Varanasi

Today is our last day in Varanasi before we head back to Delhi! We are pretty sad as our trip is coming to an end and it has gone way to fast. We decided just to go for a walk around the streets and just explore at our own pace. We had paid a bit extra for a late checkout so we didn’t have to leave till 5pm. We headed down the street in search of a new book for me to read as I finished mine last night. No luck but we did come back with plenty of food for our train trip. They even sold vegemite but wanted me to pay $10 for a small jar and I wasn’t that desperate but I was very excited to see some! We dropped off our supplies at the hotel then headed the other way down along the river. Right near the hotel was a book shop so in I went and came out with a book. We walked a fair way down the river as it wasn’t very busy. I expected it to be a lot busier. The town is definitely crazy and very busy, but along the river was very quiet. There were still plenty of people having baths and washing clothes, people praying and people sleeping and every second person tried to sell us a boat ride! Of course cheaper than what we paid yesterday! The story of our Indian trip!!!! We saw a sign for a German bakery so we followed the sign up some steep steps of the ghat and then into a small, smelly, poo covered alley until we found the bakery. We ordered some lunch and then headed back along the river. We headed back to our rooms to pack our bags and have showers before we left. We had a bit of time left before we had to go the train station so we went to a coffee house we saw earlier and had drinks and used the wifi! We waited for the rickshaw to come that Sud’s friend had organized for us as he was going to help us find our train etc at the station. When he didn’t show we rang Sud to check if he had heard and he called us back to say his friend was stuck in traffic and just get another rickshaw. We were thinking he didn’t like what we paid him the day before so he abandoned us! Sud was very embarrassed and apologized to us, not that it was his fault as he was out of town. We got our own rickshaw no problems as there are plenty right outside the hotel. We paid our young driver and gave him a kangaroo air fresher we had from Australia and he was very excited! He gave us some directions to get into the train station as it was humungous! We walked into the train station and there was basically no security at all! I was quite nervous as we had about 2 hours to wait and there had been a bomb here 3 years ago and there were just people everywhere! I had pre booked first class seats and we had to find our names on a list at the station. We found a list for our train but couldn’t see our names on it. We asked a young man to help us and he spent ages looking for us but couldn’t see us either. I was a little nervous we were not going to get back! I went in search of another list while Rudi looked after the bags and fought off the beggars! I walked up and down the platform dodging beggars and rats running around! Rudi asked the station manager for help and he said the list would be out in 5 minutes and then we realized we were standing with our backs to a desk that now had lots of people gathered around that had the lists! We were there and Rudi got our seat numbers and the train pulled up early! We headed down to our carriage as we watched a very rowdy group trying to push and shove and yell there way on the next carriage. Must have been the normal public carriage, it was a riot! We got on and found our cabin. Unfortunately it was a 4 berth cabin so we were sharing with two others, we were hoping they were another tourist couple but we were not so lucky! Two grumpy old arrogant men came to join us. To cut a long story short we had a huge fight with them as they were both given the bottom bunks, so Rudi and I were split onto the top bunks and had no where to put our bags except in bed with us, no where to sit except on the top bunk where you could hardly fit without hitting your head and every time we wanted to get down to go to the toilet we had to climb on their bed! Was completely stupid! We had one guy on our side telling the guys off but the ticket conductor and the men were not going to change. I was yelling at them saying I was not going to sleep with some strange man under me and that we booked our tickets together and we should have beds together etc and they just ignored me because I was female. Rudi argued with them but we got nowhere. When they kept ignoring me I got really angry and we got nasty! Rudi told them there country was racist and the only reason they were doing this is because we were foreigners. I told them they were arrogant grumpy men who treat their women like slaves! I got excited when I thought Rudi was going to tear the list up in there faces but he wasn’t as much of a drama queen as I hoped so he threw all his stuff on the top bunk and we angrily accepted defeat! I started playing the ipod really loud and said that no one was going to get any sleep and we can all sit and be miserable! I gave up on that after two songs too! Anyway they made there beds and farted then went to sleep snoring there heads off! I laid there furious and eventually fell asleep hugging my backpack!