Me and Banaras. Banaras and me

Sensory overload. It’s the way an author described her first experience in India. Although she was in a different city, it’s so easy to understand what she means. The amount of new sights and continuous honking hypnotize my eyes, forcing them to dart from spot to spot, admiring the beauty and the squalor of things. What I touch feels more intense, my nose smells a combination of sweet, spicy, fragrant, and repugnant smells that spark my interest and draw me to taste anything new, because the seven weeks I have left will go by too soon.

It is a country full of contrasts that excite me, anger me, and easily tug my emotions in polar opposites, leaving me breathless and ready for more. It’s an addicting cycle.
Meanwhile, I’m feeling much better than last week, thanks in part to the pharmaceutical industry. I’m not playing it safe with food because it’s too delicious and being in vegetarian heaven is not something I can take for granted. In addition to that, the weather has shifted and the rain and heat are fighting. Yesterday it finally rained for a decent amount of time. It seemed as if the monsoon had finally started, but today there is no rain again.
School started today and I finally have a clear plan as to what I will do the remainder of the time that I am at NIRMAN..I think. Two days during the week, I will spend teaching English and working in the library of the village school. The rest of the week I will spend at the city school doing library workshops, teaching English, working on fundraising, and learning Hindi. All of it is exciting and scary. It’s weird to think that I am in charge of planning and deciding what material to impart on someone else.
I should also get used to the fact that time is wind between my fingers, but I’m stubborn. There is more for me to see of the city, so I’ll leave, but give you view into what I see in the photogenic Kashi.

I went to the river and met Rossalie (?) for the second time yesterday. She sells flowers and cnadles to put in the rive in the morning (5 am), goes home to make recycled paper, and returns to the river in the evening.

Cricket, as I mentioned runs in the blood of all Indian boys. It's not hard to find 4-5 games of cricket between Assi Ghat and the main ghat.

An autorickshaw at night. I'm obsessed with taking pictures of them.

Water buffalo bathing in the Ganges. A man making ghee (clarified butter) by the Assi River. Putting the river to sleep at night. A ceremony that takes at least one hour if not more. Later, the guy put ashes on my forehead and promised they not only were magical, but that they would let me think more clearly. He is covered in ashes because this ceremony is done by one of the two burning ghats.