Try and get a dawn boat trip on the Ganges, it's a special experience seeing the funeral pyres with pilgrims and residents doing their morning ablutions on it's banks.

Varanasi is a very bizarre place, especially for a Westerner. It is enlightening and scary at the same time. Go down the Ghats and watch the ceremonies, however, watch out for people coming up and starting to talk to you, they will talk to you about the ceremonies and history and then expect payment for this.

I have to say I had never seen a dead body until I went to Varanasi, I was amazed but the drama of it all. It is very bizarre to see the bodies burning on the side of the river and then children playing, women washing clothes, and dogs wandering all around the buring bodies.

Away from the Ghats, Varanasi train station is very busy, try to make sure you get your tickets in advance. There is loads of nice cafes in the back streets behind the Ghats as well.