Haridwar, India

The river is the Ganges, and the pilgrimage site is Haridwar. Here, the river is clean and inviting because it has just plunged through the last gap in the foothills of the Himalayas. Further downstream are other Hindu holy places that are being consumed by tourists as if they were commodities. Haridwar, on the other hand, is being consumed by pilgrims alone. [2011]