In a destination competition between MP and UP for me, without even having to think, the outright winner would be MP. And yet, I am one for giving the underdog…
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Not the bloody Taj Mahal!
I am being controversial but honest, I find the Taj Mahal dull. There you go, I have finally not only said it aloud, but put it in print and out…
If we cant visit India then she must come to us 2: 12 More Movies about this extraordinary country.
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
Snapshot, Dawn at Nagarkot, Nepal
It starts with a blanket of black, a darkness, a covering, the occasional twinkle of a star. As it lifts, hills and mountains, shapes and colours start to emerge, layer…
Community Homestays, Nepal
And now for something completely different. This was my stay in Pataudi, not only is it (not yet) famous for almost being a UNESCO site, Pataudi was the first destination…
Snapshot: Nepal welcomes me for the fourth time.
Day 01: Arrival NepalI opted to say in tonight and headed to the roof top bar. There are only two other people here, a couple, Instagram influencers. They are flouncing…
Driving Across India: Realising a life long dream.
The dream started when, living in Delhi, I decided to buy a car. An expat living in India, who’s been selling holidays from the days when these were the only…
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….
Delhi Belly, Truth or Myth?
I’ve just been following a thread on FB. One person asked how to avoid Delhi Belly and the long and short of the barrage of ensuing responses was that you…
Storytelling East vs West, A Cathartic Process or Escapism?
Sometime in 2015/6 I recently went to a reading by famous Indian play write, Girish Karnad who started his performance by saying something that in all my years, I didn’t…
Snapshot: Slowing it down for Christmas.
Most tourists dash around Rajasthan, ticking off it’s cities, and put up with the traffic and noise in order to marvel at its forts and palaces. But can one really…
Weather in India, Best Time to Travel and When to Avoid where.
India is vast with many different weather patterns and truly is a year round destination. The below is a quick guide to the best time to travel to which regions….
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…
An Interview With India’s Centre for Soft Power, Why Tourism Needs to Move Beyond The Taj Mahal.
India’s Tourism needs to move beyond the Taj Mahal Sudarshan Ramabadran March 25, 2019 An economic impact report (2018) by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has said that…
My take away from 20 years of hotel inspections.
So, here’s a question. I’ve been reviewing hotels now for over twenty years. During that time, I have stayed in a wide variety of hotels from budget brands to homestays…
People of India – Anand Sankar
Anand Sankar set up Tons Trails as a means of promoting off-beat travel in one of Uttarakhand’s most beautiful and undiscovered regions, offering tourism that is 100% locally run, socially responsible,…
Snapshot – Shiva, Snakes and Spirituality, Varanasi
So there we were, sitting on the ghats, on chairs (most pple were sitting on the floor) and in prime position for the arti ceremony thanks to our hosts at…
Beyond Delhi, India’s International Airports and where they lead to!
Most people consider Delhi to be the main entry and exit point to the wonderful country that is India and the splendours which abound therein. It therefore stands to reason…
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…
Golden and Rhubarb, the Triangles in my Life.
My life seems to be determined by triangles. I currently live on one vertex of what is probably the most famous triangle in the world, well, apart from the Bermuda…
Encounters With Locals – The Doctors Surgery
Encounters with locals continued….. This scene, the doctor’s surgery in a village in Rajasthan. The reason, being felled by a top to toe, and by that I mean from my…
People of India – Vaibhav Kala
Adventure courses through Vaibhav’s blood – he is integrally responsible for opening up remote Himalayan valleys to adventure tourism, and has helped open up Indian river running like none before…
Modern Day Memsahib: Escape to India Chapter 3
Chapter 3 We were immediately surrounded. Fingers tapped on windows, hands reached out trying to open the, fortunately, locked doors despite us still moving. I shrank back in my seat,…
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 2
Chapter 2 I heard the taxi door slam, bottles chinked, shrieks and grumbles were heard. At last! The gang had arrived. I allowed myself a wry smile; of course Allegra…
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…
Snapshot – Beyond Corbett, Getting off the Grid.
Corbett National Park for Diwali brought about a series of firsts: First safari of the season First elephants of the season (6) First snake of the season (1, rat)…
The People of India – Malini Gowrishankar
Malini Gowrishankar is the Founder / CEO of F5 Escapes, a 6+ years old travel company with a vision to redefine the way women travel in India. She started F5…
Hotel Review – Welcome to the Pleasuredome, Suryagarh, Jaisalmer
Suryagarh appealed to me on so many levels. Whilst I’d never quit luxury travel (who would?) for the last few years I’ve focused on more the off beat and experiential….
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…
Snapshot The Sunderbans
Scenes from the Sunderbans whose misty early mornings lend an ethereal quality to the start of your day’s safari. One knows this is a vast area of mangrove swamp lands…
The People of India – Deepa Krishnan
Deepa Krishnan is the power house behind Magic Tours, which offers experiential tours to suit all interests in 27 cities across India – be it culinary, textiles, art, music, shopping, culture…
People of India – Yasmin Kidwai
As part of my ongoing People of India Project, I would like to introduce, documentary film maker and fashionister, Yasmin Kidwai. We first met eight years ago when she was…
Getting To Grips With The Moghuls
You visit India, you get dragged around the monuments and are given a history lesson at each one. Its baffling and confusing and for me, well 21 years in and…
Solo Female Travel, the kindness of strangers and using common sense.
There’s been a lot written about this over recent years, I’ve read some articles, disregarded others and didn’t honestly pay that much attention to it. Foolishly perhaps, given the growth…
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 malarkey but right now, facts need to be faced. I…
The Moment It All Began – Tamil Nadu
Back in 1998 I made my first trip to India. I had been asked by three investors to set up a travel company for them, they had decided on south…
Snapshot: Tea, uses I’d never dreamt of!
Tea! I’ve visited tea estates in Assam and Darjeeling and Munnar. Strolled around factories, learned about the process, ctc and the differences in the production to make white, green, black,…
Why India?
It’s a fact that most people who think of travelling to India don’t know much about it. They only know what they have heard about – which I understand is…
Let me tell you a secret about how I travel
Pre social media, there were dinner party destinations. The places people travelled to seemingly just so that they could drop the name at the next dinner party. 15 years ago,…
Neeralaya, Kulu, Himachal Pradesh- Chocolate Box Travel
Neeralaya, Kullu, Manali, Himachal Pradesh. ‘’Can this this really be India?’’ I wonder as I sit on the terrace of the most charming stone and timber built cottage, gazing out…
Lost in the jungle
Anyone who knows me will know that I have no sense of direction what-so-ever, and as I work in the travel industry, the irony is not lost on me. At…
Jaipur & the Great Outdoors – yes it is an adventure destination.
People tend to think if they have been to Jaipur and seen ‘the sights’ then there is no point going back. I disagree, Jaipur is a destination that can be…
People of India – The Young Naturalists – Surya Ramachandran
Who you are (naturally!) Difficult one with many answers but i’d say…Naturally..i’d say i’m a storyteller, a sports lover and most importantly, a proud south Indian who seems to…