Rishikesh!

>I arrived by train in Haridwar, a town on the bottom of a mountain 6 ours away north east from Delhi. There I took a cab,together with two woman from Israel to visit Rishikesh. They got unloaded at a very expensive hotel, the only one in town, and the cab driver brought me to the bridge to walk over to the village. He gave me a tip for a nice guesthouse. Unfortunately this was full so I started walking with all my luggage and found another guesthouse where I left again and found the tour guide whom I got to know just an hour before. He took me on his motorbike and found me another place. Shiva Guesthouse was also a dump but I had no chance then to stay there because everything seemed to be full. In the bathroom I found two buckets and a toilet. There is never any paper, so I am glad I brought my own with me. Nearby is a tiny restaurant where I eat every day, and it is delicious! Rishikesh is a small town on the Ganges, where this beautiful river is about a little less then a mile wide. It has a lot of Ashrahms here where people find yoga classes, meditation, and pranayama! I visited the abandoned Ashram from the Beatles and saw the little hut where John wrote "Revolution 9"! It must have been very beautiful there at that time. Unfortunately nobody seems to take care of this place and it is in very bad shape! The first night here in Rishikesh I attended the Gangarie which is the prayer of the Ganges. Children and youth who are dressed in beautiful yellow clothes are chanting and singing and there are a lot of tourists who sit listen or meditate. The energy is amazing together with the scenery. For the first time I found love for this country and their people. I smiled with joy! Meanwhile I know my way around this town and I found a wonderful yoga class today. Just in case you all wonder why I don't stay in a Ashram! The minimum required stay is two weeks. Yesterday I moved out of the Shiva and found a nicer room just up the street.Clean and it has actually a shower and then I found a store to bye toilet paper! Today we had a fire in the hotel! The room next to mine is completely burned out and my room was full of smoke, so that I did not want to enter or be there for hours. I decided then to go and take a bath in the Ganges! I went with Norbert and Carol who staying in the same guesthouse. It was freezing cold but I did it. Tomorrow morning I will take the train back to Delhi and so wish I could stay a little longer here in Rishikesh. I made new friends, learned to drink fresh sugarcane juice on along the side of the road (from Edgar a nice Swiss man), found a good yoga class, I had a nice room and good food!
Namaste to all of you and I will talk to you again from Varanasi!
Love Sonja






So sorry about the unfinished post from Delhi but I had no power anymore that night!
Love Sonja
P.s. Thank you all for your comments!