The Yogi Lodge

Arrived in Varanasi at night. There are a lot of touts at the railway station, and they will never take you to the hotel you want to go to - only to hotels where they get paid a commission (by you). So we called up the Yogi Lodge - one of the oldest places in the old town. Since then a Yogi Guesthouse has cropped up, a Yogi Resthouse, The Real Yogi Lodge, the New Yogi Lodge etc. Just to confuse you, and to take you away from the Yogi Lodge. So we called up the Yogi Lodge to see if they can pick us up from the station. They said sure, wait at the tourist office and somebody will pick you up.

After ten minutes, somebody comes along and asked whether we just called. I was a little suspicious, so I asked him who we called. He said Yogi Lodge. I said lets go. On the parking lot he swore and told us about all these 'fucking' rickshaw drivers. In the rickshaw he explained to us the whole business of the different names of the Yogi Lodge, and how much they must fight to get people to still arrive at his Yogi Lodge. He said he goes to Manali often. Why? Because I love Marijuana. He asked whether we'd be interested in a river view, as he also runs the Ganga View Guesthouse, which has views. We were keen on it and after he established our budget he, Michael, said he could organize us a room there - his brother manages it. Sure why not. If we don't like it, he'll take us to the Yogi Lodge.

After we put our bags into the room - everybody was very busy around us, taking our bags, screwing in lightbulbs, ushering us to the rootop restaurant, and it was just strange that an hour before we had called to be taken to the Yogi Lodge, and now we were at the not so nice Ganga View. So I slipped out while Sarita ordered beer, to call the Yogi Lodge again, and they told me they don't know of anybody called Michael.

When I got back I taunted him a little, saying that actually we'd prefer to go to HIS Yogi Lodge. He argued strongly against it, but we eventually made it to the Yogi Lodge through narrow roads blocked by cows and bulls and dung with almost everybody trying to direct you into their shop or sell you stupid plastic toys.