A special birthday in Rishikesh, North India

I spent a most memorable 35th birthday in a very special and stunning place in North India called Rishikesh. I hadn't even planned to visit here except that I'd met 2 American girls on the train that recommended a hotel on a cliff overlooking the Ganges river. It sounded great so I headed North.

Rishikesh is a beautiful town at the foot of the Himalayas and my room view looked down on a greenish blue Ganges river, white sand beaches, a suspension bridge (where 'holy' cows, horses and monkeys fight with humans for space to cross) and green hills behind the many towering ashrams and temples. I visited the ashram where the Beatles hung out with the Maharishi in the '60's (where they wrote many songs from their "White" album). The sounds I heard from my window included the wind ringing the temple bells, the flowing river and gorgeous sitar and tabla music.

You can take courses for everything: drumming, dance, meditation, yoga, ayurvedic healing, etc. There are babas, sadus, gurus and monks everywhere you look. At sunrise and sunset you can see people giving offerings (Puja) to their gods and bathing in the Ganges.

This is the type of place where I could live for a few months to soak up everything. You can't help but feel relaxed and at peace there.