We arrived in Varanasi after a week in the mountains and a 22 hour train journey. It was five weeks into our India trip.
We were tired. Tired of travelling on a tight budget, tired of sleeping in depressing rooms, and tired of eating curry for almost every meal. We were tired of horns, cows, rubbish and hollering. If one is tired of these things, one should avoid Varanasi. It is peak India. And we felt it.
We’d read a lot about the city and it’s famous funeral rituals on the bank of the Ganges. We were intrigued and way back when we’d planned our trip it was one of the places we’d been looking forward to visiting the most.
The river bank is lined with 87 ghats and we had heard that these were the centre of the unique cultural experience Varanasi has to offer. We had expected them to be a hive of activity and dense with atmosphere (albeit a morbid one).
But that’s not really what we found. The river was a lot quieter than we had imagined, Occasionally there would be some burning at one of the larger ghats but most of the time it was just a peaceful place to walk. The one thing that did stick out was the complete lack of women – the only people around seemed to be groups of men with not a lot to do but drink tea.
Away from the river the rest of the city was a rumble of everything we’d absolutely come to expect from India. Turned up to 11. Many of the streets by the river are little more than alleyways – easy to get lost in – but don’t for a minute expect to find less traffic down them!
There were three things that made Varanasi both bearable and ultimately, very much worth it:
- Sunrise River Trip (and Brown Bread Bakery)
One of the times the Lonely Planet really nailed it was suggesting we organise a river boat trip through the Brown Bread Bakery. Not only is their food delicious, they made a notoriously tricky task – agreeing a price/time/place for the coveted sunrise river trip – incredibly easy. Definitely a top tip.
*There is a copycat shop over the street with the same name so look out for the logo.
2. Blue Lassi
The lassis we had from this hole-in-the-wall cafe were absolutely incredible. There are lot of imitations around town, and you have to follow the painted signs on the alley walls for about 15 minutes before you eventually find it but that actually made for a pretty fun scavenger hunt, with a deliciously sweet and yoghurty prize. Unmissable.
This place was an absolute god send. Had Varanasi been one of our first stops we probably wouldn’t have stepped foot in it but as it came at a time of winding down and looking towards home this place became a bit of a sanctuary. Delicious coffee and incredible breakfasts are available as well as some really cute bags, clothes and decorations. They take pride in the way they treat their staff and create their products. Pricey of course, but ideal for respite.
We really feel if we’d travelled from Calcutta to Mumbai (rather than the other way round) that Varanasi might have felt totally different to us. Had we arrived here early in the trip, it would probably have delivered us everything we’d been excited and scared to experience. All cramped inside fiddly back alleys with a whiff of stagnant river water to boot.
As it was, we were too tired to love it for what it is. But, we can absolutely see why it’s developed a reputation for being an unmissable city for any intrepid backpackers looking for the India of travel documentaries and cooking shows. It’s a place for anybody wishing to experience the icon that is ‘India’.
Here’s a video from our last stop in India….
