Work sent me to India for a week, visiting Delhi and Bangalore. Then Mike joined me and we spent the next 2 weeks travelling through Rajasthan - Jaipur, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and also the holy city of Varanasi.
In Rajasthan we took a camel safari into the Thar Desert which took us approximately 75km within the Pakastan border. Here in the middle of nowhere you find army camps who guard an imaginary boundary of a demilitarized zone where no civilians are permitted to go. A safety zone between 2 countries that have been feuding for decades.
The desert towns were dusty and dry crowded with amoeba like swarms of people. There were cows (and cow dung) everywhere! However, they all had massive majestic forts overlooking the quaint towns.
Varanasi is situated on the banks of the Ganges. From dusk till down you can see ceremonies and rights of passage being performed along the 6km of ghats as well as yoga asanas, ritual dips and floating offerings of flowers and candles. Varanasi is so unique and astoundingly colourful.
There is so much to tell about each place we visited and the people we met. It was truly an amazing experience. India is a blend of old tradition with modern times, chaotic and intense, breathtaking yet dirty, colourful and exotic, an incredibly beautiful whirlwind adventure!
