The Bhodi Tree and Con Artists in Training

At 5:10 this morning I boarded a train to Gaya. This time I traveled air-conditioned first class which is the highest class possible and much much nicer than the non-airconditioned first class that shouldn't be called that because there are 4 classes above it. I had so much fun that I felt like a kid. I imagined being James Bond in "From Russia with Love", although I don't think my compartment was quite as nice as his.

After a very comfortable sleep, my alarm work me up at 8:30 in time for our 9 am arrival. It took only a minute to catch an auto rickshaw to Bodhgaya, just 13 km away. To get the fare I wanted, I ended up sharing a vehicle with a Nepalese traveler named Uhm or Gum, which was ironic because by that time Kate would be on her way to Nepal.

Once in Bodhgaya, I checked into a brand new guesthouse on the edge of town. It was only 150 rupees (about three dollars US) for a clean single room with shared washroom facilities.

Bodhgaya is centred around the most holy site in Buddhism, the Mahabodi temple. Inside its grounds stand the Bodhi tree-- the tree under which Buddha achieved enlightenment. Actually the present tree is a replanted sapling (genetically identical) planted when the old one dies. It's still big and impressive looking, so who's keeping track anyway.

Around Temple building and Bodhi tree, the temple grounds are dotted with suptas, or small domed stone monuments, that were placed there pilgrims. There were a few monks and lay followers meditating among these and eve I took a chance to sit in the grass and enjoy the near silence.

While the main temple was nice, the surrounding village had even more to look at. Every country with enough Buddhists has their own temple in town. This way, visiting monks from that country always have a place to call home. The neat thing is that these temples are (usually) built in the style of the home country. So the Japanese temples look Japanese and the Thai Wat is just like the ones in Thailand. The one notable exception was the Korean monastery and temple which looked like a 70s bungalow. It was quite peaceful and homey.

Now, one would expect this to be a peaceful place, and on the most part it is, but what surprised me were the annoyances that I though I left behind in the rest of the country. I was constantly bombarded by school aged boys who wanted money for schooling. Some backed down and then wanted books instead. Reading what I just wrote this sounds fine, but these kids were salesmen/con artist pros. One followed me for at least 30 minutes on his bike while I dipped in and out of temples. Another offered to introduce me to his "teacher".

I told them all that if they took me to their school I would make a donation of books or money there. None of them liked that idea. It's sad, because these kids should be playing or studying in school and not being exploited by their parents or other adults.

I know that any money I give will be turned over to their parents and any books I buy will just be returned to the same shop for a small commission on the obtained money. I've had to resort to ignoring these kids entirely. If I even say hello or look at them, they won't leave me alone.

There's one last thing I've been forgetting to mention. In both Varanasi and Bohdgaya, there are frequent power failures. Most places have back up generators, and right now I am typing from a computer hooked up to a car battery.