Lucy's Locale: “We wander for distraction, but we travel for fulfillment.”

My time in the northern part of India is speeding by as fast as the trains I am traveling on. Yesterday my group completed a twenty-eight hour train ride, yes I said twenty-eight hours. I spent two days in Mutyalapadu, where we studied agriculture and the negative impacts of globalization and the influx of MNCs (Multi-National Corporations) on the agricultural sector of India. We were hosted by an organization that educates farmers about farming techniques, water conservation, and land rights. We then spent two days in Hyderabad, where we studied Islam. The city has one of the highest urban concentrations of Muslims in India, and India has the third largest Muslim population in the world. We visited a mosque (well, we were shown the outside because as non-Muslims, and women, we could not enter) which was beautiful.

We are currently in Varanasi, the city of lights. Varanasi is the holiest of cities for Hindus, sometimes referred to as the Mecca of Hinduism. Hinduism is centered around attaining moksha, liberation from the cycle of rebirth and reincarnation. It's believed that if a person’s ashes are scattered on the Ganges River in Varanasi, they will be able to obtain this spiritual release. Last night, we were able to witness a festival celebrating the birth and wedding of the deity Ram, and it was an extraordinary cultural experience.