Himalayas: fascinating, majestic, mighty. We are once again drawn to this impressive mountain world, this time to Kanchenjunga - with 8,586 meters the third highest mountain in the world. On an eight-day hike, we come within touching distance of it.

It had been planned for some time and finally happened in February: We are visiting Lokesh, one of Stephanie's colleagues, in his home village near the town of Vijayawada.

What followed were three eventful days that we will remember for a long time to come. But let's start from the beginning...

We have already written about the bomb attack at the beginning of March. It hit Bangalore in the truest sense of the word, but ultimately only briefly disrupted the pulse of the city. 

Heat, dust and, above all, a lack of water are what is permanently affecting people - and to an increasingly drastic extent. It is the worst drought in 30 - 40 years, say government representatives.

Bangalore moans and groans. It's March and two things have the city firmly in their grip: drought and insecurity. In this article we describe the insecurity caused by a bomb  going off.

The final part of the wedding begins at 6 pm, as the couple are not yet married. Only now comes the puja, the ceremony in which the two are married. The priest intones the ritual in very fast Sanskrit (to our ears it almost sounds like rapping).

The couple and their parents and siblings throw rice and perform other rituals. Also, the bride and groom exchange necklaces, which is then considered the actual marriage.

Afterwards, a few tears are shed: the bride and mother of the bride in particular cry, as this part of the ceremony marks the end of the wedding and the end of their time together. The bride now moves into the groom's family home / becomes part of his family.

What's next, we ask ourselves when we wake up on Sunday morning. First we have breakfast, then we take a short walk to the neighboring village. Selfies are inevitable, of course ;-).