple and relaxed until 4 pm, at which time we returned to visit the Eastern and Southern group of temples. As we had expected, we were able to see all the sites within one day.

As our flight out to Varanasi was scheduled for the next day at 13:25 and as we had already seen the sites in Khajuharo, we advised our guide that he should leave first thing in the morning, rather than waiting to take us to the plane. He had told us that he would be making the long journey back to his home in Agra immediately after leaving us and we felt it would be best for him to be on the road early so as to avoid night driving as much as possible. We relaxed in our hotel until 12:30, checked out and headed to the airport which was only a short distance away.

and now varanasi...yea

Shame about the experience with the children. How did you do with begging in general during the trip? Someone here (thursdaysd?) said they donate to a charity or school rather than to individuals and then are able to ignore beggers without guilt. Sounds like a good plan.

Me too...can't wait to hear about Varanasi.

Giving to a charity is a great way to give back. We couldnt help but to hand out small pocket change on occasion, when one looked especially needy and I also tried to buy bananas and apples to hand out when possible.

Varanasi:

Our flight from Khajuharo to Varanasi departed at 13:25 and arrived timely at 14:15. We had arranged an airport pickup through the Rasmi Guest House (Palace on the River) where we would be staying the next three nights. The drive from the airport to the city took about 45 minutes. If you are staying on the river, an airport pickup is essential as you will need assistance in bringing your luggage to your hotel. Taxis are unable to enter the narrow alleyways leading the the riverfront. Upon our arrival in Varanasi, we were grateful when two hotel porters arrived to help transport our bags and lead us to the hotel, which we would have had great difficulty finding on our own.

The Rasmi Guest House (Palace on the River) is in an ideal location, directly overlooking the Ghats on the Ganges in the midst of all the action. The lobby was nice and the staff quite friendly. We were greeted and each given a lei of marigold flowers and a refreshing glass of juice when we checked in. We trudged up several flights of stairs to our room (no elevator) which seemed small, but adequate. We learned later that night that the bed was hard as a rock and hardly suitable for sleeping.

As previously noted while we were in India in my report "Off to India", my husband asked "if we pay extra, can we get a mattress". Dogster jumped in and was kind enough to suggest at that time that we mention to the hotel staff that we know the man who was pulled into the Ganges by Bruno (the dog). The next morning, we did just that and were delighted when we were moved to a nicer room with a far superior mattress. I suggest to anyone reserving a room at this hotel, that you throw out your intimate connection with Dogster in advance when you reserve your room and be sure to let them know you want a room with a "soft" mattress! For those who have had experience sleeping in India...there is no soft mattress to be found, but there are certainly acceptable degrees of hardness.

Several flights up from our room was a rooftop restaurant, which I highly recommend. There was no reason to eat outside the hotel. This restaurant had wonderful food and one has the option of outside dining or inside a nicely air conditioned room.

Later...onto Varanasi itself.

lol lol lol.

From somewhere between Rhodes and Jerumsalem. Keep it coming.

For most people, when they think of India they have images of the Taj and one would hardly think of going to India without a visit to that most beautiful heritage site. IMHO, a visit to India without visiting Varanasi, would be as bad, if not worse than missing out on the Taj.

A visit to Varanasi is an unforgettable experience. It is the most important pilgrimage site of the Hindus and as with many other cities in India it is an intriguing mixture of chaos, filth and beauty. Millions of pilgrims come to the ghats of Varanasi to conduct ritual bathing in the holy Ganges. Old and sick come here to wait for death in one of ashrams, as Hindus believe that there is no better death than death in Varanasi.

It is an amazing experience to watch man and women, old and young, poor and wealthy stepping into the Holy River and bathing in concentration and devotion. It is hard to describe the chaos that is Varanasi, but I will say that this is the India that I was expecting. It is a photographer's dream and we spent most of our time in this city just wandering the streets and watching people along the ghats, in the markets and in the narrow alley ways.

On the day of our arrival, as it was already late in the afternoon (approx 4:30), we decided to wander down to the ghats to watch the late afternoon and early evening activities on the Ganges. Our hotel was only a 2 minutes walk from Dasaswamedh Ghat (the Main Ghat) and 5 minutes walk from Manikarnika Ghat (one of the two Burning Ghats). Each evening there is a nightly ganga aarti ceremony at Dasaswamedh Ghat and one can watch it either directly from a hired boat or from the ghats. We decided on this evening to find a good spot close to the water to watch the ceremony.

Prior to the ceremony, there were people bathing in the Ganges and those who purchased lotus flower candle (Rs 10) to light and set adrift on the water.

Aarti is a Hindu religious ritual of worship, a form of puja, in which light from wicks soaked in ghee (purified butter) or camphor is offered to one or more deities. The purpose of performing aarti is the waving of lighted wicks before the deities in a spirit of humility and gratitude, wherein faithful followers become immersed in God's divine form. The rather lengthy ceremony lasted approximately one hour and was interesting to observe, although we really didn't have a clue as to what it all meant. Following the ceremony, we headed back to the hotel where we enjoyed our first evenings dinner.

I am loving this report. I'm beginning to think about a trip to Rajasthan and Varanasi for next year or so, and your description of your trip is inspirational. I 'm not only saving this report, but am savoring it!
Paule

I agree that Varanasi is as much the essence of India as the Taj. There is nothing like it. Keep it coming - this is one of the best reports on India that I have seen on this forum (apologies to Dogster who basically set the bar).

Paule - thank you for your kind comments. It's words like yours and knowing that others are following my journey that make writing a trip report satisfying.

Day Two Varanasi:

We had arranged with Bopul, a young man who works for the Rashmi Guest House and who serves as a guide, to meet us at at 6:15 AM to accompany us on a boat tour of the ganges, however, after waiting 10 minutes we decided to go on without him and to negotiate the price of a boat on our own. Bopul had greeted us when we initially arrived at the hotel and he seemed like a nice young man with excellent English skills and a nice personality. We learned from another guest staying at the hotel, that Bopul had also failed to show for her scheduled appointment.

We had heard that an hour boat rides down the Ganges should cost approximately 300 rupees, but were quoted 1200 to 1500 rupees, which surprised us. After quite a bit of negotiation, we settled on 500 rupees for the two of us for a small oar powered private boat. The boatmen explained that the cost was higher this time of the year as the level of the waters were higher, making it more difficult to row. There had been good monsoon rains this year and we could see that the water level was in fact quite high. We were surprised to learn that many of the steps are underwater still and that only a few weeks earlier, the majority of the steps had been underwater.

We enjoyed our hour boat ride, watching the sun rise, watching the people going about their daily business, some bathing, some washing clothing, some praying, and others merely socializing. Alongside the people were cows cooling off in the water's edges. And then of course there was the sombering scene of the funeral pires where those fortunate enough to have come to Varanasi to die were cremated while their families went through the funeral rituals. We enjoyed the beauty of the boats and the ghats along with the temples, palaces and homes. The Ganges is obviously the center of Varanasi life.

The boat ride ended all too quickly and we returned to our hotel where we enjoyed a delicious breakfast - banana pancakes, juice and massala tea, included in the very reasonable price of the room.

Craig - To be compared with Dogster is the greatest honor a person could receive. Thanks so much. More later. For now I am speechless.

Wonderful report dgun, have enjoyed every word of it, brings back memorys of India. Sorry to hear about the pickpocketing, but that happens everywhere in the world.

After breakfast, a quick shower and a bit of relaxation in the cool confines of our room, we were ready to begin exploring again. This time we set out to see the ghats and narrow alleyways by foot. One can easily get lost in the many twisting alleyways. But to get lost is the joy of being in Varanasi. It is not possible to walk the waterfront from one end to the other as the water levels come up too high in some areas. This necessitates strolling through the many narrow streets which are lined with homes, storefronts, small shrines and temples. The streets are filled with people, cows, dogs, carts, motorcycles, and the occasional goat. Monkeys can be seen scampering along the rooftops. The streets are too narrow for cars.

As the religious capital of India, Varanasi is famous for its many temples. The renowned Kashi Vishwanath Temple, which is dedicated to Lord Shiva (now known as the Golden Temple) is set in the narrow alleyway and was not too far from our hotel. Security is high in this area and cameras and cell phones are forbidden to those entering the temple. Regretfully, we did not visit this site as we did not want to return to our room to store our electrical devices. In retrospect, I realize we could gone in separately, each taking turns holding the others cameras and phones. Oh well...next time.

For us, Varanasi was less about seeing the temples and more about watching the people go about their daily lives, seeing the fascinating Sadhu (holy men), interacting with the store front owners, the children, watching the variety of foods being prepared, the people eating and drinking their massala chai, and the people going about their daily business. We dared not sample the foods, even when offered a taste by those Indians noticing our curiousity. I felt badly declining their kind offer, but was fearful of getting ill.

As we continued our exploration we began to recognize many of the people living in Varanasi and they began recognizing us. It is uncanny how the local people knew where we were staying, where we were going and where we were from.

Varanasi in early October is a three shirt/three shower town. It's awfully hot and draining and it was impossible to continue throughout the day without returning to our rooms for a reprieve from time to time.

Along with the narrow alleyways, the main street of Varanasi is well worth exploring and there are wonderful shops with beautiful material, saris and other textiles for those interested in making purchases. On these streets which are wider than the narrow alleys closer to the ghats, one can find tuk tuks, bicycle rickshaws and horse-drawn carts for rent as well as taxis, cars and other vehicles.

Off this street is an area referred to as the Indian Market, which reminded us of the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul. We wandered through this market for quite a while and it seemed to go on endlessly. We got totally lost, but ultimately ended up in the old city where we happily were able to find our hotel after being directed by several of the children. A word of advice - be sure to carry your hotel's card with you.

On our third day in Varanasi, as we wandered the main road, I noticed a bicycle rickshaw driver who we had seen on several occasions and he convinced us to allow him to take us to the Durga Temple, also known as the Monkey temple which was approximately 20 minutes away. It was quite an experience seeing the scenery from the back of a rickshaw and we alternated between taking pictures and hanging on for dear life. It was so hot that I was afraid our rickshaw driver would keel over and die. At one point he had to pull over from utter exhaustion and although he apologized we insisted he rest longer. Upon arriving at the Monkey temple we were told that cameras and cell phone are not allowed. While there are storage lockers, my husband decided not to go in, so I quickly visited the temple on my own. The grounds of the temple were quite filthy and I did not consider this temple worth visiting. Nevertheless, we enjoyed the ride, the scenery, and our driver's commentary as he tried pointing out things to us along the way. We also stopped at another temple which was quite nice, but I'm afraid I cannot remember its name.

On our final evening, we again hired a private boat for a ride up the Ganges, but this time decided to take a motor boat instead as we thought we would be able to journey further in the same amount of time. Our boat ride began at approximately 6 pm and we enjoyed our ride immensely, watching the scenery once again and enjoying the beautiful sunset. The breeze from the boat felt wonderful after having wandered the hot streets for hours. In retrospect, I believe the motor boat was more enjoyable as the cool breeze was a delight.

I could go on endlessly about the intriguing sites we encountered in Varanasi while simply strolling down its many streets, about the woman receiving "dental care" from a man probing in her mouth with a dental instrument while both squatted on the dusty street surrounded by people, dogs and vehicles; or about the diversity of people including Hindu and Muslims in their various attire; or about the beggars and lepers, but you cannot understand Varanasi unless you see it for yourself.

This city is truly amazing and was the highlight of our trip to India. We could easily have spent many more days there and would likely have seen more had the weather not been so oppressive. We realize that we missed out on a visit to Sarnath, the site where Lord Buddha preached his first sermon, and to Benaras Hindu University: one of largest universities in Asia. We did not see the Ramnagar Fort or the Bharat Mata Temple: dedicated to Mother India or a multitude of other temples and sites in Varanasi, but one has to pick and choose when traveling and we were satisfied with all that we had seen and done.

On our last night in Varanasi, after returning from our boat ride, we found the ghats alive with festivities as the people celebrated the last day of the festival Durga. The festival of Durga Puja is celebrated for ten days including the last day when the idol of the Goddess is immersed in a sacred water body. It was an incredible site seeing various statues paraded down the steep steps of the ghats, carried by large groups of men who eventually passed the statues on the the holy men who prayed over them and then immersed them in the ganges. There was music and chanting as the Indians enjoyed their holiday. We regrettably pulled ourselves away from the festivities as it was getting late and we had not yet eaten. We returned to our hotel where we enjoyed our last dinner at the wonderful Dolphin Restaurant. The next day we would be checking out early for our trip to the airport where we would fly to Delhi, our last stop on our wonderful trip.

fantastic...

we depart for kolkata from bkk this afternoon...

Wonderful report,dgunbug.
Great insight in your travel experiences....enjoyed reading your report and felt like we were there with you.

I am adding Jaiselmer to my bucket list...and my wife wants to go to Varanasi too. Probably early next year.

Waiting for the next installment.

Loving your report - and now really really looking forward to our stop in Varanasi in a few weeks.

I'm interested to hear that Varanasi was the highlight of your trip because I had already decided that no matter where else we go in India, and I am thinking of taking a trip that is not the norm, Varanasi is the one place that needs to be included in my itinerary. I can miss out on the Taj Mahal, but Varanasi is a must see for me. Thanks for reconfirming this for me.

Julies - it would be a shame to miss the taj, but Varanasi and jaisalmer are high on my list. Loved Jaipur and Gwalior is real high up on my list also.

Hi again dgunbug, Like others, I have been following this with great interest, especially because we're considering a similar trip at the same time next year. Varanasi is high on our list, but three shirts/three showers, not so much. Was the weather there more oppressive than in Rajasthan? Any relief in the evenings/early mornings?

Crosscheck - depends on the time of year. I visited in early December and the weather was cool - even requiring a jacket in the evening/morning. It was a great time for touring because we avoided the oppressive heat.