Our time in Varanasi continued on with clear skies allowing for our planned night boat ride along the Ganges to go on uninhibited. Accompanied by musicians who played classical Indian music throughout the ride, we made our way on to the sacred river for a truly magical, once-in-a-lifetime experience. The rituals we witnessed from the day continued, and alongside the river were 1,000s of Hindu pilgrims who gathered for the evening ceremony in celebration, although it had formally been held earlier in the day rather than at night due to the lunar eclipse. There were also people swimming across the river, getting in their nightly exercise, a routine for some of the locals. After some time listening to the music and gazing at the beautiful lights on the buildings alongside the river, we lit flower candles and made wishes, and placed the candles in the water, making a trail of light as we moved along the river. It was calming, sentimental, incredibly beautiful, and so special. It was one of those experiences you know is bigger than what you can conceive in the moment, so I did my best to be still, to observe, to pray, and to soak it all in.
After the boat ride, we had a late dinner; exhaustion was starting to hit me hard, so it was a struggle for me. The following day, I woke up with an awful headache and the exhaustion was worse than the day prior, but I did my best to keep trucking! We spent the afternoon touring beautiful Buddhist temples in a part of Varanasi called Sanarth where Buddha gave his first sermon. It was fascinating, and although I was not feeling well, I was so grateful to see a new part of Indian culture, observing monks in prayer in addition to the decorations on the exterior and interior of the beautiful temples. The remainder of the afternoon was spent eating a huge lunch, which was to double as our dinner, in preparation for our next overnight train ride to Agra. The train station was packed and chaotic; there were people scattered everywhere, many dressed in saffron carrying long decorated sticks with jugs attached containing water from the Ganges. I’ve never seen anything like it, but we made it through and found our seats, most of us together among Indians, getting once again a full Indian experience. We had a few scary moments with people getting on and off the train, some making a scene in words we couldn’t understand, but fortunately our tour guide was able to promptly stop by our car and diffuse the situation so we could sleep in relative peace; he ended up switching seats with a local so he could be closer to us and make sure we were safe. I must admit that it is an extremely isolating feeling being around others who do not speak your language, and it’s truly terrifying when it’s an urgent situation. This feeling is not new, as I experienced it on my initial flight into Frankfurt a few weeks ago during the German medical emergency onboard; perhaps it was God preparing me for many other times to come while on my time here. I’m grateful to have had my overnight train experiences, but after a 17+ hour trip this final time around, I will be even more grateful if I don’t need to repeat them! Having done both in-country flights and overnight trains to commute across India over these past few weeks, considering both hygiene and safety, I would highly recommend the flight over the train. The challenge wasn’t over after we reached the train station; through the heat and humidity, we needed to walk up a flight of stairs, across an overpass lined with monkeys, and down a flight of stairs to reach our bus to the hotel. With my suitcase in hand and backpack on my back, dehydrated and hungry from not eating much besides snacks since the day prior and overall just not feeling well, by the will of God I made the trek without falling. Once we checked into our hotel and I got into my room, eager for a shower, brown water came from the faucet, and just when I was about to cry, it turned clear, and I did a happy dance for clean water; oh my how travel can change you! Still not feeling well, and considering taking the day off having been to Agra a few weeks prior, I had a huge lunch and lots of coffee, which was enough to help me to keep going for the afternoon and evening activities. After having to push our broken down van in the middle of a crazy busy road, we were able to get it started and went to a carpet making store, made a visit to the majestic Agra Fort, and then had a delicious huge dinner. After a few hours of sleep before heading to the Taj Mahal at 4:45 am, I was feeling much better, although periodically waking due to a door bell sound that apparently is a figment of my imagination. LOL! The malaria pills have been giving me strange dreams, so I’m assuming I can attribute it to that. A few others in my group, unfortunately, have starting coming down with similar symptoms, one girl very sick with nausea, but being a group of troopers we made our way to the Taj Mahal, in the unforecasted down pour of rain. We waited in Cafe Coffee Day in hopes for a clearing, and after breakfast and coffee the only thing that was clear was that luck was not on our side. And so, with our umbrellas and rain gear, we made our way into the beautifulTaj Mahal, having a blast taking pictures despite the pouring rain. I even got the chance to FaceTime some of my family, although my data was cutting in and out; it was so amazing being able to share my experience with them!!! We are currently on a bus to Tordi Garh. I will try to send this post as soon as I can, but there’s a good chance it will be delayed, possibly until I get home, because of my Internet limitations. More to come with just a few days left of travel!
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Mary Patricia PavicicAurora High School Science Teacher and IREX Teachers for Global Classrooms Fellow 2017-2018. ArchivesNo Archives Categories |