#108 Journey through India & beyond:4/108 -Rishikesh

Our last stop in Dec’18 trip ‘Rishikesh‘ was yet another exciting journey. This is a small city in foothills of mighty Himalayas in Dehradun district of Northern Indian state Uttarakhand.

We took a flight from ‘Varanasi to Delhi‘ and then ‘Delhi to Dehradun‘ since there were no direct flights from Varanasi. Since Dehradun airport is in outskirts of the city we decided to drive directly to Rishikesh instead of overnight stay at Dehradun. Though the distance to Rishikesh was around 17 Km it took about an hour to reach due to the hilly terrain. You can book a cab from the airport or through makemytrip. We had booked a cab through our friend for Rs2500/- per day all inclusive. You can also drive from Delhi.

Apt to the meaning of the name Rishikesh ( ‘one who controls senses‘ ) this city has yoga and wellness center almost in every street and also known as “Yoga Captial of the world“. Rishikesh is also famous for adventure sports in addition to Ashrams and scenic views ,temples and bridges.

We reached Rishikesh late evening and stayed in Greenhills resort which was very close to Laxman Jula. Next day morning began our sightseeing from Laxman Jula with help of a local tourist guide.

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After prayer at Laxman temple and we walked towards the bridge. When I saw this from distance I didn’t believe that this is a motor-able bridge. Of course my biggest challenge was to take a picture without any vehicles/people in the background which I couldn’t.

Walking down on the other side of the bridge our first stop was another Shiva temple where we could view rare “Rudraksh” tree. Beads of this tree is used as ‘Prayer beads’ and wearing this as a chain is believed to bring health and prosperity. We did our bit of shopping ‘Rudraksh’ with the help of our guide and then proceeded to river front. IMG_20181228_105123

Though it was a small round boat ride was amazing. River Ganga is so pristine here unlike Varanasi. Though it’s river soil texture is like the white sand beaches of Florida.

After the boat ride we walked to back to the other side of the bridge and proceeded to Ram Jula. Ram Jula is another bridge and temple under the river bank. Right opposite to Ram Jula is Shri Sivanand Ashram. This is just a beautiful and peaceful place. A brief glimpse of the saint who built this ashram.

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Our next stop was to Shivpuri which is popular spot for camping and adventure sports. If you don’t have time to travel to Shivpuri, other option is Ganga beach, small river beach near Ram Jula. River rafting starts from here for a distance of about 16km. Zip line across the Ganga river is too adventurous. Unfortunately after reaching there we got to know that minors were not allowed which was very disappointing for my daughter.

IMG_20181228_125043 IMG_20181228_134351 Nevertheless it was worth a visit, given a chance I would have spent hours together just enjoying nature with river Ganga.

River rafting ends almost near the Triambakeshwar temple ( 13 story temple- see picture below)

After a small afternoon nap we drove to Triveni Ghat for evening Ganga Aarthi at 6 pm. Triveni Ghat is in the city and closer to shopping streets and markets. I liked the Aarthi here more than the Ganga Aarthi at Varanasi.

We offered our prayers to river Ganga by floating a lamp.

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Finally ended our week long trip with nice dinner and dessert at restaurant National highway 58!

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#108 Journey through India & beyond:3/108 – Gaya

#3 Gaya: 25th Dec’18

Gaya is another ancient holy city in the Indian state of Bihar. This was once part of Magadha kingdom in pre-independent India. Gaya is a sacred place for people of all faith (Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism).

You can reach Gaya from Patna (which is the nearest airport) or by train from Varanasi. Since we experienced delays in our previous train journey from Allahabad to Varanasi we decided to go by road.

We drove from Varanasi to Gaya which is about 260 Kms with taxi fares ~Rs.5000 for round trip. We started late afternoon and reached Gaya in the night.Though it was a long journey our driver who was a from Varanasi made it very interesting. He had learned key terms in my native language (Tamil) and was trying to converse with my spouse which was commendable since India is so diverse with each state having its own language and culture. (also his marketing skills to please his customers!)

If you are travelling in December be prepared for the weather. The day we landed temperature was 4 degree Celsius( 39F) which is way too cold for a South Indian like me who is always comfortable in 30 degree Celsius hot weather!

On the way we stopped at Bodh Gaya before we crashed at our hotel for the night stay. Bodh Gaya is the place where Buddha (Siddhartha) was enlightened under the Bodhi (peepal)tree. Bodh Gaya is identified as one of the UNESCO World heritage site.You need to walk ~1Km to visit the Mahabodhi temple or can use the battery operated vehicle service. En-route you get to do lot of shopping.

Picture source: Wikipedia

The temple is very enchanting, evening decor with flowers and lights were stunning. Unfortunately since there were restrictions in carrying mobile phones ( you need to deposit in counter) we couldn’t capture the beautiful moments. Around the Bodhi tree in-spite of the cold weather there were so many Buddhist monks doing prayers. They were using a small wooden plank to do the prayers and neatly covered them with water proof sheets when not in use.

Similar to other Buddhist places entire compound wall is covered with wooden cylindrical structures( I don’t know what it is called!) which you can rotate while walking around. Doing this is believed to bring good luck and fortune.(one of our guide mentioned this during our Bhutan trip)

You can find hotels,bed & breakfast accommodation, community accommodation run by various states according to your needs. Our accommodation was very close to 18th Century Vishnupadha (meaning foot prints of Lord Vishnu) temple.

Next day morning we visited the temple . Inside structure of the temple is octagonal in shape and too crowded during the day. Temple is adjoining the river Falgu or Falguni. Similar to Varanasi there is an embankment joining the temple and river. Though the wide Falguni is Ganga’s (river) neighbor there is absolutely no water. I believe there is water during peak monsoon. There is also a mythological story that there is no water in Falguni due to goddess Sita’s curse.

We collected water from the hand pump and completed the religious rituals for our ancestors in the temple premises.

If your schedule is flexible with more number of days cover the near by places Saranath(place where Buddha gave his first sermon), Rajagir(Hills and Jain temple) and very ancient Nalanda University which was a center for learning in India in 5th century and UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Since we had only one day we skipped and started back to Varanasi to proceed to our next destination Rishikesh in Himalayan foothills.

Continue reading “#108 Journey through India & beyond:3/108 – Gaya” →

#108 Journey through India & beyond:2/108

#2 Varanasi: 23rd Dec’18

Next stop on our journey was to “Varanasi” in Uttar Pradesh, one of the very ancient cities in North India dated 11th Century B.C and believed to be home town of Lord Shiva on Earth. The name ‘Varanasi” comes from combining “Varuna” and “Assi”, the two tributaries of river Ganga. This city is also called as “Banaras” or “Kashi”.

We took a day train from Allahabad to Varanasi, unfortunately train was late by 3+hrs and we ended up landing in the night.

One can experience the old and new city which are totally different. Almost every household in the old city cow is a member of the family.

We stayed close to Hanuman Ghat in the old city. Ghats are embankments made in steps of stone slabs along the river bank. A typical ghat looks like the one below.

They are named after persons who built them or mythological names.There are more than 80+ Ghats in Varanasi. Some of them are very steep with 100+ steps to climb.

Everything happens in these ghats, right from bathing, washing, fishing, boating to cremation!This is the only place I saw “funeral parlor’, one stop shop for buying all that you need for the funeral service.

cremation

performing religious rituals

Washing

boating

While all these things happen there is also an effort to keep the river clean. These machines are used to remove the dirt and garbage.

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If you are a foodie, there are different street food to explore from Kashi Chats to sweets..

One of my favorite..( full cream!)

We visited Kasi vishwanath temple and surrounding areas. It’s a different experience to walk through the narrow lanes to reach the temple. If you have the patience to be inside for an hour or so,watch the “Saptarishi Aarthi”, a puja performed by 8 priests simultaneously.

There are also different sculptures on top of buildings..

We ended the day by watching Ganga Aarthi, a ritual performed in the evenings in the banks of the river. We were watching from a boat.

While this was more commercialized as tourist attraction,Ganga at night is worth watching.

Stay tuned for more details on our next stop”Gaya”! Continue reading “#108 Journey through India & beyond:2/108” →

#108 Journey through India & beyond:1/108

Last year we had the thought of visiting places of historic significance.This is an attempt to capture our journey and experience.

#1 Allahabad: 21st Dec’18

While the natural tendency is relax and party on year end holidays/New Year, we decided to go on a trip to Northern India covering Allahabad (also known as Prayagraj), Varanasi (also known as Kasi/Benaras) and Gaya with our teenager (who was not so looking forward for the trip!).

Our flight from Bangalore to Allahabad was around 2.5 hrs and this was the only airport (at least my experience)luggage was handed over in person instead of baggage claim.

For a first timer like me who has visited North India only as Airport transit it was an exciting 45 mins journey to our hotel.

City is getting ready for Kumbh Mela 2019 biggest spiritual gathering. Tents and road repair work everywhere.

Could see different types of vehicle to commute (we call it Juggad -or hack)

Continue reading “#108 Journey through India & beyond:1/108” →

My Memories of Navaratri-refreshed!

Dasara (a.k.a) Navaratri has always been my favorite festival since childhood.This is a 9 day Hindu festival celebrating Goddess Durga/feminine power during the month of October.

I remember every house in my native village -TamilNadu, India doing doll decorations for entire 9 days of Dasara.

As a kid I used to be curious on what “sundal” (delicacy made using different pulses ) is offered to guest in the neighbourhood homes.

My mom used to deck up all three of us in different attires every day!

Those good old days were fun until my dad put a full stop to prevent unnecessary visitors in the village since my sis’s were teenagers. That was the last ever golu I remember.

I always used to wonder when I would start my own celebrations and we started after our sweet little princess was born.

Since then we have been doing this for a more than a decade now and each year is an excitement! Starting with setting up the stand ,what new dolls to shop,gifts ,looking for new ideas and of course 👗 💄matching accessories for each day /selfies /groupies with friends and family.

Especially the last two years have been different due to the pandemic.

Since my immune system is pandemic friendly I had to consider many factors this year.(Last year right after Dasara had the virus though I was strictly following CAB protocols!)

Should I invite only close friends and family, vaccinated only💉 or invite on specific days ,social distancing,with mask etc, (more difficult than scheduling an official meeting)

Added to this we now have a 🐕 furry family member and had to choose a location un accessible to him. Being a techie, I am a busy bee when the Land of Liberty wakes up.With all the above, decided to invite neighbours within the community during the weekend and holidays.

Now the prep:unboxing the stand ,choosing the right backdrop,looking for perfection and troubling my better half for inputs and feedback!

Before the stand era, we used to salvage old carton boxes,tables /whatever available at home to create the steps.

After the prep,next step is to decide what to arrange where.

The 9 steps have a spiritual connotation.

First step is always a Kalash with wooden doll set.Lower most step starts with non living things,then fruits and vegetables,animals, birds ,Humans,Gurus and then the Divine, signifying the spiritual progression of human beings.

Every year some theme will emerge as I arrange.

In addition to this I also try to decorate lamps,try out theme parks or mimic village life ,traditional Indian marriage (pic below) etc

It is also a tradition to offer haldi/kumkum to the guests.

The last two days are Saraswathi Pooja and Vijayadashami.

Saraswathi Pooja – worshiping Goddess of knowledge-the day I used to long for as a kid (you don’t need to study since your books are in the Pooja and now break from office -Hope you can see my laptop )

Also the day our musical instruments (Veena and Guitar are dusted!).Festivities ends on the last day ,Vijayadashami-Victory of good over evil.

The most difficult part is to safely pack and put everything back in it’s place. Thanks to my family and my little lift have been able to manage till now.