Setting Sun Stream of Consciousness Part 3

For the third day in a row I am sitting on one of the ghats by a tiny, mobile chai shop. Again, the scenes are very different though the boat makers have made progress: A wedding procession, the bride and groom are tied together. An old woman sweeping dirt with a straw broom. A guru sitting watching the westerners. A man in a black Adidas tracksuit and neon orange scarf. A orange dog sitting behind me. A man with pretzels on his head. A mad man talking to me in Hindi. A Sadhu who asked for 100 rupees to take his picture. Men playing music on drums, and a guru getting into the music. A man in an orangey pink dhoti. Deux hommes parlent en francais. A man carrying a VCR.

A very black sky and strong wind. A little boy with “alite” on his orange shirt. The men building the boat are still there and the boat looks like a boat today. The poster of Krishna and Radha has moved. A man on a mountain bike. A man with pan / betel ingredients on his head. Women buying and looking at children’s clothes. Clothes being hung out on the other side of the river. A little girl walking with her dad, she doesn’t look happy. A man selling beads. A Japanese fellow with a Whangzan t-shirt. A puppy taking a nap on the steps. Four women in very fancy saris. A guy with a shaved head and a very cool moustache.

Dobhi wallas working away (above). Men struggling to row their boat up the Ganga. A goat rubbing his head on a piece of rope, he looks like he is flossing his antlers. A little boy wearing no pants. A circle of flowers in the water. A dust storm on the other side of the river. A dog smelling his bum. Fire crackers. A dog trying to get on a black bicycle. A goat eating a piece of wood. The wedding procession has returned and the brides face is covered. A girl with multi-coloured rastas in her hair. A little girl with pigtails, her red scarf is tied in a knot. a goat trying to get a piece of wood / food from under a large rock. a dog running by. two goats with really floppy ears being chased by a five year old with a piece of rope.

The guy in the coffee shop covering the cooking rock with dung. A guru watching the boat building. The mad man is loudly singing songs. A girl with pink toe nails. Two dogs barking at a Sadhu. A goat trying to eat a poster off the wall. A dog wagging its tail harassing a westerner. A woman cooked on drugs. A puppy trying to get milk from mom. Two guys in blue jeans pausing to stare as they walked all the way up the stairs just to stand behind me and stare.

All kinds of herbs growing next to the chai shop. A man in a black turban bathing. A boy with a wok on his head. A puppy chasing a dog whom just attacked its mom. The mad man is chasing the dogs with his shoe in his hand. Suzanna from Madras walking by with her friend Rajiv and we talked for a bit; I had a feeling I would run into her again somewhere in India. Some boys pausing to watch us talk. A Sadhu with a trident and a red turban. A dog with his head over my shoulder, this dog has very human characteristics and could possibly be someone’s relative. The little dog makes eye contact with me and then walks away.