After a few days in the much cooler Darjeeling we have now moved on to Varanasi. We had splendid views of the Himalaya but did not manage to see Everest as there is only one view point from Tiger Hill and the mist didn't clear for us, but we have now seen the worlds second highest mountain. We saw quite a few endangered species in the zoo in Darjeeling including red pandas.

Varanasi is the spiritual home of the Hindu religion although it is also close to the place where Buddhism started and is a magnet for other religions too. We took a trip on the river at sunrise and witnessed some amazing sights which, although seen in documentaries, had to be seen to be believed.

The city, amongst several industries, is famous for its silk weaving especially of the exotic zari (silver or gold thread) to provide silks with a very rich design and the pieces are still woven by hand.

We have seen many temples all different in their own way. We are now about to go on an evening excursion, it should be a bit cooler possibly 40 deg C.