Varanasi, or Banaras or Kashi, as it has been known at various times, is reportedly one of the world’s oldest continually inhabited cities. A must for every India travel itinerary, it was one of those places when we went to the south 11 years ago that people lamented we would be missing. Arriving on another overnight train from Kolkota, we had finally arrived.
Navigating the Alleyways
Google maps said our airbnb was a 30 minute walk or a 27 minute drive so we decided to walk. Meandering our way through the ancient cobblestone alleys, grateful for step by step turning directions, we soon understood why. This part of the city was off limits for tuk tuks and vehicles. Unfortunately, it didn’t seem to be for motorbikes. Or at least it wasn’t enforced. Between the cows, vendors and motorbikes, it was a lot for the narrow alleys. Multiple times in the next few days we would have to wait for traffic jams to clear just to be able to walk past- there was literally no space available. Add in the temples and it added somewhat to the charm. Or at least the experience.
Our airbnb (booked last minute as our other place cancelled on us) was in a small apartment building in a busy part of the old city. Luckily, it was far enough back from the chaos of the street that it was mostly quiet from the traffic. Unluckily, they seemed to be doing construction during the day right above us. Less than ideal. Especially when Marieke got sick that evening and had to spend part of the next day in bed listening to the construction.
Wandering the Waterfront
With Marieke out for the count, Jon and I ventured the first evening through more narrow alleys to the waterfront where the action takes place in Varanasi. We were almost at the southern end of the ghats, bathing areas where people take ritual baths in the holy Ganges river. You can actually walk almost the whole of the city along the waterfront, a rarity in India. We wandered further south to the last ghat, a more modern one that included a giant hand sculpture. It was a bit of a carnival- mini trains pulling people around and vendors selling cotton candy, a departure from the more austere temple offerings other vendors were selling, like flowers and fruits.
Getting Blessed- Luckily, Not by Monkeys
The next morning we started at the Kaal Bhairav temple, the first Hindu temple you should visit when in Varanasi. Or rather, we started in the line up. It snaked an indeterminate way around the temple through various twists and turns in the alleyways. Without shoes, we watched our step as carefully as we could to avoid the (mostly) animal waste in the streets. We managed out ok but a few others were not as lucky as they appeared to get rained on and looked up to find a mischievous monkey looking down at them. It was a pretty intense experience but that’s what Varanasi is all about. It helped that everyone was super friendly, chatting to us and providing instructions in line, as once again there were no foreigners to be found. We would soon see more, but maybe only a few dozen in the whole city that we walked past over our few days there.
Open Cremations
After finally reaching the Vishnu- revering temple and getting our blessings for our stay, we headed back to the waterfront and made our way north, passing the many famous ancient ghats. Including Manikarnki ghat where Hindus are cremated in the open. Depending on how much you spend, your cremation may be done with expensive sandalwood or much cheaper wood. Either way, the remains end up back in the river, just upriver from where bathing happens. It’s a wild place to say the least.
More Fire
We stopped for a famous lassi with saffron and dried fruit (delicious) and headed back for Marieke to rest. Jon and I made a last minute decision to head to Dashashwamedh Ghat to see the famous nightly fire show. We had been told we were better off paying extra to get a good seat away from the crowds to watch it and to arrive quite early, but honestly, we got decent seats on the steps arriving about 20 minutes before it started. It was more fun watching the crowds anyway.
Our final full day we visited one of the most famous temples in Varanasi, the Shri Kashi Vishwanath temple. As foreigners we had to pay quite a bit extra to enter, but it did bypass most of the lines for us. Except the security one where we had to wait for a lunch break to end to have a female attendant available to do the screening. We also got really nice scarves out of the temple visit. We killed some time before sunset at the observatory which was also a museum, learning more about the history of the city and watching what would be our first and certainly not last “sound and light show”. Sort of a laser show with a projector. We didn’t want to wait for the English one so our understanding of the story was a bit limited, but it was a place to sit.
Finally, at sunset, we negotiated a private boat ride along the Ganges, being careful not to watch the water. Holy or not, it has some serious bacteria concerns. It was a mostly relaxing way to end our time in the intense place.
