The End of the Experiment

Our Cabo siesta has come to an end. If the success of settling in one place for 7 weeks (a record for us) is judged by the number of books read then this trip was over the top. I conquered three epic novels, a significant achievement for me, while my dear wife is somewhere over 40. Our weather was lovely the whole time with only a couple of rainy days and 30C temperatures which made the sandy beach and condo pool favoured destinations. Interspersed with our lazy days we found plenty of time to walk around the lovely town of San Jose del Cabo, do some short hikes and several day trips to Cabo San Lucas, Santiago (waterfall) and Cabo Pulmo (snorkeling).

On the other hand, we decided we aren’t ready yet for stationary life while visiting another country. Some day we will be but not yet. We thrive on discovering new places, cultures, local culinary treats and unexpected diversions. Whether that is with our backpacks or our camper van, those are the adventures we seek. Fortunately for us, retirement years give us plenty of opportunities to travel and so our next journey is never far away. Stay tuned for our upcoming travels to the White Continent.

Adios for now.

Another beautiful sunset sky from our beach chairs beside the Sea of Cortez.

A full moon rising on the same evening but looking the opposite direction along the beach.

Trying Not to Watch the News

We're getting pretty relaxed down here but I find myself getting wound up every time I watch CNN and listen to the Republicans and many Americans talk about closing the U.S. border to all refugees because one or two "bad" ones might sneak through. Perhaps the indigenous peoples should have taken the same stance when the Mayflower arrived. Or how about when there is a mass shooting at a mall or school.........shouldn't we take guns away from everyone to prevent further massacres? No, they say, you can't do that just because of a few "bad" people. Not very clear, humane thinking in my humble opinion but I better stop before I get myself worked up again and need a few extra margaritas.

We just finished a wonderful visit from our daughter, Caity. We took her to several of our favourites (Art Walk, beach club and walks, the Artisan market, estuary walk, day trip to Cabo San Lucas) and we discovered a few new ones. One day we rented a car and drove to Cabo Pulmo (2 hours) where we snorkelled in the national marine park, viewing lots of colourful fish and some coral. On the way back we stopped at a canyon near Santiago and did a short hike out to a waterfall pool where Caity entertained us jumping off several different rocky points into the water below the falls. A hilltop hike and geocache hunt was postponed when Caity was a bit under the weather on her final full day here (probably lonesome for home when she heard about the snow conditions in the mountains) but we did that in her honour yesterday. The Los Cabos International Film Festival occurred last week and we took in two interesting documentaries with saving our planet themes. We also found lots of time for some nice meals, pool time,many games and lots of laughs. We miss her already.

Enough for now, it is after noon and our cocktail bar has opened :-)

Red Snapper on the way to our BBQ. This has become one of our favourite meals.

Stopped for a late morning snack beside the Cabo San Lucas marina. Caity introduced us to the Bulldog, a margarita with a beer being gradually added into the mix. Yummmmm!

A short time later we found ourselves making a return trip to The Office (on the beach). We were still there well after the sun went down.

A turtle release program with one day old turtles on the beach near the estuary. It was the second time we saw this happen while there to watch the sunset.

Cabo Pulmo, Los Frailes beach. The ladies were on their way to snorkel along the cove seen in the background. Lots of colourful fish.

Our daring daughter taking a leap from one of the smaller rocks. She jumped from larger ones as well. I was in charge of taking photos and guarding the beer we brought along.

The view from the hill we climbed in search of a geocache. This was referred to as a small mountain in Mexico but back home it would most definitely be a "hill".

A successful find in a nicely protected canister at the summit.

Elder Care

As we eagerly anticipate the arrival of daughter Caity for a week long visit, several random thoughts have crossed my mind during the lazy days of Cabo (or maybe it is just the tequila). We always enjoy it when our grown children decide to join us on one of our adventures. However, with the constant attention we seem to be getting on our most recent trips………Rachel joining us in Sri Lanka, Caity in Switzerland and Austria, Rachel in Spain, and both of them in South America before that…….I am now starting to think that they may have decided it might be in everyone’s best interests to keep a closer eye on their not-so-normal parents. I was hoping our days of assisted living were further off in our future but I am gradually coming around to the concept of us needing help.

One particular area that I am hoping Caity will be able to assist us with is pouring drinks. It seems like the Mexicans, for some undetermined reason, have decided it is a good idea to imbed safe pour spouts in the necks of their liquor bottles. We now refer to them as ‘no pour’ impediments as we are having extreme difficulty getting anything out of the bottle, to the point where I often make a snap decision to have a beer instead. Being the inquisitive mind that I am……….I like to learn something new every day (to make up for the 2-3 things I now forget every day)……….I did some research on the internet looking for a solution to our problem and came across the following website:

http://www.mexconnect.com/forums/General_C1/General_Forum_F1/What_is_the_deal_with_these_tequila_bottles_P76081/

You really should paste this site to your browser and check it out to fully comprehend the challenges we have been faced with and to uncover the miracle solutions presented, should you ever be faced with the same dilemma.

And to further support my point that we may need help, this past week we made return trips to two different attractions that had been recommended to us by our host……..the Thursday night Art Walk and the Saturday morning Organic Market. Apparently these two events don’t actually start until the beginning of November, which is why the market field had horses in it, and the art galleries were closed, last month. They were both a lot more fun to visit this week! While I am at it, I may as well mention that I also hailed down a bus to help us get our groceries and wine back to the condo, only to find out that the end of its’ route was a mere 200 metres further down the road. At least the driver was kind enough to refund our fare when we reached the end of the line. I do plan to master the unmapped, numbered bus system before we leave but will anyone take my documented findings seriously?

I rest my case.

The beginning of the Art Walk in Plaza Mijares. Galleries, tastings and live music throughout the historic centre.

My "Supermacho" dinner, filled with shrimp, octopus, scallops and more seafood.

Down at the beach with adult beverages to watch the sun set.

The Mercado Organico on Saturday morning.

Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead)

During our travels we always seem to stumble upon festivals that we are usually unfamiliar with and they turn out to be a wonderful experience. This past week, Mexico celebrated Dia de los Muertos which we had heard of before but didn't fully comprehend. It is the time of year when the deceased are honoured in a happy way, with the belief that their souls are allowed to return for a visit with their living relatives. Young children are celebrated on Nov. 1 and everyone else on Nov. 2nd. Small alters are built outside homes to welcome them back, containing pictures of the deceased, food and drink that they enjoyed, flowers and burning incense to help them find their way. Others celebrate by returning to grave sites and covering them with flowers. Nov. 2nd was the primary celebration day in Cabo so we spent most of our time outside, wandering around and enjoying the local customs. We walked around a nearby busy, flower-adorned cemetery and then in other parts of the town observed alters being decorated for that evening. At night we went out to watch zombie-like performers dance around shrines and sing songs. It is a heartfelt way for families to get together and remember those who have gone before us.

Since our last update we also made our first trip to Cabo San Lucas, the tourist hub of Cabo, a 30 km bus ride away from San Jose del Cabo. We spent the day walking around the town, marina boardwalk and the lovely, but busy, Medano Beach, finding touts everywhere vying for tourist dollars. The difference between the 2 towns is quite apparent, and both are good choices to visit depending on your desire, relaxation or party central. We had a fun time at The Office where we had lunch on the beach, and we plan to return several more times during our stay, but we are glad to be bunking down on the quiet side of Cabo.

We spent today at a lovely, secluded beach near the Puerto Los Cabos marina that we had discovered during one of our beach walks. With a very calm surface it was easy to go in and out of the ocean water to cool off after sitting in our beach loungers and enjoying margaritas and cervezas. Relaxation at it's finest, reflected by our arrival home just after the sun set. Life is good.

Cabo San Lucas - Squid Roe, the middle of the rockin' bar scene

Flyboarding, the latest adventure thrill.

Medano Beach with The Office on the Beach restaurant and bar in the background.

The nearby cemetery adorned with flowers for Dia de los Muertos.

Alter site set up for evening performances at a nearby plaza.

A more typical alter with pictures, food and drink, and flowers.

Our day at the beach, relaxing after a 3 km beach walk to a calm, secluded area near the marina.

A bit of an obstructed view from the back row but I was able to take it in stride.

Back to Work

I wasn't planning on writing updates for this trip since it was not intended to be an adventure, merely a relaxing, one-stop hideaway in San Jose del Cabo in Baja California Sur (south). However due to the massive number of e-mails we have been receiving from family and friends.........are you safe from Hurricane Patricia?, what happened to your blog?, is it driving you crazy to spend time in only one place?, etc........I have decided it would be much easier to do some occasional posts in order to save some keystrokes at both ends.

First of all, we are doing fine. Cabo was not close to the path of Patricia, and our weather has remained constant, 30-32C and sunny every day since we arrived. We were very thankful to hear that the damage so far has been confined to sparsely populated areas of Mexico and did not deliver the catastrophic damage that was forecast.

We have settled into a fairly routine life, getting out for walks in the mornings when it is not so hot, and then returning in the afternoon to the air-conditioned comfort of our condo rental or a refreshing dip in the pool. So far we have explored many different parts of this lovely, clean town........several lengthy beach strolls, walks to the historic centre, Puerto Los Cabos (marina and fishing hub) and through the bird-filled estuary. The cheap (75 cents) local public transportation system consists of old school buses traversing 7 different parts of the city, but with no route maps available or even published, we are gradually assembling our own map by taking a few different rides. It has allowed us to see local life and neighbourhoods in the suburbs along with the most convenient way to return home (if we need it) from downtown pubs and restaurants, the food markets (organic and municipal) and the nice, secluded beach we found in Puerto Los Cabos on one of our 7-8 km walks. We still have lots of exploring to do, both in and around Los Cabos, and some hiking when the temperature gradually cools down.

Today, we are heading out to offer encouragement to the Ironman participants who have come here from all over the world to compete for spots in the Hawaii World Championship next year. It will be interesting to see how they manage a 3.84 km ocean swim, a 180 km bike ride and a 42.2 km run in 32C heat. We have cleverly marked out a rooftop Canadian-owned bar near the finish line in the town plaza.....but we will walk all the way there in support of the the real athletes!

Relaxing in our lovely rental property.

Deck view of the pool area and very quiet golf course

Malecon Beach across the road from our condo.

Egret, one of many bird species seen during our Estero San Jose walk.

Just two of the many yellow fin tuna we saw in the public fish-cleaning shelter near the Puerto Los Cabos marina. We watched (and videoed) the larger one (35 lbs.) get filleted in under 3 minutes.

Our sunset beach walk while the sun disappeared over the Sierra de la Laguna mountains.

The End of Another Wonderful Adventure

Our final Southern Asia stop after leaving the peaceful and majestic mountains of Nepal was a two day stay in New Delhi. We were quite impressed with the airport but as soon as we boarded a taxi to our guest house we quickly remembered what is was like being in an overpopulated city (20+ million people). With horns constantly honking, the 3 lane one-way road had at least 6 lanes of vehicles vying for the lead in the race to nowhere, while pedestrians nonchalantly crossed the street defying injury, and cows calmly walked down the middle of the road, somehow knowing that they were sacred creatures and ultimately had the right of way even if they were moving against the flow of traffic. It was clear that we were back in India! Anticipating what this was going to be like, Rhonda found us a lovely place to stay in an ‘upscale’ neighbourhood (it’s all relative) where the metro train stop was only a five minute walk away to whisk us off to the sights we wanted to see without having to dabble in the traffic, and questionable air quality, more than was necessary. The metro system was excellent…….frequent trains, inexpensive ($2 for full day use), air conditioned, easy to use, and built above ground (with more to come) allowing for city views and not adding to the traffic problems. 

We spent the remainder of our first day plotting our sight visit strategy and enjoying a delicious meal at the rooftop restaurant at our guesthouse. Our 3 day excursions included visits to markets (Delhi Haat and Kahn), Humayan’s Tomb (model for the Taj Mahal, built by the Emperor’s wife), Presidential Palace and Qutab Minar (12th century ruins). Our Delhi experience turned out to be better than anticipated and we both avoided  ‘Delhi belly’ which was an added bonus.

We completed our adventure the same way it started………spending time with our daughter, Rachel, this time in Basel, where she now lives. Rachel and Aaron were great hosts, and it was nice to visit again with Raegan, her 3-legged dog who many of our friends have come to know and enjoy. We did two full day trips with them, both 2 hour drives from Basel. The first was to the Broc – Gruyere area where we went to one of the original Swiss chocolate factories (Cailler), a gruyere cheese factory and the interesting HR Giger Museum (Academy Award winner for Special Effects – Alien).  Another day we drove to Interlaken, a beautiful place connected to two lakes by a river running through the city, with views of the surrounding Swiss Alps (4,000 metres, 13,500 feet). We did an easy hike (10 km’s but mostly flat) along the Valley of 72 Waterfalls, next to a creek with some of the falls having a drop that exceeded 400 metres. The Trummelbach Falls were our favourite, 10 glacier waterfalls inside the mountain.  We took an elevator part way up the mountain(the stairway was closed due to icing) and then followed interior caves to see water roaring down rock chutes carved out by the water flow. The views of the Alps along the pathway were also wonderful but another highlight was watching the multitude of paragliders and base jumpers diving off of the vertical cliff faces. While the experienced paragliders were able to catch updrafts and seemingly float forever, it was the base jumpers that got the adrenalin going, even for us. They used their squirrel suits to steer themselves away from the cliffs and then waited until they were three-quarters of the way down before pulling their parachutes. Something for me to consider going forward although jumping out of a plane might be a little safer and provide more time to enjoy the views! Pocahontas doesn’t want to partake in either one of them.

Following a 24 hour day, 16 hours travelling and an 8 hour time zone change, we are now back home. It was another great adventure with many more memories to add to our list of lifetime highlights which I have decided to start documenting before I start to forget about some of them. I started the list while we were trekking in Nepal and there are over two full pages of really special things that we have done. We are truly blessed, and fortunate to be able to realize many of our dreams.



New Delhi - Humayan's Tomb - the Emperor's wife had this monument built in 1565 when her husband passed away, setting the bar for the Taj Mahal which was built almost 100 years later. I let Rhonda know that I didn't need anything this extravagant.

Some of the ruins at Qutab Minar. The rock-carved pillars were impressive.

Rules for using the Delhi Metro system. With the exchange rate at 50 rupees to $1 Cdn, a 200 rupee fine converts to $4. A rooftop ride for only a $1 seems like a pretty good deal!

 

The Cailler factory in Broc. One of the original Swiss chocolate factories, now owned by Nestle. This was only part of the tasting line which offered many wonderful samples.

 

Walking up to the cobblestone road to the small village of Gruyere which was surrounded by a fort wall.

The HR Giger Museum bar. The Alien movie influenced the design of the pub.

Walking around Basel with Rachel, Aaron and Raegan. It was so nice to have so many pedestrian-friendly streets to walk along.

During our hike in the Valley of 72 Waterfalls. The steep face on the cliff to the right was ideal for the many paragliders and base jumpers who came to the scenic area in the Swiss Alps.

We saw a minor avalanche as we were walking along the trail. We heard the initial sound and then had plenty of time to snap pictures as the snow tumbled to the base.

Nepal - Once is not Enough

The title comes from a slogan that appears on most tourism posters for Nepal, and we have become believers. This is not only a trekker’s paradise but the laid-back vibe of Kathmandu combined with the friendly nature of the Nepali people and their charming mountain villages makes this a place that you will want to return to.

We just completed an 8 day trek in the Annapurna Range of the Himalayan mountains and we are still in awe. There are many different routes that one can take in the Annapurna region, and we selected one that looked great on paper, keeping Pocahontas below 3600 metres (12,000 feet above sea level) to avoid any altitude sickness issues and satisfying my aversion to freezing temperatures. The trek turned out to be a bit more challenging that we anticipated. For all we know the itinerary might have been written by Sir Edmund Hillary……’easy’ in his mind but perhaps not so much for those of us in our 60’s. The main thing we quickly learned is that just because the plan for the day calls for a drop of 500 metres (1600 feet) does not mean that you have a nice, easy downhill stroll. While our path sometimes followed river valleys from higher above, whenever you encountered a side valley it required a drop all the way down to the bottom where a suspension bridge was used to cross over the secondary river or creek, followed by another hike up a steep mountainside just to get back to the elevation that you started with. The trail also become more difficult in steeper areas, where rock-cut steps were used to traverse the terrain, taking its’ toll on your legs. One of the highest points we reached during the week was hiking up to the top of Poon Hill for sunrise (5 am departure, used our headlamps). At 3200 metres (10,500 feet) this would normally be called a mountain in other parts of the world but Nepal is home to the highest peaks in the world, many of them over 8,000 metres (26,000 feet), so when you reach the summit of Poon Hill, which provided a great view of the majestic mountains, it became easier to understand why they refer to it as a ‘hill’. Our days normally consisted of 6-7 hours of hiking with a break for lunch along the way, and any other time that we needed a rest.

In spite of the effort required, it was still something we were glad that we did, and the memories of our trek will last a long time. The village people, not the same ones who recorded YMCA, terraced the hillsides to grow their crops and relied on pack mules to bring in any necessary supplies they could not produce themselves. The sunny skies every morning provided magnificent views of the snow-covered Annapurna Range, and instantly re-energized us for the day ahead. The sunlight also highlighted the pink and red rododendrum trees (national flower of Nepal) which seemed to thrive in the higher altitudes. Staying overnight in tea houses was also a treat, with windows framing gorgeous views. The Nepali people are extremely friendly and constantly smiling especially when I used my limited vocabulary of the Nepali language. The rooms were tiny but our trekking company provided us with high quality down-filled sleeping bags that kept us warm when the temperature dropped to single digits every night (mid-20’s during the day). Towards the end of our trek I decided to sample the local liquor, raksi, which was a bit rough. I thought I was ordering a shot (only $1) but instead received a full 8 oz. cup, much to the amusement of everyone else in the tea house dining room. Our personal guide (Lax) and porter (Dharam) provided great assistance and were fun to spend time with, including involving Lax in some of our card games. The pictures below do not give justice to the panoramic views along the trails as they were spectacular, especially the sunrise views that we had as the sun rose and began to carpet the mountains, and visually changed throughout the day with more sun or shade being applied.

We are now back in Kathmandu, reunited with the clean clothes that we left behind for the trek, and more importantly my netbook computer, so that I can re-connect with the outside world. We have two more days to spend here before flying to Delhi for a few days to finish up our 3+ month tour of southern Asia. Kathmandu, especially the Thamel area that we have been staying in, has also been a nice retreat. It is a very walkable part of the city, clean and with smaller roads to limit traffic flow. There are lots of good restaurants and nearby cultural sights to see.  Our first night here (Mar. 17^th) was St. Patrick’s Day and after receiving our trek orientation, we stopped by an Irish pub for a pint. We ended up staying for the entire evening, listening to a live band that probably arrived here 40 years ago and never left the city, but still knocked out the blues and light rock tunes to keep the crowded pub entertained. Now that we are back in town we have decided to stay at the same hotel near the action. We have been relaxing, doing a bit of shopping, went to a cultural dance performance, and today we toured around the World Heritage Sites of Patan and Bhaktapur, exploring their ancient temples and palaces. Tomorrow we will see a few more sights walking around Kathmandu, and hopefully find my first Nepal geocache along the way.

Near Nayapul, just before the start of our trek. We didn't have to hike through any snow but we found it alongside our trail on several occasions. In the rainy season (June - August) this riverbed would have been overflowing, so we were also fortunate in that regard.

Early on in the trek when Pocahontas was still smiling when climbing the rock-cut steps (accompanied by Lax, our guide, and Dharam, our porter. We have since seen an amusing T-shirt in Kathmandu referring to the Annapurna Range as "Nepal Flats - a little bit up and a little bit down".

 

Terraced farming that took place in the mountain region. It was amazing how the Nepali people made the most of very limited resources.

The rododendrun tree (national flower of Nepal) that seemed to flourish in the higher altitudes.

Pack mules always had the right of the way, especially since they might have been carrying the Everest beer from Nepal that I came to enjoy. Following in their footsteps also meant keeping an eye out for fresh droppings with an unpleasant smell.

Mount Dhauligiri (8093 metres), part of the Dhaulagiri Range which ran next to the Annapurna Range.

Our typical tea house lodging for the trek. Thin walls without any insulation so our down-filled sleeping bags came in handy.

The mountain village of Tadapani where we stayed one night. It was similar to all the other small villages that we either passed through or stayed in during our Annapurna trek.

Came across this chicken salesman while passing through a village.

One of the many suspension bridges that we passed over during our trek. This one will hopefully have some renovations completed before you need to cross it.

Some impromptu live entertainment from guides and porters during one evening in our tea house dining room. Our porter, Dharam, is on the right, handling the tambourine.

A New Tourism World Record?

We may have just established a new world record for tourism. It has nothing to do with the number of countries our backpacks have travelled to, or the geographic range (every continent except Antarctica in the past 5 years). It has to do with Agra. Over 3 million people come here every year to visit the Taj Mahal. We believe we may be the only tourists in the history of mankind to come to Agra and NOT experience the Taj. Why would we do that, you might ask, when there is very little else to do in this dirty city filled with touts trying their best to separate you from your money? I would like to say that we boycotted the Taj in protest because we read about the 20,000 workers employed to build it between 1631 – 1653, and the fact that upon completion the main craftsmen had their hands or thumbs amputated to ensure the perfection of the Taj could never be repeated (I don’t suppose they conducted Employee Satisfaction Surveys back then). But that wasn’t the reason. We had been warned by many people before coming to Agra…….”get in, see the Taj, get out”. So I followed the given advice, booking a train that arrived in the evening and another one departing the following night. Only one problem. Our homestay owner advised us that the Taj was closed on Fridays, the only day that we were going to be in the city. I normally do a much better job on my research but in my defense my Lonely Planet guidebook had just expired (South India info only) and internet access has been sketchy over here. When WiFi has been available I have been distracted by how well the Flames have been playing and the upcoming start of the baseball season, so perhaps I was a tad delinquent in my duties. Anyway we set out in search of rooftop restaurants with a good view of the Taj Mahal and we were somewhat successful……taking photos from several different rooftops while spending most of our ‘entrance fee’ money on nice, cold Kingfisher beers. With time on our hands, we wandered over to the Red Fort (16th century) which still looks impenetrable from the outside, especially if they filled the dry moat with water and nasty creatures.

Prior to Agra we spent two days in Jaipur, also known as the Pink City because in 1876 the Maharaja had the entire old city painted in pink (a colour associated with hospitality) to welcome the future king of England (Edward VII). Today it looks more dirty orange than pink although Pocahontas tells me the correct description should be ‘salmon’. With a population of 2 million people and a constant haze in the air, we were very focused on our priorities, limiting our time walking their busy streets. We spent one day walking around the more pedestrian-friendly parts of the old city (City palace complex, Palace of the Winds and the interesting 18^th century observatory). The next day we visited the historic 16-18^th century forts (Amber, Jagarh, Nahargarh) north of the city which still have protective walls surrounding very large areas (old cities), palaces inside and great hilltop views. It was also interesting to see camels used in the city streets pulling heavy wooden carts filled with goods.

We are now in Varanasi, one of the holiest cities in India. The sacred Ganges River runs through the city and every day there are ceremonies going on at the river. Hindu pilgrims come here to bathe in the not-so-clean water, a ritual that washes away all sins……..is it really that easy? Expiring here also ensures release from the cycle of re-births and an instant passport to heaven, so if you wander over to the Manikarnika Ghat then you will see (24/7) several fiery funeral pyres with a body on top of it. We watched for less than an hour and saw a steady stream of 10 bodies being carried to the Ganges, dipped in the sacred water, and then placed on top of a large stack of wood which was then set on fire. The ashes and anything left of the charred torso was then tossed into the river. While it may be an assault on the senses for us, the families were very relaxed during the ceremony because of their beliefs that the deceased is on their way to heaven. No pictures were allowed (considered disrespectful) but we now have memories etched in our brains that will last forever. On a happier note every evening there is a Fire Puja ceremony on the ghats (steep steps leading down to the Ganges) where praise is passed along to the mother goddess Ganja. On two different nights we saw thousands of people (mostly Indian) watching on the crowded steps and from the river where the boats were lined up 20 deep. There is a river walkway connecting the many ghats so we have spent a lot of time down there avoiding the busy streets and observing the Hindu rituals.

Tomorrow we leave India for Nepal and a much more peaceful segment of our adventure. We have a 10 day trek in the Annapurnas booked so our next update will likely be delayed until after then. Namaste.

Jaipur - our heritage hotel. We had a nice top floor room with a patio overlooking the surrounding area.

Jaipur - a camel motoring down the street in the middle lane with a load of steel pipes.

A view of the Floating Gardens from the Amber Palace. It reflects the opulence of the times back in 1592 when the fort and palace were first constructed.

The elusive Taj Mahal. Picture taken from the closest rooftop restaurant we could find (that also served beer!).

Agra - inside the Red Fort, aptly named because it was built using red sandstone. This was the women's quarters where one energetic Maharaja kept his 1,000 concubines.

An outdoor toilet beside one of the Varansi ghats, where the drainpipe led directly into the Ganges River. I'm keeping this in mind for when we return home.....thinking it might be a nice addition to the back of our house, making it more convenient for guests when we are having drinks or a BBQ on the back deck.



A few of the many ghats (steps leading to the river) along the western side of the Ganges River.

One of the nightly Fire Puja ceremonies that took place along the Ganges. Thousands of people would sit or stand on the steps while many more were watching from boats in the river.