I remember the first time I tried it. I had an audience, eight eager faces anticipating what my reaction would be. Years ago (okay, actually decades) when I was a ski rep, my team would buy me tequila, which I hated, purely for their own amusement, it would appear my tequila face was a sight…
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…
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…
MP & UP tourism going head to head?
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 a chance. Let’s face it where UP lacks in numbers of monuments, it more than makes up for in fame and fortune. It has THE…
Not the bloody Taj Mahal!
I am being controversial but honest, the Taj Mahal? It’s not all that. There you go, I have finally not only said it aloud, but put it in print and out there on the worldwideweb for all to see. I have had to visit it many times (forced by my career choice) but this ‘familiarity’…
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…
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…
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 a push, I could get lost in my own house, I certainly never turn the right way first time around on coming out of a…
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…
Memsahib’s Dad in India, Part 7, The Beauty of Kanha
The morning sun rises and the mists disperse, shoulders hunched against the cold begin to straighten and chins emerge from their muffle of scarves. Dust motes dance & tease in celebration, captured within the shafts of sunlight breaking the canopy of the trees, but will the emerging forest reveal it’s rich bounty? The afternoon safari…
An Excerpt from my first novel, Girl India.
‘AAG! Memsahib, Aag lagi hai! Aag, aag, aag!’ My peace was shattered. I was sitting on the balcony of the lodge with my afternoon cake and chai and the first Sunday Times I had seen in months, two weeks out of date but, never the less, it was a treat. It was a rare day…
When the cows come home, an alternative safari, Kanha National Park, India.
I do appreciate that when people come on a safari to India, they want to see tiger and yes, to see a tiger in the wild is a magnificent experience and one to be cherished. I used to have a few issues with this. A few years ago, in 2007 to be precise, I ran…
Top Five Safari Lodges in India
My list of top five lodges focuses on lodges which are either owner managed or managed by people who are not only keen wildlifers but also serious conservationists, follow eco tourism practices and have a passion for preserving India’s wildlife. They also, not coincidentally happen to be in my favourite parks. 1. Reni Pani Jungle Lodge,…