Rishikesh

                Rishikesh, “the yoga capital of the world” is a humble yet very lively town. Situated right on the banks of the mystic Ganges, Rishikesh is known for its spirituality, yoga, and adventure sports. Our hotel is right on the bank of the Ganges and the first thing I did upon arrival was walk down to the muddy but beautiful water and I just listened to what she had to say. There is definitely something attention sucking about that river. I felt like I could have sat by her all day.
              Before heading in to the hustle and bustle of Rishikesh, Shane and I enjoyed banana lassi’s in the hotel restaurant and if I’ve not mentioned this before, I have an intense banana lassi addiction and am going to tackle how to recreate them when I get home. In one of my many attempts to always keep India with me, lassi’s will become part of my everyday…

                To get in to the heart of Rishikesh, we hired an auto rickshaw and soaked up some more of India. There were more villages made of trash, more propped up cloths and plastic rubble on the sidewalks to serve as homes for families by night and shops by day. I’ll never get used to seeing people live like that, no one should get used that as we would call that indifference, wouldn’t we? There are two sections of Rishikesh divided by a foot bridge that crosses the Ganges. Both are full of people, shops, cafes, restaurants, ashrams, and guest houses. The shops are a little funkier and I did some more shopping. I’m going to come home with so much stuff from India that I’ll not need to buy clothes and accessories for a very long time. Though being vegetarian in India is so easy, it is even easier in Rishikesh because the entire town is purely vegetarian.

                Thanks to Lonely Planet, we immediately discovered a restaurant called Little Buddha. It has a tree house vibe to it and sits up and over the Ganges. The food was amazing and they offered a lot of alternatives to Indian cuisine. The server told us that they don’t have beer because you are not allowed to have beer on the bank of the Ganges. No meat, no beer, this place really strives for harmonious living! The ambiance of Little Buddha was really zen. People were sitting with their feet propped up on chairs reading and writing and watching the river in between lines of words. Others were smoking and talking in big groups. Others, like myself, just were "there" and absorbed the vibe and the river. It was late so we went back to the hotel and watched Thank you for Not Smoking. It was my first TV experience in five weeks. It felt kind of good to veg and let my mind shut down. I’ve noticed that being in India has got me spending a ton of time in my head, running with only thoughts, playing with my new knowledge, spinning with my new realizations. All good things, all mentally exhausting simultaneously…..

                The next day we found ourselves conversing more with the river, going in to the fun shops, checking out some ashrams, stopping at Café Coffee Day (the Starbucks of India )to escape the oppressive heat, and then back to Little Buddha for hours of relaxation and loafing. I really dug the chance to have some serious downtime. Crossing the bridge back and forth to get to The Little Buddha section of town is an interesting experience. Monkeys line the edges and I keep my head down as to not accidentally look them in the eye- I’m still a little traumatized by the Dharamsala monkeys and I can’t get Dhondulp’s voice out of my head telling me that monkeys target people with yellow hair. The bridge is packed and signs say “pedestrian only” but that doesn’t stop the motorcycles that constantly cross it. When a motorcycle comes, you have to get up against the railing whether there is a monkey there or not.

                Though I’ve not been in Dharamsala for six days now, Dhondulp and I still talk daily via text messaging. He keeps me informed about the weather there, the movies he’s watching, and his homework. Every day he says “I miss you dear Kristen, how are you?” And every day I respond with an “I miss you so much and I miss my home in Dharamsala.” Though I never realized the extent of the suffering in India I also never realized how loving and kind another human could be until I met my dear Dhondulp…

Because I live my life following sparkle dust, Shane and I have decided to change up our plans a bit and head to Musoorrie for the weekend. Though I haven’t been there, something about it is really sparkly. Musoorrie is a small town higher up in the mountains about two hours away. Apparently there is some phenomenal hiking so we will see what the sparkle dust has to show me next…