Another early morning in Varanasi. We were scheduled to meet DJ at 445am in time to go back down to the Ganges to see the locals and pilgrims dipping into the river. At this time in the morning, the traffic was vastly different than last night and we made it down there in about 10 minutes (vs 30 last night).

Paige was still not at 100% so had opted not to take the boat out with us, but did want to see the process. So, while Ashley, Katelyn and I went out in the boat with DJ, Paige stayed behind with the driver who became a stand-in guide.  

Even though the traffic wasn't bad, there were still a lot of people on the steps to the river. There is a ritual for dipping into the Ganges and it is usually done at sunrise. We found our rowboat and slowly made our way down the river. It was so peaceful and a very different scene from last night. Where we boarded our boat was very crowded, as we rowed down the river there were fewer and fewer people. We rowed to the 2nd of the two crematorium areas (we saw the Northern one last night). The fires burn 24/7 and this one, the Southern one, was less crowded than the Northern fires. Still, there were decorated shrouded bodies ready for the three hour burning process.

We rowed back towards the Northern fires, and were treated to a spectacular sunrise. Just past the Northern fires we got off the boat and followed DJ through the small, cramped, winding alleys of shops, temples and people. We scooted around cows and stood plastered against the walls as two separate bodies (one in a decorated shroud and the other in a wooden coffin) followed by their entourage on the way to the burning site.  

We found Paige and the driver and learned that she had a great experience walking along the river. She was able to see everything we saw, just not from the boat. She also dipped her foot in the Ganges, which was brave! It was time for breakfast back at the hotel and some downtime before seeing a few more temples in the afternoon. 

DJ and the driver picked us back up and we were scheduled to visit 3 different temples, all different in style and function. The first one was only 5 miles from the hotel, but the chaos was back and it took us at least 45 minutes to get there. It was on a large University campus and we now knew the drill of taking off our shoes and leaving them with the "shoe caretaker". The next temple was all in red, but quite small, while the third looked like a house and had a marble carving of a map of India on the floor.  

Our last stop was to Sarnath where Buddha performed his first sermon. There are so many off-shoots of Hindu and we learned that Buddhist was one. There was a large museum with many artifacts from the excavation site and many carvings of Buddha. Not one was fat or happy! We walked across to the a beautiful park where the excavations were done, which was where Buddha first starting engaging people with his beliefs. I had no idea that we would learn so much about many different religions while were here! It certainly gave us a new view and respect for their beliefs. 

It was time to head back to the hotel, grab some lunch and go the airport for our flight to Delhi. My flight was leaving at 1130p on Thursday, while the girls were on Lufthansa via Frankfurt at 230a Friday morning. The flight to Delhi was only an hour, but by the time we got off we were all on edge. I have never been on a flight with more screaming children or clueless passengers...not fun.  

On arrival in Delhi, we were met by Mallika and along with Rennu, our driver who we left in Jaipur. They dropped me off at the International terminal, and then took the girls to the JW Marriott for a few hours before their flight. Hard to believe our India journey was coming to an end.

As I was landing in Newark (after a 14 hour flight), I could see NYC as the sun was rising and I was so grateful to be home. This trip was amazing in so many different ways, the people were so gracious and welcoming, the food was great (and spicy!), the sites were spectacular and we we privileged to be a part of it all. While this trip challenged our comfort on every level, all four of us will come home with wonderful memories.  
 
However, there is no place like home and while I love my trips, I am thrilled to back to drinking tap water, my own bed, seeing Ken and no cows in the streets!