It’s no secret that two of my pet hates are The Taj Mahal and the lack of imagination of much of the travel industry. Anything beyond the Golden Triangle seems to be beyond most people. However, whilst it is logical and does make sense, India is so much more. For the sake of this post,…
Discovering a different Jaisalmer
One can never fail but to be humbled by the hospitality of India’s rural population. Having “done” several monuments this morning in 38C, complaining bitterly about the heat, I wondered into this village. First I met a bunch of women on their daily walk to the well who invited me to go with them. Reluctantly,…
Shedding The Outer Goddess.
It’s not often I go on for the woe is me, me me me, inner peace and finding myself and all that mallarky but right now, facts need to be faced. I arrived back in India three years ago having kicked a three year illness in the ass. This background is not asking for sympathy,…
Varanasi Part 2 in which it got a whole lot worse, before it got great!
The writers conference which I had enjoyed immensely had come to an end. The only bit I had hated was the hotel, The Ramada, it was my second stay in a Ramada hotel, and I can assure you, it will be my last. However, in terms of the city, we had been shown the bits…
The Poop Survival Plan
The last 2 Christmases, I have been fortunate enough to spend at Devshree in Rajasthan. On one of these occasions we ventured down to the farm for a typical lunch cooked by the villages, the way and they cook for themselves. Okay, we had a fully set table under the trees and then cushioned charpois…
Vanghat – An Adventure, An Eco Lodge and almost the end of a friendship
When a lodge owner calls to tells you that something you are planning isn’t a very good idea, it would probably be a good idea to listen. But you see, two things were at play here, the first is what is known as cobbler’s shoes and the second, well, I am nothing if not stubborn….