Photo of the Week

Naga Sadhu at the Kumbh Mela, Haridwar, India

Naga Sadhu (naked holy man) at Kumbh Mela, Haridwar, India

I took this photo in the Naga Sadhu’s camp during the Kumbh Mela in April 2010. I went into Haridwar for the day with two men who were also staying at Aurovalley Ashram — Lalit and Jean-Pierre. We spent an amazing day together, hanging out with the sadhus, swimming in the Ganges and having a lot of fun. I could never have had these experiences without the help of Lalit, who is a large, gregarious Punjabi man who speaks Hindi (and English and French). We spent a long time in this camp, where I bonded with this incredibly sweet young man (but I don’t remember his name!). I wrote about another Kumbh Mela day — the main bathing day — in Alone, and at home, at the Maha Kumbh Mela, the largest gathering on earth.

Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love

The biggest question of our time is not do you believe in god; or is global warming real; it’s where do stand on Eat, Pray, Love? The book about Elizabeth Gilbert’s quest to find “everything” in Italy, India and Bali is a publishing phenomenon: it was an international bestseller with more than seven million copies sold worldwide; and in 2008, Time Magazine named Gilbert one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Today, July 18, is Elizabeth Gilbert’s birthday. She is 41. And I want to salute her.

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For Video Friday on BreatheDreamGo, I have a video I took while riding in a bicycle rickshaw on the way to the train station from my hotel in Haridwar during the Kumbh Mela. I was staying at the wonderful Haveli Hari Ganga, which is located deep in the bazaar – where the streets are too narrow for cars and too crowded with people and stalls piled high with brass figurines of the Hindu pantheon, pyramids of vermilion kumkum powder and neatly stacked wafers of pastel sweets. The hotel has its own bicycle rickshaw for transporting passengers to and from the train station.

Taj Mahal, India

India is a vast and beautiful country, filled with world heritage sites, throbbing megalopolises, sacred pilgrimage routes, tropical beaches and snow-capped mountains. But along with the ubiquitous tourist draws such as the Taj Mahal, the forts and palaces of Rajasthan and the intricately carved temples of Tamil Nadu, India is home to a very well-trodden backpacking trail.

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Front gate of "the Beatles ashram," Rishikesh

All you need is love

This blog is dedicated to my older brother Matthew. If it wasn’t for his Beatles obsession in the late 60s and early 70s, I might never have come to India. I used to follow him around when we were children, which meant listening to a lot of Beatles music. I remember looking intently at the pictures of the Beatles — especially George Harrison, my fave  — wearing long hair, flowing shirts and marigold garlands. I had always loved anything “Oriental, exotic and mystical,” and when the Beatles went to India, I was entranced. I secretly wished I was old enough to be a “hippie” and join them. (more…)

Har-ki-Pauri, Haridwar during Maha Kumbh Mela

A sea of humanity, an ocean of bliss

April 14, 2010 was the highly auspicious final Royal Bathing Day at the Maha Kumbh Mela – the biggest and perhaps most important spiritual festival in the Hindu world, and the largest gathering of humanity on earth. As I was staying at my spiritual home, Aurovalley Ashram, just about 10 kilometres upstream from Haridwar, I found myself caught up in the excitement. And on the morning of the big day itself, I found myself alone, smack in the centre of the Kumbh Mela, at the extremely sacred Har-ki-Pauri ghat in Haridwar, surrounded by millions, probably tens of millions, of pilgrims, devotees, tourists, naga sadhus, babas, sunnyasis, pandits, swamis, VIPs and god knows who else. All the roads into and out of Haridwar in every direction were closed for miles around, the sun was climbing and the temperature was starting to soar to above 40 C. It was one of the peak experiences of my life: In that moment, I had to face my fears. (more…)

Classic Sikkim view: rhododendrons, mountains, mist

I left Darjeeling for Sikkim thinking I could visit Gangtok and Pelling in three days. They are only about 130 kms apart. Sometimes, it is hard to leave Canada-brain behind: in Canada, that would take about an hour-and-a-half. In Sikkim, it takes most of the day. The roads are so narrow, so windy,  so bumpy and at such an incline (either up or down) that you have to drive very slowly. So, three-quarters of the way to Gangtok, I had to decide where I would spend my three days in Sikkim, and I chose Pelling. This added many difficult hours of driving to my trip, more so for my wonderful guide (Paras) and driver (Ashok). It was very sporting of them to not only agree to this abrupt change of plans, but to encourage it: they wanted me to have the best possible experience in Sikkim, and they felt Pelling would be a better choice. These guys from Help Tourism are true professionals; I cannot speak highly enough about them. (more…)

Kanchendzonga, sunrise, March 8 2010

Stop two on my IndiaTourism-sponsored road trip was three nights in Darjeeling, known as the “queen of the hill stations,” and home of the “toy train” and of course the “champagne of tea.”

I have long wanted to visit Darjeeling and when I was researching and planning my trip, I set my heart on staying at the Windamere Hotel.  I had also set my heart on getting up at 4 am to drive from Darjeeling to Tiger Hill to watch the sun rise light up the great Himalayan range on my 50th birthday. Luckily for me, both IndiaTourism and nature cooperated. (more…)

The Victoria Memorial

I have traveled for about a year in India, altogether, almost always by myself — with no guide, no group, no tour, no accomplice. But in spite of all this experience, I felt like a newbie in Kolkata. I found the city overwhelming — in a different way than Mumbai. In Kolkata I felt quite vulnerable, quite out of my depths. The city is so immense and sprawling, with every single inch occupied by something or someone, and most of it in an advanced state of decay.

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The entrance to the Kailasa Temple, Ellora

The Ellora and Ajanta caves are located outside of Aurangabad, which is an eight-hour train ride from Mumbai, heading towards the geographical centre of India. The centre of India is actually quite a remote area and many tourists give it a pass, in favour of the more well-known places like Goa, Rajasthan, Kerala and Agra / the Taj Mahal.

But if I have my way, the caves will join the Taj Mahal on the must-see list both for visitors to India and Indians. I am not a scholar or expert on ancient Buddhist and Hindu painting and sculpture, but I know a good thing when I see it. These caves are magnificent. I knew, of course, that they were amazing and worth a visit, but I was overwhlemed by their beauty, antiquity, immensity and scope. (more…)