Monsoon Meandering

Finale in Paradise

Kev — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 18:43:51 +0000

Arriving in Goa and hastily rearranging the train back to Mumbai meant that our holiday effectively ended in Goa, rather than the planned day in Mumbai. It also meant that we had an extra day in Goa to put to good use. Even if the highly-acclaimed author William Dalrymple states that the true definition of […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Skylark Hotel, Colva, Goa

Kev — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 05:03:59 +0000

After rejecting the awful Silver Sands hotel after just a couple of seconds I did the rounds of some other hotels that I’d read about in the various guides. First it was off to Soul Vacation, an upmarket place where they only had one room big enough, a suite at Rs4000 a night, that’s £58 […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Kentuckee Fried Vindaloo

Kev — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 04:59:10 +0000

Vindaloo orginates from Goa and so there’s was no way I was going to miss trying it whilst here. When last in Goa I bottled it, opting for the lesser spicy dishes as I’d not even had Vindaloo in England, but now I can handle hotter dishes. I’d almost ordered it at the Leda restaurant […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

The Going’s Good In Goa

Kev — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 04:57:56 +0000

Goa was nothing other than a convenient stopping place between Hampi and Mumbai and I wasn’t really looking forward to coming here, that’s why we were only due to stay for 2 nights which gave us only one full day. As we were due to only stay for such a short time we decided to […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Our Train To Goa

Kev — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 04:55:06 +0000

Leaving Hospet and Hampi quite early in the morning on the train we’d come here on from Hyderabad, we continued on to our train’s final destination, Goa, although we got off one stop early at Madgaon, or Margao as the town’s also known as – this double name thing doesn’t half make travel confusing at […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Stay In Hospet Or Stay In Hampi?

Kev — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 04:51:14 +0000

It’s a question anyone making a visit needs to find an answer to: would it be better to stay in Hospet or stay in Hampi? My solution was simple: do both. We were arriving on Independence Day and I didn’t fancy trying to find a hotel in Hampi just in case it was really busy […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Up To Their Arms In Henna

Kev — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 08:16:13 +0000

Yesterday morning both Emilia and Amy had henna applied to their arms, a process which took less than an hour for all four arms. Once applied Henna dries within an hour and can then be washed off, leaving the same pattern on the skin, which should hopefully last for a week or two. Here’s some […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

The Pursuit of Hampi-ness

Kev — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 07:53:33 +0000

Yesterday we went on a tour of some of the 500 temples, palaces and buildings in Hampi, most of which are between 500 and 800 years old. We hired a rickshaw driver from the area who calls himself Patrick just to distinguish himself from the rest of the drivers. Most of the places here in […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Emilia – Video of Mango Tree Restaurant, Hampi

Emilia — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 07:21:53 +0000

Didn’t get time to upload this short video in my previous post: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYtgqw8IHY4

Amy: Lakshmi the Elephant Having A Wash

Amy — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 06:41:29 +0000

This morning we had a great experience: we went to the bathing ghats to watch Lakshmi the Elephant from the nearby temple have a wash and a good scrub. At 7am I got woken up by the sound of Daddy’s voice, he was saying to get clothes on quickly so we could go and watch […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Emilia: Mango Tree Restaurant, Hampi

Emilia — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 05:44:12 +0000

Today we visited the most talked about restaurant in the whole of Hampi, which to be fair doesn’t have many restaurants. We had no idea exactly where it was but Dad knew roughly the direction, so we just wandered off trying to see if we could find it. Walking along the riverside we noticed a […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Lakshmi Heritage Tourist Home, Hampi

Kev — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 05:38:57 +0000

In some ways I didn’t want to stay at this place, a place my friends Madhu and Savita – of 10yearitch.com, but you know that, I’ve said that once or twice before right? – had recommended. I wanted to be responsible for finding somewhere for myself. Arriving in Hampi Bazaar went went here first, to […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

The Road To Hampi

Kev — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 05:36:28 +0000

Visiting Hampi had been one of the things I’d most been looking forward to on this trip although I’d originally only planned to spend two nights in this area. How grateful I am to a lot of my IndiaMike friends who told me I was mad; that they’d spent four days here and it wasn’t […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Amy: Mirinda

Amy — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 05:30:50 +0000

Two years, when I last visited India, I discovered a drink, but it wasn’t just any drink, it was MIRINDA. Mirinda is a fizzy drink, similar to Orange Fanta or Tango, but much tastier. During that trip we travelled a lot by car and often zoomed past large adverts on the side of the road […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Feeling The Heat In Hyderabad

Kev — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 13:45:17 +0000

After checking out of the Hotel Grand Plaza we left our bags in their cloakroom and went exploring a little bit more of Hyderabad. Heading off in the direction of Big Bazaar(/Bizarre ) we decided to have a spot of lunch and went into the family restaurant by the entrance. Jane fancied a grilled sandwich […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Hotel Grand Plaza, Hyderabad

Kev — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 07:06:42 +0000

The Hotel Grand Plaza in Hyderabad sits opposite the public gardens to the north of Nampally railway station in Hyderabad and a short walk away from the shopping area of Abids Circle and its collection of shoe, sari and kurta shops, not forgetting the bizarre shopping experience that is Big Bazaar. Here’s a link to […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Indian Hospitality – Part III

Kev — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 04:21:44 +0000

If I had to answer a question on what’s been the best part of the trip so far then I’d have to say that spending time with people I’ve known online for a while, met through friends of theirs or the residents of the homestay would have to top the list. These are pretty strong […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Bhagwat Of Mansi Tours and Travels, Aurangabad

Kev — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 09:45:54 +0000

Although we’re doing this trip by ourselves, as opposed to using a travel company, we decided that we had the need to get a driver whilst in Aurangabad. I got the number of a driver, Bhagwat, from my friends Madhu and Savita (10YearItch.com) who had used his services during their time in and around Aurangabad. […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Ellora Caves

Kev — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 09:22:58 +0000

The caves near Aurangabad (Ajanta and Ellora) have been on the top of Jane’s ToDo list for some time. She could almost have crossed Ellora off the list 22 years ago when she visited Ellora whilst touring India with a friend. But in Aurangabad last time her friend fractured her collar bone and couldn’t visit […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Daulatabad Fort

Kev — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 07:05:03 +0000

I felt pretty stupid when I arrived at Daulatabad Fort as I’d see many pictures of it before and thought that the whole fort sat at the top of the hill, yet only about one fifth of it sits on the hill, the rest, the majority is thankfully at ground level. Arched entrances to small […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Emilia: Having A Flume-ing Great Time

Emilia — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 06:43:51 +0000

On our second day in Aurangabad we visited the Bibi-ka-Maqbara tomb and then after that, even though I nagged him for twenty minutes Daddy wouldn’t tell me where we were going next. Mummy said we were going to another silk/cotton shop and didn’t let on where we were really going. We drove out from old […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Bibi-ka-Maqbara, The Taj Mahal’s Daughter-in-Law

Kev — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 04:19:29 +0000

Aurangabad was named after Aurangzeb, the son of Shah Jahan who built the Taj Mahal in memory of his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. In the north of the city sits the tomb of Aurangzeb’s wife, Rabia-ul-Durrani. Constructed between 1651 and 1661 my book says “it is a poor imitation” and it isn’t wrong but if you […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Amy: Pimp My Rickshaw

Amy — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 18:09:04 +0000

Could this be the funkiest way to travel? On the way to the caves at Ajanta we stopped to get a drink and an autorickshaw pulled up at the same cafe, however it wasn’t just any rickshaw, it had been pimped. I wonder if India has a version of America’s Pimp My Ride programme with […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Getting All Dressed Up At The ‘Pick Up’ Shop

Kev — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 15:04:29 +0000

The traditional clothing for ladies over here in India is either a Sari or a Salwar Kameez, the latter being a long blouse without buttons (the kameez) worn over a pair of leggings along with a dupatta (scarf). Sarees look beautiful but aren’t so practical in the UK and look out of place on a […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Ajanta’s Amazing Caves

Kev — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 02:43:14 +0000

We’d been looking to forward to visiting Ajanta, a set of caves dating back many centuries, for some time. Jane especially wanted to come here as she never quite made it here when she visited Aurangabad 22 years ago. The caves are located in a horseshoe gorge and appears like an ideal place for the […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Photos: Orchha’s Sheesh Mahal

Kev — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 01:54:02 +0000

Orchha is a gem of a place for anyone who loves historical buildings, especially if you prefer them looking authentic, pre-restoration. Its Sheesh Mahal is a large palace to the north of the town that has commanding views over the lush, green surrounding countryside. The upper domes of the palace are home to vultures that […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Video: Quiet, Colourful Orchha Market

Kev — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 01:08:21 +0000

Orchha market was a lot more smaller than most other markets we’ve been too but that’s no surprise as this town is home to only a few thousand. It’s the first quiet market I’ve ever come across which made it a lovely experience. Amy wanted to buy some henna-style printing blocks and some coloured powder […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Amy: Colourful Trucks

Amy — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 03:45:57 +0000

Vivid colourful trucks are everywhere in India. Unlike in England, where trucks belong to a company like Tesco or Sainsbury, trucks in India are often owned by individuals. Therefore English trucks are only decorated with the company’s logo and colours, whereas Indian trucks are made unique by the owner or driver. As you can see […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Forgive Me Father, I Have Sinned…

Kev — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 16:49:07 +0000

…I’m travelling the land that created Britain’s favourite food and (for the second time) I’ve eaten at Domino’s Pizza. Okay, okay, I’m sorry. But in my defence I did have a Lamb Dupiaza pizza, so surely I’ve not been too bad!

Madhya Pradesh Tourist Dept Hotels

Kev — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 14:44:37 +0000

We’ve stayed in a couple of Madhya Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation’s hotels in our time in the state. We had very nice experiences of both so I’d thought I’d put up a little info about them. It seems that MPTDC sets a stand tariff for their hotels and a standard A/C double room is Rs1990 […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Surviving Our Longest Train Journey

Kev — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 16:43:54 +0000

Last night’s train journey, at 15 hours and 600 miles, was the longest one in our plan and if we didn’t catch it we’d have a problem on our hands, so being cautious I’d booked a backup train. To minimise cancellation costs I needed to cancel the backup train before we caught the planned one. […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Amy: Datia Palace’s Wonderfully Carved Screens

Amy — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 10:30:02 +0000

Emilia has already blogged about our visits to Sonagiri and Datia when we were travelling from Gwalior to Orchha. I’ve just looked through the photos I took there and realised how much I liked the different carved screens that were in the palace. Every screen seemed to be unique although maybe they weren’t as […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Video: Here Comes The Monsoon

Kev — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 12:28:17 +0000

Well it was inevitable, the monsoon would get us eventually, although as we were travelling by car from Gwalior to Orchha it didn’t affect us much, just slowed the journey right down and it was slow enough to start with. We’ve had thunder and lightning pretty much every day, twice a day at least whilst […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Homestay videos: Breakfast and Kids Playing

Kev — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 11:38:50 +0000

Here’s a couple of short videos from our stay at the homestay in Orchha. scroll down… This first one is the breakfast served at Malti’s house: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pplpDsSP6ws This second one is some footage of the kids playing and having fun in Ganj, the little village near Orchha where all […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Homestays, A Very Different Side To Life

Kev — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 16:11:45 +0000

The room the owners of my homestay live in is no bigger than the room Emilia and I are occupying, yet we’ve only got a couple of rucksacks filling the space, although in typical Winchcombe fashion everything’s scattered to fill the void well. We’ve got beds, we’ve got mosquito nets, we’ve got electrical sockets, a […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Wonderful First Meal At “My” Homestay

Kev — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 15:55:36 +0000

In a corner of the room, right next to the doorway, sat Malti, the wife of the family that Emilia and I were staying with. She was stirring some steaming potato curry in a pot which was resting over a fire powered by a single main log. The log didn’t fully fit […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Staying With The Locals In Orchha

Kev — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 15:46:04 +0000

Perhaps the most intrepid part of our trip – apart from travelling on trains for 2500 miles in the worst season possible – was our planned stay with two local families in the sleepy riverside town of Orchha. The idea for a homestay was sewn early on, when the original plan was to go to […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Emilia: Anxiously Aiming For Orchha

Emilia — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 11:27:35 +0000

Today we were picked in Gwalior by a young taxi driver named Amir sent by the owners of the homestay organisation, Friends Of Orchha. A homestay is where you stay with a local family, often using a spare room of theirs or one they build purposely. Daddy found this place on the Internet and found […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Off to Gwalior

Kev — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 11:22:44 +0000

Delhi disappears into the distance along the train tracks as we head off on our first sleeping class train – the previous two have been day time Shatabdi trains – to Gwalior, a city which certainly isn’t on the standard tourist path but could easily be if it promoted itself a little more. It’s got […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Gurinder Singh Johal, Our Guide in Amritsar

Kev — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 11:15:28 +0000

It was RebeccaM from IndiaMike who indirectly – via one of her posts – first put me onto Gurinder’s tour guide services and I’m glad she did. To be fair I’ve not used many guides before but it’s simply hard to believe you could find someone more knowledgeable, so easy to get along with and […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Amritsar’s Golden Temple

Kev — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 05:26:25 +0000

This place should need little introduction, I’ll assume everyone has heard of this place but broadly it is one of the key holy places for the Sikh religion and is a centre for devotion in the same way as Mecca is to Islam, Jerusalem is to Christianity and St Mary’s is to football. So many […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Kesar da Dhaba Restaurant, Amritsar

Kev — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 05:18:43 +0000

Kesar da Dhaba is a low-key restaurant and a hidden gem in the dark, narrow backstreets of old Amritsar town. I don’t know the true meaning of ‘dhaba’ but in my view they seem to be places that are for the locals, have a fast turn around of food and generally offer food the way […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Wagah Border – The Video

Amy — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 05:11:18 +0000

In the last post I described the ceremony and showed you some pictures but this video is worth watching just to see how bizarre it all really was Scroll down to watch the video Here’s a video of the ceremony: Wagah : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WP6VCYP9Iqg

India – Pakistan Border Closing Ceremony

Amy — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 05:06:47 +0000

Each night when the border between India and Pakistan closes there’s a really fun, light-hearted but bizarre ceremony which draws a huge crowd, especially from the Indian side. The border ceremony is held at a place called Wagah so the taxiwallahs in Amritsar keep saying “Wagah border Sir?” as that’s how it’s better known as. […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Our “Golden” Wedding Anniversary

Kev — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 05:01:13 +0000

Waking up early after a great night out we had little time to celebrate the start of our 17th wedding anniversary as our train for Amritsar was scheduled to leave at 7:20 a.m.. At that time in the morning any train station that has 16 platforms could seem intimidating but other than the station guard […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Indian Hospitality Is Ace – Part II

Kev — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 16:55:48 +0000

On Sunday having had a wonderful lunch with Madhu we had loosely planned to meet another friend again with the intention of taking him, or his family too, out to dinner. The loose plans looked like collapsing due to my lack of Internet connectivity and the problems with my mobile but we sorted out a […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Indian Hospitality Is Ace – Part I

Kev — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 16:51:17 +0000

The Delhi part of our trip was always about meeting friends I’d made through IndiaMike.com or Facebook or both. On Saturday night it was our Food Enthusiasts of Delhi evening with Shashank, Sunday morning should have been about Yogesh and lunchtime was all about Madhu. I “met” Madhu through IndiaMike and his own blog 10YearItch.com, […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

If You Fail To Plan…

Kev — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 16:30:08 +0000

…then prepare to fail and Fail with a capital F.* Oh, and prepare to walk a long way in the wrong direction. On Saturday night I got little opportunity to talk to Yogesh due to the seating arrangements but he invited me to join him on one of the photo-walks he does, this time visiting […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

The Day We All Got F.E.D.

Kev — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 16:23:30 +0000

Last night we became temporary members of the Food Enthusiasts of Delhi, or FED for short. The FEDs are organised by a guy named Shashank, whom I’ve got to know on the Internet – yeah, yeah, I know what you’re thinking, it sounds dodgy! – over the last year or two. As the name suggests […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Karim’s Restaurant: The Video

Emilia — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 11:42:14 +0000

In the previous post about Karim’s there were lots of photos but there’s also a video of ours you can watch. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKqOlthRO2w

Karim’s Restaurant: A Meat Lovers’ Paradise, Also for Veggies

Emilia — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 11:40:34 +0000

On Friday night we visited Karim’s Hotel for our first dinner of the holiday. Although it’s called Karim’s Hotel you can’t actually sleep here – unless you’re a kebab! Karim’s is down a small alleyway and most tourists would get lost trying to find it as there is no sign or anything. The only giveaway […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Amy: I Love Autorickshaws

Amy — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 06:08:57 +0000

I love autorickshaws because they’re fun, cute and we don’t have them in England. An autorickshaw is a doorless small yellow and green car with three wheels. It has a very small engine, maybe one out of a motorcycle. Sitting in an autorickshaw is difficult for us all because they’re not really big enough for […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

The Red Fort in Delhi – A Mughal Marvel

Kev — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 06:02:09 +0000

Our first outing was to Delhi’s spacious Red Fort, a huge sandstone fort east of the area known as Old Delhi. We’re staying at the Ginger Hotel which is right next to New Delhi railway station so it’s easy finding an autorickshaw driver, even if it’s not that easy striking a deal, due to their […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Delhi Heat Drives Everyone Nuts

Kev — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 06:59:23 +0000

So maybe the plan has worked: I called this blog ‘Monsoon Meandering’ and so far there’s no sign of the monsoon…actually hold that thought as I’ve just looked out of the window and it’s raining, lots. We thoroughly expected to get soaked everytime we went sight-seeing due to torrents of rain falling from the sky, […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

All Checked In And Raring To Go

Kev — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 13:04:45 +0000

With the countdown clock clicking beyond the ’1 day left’ point it was time for me to get online and check ourselves in. A simple task designed to speed up the time we need to spend at the airport tomorrow morning, meaning all that is left to do is drop off the bags and wait […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Preparing the Diabetes Travel Kit

Kev — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 17:20:55 +0000

Most of the planning and preparation for this trip has been going really well but we still had one area of concern: the diabetes medical kit. Today we decided to sort that one out so we could relax a little more. As a little background, after the last trip where we used very, very little […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Bad Karma – The Anti-Guide to Backpacking in India

Kev — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 18:00:57 +0000

Let just start by saying that this is flipping hilarious. I wasn’t sure at first but after a few episodes it had me in stitches of laughter. Bad Karma is a series of circa 10 minute videos created by Monkeetime and hosted on YouTube and declares itself as the anti-guide to backpacking in India, or […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

I’ve Always Wanted to Buy Pills on the Internet

Kev — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 20:21:28 +0000

Well actually, I haven’t. In fact, just the idea of it sounds scary after receiving so many spam emails over the years. The last post talked about our medication options for Malaria and once I decided on which one we’d go for it was time to get hold of some. Why not wait to […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Preventing Malaria: My “Price of Paranoia”

Kev — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:25:59 +0000

Whilst most precautionary medicines required for far-flung foreign travel are inoculations unfortunately for prevention of Malaria you still have to take oral medicines. There’s a few questions you need to get answers when researching Malaria: - Does Malaria exist where I’m going? - Is there enough risk to require tablets? - Am I likely to suffer side effects? […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

(Hopefully) The Final Route Plan

Kev — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 18:01:13 +0000

It’s only now, with less than 7 weeks to go, that our route plan has been finalised. Well, as finalised as a trip to India could ever be, especially in monsoon season. There’s been quite a few changes: we’ve completely changed our plan from going to Ladakh (next time eh?); we’ve change the route from […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Finally, Our Visas Have Arrived

Kev — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 19:40:03 +0000

Since the last post we’ve been not-so-patiently waiting for the return of our Visas. As the visa applications were handed in at the application centre in Victoria they had effectively been fully checked and approval was a 99% certainty. I wasn’t therefore too worried that we wouldn’t get our visas but nevertheless I don’t like […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Applying for our Visas in London

Kev — Sun, 29 May 2011 07:13:54 +0000

I had an appointment to hand in my visa applications last Friday and my experience was very good. Simple, quick and very professional staff too. Now, whilst I haven’t got my visas yet the lady at the visa office thought everything would be absolutely fine and that gave me the reassurance I wanted. Hopefully late […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

New Trip, New Gadget – Frio Wallets

Kev — Sun, 01 May 2011 08:57:44 +0000

Some gadgets are purchased purely out of desire, others are desirable but serve a purpose and others are bought simply because a problem needs to be resolved. Yesterday’s purchase of Frio wallets was definitely made to solve a problem, but I like the geekiness value it has. So what is a Frio wallet? A Frio […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Insurance Costs Are Not So Bad

Kev — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 17:54:44 +0000

I’ve been delaying the purchase of the travel insurance for one good reason, Diabetes. I did a quick travel insurance quote straight after Amy was diagnosed with Diabetes and was horrified at the cost, which had risen from £85 back in 2009 to nearly £300 this time. Not being able to put it off much […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Booking Trains – Thanks a Bunch AmEx (Not)

Kev — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 13:04:51 +0000

Booking trains for the last trip was a breeze (http://big-cats-and-holy-ghats.winchcombe.org/post/Booking-Trains.aspx). All you had to do was to figure where you wanted to go; use erail.in to check on train availability; book the train using www.irctc.co.in. The only tricky part was that if you had an international credit card you had to select the Axis payment […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Who to Believe When Picking an Hotel?

Kev — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 14:18:34 +0000

Now that we’ve (pretty much) decided which route we are going to take from Delhi to Mumbai I thought I’d start looking at hotels. Naturally finding a place in Delhi was the first thing to do so I started thinking about which area to stay in. We’ve stayed in three different places in Delhi before, […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Route Map Now Available

Kev — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 21:41:18 +0000

I’ve just completed the map of our proposed route using Google Maps and a fair bit of jiggery-pokery. Come on, you didn’t really think I’d do a simple map did you? Before we go you can view a static image, or you can see an automated version but whilst we’re on the trip you’ll be […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

New Trip, New Gadget – Rucksack

Kev — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 18:40:43 +0000

Okay, it’s not so much of a gadget but it’s something that’s been “bought” with trips to India in mind: I say “bought” as I actually got it as a Christmas present – thanks Dad, thanks Bruv. I’m sure there’s many of you who won’t understand why I’m so excited about my new rucksack. We […] ↓ Read the rest of this entry...

Booking the Flights

Kev — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 17:09:48 +0000

For the last few months I've been checking out the flight costs, waiting for the right time to buy. Like last time I had decided where to go - Ladakh originally of course - and knew that I would need to fly into New Delhi.

From Juley to Namaste

Kev — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 11:00:36 +0000

After months of research about visiting the Himalayan region of Ladakh - where the greet you with "Juley" - we've abandoned that idea in favour of the forthcoming trip from Delhi to Mumbai, a land where they greet you with "Namaste".