Day Eleven: Elightenment and daisy chains...

RICKSHAW RUN 2008
Day Eleven: Friday 11th January 2008

Another free morning, to explore and become enlightened as we visit and sit under the tree where Buddha himself found enlightenment and founded Buddhisim as it is today. The site of thousands of monks all praying and meditating, coupled with the usual western looking odd balls was quite an awe-inspiring sight.
A town that boasts the most beggars ever to congregate in one place, we were fully enlightened and at peace and ready to move on.

Shortly out of town and heading North-East towards the border, we stop to watch a school sports day. As is the case in India when anything of slight interest occurs, crowds of locals all pushing and shoving surrounded the races, being kept back (rather forcefully with sticks) by the organisers. The whole thing was like a mosh pit at an Iron Maiden concert. What was only going to be a 10 minute stop off, turned into two hours as we got given lunch and had to stay to watch some terrible singing at some ropy "Cultural show" where we were asked to join the performers on stage and we were presented to the crowd and given a daisy chain of flowers.

We end the day god knows where. All I know is the carpet stinks in the room and if the waiter knocks on the door one more time my enlightenment and peacefulness will soon disappear.

Day Eleven: Bodhgaya to Barauni
Total Daily Distance: 226kms
Total so far: 3467kms
Total Distance to go: 1033kms