Beautiful Banaras

Unfortunately I had fallen ill, fever and cold so could not venture out the entire day. But by evening was feeling much better so decided to visit the Ghat again. This time we reached at the time of the famous Ganga aarti. The crowd was mesmerized and so were we. After sometime we left for the other famous Ghat, Assi Ghat. Its quite at a distance so we took a peddle rickshaw from the Gadauli Chowk. Assi Ghat is totally different. First its huge in expanse. One needs to walk at least 200 metres from the stairs to reach the river. But the atmosphere is electric. Its quite a contrast to the spiritual scene at the Dasashwamedh. There are cafes, restaurants, dotted around the Ghat. First we had awesome chat at a street vendor. And then we visited a cafe, called Mark's Cafe. On the owner (not Mark) suggestion, we tried some milk less tea, almost like a medicine for my cough and immediately felt better. Followed by Korean Ramen noodles. Trust me it was delicious, and from there it was back to pavilion.

This was the day to explore Kashi. While it we my second trip to the city, my husband was visiting it for the first time. So i was taking him to all this places I had visited in my previous visit. And we started from Sarnath. The place where Gautam Buddha gave his first sermon. A beautifully landscaped garden and in the centre stands tall, the towering statue of the Lord. Built with the effort of the Government of Thailand, it is a harmonious place to visit. Next door is the Sarnath Museum that houses relics from the Gupta period, considered the golden age of Indian architecture. Tools, jewellery, weapons and many other things traced back to the times of Buddha, Asoka and their contemporaries. Mobile is not allowed and we didn't carry our DSLR. So please carry your cameras, there are lockers to keep your mobile safely. Next door to it there is an archaeological site that showcases excavations of that era. Its mind-blowing too.  Our next stop was for Lunch at Baati Chokha, for authentic Banarasi food. Must visit. Next we moved to Ramnagar Fort. Its the abode of the ruler of Banaras and the current heir still lives there with family. Its a small but pretty fort. It is not imposing like the other more popular forts of India but it has an envious collection of vintage cars. Cannot be photographed and not at all maintained well. The museum in the fort also shows amazing attire of the bygone royalty, the weapons used by them, their furniture, and other memorabilia. And at the back of the fort, waits the most beautiful scenery. The sacred Ganga flowing elegantly with the Sun lighting it up with his golden rays.
With our hearts filled with this breathing view, we moved towards Banaras Hindu University or BHU. The campus is huge as we were driven around it, we realised it was the convocation day so we left early without getting down anywhere.

We reached Banaras by the Vande Bharat Train. It was a very comfortable journey.
We reached our homestay Granny's Inn on Luxe Road, within a walking distance of the ancient Dasashwamedh Ghat. After a hot cup of tea, we walked our way to the Ghat through one of the busiest roads of Banaras. On our way we even passed by the gully to Kashi Vishwanath Temple. Finally the Ghat and it's an overwhelming feeling. The mighty Ganga spread across the horizon with innumerable boats floating in her wide bosom. The aarti had just finished and you could see tourists, city dwellers and devotees awestruck by the entire atmosphere.

We were to return today so after breakfast we went to meet the ultimate power of the world and the real king of Kashi, Mahadev. Our destination was Kashi Vishwanath Temple. No cameras, electronics are allowed inside so there is no photos. Please go as early as possible in the morning or with enough time in hand so that you need not pay extra money to the pujaris or priests. And after the darshan, we went to eat our last chat in the market and bid goodbye to Ma Ganga.