Varanassi

 

We only spent a short time in Varanassi, but those hours were very interesting and full.  When we got off the plane it was 110 degrees F!  We wanted to get down to the ghats for the evening ceremony.  It was too crowded for the bus to get there, so we piled out and all got in rickshaws and made our way to the Ganges.

 

The rickshaws dropped us off and we had a short walk to the river where we boarded a boat and set out on the river.

 

The fires on the shore are from the cremations that take place along the river 24/7.

 

The next morning, before dawn, we headed back down to the ghats.  We took another boat ride and watched the sunrise.  People were bathing in the river, and some young monks were making offerings to begin their day.

Khajuraho

 

OK, I know it's been awhile now since I went to India.  But I never finished posting my photos.  I have a few more to show, so I'll try to post those in the next week or so.

 

Khajuraho, to the south of Delhi, has a beautiful complex of 25 temples, including the Kandariya Mahadev Temple.  The towers are covered with elaborate carvings.  This complex was built about 900 - 1100 AD, before the similar-looking Ankor Wat in Cambodia.  The complex was abandoned by its Chandela rulers and was hidden by the jungles until it was "rediscovered" in 1838.

We were lucky to have a personalized tour of the older section of town.