The train journey from Delhi to Varanasi went fairly smoothly. I was sharing my compartment with an American man, 2 Japanese giggling women, 1 Indian woman and her teenage daughter and a young Indian student . Well, when I say compartment in fact it is open on both side so the full wagon is connected. Indian families coming back from Delhi for the Diwali celebrations. Excited children who couldn't sleep.... But it wasn't too bad. Arrived in Varanasi in the morning and I phoned the guest house so the man in the yellow t-shirt came to pick me up. About 2 000 other people offered me accomodation while I was waiting and 3 000 rickshaw men wanted to take me places...
Then the man in the yellow t-shirt arrived and we took one of the pedal rickshaw to the old city where the guesthouse is. I felt sorry for the poor skinny guy who had to pedal through heavy traffic with me, my suitcase and yellow t-shirt man perched at the back of the richshaw. You could see he was struggling big time. Half way through the journey, he stopped at a stall selling the small parcels of green leaves. I don't know what it was first but now I know. It is the famous paan that they are chewing all the time and then they spit a bright red coloured juice. Mmmmmmm...
The guest house is situated in the middle of the ancient city. Small street like a maze, shops everywhere of course. Hello Sir ! Want to buy shop? It is next to the main temple, the Golden Temple. At least no cars, or rickshaws, or other vehicles! Just cows. Peace at last! I rest a moment on my bed savouring the tranquility when.... hang on a minute. What's that galopping on the roof? Monkeys! Big monkeys chasing each others, Bye bye tranquility... Then later on because it is next to the temple, at about 12 at night some mad demented Holy git is banging a drum and murdering some bells for about 30 minutes or it seems that long. I give up on silence...
Varanasi is extremely congested as well and the traffic in the early evening is quite frightening. Pollution is very high as well, I have trouble breathing sometimes. And extremely dirty as well which is a shame because it is beautiful. All the buildings alongside the river are quite amazing, all the ghats ( steps coming down to the river) old palaces, temples, the odd mosque and the burning ghats for the cremations. But everything is covered in ... shit basically. Cow shit, dog shit and human ones too. Shame.
This morning I got up at 5.30am to take a boat to see the sunrise on the Ganges and the people coming to perform their abblutions and prayers to the sun and other deities. It was quite nice and peacefull just me and the boatman on the river and the sun rising. Appart from one problem. This guy jumped on the boat as well when we were leaving the shore. Firts he was nice, chatting to me and explaining what was what. But then of course he started to talk about his silk factory, how wonderfull it was and that I should visit it!!! I told him to shut up that I wasn't interested and that I wanted to see the ghats in peace. He was a bit shocked, he apologied and left me alone for the rest of the trip.
So far I have mixed feelings about India. It is beautiful and most of the people are nice but it is spoiled by the few "aggressive merchants" who won't take NO for an answer and the serious lack of hygiene.
Tomorrow I am off to Jaipur in Rajastan. I have changed my plan to go to the Golden temple in Armitsar in the north of the country as it will take me too long (2 days in the train to go up and then 2 to go down!). So I will visit Rajastan and a bit of Gujarat in the remaining 2 weeks.
Then the man in the yellow t-shirt arrived and we took one of the pedal rickshaw to the old city where the guesthouse is. I felt sorry for the poor skinny guy who had to pedal through heavy traffic with me, my suitcase and yellow t-shirt man perched at the back of the richshaw. You could see he was struggling big time. Half way through the journey, he stopped at a stall selling the small parcels of green leaves. I don't know what it was first but now I know. It is the famous paan that they are chewing all the time and then they spit a bright red coloured juice. Mmmmmmm...
The guest house is situated in the middle of the ancient city. Small street like a maze, shops everywhere of course. Hello Sir ! Want to buy shop? It is next to the main temple, the Golden Temple. At least no cars, or rickshaws, or other vehicles! Just cows. Peace at last! I rest a moment on my bed savouring the tranquility when.... hang on a minute. What's that galopping on the roof? Monkeys! Big monkeys chasing each others, Bye bye tranquility... Then later on because it is next to the temple, at about 12 at night some mad demented Holy git is banging a drum and murdering some bells for about 30 minutes or it seems that long. I give up on silence...
Varanasi is extremely congested as well and the traffic in the early evening is quite frightening. Pollution is very high as well, I have trouble breathing sometimes. And extremely dirty as well which is a shame because it is beautiful. All the buildings alongside the river are quite amazing, all the ghats ( steps coming down to the river) old palaces, temples, the odd mosque and the burning ghats for the cremations. But everything is covered in ... shit basically. Cow shit, dog shit and human ones too. Shame.
This morning I got up at 5.30am to take a boat to see the sunrise on the Ganges and the people coming to perform their abblutions and prayers to the sun and other deities. It was quite nice and peacefull just me and the boatman on the river and the sun rising. Appart from one problem. This guy jumped on the boat as well when we were leaving the shore. Firts he was nice, chatting to me and explaining what was what. But then of course he started to talk about his silk factory, how wonderfull it was and that I should visit it!!! I told him to shut up that I wasn't interested and that I wanted to see the ghats in peace. He was a bit shocked, he apologied and left me alone for the rest of the trip.
So far I have mixed feelings about India. It is beautiful and most of the people are nice but it is spoiled by the few "aggressive merchants" who won't take NO for an answer and the serious lack of hygiene.
Tomorrow I am off to Jaipur in Rajastan. I have changed my plan to go to the Golden temple in Armitsar in the north of the country as it will take me too long (2 days in the train to go up and then 2 to go down!). So I will visit Rajastan and a bit of Gujarat in the remaining 2 weeks.
Le voyage en train de Delhi à Varanasi (Benarese) s'est passé sans problèmes. Je partageais le compartiment avec 1 américain, 2 japonaises qui ricanaient, 1 femme indienne avec sa fille ado et 1 jeune étudiant indien. Enfin quand je dis compartiment en fait c'est ouvert des deux cotés donc tout le wagon est connecté. Des familles indiennes entières revenant de Delhi après les célébrations de Diwali. Les gosses excités qui ne peuvent pas dormir..... Mais bon, ce n'était pas trop mal. Je suis arrivé à Varanasi le matin et j'ai téléphoné à la maison d'hotes pour que l'homme avec le t-shirt jaune vienne me chercher. A peu près 2 000 autres personnes m'ont proposer une chambre pendant que j'attendais l'homme au t-shirt jaune et environ 3 000 conducteurs de rickshaws voulaient me conduire je ne sais où.... Finallement l'homme au t-shirt jaune est arrivé et nous avons pris un des vélo-rickshaw direction la vieille ville sur les bords du Gange. J'avais de la peine pour le pauvre gars tout maigre qui pédalait péniblement dans les embouteillages avec moi et ma valise et l'homme au t-shirt jaune perchés à l'arrière du rickshaw. On pouvait voir qu'il avait vraiment du mal le pauvre! A moitié chemin il s'est arrêté à un petit étal qui vendait des petits pacquets de feuilles vertes. Je ne savais pas ce que c'était mais maintenant je sais. C'est le fameux paan qu'ils machent tous sans arrêt et qui les fait cracher un jus rouge vif ! Miammmmmmm...
La maison d'hotes est située au coeur de la vieille ville. Que des petites allées en labirynthe, des échoppes partout bien sur. Hello Sir ! Want to buy shop? C'est juste à coté du temple principal, the Golden Temple. Au moins il n'y a pas de voitures, de mobylettes, de rickshaws ou autres véhicules bruyant. La paix enfin ! Juste les vaches. Je me suis reposé un instant sur mon lit en savourant la paix quand.... attends une minute. Qu'est ce que c'est que ce bruit de gallop sur le toit? Des singes! Des gros singes qui se coursaient entre eux, bye bye la tranquilité... Plus tard, parce que c'est juste à coté du temple, vers minuit un gogol de débile Sacré s'est mis à cogner sur un tamtam comme un malade et à démolir des cloches pendant au moins 30 minutes, ou en tout cas cela m'a semblé très long! Je renonce au silence. Varanasi est aussi très embouteillée et la circulation le soir fait peur. La polution est aussi extrème et j'ai parfois du mal à respirer. Et très très sale ce qui est dommage car c'est magnifique. Tous les batiments le long du Gange sont incroyables, tous les ghats (les escaliers qui descendent vers le fleuve) les vieux palais, les temples, une mosquée isolée, les ghats pour les crémations... tout est très beau mais malheureusement tout est recouvert de merde. De la bouse vache, des crottes de chien et des excréments humains.... Dommage. Ce matin je me suis levé à 5h30 pour prendre une barque pour voir le levée du soleil sur le Gange et voir les hindous venir faire leurs abblutions et leurs prières au soleil et autres dieux et déesses. C'était super calme et tranquil, juste moi et le batelier et le soleil levant. Juste un petit problème cependant, un mec a sauté dans la barque quand nous partions de la rive. Au début il était sympa, il me parlait et m'expliquais les différents édifices. Mais très vite il a commencé à me vanter son atelier de soie qui est le meilleur de Benarese bien sur et que je devais absolument visiter... Je lui ai dit de la fermer, que cela ne m'intéressait pas du tout et que je voulais voir les ghats en paix. Il m'a regardé avec des yeux ronds, il s'est excusé et il m'a laissé tranquil pour le reste de la visite...
Jusqu'à présent j'ai des sentiments mitigés dur l'Inde. C'est magnifique et la plupart des gens sont gentils mais c'est gaché par une poignée de "connards de merchantiles agressifs" qui refusent de prendre NON comme une réponse et aussi le manque sérieux d'hygiène.
Demain je pars à Jaipur dans le Rajastan. J'ai changé mon plan d'aller au Golden temple à Armitsar dans le nord du pays car cela me prendrais trop longtemps (2 jours de train pour aller 2 pour revenir!). Donc je vais visiter le Rajastan et une partie du Gujarat pendant les 2 semaines qui me restent.
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