It's been exactly a year since my last post. I don't really know why - I guess I just lost interest in blogging, or 'cos there were other things happening in my life, or as always, I didn't know what to blog about :) But now I'm back, and I hope to continue blogging the way I used to!
What really inspired this post was my trip to Banaras (also known as Varanasi), in UP. I went there with my mom and her mom - my granny, cos my granny wanted to take me to a few temples in and around Banaras. And I must say it was an eye-opening experience. I don't have any pictures with me unfortunately, I wish I had taken some.
~The roads, if I could call them that, were just pure mud. Stones and puddles all over, it was a complete mess. And such narrow streets! I wonder how people manage to drive there! And I am surprised people there haven't turned deaf - every single vehicle on the streets honks continuously.
~Traffic - my definition of it in Banaras: It's an ocean full of fish swimming in all directions - you find your way through and try not to get hit. Lol.. It was pretty hilarious.
~Temples. People go there with so much devotion, but the way everything has become so commercial, it is really sad. You can't visit any temple in peace. Right from the time you are half a km away from the temple, pandits come to you from nowhere and follow you till you reach the temple, offering you a good darshan in a short time, buying all the necessary items for the pooja, etc. There are a million shops selling things that are offered to God - prasad, flowers, milk, coconut, etc. and all the vendors call out to you to go and buy from their shop. You just cannot enter the temple in peace. As if this is not bad enough, you have beggars before you enter the temple, inside the temple, and when you are out, asking you for money. There are some who say they sweep the temple and so ask for money. Don't we put enough in hundis for the management of the temple? Then they say things like you will get a good spouse, make good money in business if you give them money. The problem is also that if you give any one needy person a few coins, the rest will come crowd around you. Everything has become so commercialized - it was a sad sight.
~Tourists. All the Indians treat tourists like they are Gods or some aliens from outer space. I wonder what impression they get of India. All the Indians try to make as much money from the tourists and I wonder if they resort to cheating them in doing so, by giving them false information or charging them exorbitant amounts. At the station, this foreigner was taking snaps of a little girl cleaning the railway tracks.
~Train arrival announcements. My train was late by a couple of hours. While we were waiting at the station, each train's arrival brought with it - *Ting ting ting*, then the announcement in Hindi, then in English, repeated atleast twelve times each! When the current went off a couple of times, I was so happy! Lol.. But it came back in a minute each time.. The announcements were really very annoying.. they were too loud, and were made too many times. And there was absolutely no mention about my train being late for the two hours that we waited. We were wondering if we had missed the train or something.
India is such a beautiful place. It has so much to offer in terms of culture and traditions, monuments, temples, etc. It has already become such a popular tourist destination. Rajasthan was full of tourists when I went there. I hope the government takes steps to put some systems into place, and to make potential tourist spots clean and organized, with good systems into place for tourists to get reliable information and to get bookings done. And when it comes to Indian devotees visiting temples and the like, I hope something is done so that we can have hassle-free and peaceful visits to religious places.
What really inspired this post was my trip to Banaras (also known as Varanasi), in UP. I went there with my mom and her mom - my granny, cos my granny wanted to take me to a few temples in and around Banaras. And I must say it was an eye-opening experience. I don't have any pictures with me unfortunately, I wish I had taken some.
~The roads, if I could call them that, were just pure mud. Stones and puddles all over, it was a complete mess. And such narrow streets! I wonder how people manage to drive there! And I am surprised people there haven't turned deaf - every single vehicle on the streets honks continuously.
~Traffic - my definition of it in Banaras: It's an ocean full of fish swimming in all directions - you find your way through and try not to get hit. Lol.. It was pretty hilarious.
~Temples. People go there with so much devotion, but the way everything has become so commercial, it is really sad. You can't visit any temple in peace. Right from the time you are half a km away from the temple, pandits come to you from nowhere and follow you till you reach the temple, offering you a good darshan in a short time, buying all the necessary items for the pooja, etc. There are a million shops selling things that are offered to God - prasad, flowers, milk, coconut, etc. and all the vendors call out to you to go and buy from their shop. You just cannot enter the temple in peace. As if this is not bad enough, you have beggars before you enter the temple, inside the temple, and when you are out, asking you for money. There are some who say they sweep the temple and so ask for money. Don't we put enough in hundis for the management of the temple? Then they say things like you will get a good spouse, make good money in business if you give them money. The problem is also that if you give any one needy person a few coins, the rest will come crowd around you. Everything has become so commercialized - it was a sad sight.
~Tourists. All the Indians treat tourists like they are Gods or some aliens from outer space. I wonder what impression they get of India. All the Indians try to make as much money from the tourists and I wonder if they resort to cheating them in doing so, by giving them false information or charging them exorbitant amounts. At the station, this foreigner was taking snaps of a little girl cleaning the railway tracks.
~Train arrival announcements. My train was late by a couple of hours. While we were waiting at the station, each train's arrival brought with it - *Ting ting ting*, then the announcement in Hindi, then in English, repeated atleast twelve times each! When the current went off a couple of times, I was so happy! Lol.. But it came back in a minute each time.. The announcements were really very annoying.. they were too loud, and were made too many times. And there was absolutely no mention about my train being late for the two hours that we waited. We were wondering if we had missed the train or something.
India is such a beautiful place. It has so much to offer in terms of culture and traditions, monuments, temples, etc. It has already become such a popular tourist destination. Rajasthan was full of tourists when I went there. I hope the government takes steps to put some systems into place, and to make potential tourist spots clean and organized, with good systems into place for tourists to get reliable information and to get bookings done. And when it comes to Indian devotees visiting temples and the like, I hope something is done so that we can have hassle-free and peaceful visits to religious places.
6 comments:
this is a topic close to my heart! I have done a fair bit of travelling and gone to loads of temples. Just this summer, I went to Rishikesh and Haridwar. the same thought crosses my mind. These temples and places are actually beautiful locations if you look close enough. But unfortunately they are too commercialised. What can the govt do? We Indians are that way and always will be. I am not talking about the commercialization. I am talking about crowding at places of pilgrimage. Banaras, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Amarnath, Badrinath, Kedarnath etc etc etc are all beautiful locations but will always be commercialized because such a bulk of us go visiting these places for religious, more than touristic reasons.
Other features in India have real potential. Like Palaces, mountain ranges, dams, waterfalls etc etc etc. We have those in abundance and such scenic beauty! Whether or not the govt can win the war with temples and tourism, it sure can in other fields :)
Good to have you back after such a long time! I thought u'd given up completely. But you are back!!! YAY!!!!! :D :D :D We have tioman to blog abt ;)
Money is not the most important thing in the world. Loves is, but unfortunately most love money.This is what happens in and around most religious places. Wish it were never commercialized like it is now.
The experiences you gain from such visits are there to stay.
#Macho girl,
Yes I hope something is done abt tourism in places other than temples atleast! And even in temples and other religious places, I hope some systmes are put in place! :)
#Ramrock,
As I said, it sure was an eye-opening experience :)
Hi,
Nice post about your visit to varanasi.
www.varanasi-ganges.com
haha... You would have felt the difference between U.P. and Rajasthan. They are at least aware of the asset, the foreign tourist is to Rajasthan.. seeing the efforts that Rajasthan has made in terms of roads and other facilities. However, the main reason so many foreign tourists visit Varansi is because of the drug industry so prevelent there.
And the U.P. govt. has never realized the potential of the tourism industry in the state and that's what defaming even the places of worship in the land which says Mehmaan Bhagwan ka Roop hai. :)
Traveling makes u experience a whole lot of things!
it is always such an adventure to discover new things and stuff!
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