That was India and some, well what to say , India is .... incredible ?, impossible ?, unbelievable ?, infuriating ?, fascinating ? all of the above and more.
There was a big public outcry in India, when an Australian cricket player dared to say that India was a third world country, well I say that he was flattering them but also that he was wrong in that India is actually not of this world, it's of a different planet altogether .
There are things that are recognizable ,but they have mixed it all up and taken away the framework ,that what we call "normal".
There are many excellent novels written about India, about the injustice, the magic ,the poverty, the humanity, the romance of the place . Just before we left for India we read 'The white tiger' by Aravind Adiga, and he added a new viewpoint to it all , he has this theory about there are two India's ,one of Light, and an India of Darkness .
The Darkness, that is the holy river , Mother Ganga , the heartland ,surrounded by Light of the coast. And I think he is spot on , unfortunately in my 3 trips to India I have only visited the India of Darkness.
But we had a wonderful time, as long as we could crawl back into our Buddhist little oases , that was our safe place , our inspiration.
So what was seen ?
It is a harsh place.
Indian Toilets, an euphanism for pooping and peeing anywhere ,anytime. Apparently it was a brainchild of Mahatma Gandhi ,civil peaceful protest ,to get rid of the the British ,he encouraged the people to excrete in public, so the pleasant strolls through India would become less appetizing for the fine gents and ladies from Britain . It worked a treat ,the Brits are gone, sadly the Indian people never stopped this custom ,so one can bump anytime in to somebody who is using the public space as a toilet, one can step anywhere into the results of this habit ( don't go out without a flashlight, don't step of the narrow path, and check where you go ).No place is safe from this practice !
Add to this the Holy Cow, who also goes to the toilet anytime anywhere,then there are the goats , the pigs, the dogs, the water buffaloes, and boy do we have a shitty mess !
So sometimes it is hard to see where the human realm stops and where the animal realm starts,
so most of the cowpoo is turned into fuel, kneaded by hand into cow paddies,
the rest just lies there gets eaten or turns into dust. Dust everywhere,there is a constant haze of dust,the sun is never bright,
( we were amazed by return to Bangkok how clear the sky was , Bangkok ! ).
So that's me in the sun with the nuns and monks
,the place to die or get cremated (in that order), and for us a place to gawk.The burning Ghat's are a sight to remember , utter chaos , filthy ,and different !
so most of the cowpoo is turned into fuel, kneaded by hand into cow paddies, 
the rest just lies there gets eaten or turns into dust. Dust everywhere,there is a constant haze of dust,the sun is never bright,
( we were amazed by return to Bangkok how clear the sky was , Bangkok ! ).
to the kingdom where he came from,
to the place where he spent 25 rainy seasons ,
and finally to the Deerpark where He gave his first teaching , and set in motion the Wheel of Dhamma .
and Rajgir by car
, soaking in some local colour and again being baffled by all the Indian-ness of it all, the poverty ,
the dirt, the noise , the impossible and the beauty ,oh well ....
The big festival on the full moon in November, when we set afloat little boats made out of banana leaves decorated with flowers and candle and incense sticks, as a thanking to the water for all the life it provides.
Afterwards a nice long chanting session till midnight.
Jodi lurking in the bush and thinking about where to go.
Venerable Ajahn Tong on his Alms round.
Parade time, the foreign meditators join the fun.
Khun Thanat with grandson Titan.
