“Benares [Varanasi] is older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend, and looks twice as old as all of them put together.” – Mark Twain
TRAVEL EXPERIENCE: VARANASI, INDIA
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(Copyright flyinghighonpoints.com)
(Copyright flyinghighonpoints.com)
Why Visit Varanasi?
I can definitively state that no trip to India is truly complete without traveling to the ancient and holy city of Varanasi. For many, it is a dream city for spiritual reasons. For others, its a haven for photography. Its the oldest continually inhabited city on earth. In a previous post, I outlined 10 amazing facts about Varanasi.
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There are few places in this world can elicit that unmistakable ‘profound revelation’ emotion as Varanasi. Few places in this world can succinctly summarize the entirety of life and its complexities (birth, life, death, mortality, faith, poverty, etc.) as Varanasi. Few places places in this world can reveal the perspectives that you grew up with – and developed over the course of a lifetime – were mere fleeting constructs of your own mind as Varanasi.
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What has long been debated is when one should go to Varanasi: Should it be the first Indian city to visit on your journey or the last? I chose to go to Varanasi as my first city, and it was a great decision for me. Nowhere else could have been more foreign to me and nowhere else could have been so overwhelmingly immersive to my Indian experience and my very basic understanding of Hinduism. All roads traveled throughout India will always lead to Varanasi – be it through legend, history, or religious significance.
MY ITINERARY:
- Day 1: Fly into Varanasi; acclimate to India and sleep off the jet-lag; ‘dinner’ at McDonald’s.
- Day 2: Sunrise boat trip on the Ganges, Holi Festival+drinks, tour of the ghats and ‘narrow streets’, Aarti Ceremony at the Dashashwamedh Ghat
- Day 3: Sarnath, Banaras Hindu University, Durga Mandir, Bharat Mata Temple, Hotel Surya
- Day 4: Walk the ghats along the Ganges at sunrise, fly to New Delhi, India
The Sunrise Boat Cruise:
The first glimpse of the Ganges River, at sunrise (copyright flyinghighonpoints.com)
Sunrise boat trip (copyright flyinghighonpoints.com)
View of the ghats from the boat trip (copyright flyinghighonpoints.com)
The sunrise boat cruise on the Ganges is an absolute ‘must do’. You can easily do this on your own. You can either reserve this ahead of time online (I actually reserved this on Expedia), reserve it at your hotel, or simply walk down to the river near the Dashashwamedh Ghat and negotiate a fare with the boatmen (though this could be pricey because of the sunrise time limitation).
The cruise lasts about 1-1.5 hours and floats you past the many ghats (or stairs) where you can take in the sights, sounds, smells, and wildlife of the city on the river. Yes, this is where you may see fish jumping at dawn, ashes of the newly departed mixing with heavy pollution, animal carcasses and celebratory candles from the night before floating by, or witness a cremation. Here you will see the city literally wake up and come alive.
The Significance to the Hindu Faith:
Varanasi is the holiest city in Hinduism and Jainism. Many believe that the Ganges is a goddess that takes the faithful to Heaven. Because of this, many Hindus want to be cremated in Varanasi. As such, the cremation ghats burn all the time – 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Cremation ceremony (copyright flyinghighonpoints.com)
The Manikarnika Ghat and Sandalwood for cremations (copyright flyinghighonpoints.com)
Stray dogs sleep in the warm ashes from the night before (copyright flyinghighonpoints.com)
Walking the Ghats
Another ‘must do’ experience of Varanasi is walking its many ghats. The ghats line the North [West] side of the Ganges river. The common itinerary is starting at the Assi Ghat and walking North to the Manikarnika Ghat – and back.
The following shows the approximation of the 3.7 Kilometer walk (each way); this should be done along the banks of the river from ghat to ghat. The round-trip walk should take you about 2-3 hours and is best done in the morning before the Indian sun starts blazing down on the exposed walking path.
Walking the Ghats (approximate map)
Scenes from Walking the Ghats:
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Aarti Ceremony on the Ganges River
Lastly, most visitors to Varanasi attend the nightly Aarti Ceremony held at the Dashashwamedh Ghat. Admittedly, this ceremony has a bit of a ‘touristy flavor’ to it, but only because so many tour guides and tourists know this as a ‘must see’ event in Varanasi. When you take a closer look, you see this is a truly sacred ceremony revered by Hindus as a way to ‘remove darkness’ and celebrate, love, and respect the Ganga River.
It will get very crowded right before the ceremony begins, so I advise to get there early. Prime ‘VIP’ seats with a view can be bought for roughly $200 INR ($3 US) at the top of the stairs near the entrance to the ghat.
(Image courtesy of wikipedia.org)
Banaras Hindu University Complex (with Durga Mandir & Bharat Mata Temple)
The Banaras Hindu University complex is another worthwhile 1/2 day excursion. The Campus itself is vibrant and beautiful and has a pink Hindu temple as its center piece. Close by is the Durga Mandir (Monkey Temple), which was the site of a recent terrorist attack so be advised of the heightened security. The nearby Bharat Mata Temple contains a huge map of undivided India made of pure marble. Spend some time walking around it and admiring the scale and detail.
Bharat Mata Temple (copyright flyinghighonpoints.com)
The Bottom-Line: Visiting Varanasi (Varanasi, India)
Varanasi is simply not to be missed. It is one of the most authentic and revelatory experiences you can have as a traveler. Some will say you need two weeks there, at a minimum, to take it all in. As a traveler who is more limited on time, I would say that 3 nights/4 days is enough – but not less that that. Make sure to have your itinerary planned out so as to not miss anything this wonderful place has to show you.
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Cheers!
