This is a travel video of a boat ride I took along the Ganges river in Varanasi, India. http://nomadicsamuel.com : Varanasi (Hindustani pronunciation: [ʋaːˈraːɳəsi] ( listen)), also commonly known as Benares or Banaras (Banāras [bəˈnaːrəs] ( listen)) and Kashi, Kāśī [ˈkaːʃi] ( listen)), is a city situated on the banks of the Ganges in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, 320 kilometres (199 mi) southeast of state capital Lucknow. It is regarded as a holy city by Hindus, Buddhists and Jains. It is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and the oldest in India.[3][4] The Kashi Naresh (Maharaja of Kashi) is the chief cultural patron of Varanasi and an essential part of all religious celebrations.[5] The culture of Varanasi is closely associated with the River Ganges and the river's religious importance. The city has been a cultural and religious centre in North India for several thousand years. The Benares Gharana form of the Indian classical music developed in Varanasi, and many prominent Indian philosophers, poets, writers, and musicians resided or reside in Varanasi. Gautama Buddha gave his first sermon at Sarnath located near Varanasi (Kashi).[6] People often refer to Varanasi as "the city of temples", "the holy city of India", "the religious capital of India", "the city of lights", "the city of learning", and "the oldest living city on earth.": http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Varanasi The Ganges ( /ˈɡændʒiːz/ gan-jeez) or Ganga ( Bengali: গঙ্গা Gônga, Sanskrit: गङ्गा, Hindi: गंगा, Gujarati: ગંગા, Kannada: ಗಂಗಾ, Tamil: கங்கை Gangai,Telugu: గంగ Ganga, Urdu: گنگا Ganga IPA: [ˈɡəŋɡaː] ( listen) ), is a trans-boundary river of India and Bangladesh. The 2,525 km (1,569 mi) river rises in the western Himalayas in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, and flows south and east through the Gangetic Plain of North India into Bangladesh, where it empties into the Bay of Bengal. It is the longest river of India and is the second greatest river in the world by water discharge.[4] The Ganges basin thus formed, is the most heavily populated river basin in the world, with over 400 million people and a population density of about 1,000 inhabitants per square mile (390 /km2).[5] The Ganges is the most sacred river to Hindus and is also a lifeline to millions of Indians who live along its course and depend on it for their daily needs.[6] It is worshiped as the goddess Ganga in Hinduism.[7] It has also been important historically: many former provincial or imperial capitals (such as Patliputra,[8] Kannauj,[8] Kara, Kashi, Allahabad, Murshidabad, Munger, Baharampur and Kolkata) have been located on its banks. The Ganges was ranked among the five most polluted rivers of the world in 2007,[9] with fecal coliform levels in the river near Varanasi more than one hundred times the official Indian government limits.[10] Pollution threatens not only humans, but also more than 140 fish species, 90 amphibian species and the endangered Ganges river dolphin.[9] The Ganga Action Plan, an environmental initiative to clean up the river, has been a major failure thus far,[11][12][13] due to corruption and lack of technical expertise,[14] lack of good environmental planning,[15] Indian traditions and beliefs,[16] and lack of support from religious authorities: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganges Proudly presented by: http://www.america4travelers.com , http://www.britain4travellers.com , http://www.europe4travellers.com & http://www.world4travelers.com