Hello hello hello, Following the sucess of part one of this series (of 2) I couldn’t not post all the wonderful recommendations that were sent to me by all gang over on FB. So here we have it, part two of, “If we can’t visit India, she must come to us,’ 12 More movies about…
Now Available – Escape to India by Philippa J Kaye.
Its been a 6 year slog but finally, here it is, my first novel. Naturally it’s based in India, how could it not be? About the book: When Jo Johnson discovers that her latest beau is in fact married to someone else, it’s not surprising that an offer to manage a lodge in an Indian…
From Mundane to Magical in Three Simple Words…..
India, where one must always expect the unexpected. A fact I remind myself of daily but one which she reminds me of hourly. I was traveling recently in Gujarat and was told that our next stop would be a museum. I have experienced countless museums in India. Many, even in mainstream destinations, are pretty woeful,…
If We Can’t Visit India, She Must Come To Us -13 Films About This Extraordinary Country
The man at customs on my most recent trip to India (and the friendliest customs man I’ve ever met) asked me if I liked India, I replied in the affirmative and asked him why he should ask me. His reply, ‘This is your 39th visit since 2007.’ My reponse, ‘Well, I guess that answers your…
Widows of India for International Women’s Day 2020
May I take your photograph, I ask (always). They pat their hair and ask why? They protest that they are old and ask why someone so much younger wants to photograph an old lady. “Because you are beautiful,” is my reply. They respond in various ways, some surprised, some shy, some laugh. But I repeat…
Do not trust Konjoin Technologies and their CEO Nirmesh Rajyaguru.
Do not trust Konjoin Technologies and their CEO Nirmesh Rajyaguru. Konjoin Technologies was referred to me when I needed a unique software solution built in order to launch my business. The project, Hotels Under 100, was an online booking engine for a particular niche of hotels. I took Konjoin Technologies on to do the project…
Snapshots – When cooking on gas isn’t quite what you expect!
My company tagline is, Discovering India Differently, and this day, heading away from the main sights of Varanasi, led me to do just that. We headed out of Varanasi, in the words of the song (almost) “To see what we could see,” a soon found ourselves in the countryside where we came across a Gaushala…
Modern Day Memsahib: Escape to India Chapter 6
Chapter 6 ‘Memsahib, memsahib, chai aap ke liye.’ The voice gradually began to permeate my subconscious. ‘Memsahib, lunch adha ganta baad.’ I began to come to and groaned, I ached from head to foot. ‘Memsahib, chai aap ke liye.’ My aural senses, about the only ones that seemed not to hurt, homed in on the…
Snapshots, a motorbike temple!
In India, always expect the unexpected. The trip that I had planned was to be, or at least I was hoping would be a a truly wonderful, if incredibly unconventional trip through Rajasthan. So, following local tradition, I figured I’d start by offering a quick puja for the passage. Where better to do this than…
Modern Day Memsahib: Escape to India Chapter 4
Chapter 4 My reservations were growing by the minute, ‘Do you actually know where you are going?’ I asked the driver for the umpteenth time. ‘Yes, yes ma’am, no problem, this way, not long.’ Which would have sounded more convincing if this hadn’t been around the twentieth time that he had said it. For hours…
5 Most Popular Hiking Places In Jaipur — JaipurThruMyLens
5 Most popular trekking and hiking places in Jaipur for adventurous people. via 5 Most Popular Hiking Places In Jaipur — JaipurThruMyLens
Modern Day Memsahib: Escape to India Chapter 01
My hand paused half way through its ministrations of teeth brushing. I stood, open mouthed looking at him aghast through the reflection in the bathroom mirror. He hadn’t even paused in the rubbing down of his body. He had said it as casually as asking for a coffee and just carried on seemingly oblivious…
Thinking About Pushkar Camel Fair?
I made a plea about this last year. Please, please please, to all those of you traveling to the Pushkar Camel Fair or are making money out of it by sending tourists there, think about the real people behind the event, the Raika Camel Herders. Their situation is now critical, they receive no financial support…
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…
Nadi Shastra – an experience
Yet another reason why India is truly incredible.
Landing up in Landour
“A month long course!” They exclaimed, “but why go all the way to Landour, why not do it in Delhi?” Hmm, well let’s see shall we…….. In Delhi the temps are currently 39C, in Landour it’s 18C. In Delhi one is surrounded by buildings, here, the hills. In Delhi the air is of dubious quality,…
He is 80 and he survived his first trip to India – Dad’s trip, the dids’ and the did nots.
So dad leaves tonight after a long three weeks which have absolutely flown by. He is currently tucked up in bed with a cup of tea and the Far Pavillions, a book which it transpires, is also a three week journey. My aim was to showcase my world to him, my India, the place I…
Top Five things in Puri for under INR200.00 (or GBP2.50)
Five things in Puri for under GBP2.50. I often say, when referring to something cheap, or someone who wants something but doesn’t want to pay, ‘Oh, he wants that for GBP2.50.’ It’s just a figure I hit on for no particular reason but have banded it about now for several years. Living in Delhi, though…
Horn Please! Indian roads, journeys from heaven and journeys from hell.
I am not a nervous passenger by any stretch of the imagination. I can quite happily be chauffeured around on the worst of Indian roads, barely blinking at what most travellers to the country find, … Source: Horn Please! Indian roads, journeys from heaven and journeys from hell.
Memsahib’s Dad Visits India, aged 80 – Part 5.
It’s never too late! Travels around India with my octogenarian dad. Dungarpur was meant to be all for dad, the car collection here was the ‘must’ and the bar is truly any petrol head’s delight. But, from cars to kachories to a museum curation, quirks and the karma sutra, it turned out to be a…
Books and Art
There is a new India emerging. I noticed the change when I came back 20 months ago. There are now opportunities that didn’t exist 15 or even 10 years ago. For this reason, I love this time of year. It starts with the Jaipur Lit Fest, now in its 10th year. Invariably excellent speakers, interesting…
Delhi Diaries: She welcomes me home…..
Step off the plane and the aroma of Delhi hits you. A stroll along the now famously hideous airport carpet, luggage out in record time, skip through duty free, a taxi ride in a cab that should have… Source: Delhi Diaries: She welcomes me home…..
Memsahib’s Dad Visits India, aged 80 – Part 3
Jodhpur Part one: And some days it’s better to do nothing at all, in fact it’s something I always recommend for any one traveling around India, yes there is a lot to see, but it’s also quite overwhelming, no point in pushing oneself to the point of exhaustion. So, find somewhere off beat, grab a…
Delhi Diaries: Rules of the road – Delhi style
Well it’s taken six months after being reunited to finally get her back into road worthy condition but we made it! The Babe and I taking Delhi by storm. Of course my driving technique needs t… Source: Delhi Diaries: Rules of the road – Delhi style
The Remarkable Yet Unknown Species of India – The Slow Loris
Last month while researching for a primate tour in India I came across a unique primate – The Slow Loris. Not only are these one of 10 smallest primates in the world, they are also the only venomou… Source: The Remarkable Yet Unknown Species of India – The Slow Loris
The Remarkable Yet Unknown Species of India – The Ganges Shark — JungleSutra – Wildlife Journeys by Creative Travel
Many of us who know sharks largely know them from the various movies that have been made on them be it the “Jaws” series or “Deep Blue Sea”. A lot of us often feel the fear of coming across one of these predators of the oceans when we go snorkelling or swimming in the sea, […]…
Snapshots – Shopping in Delhi
Forget Trump, forget Brexit, forget the fact that Delhi govt purchased a snow plough, forget racism against cows – I went into a well known store in Khan Market looking for a present for my fairy godmother who likes all things “fabulous.” Spotted a fancy silver and white mug and thought it would be a…
The People of India Project: Darby Raju
A couple of nights ago, I went to meet a friend I hadn’t seen for three months, we had lots to catch up on, and quite a lot to celebrate. Our drink of choice was sparkling wine, Indian sparkling wine, pink and chilled and crisp, it hit the spot perfectly. Indian wines have been coming…
The Honey Badger – The Remarkable Yet Unknown Species of India
There are so many of us who are attracted to fierce animals and for lot of people there is no better wildlife high than “the chase & the hunt”. This article might interest at all those people w… Source: The Honey Badger – The Remarkable Yet Unknown Species of India
Haven’t we seen this somewhere before?
There are monuments in India which have been copied in other destinations but did you know that there are also copycat monuments actually in the same destinations as the originals? In my explorations over the last 12 months, I have found two examples of monuments which have been copied and one entire city! They are…
Villages, where the true heart of India lies.
One can never fail but to be humbled by the hospitality of India’s rural population. Having recently been in Jaisalmer, exploring and inventing new sightsseeing options, I had one morning, got up at 0600 to drag myself around several monuments in 38C, before the day truly heated up. Chuntering incessantly about the heat, huffing and puffing…
India, An Epicurean’s Delight – mostly.
‘’You can’t eat a mango politely, not if you really want to savour it.’’ This was one of my first lessons in Indian cuisine, from my host, a culinary guru as we sat slurping and sucking as mango juice ran down our arms and landed on the table. I had arrived in India for a…
It is the heart that is important – The Singinawa Experience
Loved this, evocative yet succinct…
Delhi Diaries, Encounters with Locals, part 2
It seems that it is impossible to walk down the street in India, or get through a single day without having some sort of wonderful if unexpected encounter. Here are some more random, sometimes funny, sometimes poignant encounters from my daily wanderings. Seriously, the Kohinoor Diamond? I was quite happily walking to work the other…
Delhi Diaries: Valentines Day, Indian Style
Not sure Lucknow or maybe India fully gets Valentines day. Here I am in a restaurant in the newest ”in” place in town. The decor is classic Indian style, tacky overkill with thousands of heart shaped balloons taped to walls, strapped to chairs and dangling from ceiling lights. Mind you, with those descriptions and what…
Delhi Diaries: The changing face of India, women drivers & pilots!
The longer I spend in Delhi, the more I realise just how quickly India is changing. Being in travel and therefore usually immersed in heritage and culture I spend most of my time here surrounded by the traditional but, five years away and a return to Delhi has assisted in emphasising the huge changes which…
Delhi Diaries: Rules of the road – Delhi style
Well it’s taken six months after being reunited to finally get her back into road worthy condition but we made it! The Babe and I taking Delhi by storm. Of course my driving technique needs to be refind to suit local conditions. 1. At a local T junction: Do not slow down on approach, stop,…
Delhi Diaries 7th September – The Old Fashioned Salon
This weekend I experienced two sides to Delhi that were at completely opposite ends of the spectrum. The first was a beauty parlour and the second was volunteering for a waste management company (literally collecting litter) at a ladies only marathon. Like I said, poles apart. As we have by now established, when it comes…
Travels in India, dress sense, east vs west
There really is nothing quite so elegant as an Indian lady in a sari. I don’t think any other national dress can even begin to compete and what is wonderful is that they are still widely worn throughout the country. The colours are so vibrant, reds, oranges, turquoise to name hardly any (there is no…
Delhi Diaries: The Value of a Perfectly Round Roti
This week, I went out discovering Delhi, as I do. One of my visits was to the Bangla Sahib Gurudwara, perhaps the most famous Gurudwara in India, outside of Amritsar. Here they also feed thousands of people every single day, and so after doing the usual rounds, I ventured into the kitchen which is run…
Delhi Diaries: 2nd August ’15
Life starts to settle down and routines start to form. I have time to venture further and I am intrigued to discover what changes have happened since I have been away, for sure, Delhi is still the same old crazy place, but it would appear that it is attempting a new level of sophistication –…
India and the art of bargaining…..
I love Om Puri. Actually, I hate that first sentence, it is so easy to say love and hate these days without really meaning it. How can I love him? I don’t even know him, but, I do love the characters he plays in films. I recently rewatched The 100 Foot Journey. I saw it…
Delhi Diaries: 5th July
Life back in India, some things change, some things stay the same. Delhi, as happens with any city, continues to evolve, when one is here all the time, it is harder to notice the changes. During my time away, the hideous rape case that shocked the world took place and, despite it being too late…
Delhi Diaries: 28 June 2015 When India works with you.
Twenty months ago, I wrote a couple of blog pieces about having moved back to Delhi, or so I thought, as in moved back to Delhi, not wrote the pieces, they are there for all to see. But you see, as I have said many times, India can be a cruel mistress, though in my…
Delhi Diaries: About Kalpana
“But you have to get a maid, you can’t survive without one!” This was the refrain I heard many times on moving to Delhi last time and one which I realised was very, very true. I was promptly found Flopsy by my landlady who was ultimately usurped by Kalpana – for that debacle,read https://memsahibinindia.wordpress.com/2013/11/15/dealing-with-house-staff-part-2-flips-flops-at-50-paces/ and that’s who…
Olfactory India. Can the character of a city be determined by its’ aroma?
OK, the title may cause some sniggers. ‘’OMG, India stinks!’’ declare all the people who have never been there, the same ones who are convinced that all you will be confronted with are an overwhelming wave of poverty and will be struck down imminently, never to recover, with Delhi Belly as soon as one foot…
Food in India, A Carnivores Delight?
One perception of India is that it is a mainly vegetarian country. This is true to a certain extent. Many people are pure vegetarian, some extend this to not including cheese or eggs – you should see the scramble for eggless cake recipes (no pun intended). Hindu’s don’t eat beef, Muslims don’t eat pork, and Jains…
Delhi Diaries: She welcomes me home…..
Step off the plane and the aroma of Delhi hits you. A stroll along the now famously hideous airport carpet, luggage out in record time, skip through duty free, a taxi ride in a cab that should have been scrapped 20 years ago, the 3 inevitable questions from the taxi driver, ”Your country madam, your…