After a night train from Udaipur to Delhi on the 21st, I had another night train from Delhi to Gorakpur on the 22nd. The 22nd in Delhi was an organization day, booking my flights for the next destinations in November and December. And after letting all my stuff (incl. the camera) in the cloak room in the main station, I could finally go and enter in the main mosque in old Delhi, Jama Masjid. I tried indeed twice before, and could not go in without paying the camera fee of 300 Rs (which is more than the government ticket for UNESCO World Heritage places). I finished up my day enjoying the Mutton qorma and Badam Pasanda in Karim’s restaurant.
The last night train for this leg, from Delhi to Gorakphur, was more overcrowded than any seen so far: even in sleeper class, all areas were full of people so that it was a little tricky to go simply to the toilet…
Gorakphur is 3h bus drive from the Nepal border. Instead of going straight to Nepal, I spent my day in Kushinagar, the place where Buddha died. Plenty of different Buddhist temples, like Sarnath, a little less impressive though.
In late afternoon, I finally got the bus to Sunauli, on the border with Nepal. Arriving about 8pm, crossing the border by walk was a funny experience. First, it was festival time and every Indian and Nepali were crossing the border without any check (they don’t need visa), so that I could have enter also without any check. I actually asked the police officer telling me “you can go” about the visa and stamp. I went back to the immigration office in India to get my stamp “exit India”, a few hours before my visa expired, and then to the Nepali to get (and pay) my visa! The 2 guys in the Nepal office were very friendly, asking me where to go and giving me some tips.