From a Portuguese Princess to India to the world’s most popular brew to somewhat unexpected forays of tourism. The journey of tea might not be quite what you expect! ‘Stick the kettle on,’ must be one of the most used sentences amongst the British population. We are renowned for our love of tea; the problems…
Discovering India Differently: Four Fabulous, Luxury Off Beat Boutique Hotels Part 01.
Ever since I first visited India in 1997, I’ve had a passion for what’s different, away from the mainstream destinations but places where there is the opportunity to discover the real India, away from the chaos and mayhem. Where you have time to peel back the layers of a destination, they are invariably hosted by…
Discovering Goa Differently
Discovering Goa Differently I’ve never been a beach person, truth is, I was once voted worse than a man to take shopping and worse than a child to take to the beach, that was 25 years ago, nothing has changed. It came as quite a surprise therefore that Goa was my choice of destination for…
A Tribute to the Dogs Who Love Us Warts and All
As Brits we are a nation of dog lovers, we are renowned for it. This has only increased throughout lockdown, I am sure that there are stats on this, but just from the numbers of people walking puppies that we see out daily these days, my guess is that a lot of people have become…
Top Ten Reasons to Visit Sri Lanka
Serendipity – the phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for. That’s the definition, but have you ever wondered where the word Serendipty came from? Probably not, but let me tell you anyway. It was inspired by one of the former names of Sri Lanka, Serendib, and that to me, is what Sri…
Did you know the Mulbery Bush nursery rhyme originated at Wakefield Prison?
As a child, my grandfather would walk me to the fields above his house and as we gazed down over Wakefield he would always point out three buildings, conspicuous by their architecture, these were the Cathedral, the town hall and the prison. They are the three landmarks of Wakefield that have always been familiar to…
Three hotels in Gujarat which aren’t quite what you’d expect.
Think of Gujarat and what comes to mind? The first thing every inbound agent will say is that you can’t drink, not strictly true but yes, it can be off-putting to those who enjoy a drink or two with dinner. But once that hurdle has been overcome, what are the words that spring to mind…
Sustainable Travel: An Interview with Shiva Dhakal Founder of Community Homestay Network Nepal.
A year ago today, I set off to Nepal on a consultancy project as part of the work we do with Indian Experiences. A few weeks earlier, I had been introduced to Shiva Dhakal, found of Royal Mountain Travel Nepal and Community Homestays Nepal, a true visionary who wants to change how travel to…
What do Sandal Castle, a nursery rhyme and Pontefract Cakes have in common?
Oh, the grand old Duke of York He had ten thousand men He marched them up to the top of the hill And he marched them down again And when they were up, they were up And when they were down, they were down And when they were only half-way up They were neither…
Calcutta, a destination I’ve never been able to write about.
There is a black hole in Calcutta, a historical fact which gave place, in part, to the reputation of this misunderstood city thankfully, unwittingly rebranded as the ‘City of Joy.’ Calcutta has created her own black hole in my mind she is indescribable. I visit time and again, determined to capture her soul, her essence,…
Rediscovering Yorkshire – The longest way round is the shortest way home.
Two things happened yesterday. Probably a lot more to be fair but two things to prompt this article, which is handy when you need daily content for a ridiculous writing challenge! The first was that I took dad out for a drive, he’s been getting cabin fever and, given that I’d been raving about the…
Walking With Vikings
Walking with Vikings Walking and words, two passions of mine. Last week I was out walking discovering, as many of us now have, my own back yard, finding walks and history and stories right on my doorstep that I previously never knew existed. Given the amount of rain and snow that we’ve had, as soon…
Writing Challenge Day 8/12 Have Bucket Lists Destroyed The Art of Travel?
Have Bucket Lists Destroyed the Art of Travel? Travel: To go from one place to another, typically over a distance of some length. Journey: Originally a literal unit of time and travel, has become a metaphor for the experience of living life with all its ups and downs. I recently read the Kashmir Shawl by Rosie Thomas and it reminded…
The Women of India – Julie Kagti
Julie reached out to Indian Experiences as a result of our social media. She told us that she was doing tours in Assam and we arranged to have a chat. I was intrigued enough to venture up to Assam to meet her (no hardship to be fair it was an area I had wanted…
Snapshots, Discovering India Differently, Kota, who knew?
The giant orb of a setting sun guided us down river, casting magical lights on the rippled water as, surrounded by the stark cliffs, we spotted nilgai, owls, vultures, storks and crocodiles. This was our spectacular introduction to Kota, Rajasthan, why had no one mentioned this to me before? In a world of over tourism,…
Writing Challenge Day5/28 – So what exactly is a micro-destination?
I saw a video clip a few weeks ago by NDTV that made me smile. It was all about micro destinations and how they are the future of travel. Now I understand that marketing constantly needs new spins but what made me really smile about this was that they were featuring what I call destination…
Beyond the Tiger – A comprehensive guide to India’s wildlife
India’s Wildlife Beyond the Tiger India is often overlooked by wildlife enthusiasts, many of whom seem to prefer heading off to Africa to see the Big 5, those who do venture to the sub-continent some in search of tiger, in a single minded obsession, and yet, India has so much more than our stiped king…
The Women of India – Bhavna Menon
Bhavna Menon graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Arts from Delhi and later, moved to Mumbai to pursue her post-graduate studies in Journalism. She is currently employed with Last Wilderness Foundation, an NGO working towards wildlife conservation, as a Programme Manager and has a particular affinity for leopards. Last Wilderness Foundation (LWF) an organisation that…
People of India – The Young Naturalists – Sunny Shah
I only met Sunny relatively recently, in September to be precise. I’d asked my mentor if he knew of any good naturalists in Gujarat and he recommended Sunny. As it turned out, he was wrong, Sunny isn’t a good naturalist, he is incredible. He has foresight & insight, knowledge & passion, intelligence & vision. I…
Vindaloo,Who Knew?
This is, or should I say was, a pork vindaloo. I kind of forgot to take the before picture. It was rather tasty. Now, the mere mention of a vindaloo in the UK gives connotations of toilet rolls being placed in fridges and lager louts at the end of the Westgate run, a pub crawl…
The Women of India Project – Niyati Kukadia
Niyati Kukadia is one third of the founding partners of Soar Excursions in Gujarat. I was delighted when I came across them on social media as so few people showcase this often ignored state for the truly incredible and diverse destination that it is. However, when I met Niyati, I very quickly realised that…
People of India Project – Chef Jatin Mallick
I first met Jatin by chance, in a bar with a mutual friend of his who was from Oberoi. I was then persuaded to visit Tres and have been a fan ever since. Not only was the food great, but it is one of the few restaurants in Delhi which still believes in the art…
People of India Project – Eric D’Cunha
Eric majored in botany and zoology from Mysore University and has a long-standing association with the Mangalore Wildlife Trust and the Bombay Natural History Society. He took up the job of a Senior Naturalist with Indian Adventures at Kanha in 1986 and became the resort manager in 1987. Ever since, he has lived in Central…
Snapshots – A Weavers Village in Guwahati
A village home in rural Guwahati, we were there predominantly to see the handlooms still being used and how they are being kept relevant in today’s market, which is dominated with machine made items. There are around 120 home looms still operating in this region. But what struck me, along with the cleanliness of these…
The People of India Project – Deeya Bajaj
It’s time for this week’s People of India Project and ladies and gentlemen, are you ready for this? At 14, she was the youngest member of a sea kayaking expedition along the west coast of Greenland. At 17, she became the youngest in the world to have undertaken the Trans Greenland Skiing Expedition which she…
The People of India Project – Thomas Ramapuram
I think it was way back when, sometime in 2002 that I decided that the usual drag in Kerala was beginning to suffer from overtourism and I decided to venture north to see what lay beyond, I had to travel in August and it was wet! A couple of weeks in and a bedraggled and…
The People of India Project -Roopesh Rai
People who dare to be different always capture my attention and Roopesh Rai, founder of Green People, The Goat Village & Bakri Chaap is certainly no exception. As he says, in his own words, ‘There’s always an ‘idea’ in ‘idealism’ and I wear my idealism on my sleeve without fear or apology. Deeply affected by…
World Tourism Day 2020
What’s in a smile? I’ve been writing content for a new travel website for a client, somewhat optimistic perhaps, but he’s determined to be prepared. In doing so, I was flicking through past content for other websites I’ve written seeking inspiration; “Infectious smiles,” was a phrase I came across and smiled to myself, and thought,…
The People of India Project – Rajeev Samant
In 1996, Rajeev Samant had an epiphany when he realized that Nashik in Maharashtra had the perfect climate for growing wine grapes. In 1999, he established Sula Vineyards, Nashik’s first winery, with help from noted Californian winemaker Kerry Damskey. This historic move transformed Nashik into India’s Wine Capital, and today, Sula Vineyards is globally…
Hotel Review – Woods at Sasan, Gir, Gujarat
For once I had no expectations. I was traveling around Gujarat, making it up as I went, when the invite came to stay at Woods at Sasan. I readily accepted, had no wifi to see where I was going and simply turned up. If anything, given that this was Sasan Gir, home of the Asiatic…
The People of India Project – Kartick Satyanarayan
Kartick Satyanarayan is a well-known wildlife conservationist, who has been tirelessly involved in wildlife conservation, animal welfare and nature protection for over twenty five years. He is the Co-Founder and CEO of Wildlife SOS and heads the Wildlife SOS anti- poaching unit, Forest Watch. Kartick manages Wildlife SOS as CEO and oversees 10 wildlife rescue…
People of India Project – Shubham Thakur
I first met Shubham when he was working at Wasabi by Morimoto at the Taj Mahal Hotel in Delhi. I had the privilege to be dining with Marryam H Reshii who was, shall we say, ‘researching,’ for the Times of India Food Awards. Needless to say, all those elements combined to ensure that we had…
The People of India Project – George Dominic
If you need someone to blame, then it has to be George Dominic. He was the very first person I met to do with India. It was at a trade event in London back in 1997 or 8. We were in the process of setting up Partnership Travel, operating under Colours of India and had…
Encounters With Locals – In a Sacred Grove in Meghalaya
Meghalaya has sacred groves, small pockets of protected forest, hundreds of years old which are owned and protected by individual communities. They believe that they are the abode of deities and to enter with bad intentions or to remove anything from these groves will result in, at the very least, bad karma. Needless to…
The Women of India: Anu Dhillon Singh.
Conservationist, environment scientist, amateur historian and safari lodge owner (Mela Kothi Chambal Safari Lodge to be specific) , Anu has been on gap-year mode for over two decades, it’s probably why we get on so well! Happiest when clambering through undergrowth & discovering crumbling ruins, she quite fancies herself Indiana Jones, and why not? Who…
Snapshots: Morning Encounters at Chambal Safari Lodge
Woke to the sounds of the forest waking up and decided on an early morning walk instead of floundering in bed. I emerged from my room only to come face to startled face with a herd of nilgai. We each stood stock still and stared until they vanished back into the trees. Not two minutes…
People of India Project – Varun Narain Mathur
I first met Varun many years ago when he, way ahead of the game, had set up a company to promote extraordinary guides of India, true experts who believed in showcasing the real India along side their speciaist fields. Then, by some quirk of fate, I ended up working along side him for a large…
Desperately seeking satisfaction, could Gujarat deliver?
A few months ago I developed a mild obsession, I don’t know where it came from, it was certainly out of the blue, but it wouldn’t go away, it just kept niggling away at me. Then, one day, I received an invite. Do you believe in synchronicity? The bestower of the invite, without me prompting,…
Women of India – Anamika Singh
I first heard of Anamika when a dear friend Marryam Reshii (also featured in this series) messaged to tell me I simply must meet this genius of tea. She had just been on her tea course in Dharamshala and was incredibly impressed. Knowing how hard that is to do, I immediately followed up. I’d been…
The Murder and the Lion – Wildlife Tales from Gujarat
The collective noun for crows is a murder and we had heard there was a murder. Now anyone who has watched any crime drama wants to get involved right? I needed to see what had attracted this murder, could it in fact be a murder? Oh how that plot just thickened! We’d had a tip…
Online Dating During Covid – Part 01
Several years ago, sixteen to be precise, I was encouraged to start internet dating, by my chiropracter of all people. Baffled as to why I was still single at the grand old age of 34, he was determined to heal my broken heart as well as my self inflicted, broken body. I turned up one…
Women of India – Puneetinder Kaur Sidhu
“Author, travel writer, food critic and columnist, Puneetinder Kaur Sidhu has lived and worked by one motto for two decades: Travel. Eat. Write. Repeat. She sees no reason to change that. Not even with her spectacles on.” Who you are (naturally!) A free spirit What inspired you to create/join your business? Travel writing was…
My Top Five Books Tiger Centric Books – A great and diverse small collection for International Tiger Day 2020
It’s International Tiger Day, social media will be flooded with images of this truly magnificent animal, hopefully also praise for the forest guards who spend their lives protecting them, the conservation groups who also do their utmost to raise awareness to protect this endangered species, and the lodge owners who provide wonderful accommodation for you…
People of India – Col Manoj Keshwar (Mike)
Col Manoj Keshwar (Mike) proudly served Indian Army, with distinction for 20 years. He is an IIM Lucknow Alumni, an entrepreneur and a TEDx speaker. He left the Army in 2011, in order to pursue a passion of his life, road tripping around the world. A passionate world motorcycle explorer, he has ridden in over 40…
People of India Project: Mickey Desai
I’d been in touch with Mickey for years and kept promising to visit his lodge in Gujarat but something always seemed to get in the way of my plans. However, it was time to make a concerted effort, he promised me wolves, it was my achiles heel. The opportunity to stay at a wonderful lodge…
Snapshots: Hanging with the Girls at Tia Village, the Impressions We Leave behind
I’d spent some time with a couple of ladies who were sitting by the prayer wheel in Tia Village Ladakh. Initially they didn’t want her photo taking and that was fine. I chatted with them via my guide to learn a bit more about their lives. The lady in black had walked to the village…
Snapshots – A Different Jaisalmer
One can never fail but to be humbled by the hospitality of India’s rural population. I was out on one of my missions, to discover what else could be done in Jaisalmer, I had decided to map out and sample a cycle tour of its outlying monuments ending with a picnic which I thought could…
Snapshots: A stay at Walterre and Discoveries around Dehradun
Woken by the sound of rain thundering down on the tin roof of the charming English meets India-style, country cottage. Ventured onto the terrace where we sat in comfort, under the shelter and sipped on g&ts whilst witnessing the angry skies thunder around us and the brilliance of the lightening showcasing the surrounding hills, standing…