The Big India Immersion
India, what can I say.
Since my first trip to Rhajastan and Uttar Pradesh in 2009 I fell deeply
in love with this mesmerizing country, a love that only became stronger
and stronger after each visit. Tamil Nadu and Kerala in 2011, Kashmir
and Ladakh in 2015, as well as two yoga trips to Goa in 2015 and 2016.
Does that mean I had seen enough? No way, with a continent as vast and
diverse as India there are still numerous places to choose from for
years to come…
When it became clear
halfway 2017 that I would retire early, immediately my mind started
wandering to places I wanted to visit and experiences to have. Once
again India came in sight and it might not come as a surprise it didn’t
take me long to decide to return to this mesmerizing country.
With time on my hands I
wanted to make the most of my visa and stay as long as possible.
However, being in the lucky situation with both my parents still alive
at the time I booked my flights, I did not want to miss out on their
birthdays and therefor I decided to leave for India on the 26th of
January, the day after my mother’s birthday (Republican Day in India)
and not to return till the 9th of April, the day before my father would
have turned 90.
One of the places that
impressed me deeply during my first visit was Varanasi, a city on the
Ganges that is so extremely special one cannot believe it unless having
experienced it himself. Formerly it was known as Benares, the oldest
city in the world.
Varanasi; a riot of
colors, a cacophony of impressions, an overload of smells, a place where
spirituality surrounds you so intensively that all senses are on razor
edge.
Sights, Sounds, Smell,
Touch and Taste. Needles to say I wanted to start my big India Immersion
right here and that is exactly where I headed to the 26th of January.
Part 1: A Magical Journey to the Cloud Kingdom
The Arunachal Pradesh Experience
Part 2: New discoveries in the North West
