True Comes Home From India

True's back from India. He had a wonderful trip.

He didn't take pictures, but his friends did. Here, he is skipping rocks near the confluence of two sacred rivers, the Bhagirathi and the Alaknanda, which merge to form the Ganges.

He and his friends stayed at this camp on the banks of the Ganges. These pictures come from the Internet.

Another view of their camp on the banks of the Ganges.

And another.

True was amazed at the number of sacred cows everywhere.

More cows.

With his pals in the hills of Haridwar. The boy on the right is Indian, a Jainist, and speaks fluent Hindi.

A leaf tattoo, given him by their guide on a hike to visit kids at a primary school.

They played games with the kids at the school ...

... including frisbee.

In the foothills of the Himalayas, looking down at the headwaters of the Ganges.

They attended aarti, the evening prayer ceremony at Rishikesh, where the Ganges flows out of the mountains into the plains of Northern India. During the ceremony, plates are passed about carrying flaming wicks soaked in ghee or camphor.

This map shows the general area that they were in with two of the places pictured above circled in red: Devaprayag where two rivers join to form the Ganges, and Rishikesh.

They were way up north.

True came back with a henna paw print on his arm.

He brought home various gifts, including this elephant, carved in marble, with a smaller elephant carved inside.