Day three begins much like day two, Vargha over slept the plans we had in the morning so I spent a fair amount of time in the sunshine reading followed by breakfast with Vargha and Hamid. After breakfast I accompanied Vargha to the airport to see him off; he was heading to Calcutta for a Baha'i seminar which will last 10 days. He offered me the chance to drive him to the airport which I declined for so very many reasons.
With Vargha gone I met up with Simon, Ananda, Goria and one other girl whose name escapes me. Hamid recommended going to the ruins of a Buddhist monastery which was beside a monument that houses a relic of Buddha. As my friends and guides would inform me Buddha walked 300km from the tree he sat under to this place and here he gave his first lecture. For its' historic significance I was less then impressed. Thew whole place felt more like a re-creation then a preserved historic sight Tour groups from various Buddhaist communities spotted the grounds and everything looked too perfect for being something that should be old in a country where even the new buildings look prematurely aged. Still it was a beautiful day and my guides were very informative.
Dinner was at a Pizzaria that overlooked the last steps down to the Ganges. They decided to take me to the place with the best Apple Pie in India. Whether or not this is true it was a nice enough place to enjoy a meal. It is amazing how quiet the city can be in one place and hectic less then a block away. On our car ride back through unlit streets filled with every kind of traffic you could imagine. Simon and Ananada joked that someone was going to get hurt as our driver seemed to be irritated and in a hurry, his arm rarely leaving the horn and countless close encounters with on coming traffic.
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