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NORTH INDIA

Varanasi

Varanasi is probably the place in India that has the most profound impact on visitors. Formerly known as Benares, it sits on a bend of the Ganges, and its spiritual significance comes from its status as a "crossing place", where gods and goddesses can descend to earth. It has been a pilgrimage site since the sixth century BC; Hindus try to visit at least once in their lifetime and immediately make for the river to pray and bathe. The ghats - hundreds of stone steps flanking the riverbank - are an incredible sight, particularly at sunrise when thousands of pilgrims bathe in the spiritually cleansing waters. Funeral pyres smoke on the riverbank, which is lined with colourful temples. The Old City, a maze of tiny alleys, has several temples, including the Golden Temple - which is only accessible to Hindus - and many cows, which have traffic priority. Close to Varanasi is Sarnath, where Budhha preached his first sermon and which is now a spiritual place of mainly ruined stupas, shrines and temples.

> Itineraries visiting Varanasi