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Stranger than the feeling of arriving in India was the feeling of returning to England. We were all struck by the quietness, the clean streets, the ordered lanes of the motorway and the lack of so many people. Odd and distracting to understand conversations around us.

It is a wonderful and comforting thing to know that India will always be there.

City of Souls

Varanasi is beyond our wildest dreams. We are staying at the Shanti Guest House which overlooks the curving Ganges and the burning ghats. 24 hours a day, bodies are carried down to the waters edge and laid out on the funeral pyres. We have seen a body arrive, wrapped in gold sheets, while families looked on. Children are playing nearby, smoke is rising. People come to Varanasi to die- it is believed that dying here will release you from the cycle of Samsara. However if you are unfortunate enough to perish on the other side of the Ganges, your soul will go straight to hell! Think we'll stay on this side!







The streets are very narrow- a labyrinth of high buildings. You have to dodge piles of smouldering ashes, enormous cows and motorbikes. If you want to imagine Varanasi then just think: Ankh Morpork.


We arrived during the Holi celebration of the full moon and eclipse. Holi is a celebration of Krishna's lascivious nature so it's a bit dangerous for girls to go out in the height of the excitement. People throw coloured dyes all over each other, staining the streets and even the dogs pink, blue and purple.

We have heard a whisper that a mysterious innuit by the name of Nunniwokingak has been seen sipping chai, yes my olds, and speaking in strange tongue. But this is yet to be confirmed.

A little from Bombay

A little from Bethan...
The last few days have been spent in Mumbai, a city which has completely suprised me in all sorts of ways. It is cited as the most Westernised city in India. There is definitely Western influence here, and wondering through the city looking up to the balconied buildings, it is possible to imagine that you are in London. A distorted London however, one that has crumbled, one that the paint has chipped away from.
It may seem Westernised, but if it is, it is an Indian take on the West, which is not the same thing at all. I love it.
My sisters have gone on ahead to Varanasi, where I will join them in a few days. They have the camera, so I can only add a photo link to give you all some impressions of the city.