01 May 2024
We engaged Sri Vimal Pathak during our recent three-day trip to Varanasi. He made our trip memorable in many ways. Firstly he made a great plan covering the Ganga Arati, temple visits (including the main Kashi Vishwanath. Annapurna and Vishalakshi temples as also the Sankatmochan Hanuman temple), boat ride (from Namo ghat to Assi ghat and back), heritage walk in the bylanes around the main temple, and visits to Sarnath and the BHU campus. He even organised a visit to a unit weaving the famous Benarsi silk sarees. Secondly, he ensured comfort for seniors like us by planning activities in the morning and evening giving adequate time during the day for rest in the hot season, He also ensured that we were picked and dropped from/to the airport and taken around the city in a comfortable SUV. Thirdly, and most importantly, he provided a wonderful narration regarding every place we visited or even passed in transit. His knowledge of the city and its history is amazing. One could listen to him endlessly. He also has a good knowledge of hindu and buddhist thought and shared interesting insights, especially in Sarnath. Being the president of the city guides association ensures that he has a good network and many things which otherwise take a lot of time and effort become simple for tourists. Finally, he was extremely courteous and accommodating. Seeing our interest in books he took us to a fascinating, sprawling, two-storied book shop tucked away out of sight from the main road, housing a huge collection of old and rare books. All in all we had a great trip, thanks to him.