An unforgetable stay in Udaipur where we experienced Holi; both the pomp of the Royal Holika Dahan, at the palace, and the chaos and mayhem on the streets getting covered in coloured paint. This has been the highlight of our tour of India.
Jodphu, the blue city, was our next stop. We stayed in a restored havelli in the old town with a view of the fort, which we toured and also visited the collossal Umaid Bhawan Palace, he 6th biggest private residence ever built. Debbie went shopping!
A huge golden fort, havellis, haunted villages, camel safari and desert camping and a mausoleum. We packed a lot into our stay in Jaisalmer.
Bikaner is on the edge of the Thar Desert, less than 100Km from the border with Pakistan, and is far less visited than some other Rajasthan cities, with tourists seeking the desert-city experience usually opting for Jaisalmer instead. We are doing both as we have the luxury of time and Bikaner was a convenient mid-way stop between Delhi and Jaisalmer. There are 2 must-see attractions here; the Fort and the Rat Temple. We decided to give the latter a…
After almost 2 months in relatively relaxed Goa and Southern India, it was time to brave the North through the infamously chaotic Indian capital of Delhi. Delhi By Locals had been recommended by a couple we met in Goa – tours by young local Delhi residents, with 50% of profits going to the Learning by Locals NGO and many of the guides having been helped to develop their skills through the organisation. We opted for a 1 day private…
Nope, we still can’t pronounce it, but apparently it’s simply ‘Mahabs’ (former name was Mahabalipuram) to those in the know – a small seaside town, stone carving centre and UNESCO World Heritage site. A couple of hours North of Puducherry, on the way to Chennai Airport, and in Rough Guide to India’s 30 Places Not To Miss – it’d have been rude to have passed by without stopping. The scruffy town actually turned out to be far nicer than…
Our next destination was Puducherry (previously Pondicherry, fondly known as Pondy), the former capital of French India.
Pondy is as cluttered and chaotic as any Tamil Nadu town, but the compact centre is tangibly more Gallic. The bazaars give way to leafy boulevards , mansions and rows of houses whose shuttered windows, ornate balconies and colour-washed facades would not look out of place in Montpellier – even the Starbucks!
On our way to our next destination we visited the…
Thanjavur is not on most Indian tourist itineraries and we didn’t see very many Western faces there – but it’s featured in Rough Guide and Lonely Planet so is not that obscure. There are 2 main attractions – the breathtaking Brihadishwara Temple (signposted Thanjavur Big Temple), Tamil Nadu’s most awesome Chola monument, and the world’s finest Chola Bronze collection (even after the British Museum and various American museums, galleries & collectors have pilfered some).
“Gourmet dining” at The Bangala and visits to Chettinad mansions, but Debbie failed in her quest for diamonds.
Our first Indian train journey, a spectacular temple, Ghandi Museum and new glasses for Debbie, ready in under an hour.