Melting In India

Hi, people! Well we left Nepal about a week ago. It was an amazing trip that ended with paragliding, hiking through villages, and food poisoning. However, I could have done without the last one. We are now in Varanasi, India. It is the holy city for the Hindu faith that lies next to the Ganges River. It is VERY chaotic, dirty, poor, but an exciting city full of Hindu temples, cows, and people. Today we went to the area along the river where they perform their beautiful cremation ceremonies. Yes, it really was beautiful. They first bathe the bodies in the holy river and then place them in a large open fire. Before lighting, they perform rituals and give the body its final gifts. It is a time of celebration for the dead. The cremation happens 24 hours after a person's death and bodies are sent from all over India. They cremate about 300 bodies everyday. Tears are not welcome and they believe they will actually cause their souls to get trapped and not be able to move on. Because we are tourists they allowed us to watch, but women are not usually allowed to view the ceremony. It was so interesting to watch such a personal and important part of the Hindu culture.

So far, I have been to Delhi, Darjeeling, and Kolkata here in India. It was great to be back in Kolkata. We went to the Mother House to view Mother Teresa's tomb and walked around the city. It was just as heartbreaking as I remembered it. The poverty is indescribable. There is so much hunger everywhere from the stray dogs to the people and children begging on the streets. I wish there was more that I could do...

Darjeeling is my favorite city so far. It was high up in the Himalaya Mountains. There was a constant fog that blanketed the city everyday. There is a huge Nepalese influence there being it is so close to Nepal. The laid-back hippy vibe was a nice break from crazy Delhi. Not to mention the cool temperatures that required my hoodie to get dusted off from the bottom of my bag. We went to the Himalayan Mountain Institute where we learned about mountaineers and sherpas who have climbed all over Himalaya Mountain range. Sherpas are awesome! Unfortunately, due to the fog we were unable to see Everest. We woke up at 4 AM for the one of the best sunrises in the world, but saw nothing. Major bummer. Good thing I think fog is cool.

Next stop Agra to see the Taj Mahal. I'm super excited.

Hope all is well! Pictures soon!