I awoke on my train bunk to the sounds of flatulence, grunting and a Nokia ring tone from the person below which had now started to get on my nerves. There was a bit of light from the window which suggested it must have been approximately 6am. Considering the lack of sleep I had managed to get I felt quite refreshed but no one else had stirred. The gentleman underneath me had got off the train but this clearly hadn't aided my sleep so I put on the iPod and went to the toilet which was a hole straight out the bottom of the train.... now thats an experience! After that ordeal was over the door to the train was open so I decided to sit on the step whilst the train was in motion. It felt amazing looking over the misty rice fields with the wind on your face, actually it was surreal as you would never be allowed to do that at home, health and safety and all that.

The others started to wake up and people were sharing stories of how they did or did not sleep. We played cards for an hour before the train eventually arrived at Varanasi station. We lugged the bags up the steps and had a bus take us to our hotel which was on quite a lively and 'interesting' street. We settled into our room which had no window and a back door held only by a bolt onto the street, reassuring! Some of the group were complaining that the bed sheets were dirty, no toilet roll, no hot water, can't please some people hey! Some of the group ordered lunch at the hotel restaurant and you saw these boys run off and they came back with vegetables and started to prepare them on the veranda! Fresh ingredients and cooked to order which was pretty slow.... obviously in India time!!

We strolled into town as we headed through the narrow streets littered with shops, bikes, dogs, cows, monkeys, you name it! We arrived at the ghats which are the steps that lead down to the river edge of the great Ganges itself!! We were now in a place where thousands upon thousands of pilgrims come to cleanse themselves in this holy water. In truth it is far from the clear blue waters of Mediterranean and I doubt you would find pleasure snorkelling in there. This aside we boarded our wooden boat (no life vests supplied) and were rowed onto the river. You could not help but feel a sense of wonder as the mist lay low with the lights of the western river bank running away from us like a runway and the low red full moon looking mystical in the background. We witnessed cremations occurring on the riverside which was very eerie but strangely you understood you would be a peace in these waters once you had duly departed. We observed a flower ceremony and lit our own flower candle and placed it on the river after making a wish.

Abhi had arranged a group meal for us and we look a long auto-rickshaw ride after prolonged negotiations over the price, this process does drain you and generally get at annoyed at their blatant attempts to rip you off! The restaurant had a gorgeous garden with an outdoor fire near our table. Unfortunately a few in the group complained of being too cold and to Laura's and I disappointment we had to go indoors. Dinner was amazing and we both felt pleasantly full. Laura had burritos and i had a masala... very nice! i then lost Laura to the shops! girls eh? she did get the elephant she had wanted since agra though so was pretty happy! plus she got him down from 650 rupees o 200 rupees! quite the negotiator! After dinner we all headed back on the cycle rickshaw which was a crazy experience! you are holding on for dear life and it was sooo much fun!

We had heard a story of a rat being under someone's bed in the hotel which freaked all the girls. Laura checked our bed and noticed some stains which we rectified with another sheet. We then curled up and watched the cricket highlights! Another crazy day in India!