Kumbh at Allahabad
We visited Varanasi in January during Makar Sankranti and because it was the festival time and also it was clashing with the ardh Kumbh( happens in every six years) in Allahabad so people generally attend the ardh kumbh and they come to Kashi Vishwanath temple to take Lord Shiva as blessings and also it is believed that taking bath in the holy Ganga River during this time is very auspicious.Because of which the rush was more than expected during the time of our visit.
So this year ardh kumbh happened in Allahabad and we were very lucky to witness this event in person.
There is always a saying among Indians when they find two people who look similar “ lagta h kumbh ke mele me bichad gaye the”
The preparations for kumbh mela started months back and the area covered was really humongous . We started by morning 6 o’clock from the hotel to the Varanasi bus stop . The bus stop is located just in front of the railway station and we took an auto rickshaw to reach the bus station . It was a supper chilly morning and we were freezing because of the cold air.
For the morning breakfast we had steaming hot Idlies and coconut chutney with loads of mustard seeds on top from a small street vendor outside our hotel .We were a little sceptical about having idly from north india as being a South Indian we love Idli and don’t like to experiment when it comes to south Indian cuisine but this was really good and we were extremely satisfied.
As soon as he went to the bus stand we got a bus to Allahabad it took us about three hours to reach Allahabad from Varanasi. For in between meal our bus stopped in a dhaba where we had breakfast puri ,aloo ki sabji, jalebi.
When we reached Allahabad mid way to the city our bus was just stopped because of the ardh kumbh preparations , so we had to walk and go to the ground where are the event was happening .The ardh kumbh was arranged at the Triveni Sangam and so that the Rishis and devotees could come and perform the pooja. Triveni sangam which is the confluence of three rivers (Ganga, Yamuna & Saraswati). The point of confluence is a sacred place for Hindus, with a bath here said to flush away all of one’s sins and free one from the cycle of rebirth .
The place was maintained very clean and there were good arrangements for all these Street vendors would sell food and other small handmade items.All these vendors were already setting up the stall so that people can come and visit.
When we were walking we saw something interesting call the MALAI and this is kind of a sweet made with milk it look like foam with Ras Malai flavour.
Walking ahead reached a Temple named bada Hanuman temple this is the only Temple in India where you will see sleeping Hanuman and seems like he is lying down on the floor and its a very huge sculpture.There a pretty long Q to enter inside the temple and people were very well behaved and were entering very quietly inside the temple .Even the Darshan was very well managed and experience
We also visited the Allahabad fort near the Sangam.The preparations where at its peak and people wear preparing so much to organise a good event in Allahabad
Also the river is very clean till the time it reaches Allahabad and after that I don’t know what happens to the river it becomes full polluted and .
The food arrangement over there was in shacks and there was a food stall where we had Samosa kachori which was pretty good and making it fresh in front of you.It was a open area kitchen and we saw staff making Gulab Jamun, Puri and sabzi just in front of the customers which is very satisfying .
Coming back from allahabad to Varanasi also took us 3 and half hours in the evening .The journey was pretty comfortable because the roads are pretty decent and the bus driver also drove very carefully .
Harrytinkers travelog 