Bundi, a beautiful little town of Brahmin blue that I’ve chosen as my first place of rest. I have no specific plan for the next month and a half, so I intend on slowing the pace and studying Hindi around Rajasthan while exploring the nooks and crannies. Unfortunately, I already had most of this entry about Haridwar typed up and for some reason, it has simply disappeared from my hard drive… hmm.
Where to begin… the internet is down right now so I’m typing this in Word and the friendly owner has just brought me a gin (pronounced zin here) and tonic on the house. (“First time drink in cyber? He asked with a proud smile and a head wobble) Ha, some offer chai, others apparently have another drink of choice.
Hardwar was everything I imagined from “real” India which is getting more and more difficult to define. Emma and I arrived in the early morning as we’ve taken to taking night busses to save on accommodation. Although we had heard that it was Yatra season and that there was a pilgrimage going on but what that really entailed we had no way to know until the moment we stepped off the bus.
Despite the fact that it was 7am, there were hundreds of orange clad people streaming up and down the main road. We were instantly intrigued with much anticipation of pilgrim-watching but the downside we discovered was that the guesthouses within our budget were full. Dropping our bags at a chai house, one of us ran around finally locating a room in the basement for 200rupees/night ($5).
Taking turns bucket-showering and lying supine on the bed, the many long trips were beginning to take a toll. It wasn’t long though before we struck out into the throng and joined the now thousands of people on the main road. On either side of us, stalls teemed with a plethora of pilgrimage necessities, bottles to collect water from the Ganges, bunches of brightly colored bracelets hanging like tassels from plastic tarp awnings, various trinkets in the shape of one of the gaggle of Hindu Gods and every possible product in as many shades of orange.
The only foreigners in sight and two girls without male ‘escorts’ at that, we definitely got more than our fair share of attention, but we felt as though we were observing them just as much so we didn’t mind. We reached the Har ki Pairi Ghat (footstep of the God) where Vishnu is said to have let a drop of nectar fall from which the mighty Ganges sprung forth as well his footprint. The scene that revealed itself to us was like nothing Ive seen before and I don’t think it is possible to verbalize the tangible energy that hit us as we rounded that corner. Masses of people, shoulder to shoulder were vigorously splashing away as if in the fountain of youth. We found out that most people had walked barefoot from their home towns, sometimes taking more than a months time, some even prostrating themselves the entire way marking their finger-falls each time. Large groups of men dressed in the exact same thing from head to toe with bottles strung around their necks and poles balanced over their shoulders decorated like Christmas trees with tinsel and mini houses on either end, running and shouting indecipherable hindi… my skin prickled with something of an ancient mix of human and earthly electricity.
We found a spot on the main bridge and snapped a few photos but it only took minutes to have a huge half moon of men around us, hemming us to the banister. They crowded around us so tightly, some asking for a snap, some watching shyly and others even touching us as if testing that we felt, I don’t know, like them? The feeling is half celebrity, half alien and its profoundly interesting. They would now part to let us through though and we were only saved by a policeman that forced his way through and began beating them back with his bamboo rod like hacking his way through the jungle with a machete! Crossing the bridge, we stopped at the end that resembled a balcony overlooking the river and promenade below. Groups of boys noticed us and began waving and even blowing kisses. I was quite amused for some time until they began racing up the stairs to snap photos with us and once again we found ourselves trapped until a policeman came by. At this point, we decided it was best to avoid this main ghat and spotted an area of the river in the distance that looked a bit more secluded. We had to go through the thicket of bathers though and trust, it was not an easy task. Men and more men joined the group that trailed behind us, drawn like magnets, like it was a parade, laughing and jumping on eachother. We had to stop once at a food stall where another boy with a stick hit them back like dogs I tell you, and then again on another bridge where after one boy touched both Emma’s and my behind (and received a derisive blow each time), I wheeled around and asked Kya?! What?! They jumped back but stared at me with curious and excited grins until one guy asked “What problem you?” to which I responded in my most simple and hopefully understandable English “You are BAD men!”
We finally reached the corner and passed a group of policewomen, but a thought occurred to me and I went back to them. “Where can I buy one of those? And what is it called?” I asked pointing to her stick. She clearly understood why I was asking and directed me to a market. I was now a girl on a mission. It was a hunt to find a stick but I was determined and eventu
ally I tracked down a nice solid cane and we found a rod for Emma. Now, I just prayed to Vishnu that some stupid boy would hassle me! Bring it :). The sticks did the trick and although we still attracted a halo of bodies around us, they gave us more room and one firm tap of the cane in their direction delivered the message that none of my limited Hindi or basic English could.
We spent another day in Haridwar, mostly away from the main area and while there were some funny instances, no incidents. I still cannot believe that I had to buy a stick to keep them back, but it makes me laugh nonetheless.
I left with Emma to Rishikesh, staying just the afternoon and then continued on to Delhi to meet my Austrian friends. This week, I met up with two of the Rustic girl for a reunion/goodbye trip to Jaipur which was a lot of fun and it was sad to see them off. I ended up buying a Sari which I had not planned on but now I think I will wear for the upcoming Independence day celebration! Ill let you know how this week of festivals turns out :)!
Where to begin… the internet is down right now so I’m typing this in Word and the friendly owner has just brought me a gin (pronounced zin here) and tonic on the house. (“First time drink in cyber? He asked with a proud smile and a head wobble) Ha, some offer chai, others apparently have another drink of choice.
Hardwar was everything I imagined from “real” India which is getting more and more difficult to define. Emma and I arrived in the early morning as we’ve taken to taking night busses to save on accommodation. Although we had heard that it was Yatra season and that there was a pilgrimage going on but what that really entailed we had no way to know until the moment we stepped off the bus.
Despite the fact that it was 7am, there were hundreds of orange clad people streaming up and down the main road. We were instantly intrigued with much anticipation of pilgrim-watching but the downside we discovered was that the guesthouses within our budget were full. Dropping our bags at a chai house, one of us ran around finally locating a room in the basement for 200rupees/night ($5).
Taking turns bucket-showering and lying supine on the bed, the many long trips were beginning to take a toll. It wasn’t long though before we struck out into the throng and joined the now thousands of people on the main road. On either side of us, stalls teemed with a plethora of pilgrimage necessities, bottles to collect water from the Ganges, bunches of brightly colored bracelets hanging like tassels from plastic tarp awnings, various trinkets in the shape of one of the gaggle of Hindu Gods and every possible product in as many shades of orange.
The only foreigners in sight and two girls without male ‘escorts’ at that, we definitely got more than our fair share of attention, but we felt as though we were observing them just as much so we didn’t mind. We reached the Har ki Pairi Ghat (footstep of the God) where Vishnu is said to have let a drop of nectar fall from which the mighty Ganges sprung forth as well his footprint. The scene that revealed itself to us was like nothing Ive seen before and I don’t think it is possible to verbalize the tangible energy that hit us as we rounded that corner. Masses of people, shoulder to shoulder were vigorously splashing away as if in the fountain of youth. We found out that most people had walked barefoot from their home towns, sometimes taking more than a months time, some even prostrating themselves the entire way marking their finger-falls each time. Large groups of men dressed in the exact same thing from head to toe with bottles strung around their necks and poles balanced over their shoulders decorated like Christmas trees with tinsel and mini houses on either end, running and shouting indecipherable hindi… my skin prickled with something of an ancient mix of human and earthly electricity.
We found a spot on the main bridge and snapped a few photos but it only took minutes to have a huge half moon of men around us, hemming us to the banister. They crowded around us so tightly, some asking for a snap, some watching shyly and others even touching us as if testing that we felt, I don’t know, like them? The feeling is half celebrity, half alien and its profoundly interesting. They would now part to let us through though and we were only saved by a policeman that forced his way through and began beating them back with his bamboo rod like hacking his way through the jungle with a machete! Crossing the bridge, we stopped at the end that resembled a balcony overlooking the river and promenade below. Groups of boys noticed us and began waving and even blowing kisses. I was quite amused for some time until they began racing up the stairs to snap photos with us and once again we found ourselves trapped until a policeman came by. At this point, we decided it was best to avoid this main ghat and spotted an area of the river in the distance that looked a bit more secluded. We had to go through the thicket of bathers though and trust, it was not an easy task. Men and more men joined the group that trailed behind us, drawn like magnets, like it was a parade, laughing and jumping on eachother. We had to stop once at a food stall where another boy with a stick hit them back like dogs I tell you, and then again on another bridge where after one boy touched both Emma’s and my behind (and received a derisive blow each time), I wheeled around and asked Kya?! What?! They jumped back but stared at me with curious and excited grins until one guy asked “What problem you?” to which I responded in my most simple and hopefully understandable English “You are BAD men!”
We finally reached the corner and passed a group of policewomen, but a thought occurred to me and I went back to them. “Where can I buy one of those? And what is it called?” I asked pointing to her stick. She clearly understood why I was asking and directed me to a market. I was now a girl on a mission. It was a hunt to find a stick but I was determined and eventu
ally I tracked down a nice solid cane and we found a rod for Emma. Now, I just prayed to Vishnu that some stupid boy would hassle me! Bring it :). The sticks did the trick and although we still attracted a halo of bodies around us, they gave us more room and one firm tap of the cane in their direction delivered the message that none of my limited Hindi or basic English could.
We spent another day in Haridwar, mostly away from the main area and while there were some funny instances, no incidents. I still cannot believe that I had to buy a stick to keep them back, but it makes me laugh nonetheless.
I left with Emma to Rishikesh, staying just the afternoon and then continued on to Delhi to meet my Austrian friends. This week, I met up with two of the Rustic girl for a reunion/goodbye trip to Jaipur which was a lot of fun and it was sad to see them off. I ended up buying a Sari which I had not planned on but now I think I will wear for the upcoming Independence day celebration! Ill let you know how this week of festivals turns out :)!
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