So while I'm sat in a Bangkok blues bar listening to a big band, I'll endeavour to offer to make a few observations on India.
Of all my stops on the 11 month trip the two months in India is the longest stop in any country and as such I feel it is worthy of some summation.
Before I arrived pretty much all of the stories I had heard from travellers were negative, but I (fair obviously I thought) decide to approach it with an open mind. I found out later that isn't the general approach!
1st The people...
The common perception amount the traveller community sealed to be that everyone in India was out to rip you off. I found this to be far from the truth.
Of course to a large of Indians you meet (ie those used to dealing with tourists) even a budget traveller is rich and so naturally they will try get what they can for their services. But I found once you got used to this and adapted to fixing a fair price everyone ended up happy.
Outside of those offering services the people were almost without exception warm and welcoming. A great example of this was the help I received on my train journey to Mumbai when my ticket wasn't valid. People who had no idea who I was were happy to give up space in there compartment for the entire 16 hour journey. Even going as far as sorting out my ticket!
2nd The cities...
Being a city boy at heart I always expected to enjoy the cities, that in spite of being told they were the worst places. My first observation was (in Delhi) is that the areas where traveller congregate tend to be a bit rough around the edges. Unless you venture out and make an attempt to understand the city you never will. A 2 day quick stop off certainly isn't time to do this.
3rd The Countryside...
I only spent limited time outside of the cities and that was primarily in Southern India, but to understand India first you must understand the villages. Again I always found villagers warm and welcoming. Even more so than the cities, they were willing to share whatever they had!
4th The beach resorts
As pleasant as the beach resorts ate they bear no relation to actual India. This should be obvious to people. But it wasn't always the case.
5th The sights...
India is blessed with some of the most beautiful buildings and ruins in the world but they make a mixed use of them. Some were well maintained and some, scandalously, crumbling. I also felt the often lacked historical context to help people understand them which was a shame.
6th The politics....
I found the political set up fascinating, particularly the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty and the role that caste still plays. Primarily the corruption is still doing the most damage in holding India back from it's rightful place at the top table as a world superpower. That said India's time is coming no doubt about it!!
I would recommend India (along with China) to anyone that really wants to understand the direction the world will take in the next generation...
7th The sport...
Cricket that is all! (Although I did attend a football match with a decent 7000 + crowd in Kolkata)
To conclude....
Even though I'm still not half way through my trip, I doubt very much I will find anywhere that comes close to matching India for the sheer experience!!!
Thursday 24 February 2011
Tuesday 22 February 2011
Singapore
Just realised that I haven't updated to old blog in a while so here goes.
After sadly saying goodbye to India I took flight two of my RTW ticket to Singapore.
The first thing that struck me about Singapore is how clean it is. It's immaculate, you don't see a single piece of litter anywhere. The second thing I noticed is how expensive it is compared to India, particularly for beer. The cheapest I found was £4 a pint but the average was £6!!!!
Anyway enough of that. I spent the first 3 days using (the bargain) museum and gallery pass which I picked up at the National Museum.
The museums, like Singapore itself, were of a western standard only slightly better!
The next couple of days I passed doing the usual tourist things. The botanical gardens and the night safari were particular highlights.
Although the evening were a pricy affair, i still managed to take in a Singapore Sling at Raffles Hotel (which was shit...) as well as an Old Fashioned (better...)
I also got a chance to spend the evening with three old uni friends which was a real unexpected pleasure!
I ft I could easily have spent more than 5 days in Singapore, so I'm glad I'm heading back their at the end of my South East Asia adventure.
Yesterday I arrived in Bangkok and went for a few beers on the Khao San road with some Swedish guys I met. Bangkok is a whole world away from India. By far the most touristy place I've been so far!
To follow I few thoughts on India... (when I get a chance)
Laters
After sadly saying goodbye to India I took flight two of my RTW ticket to Singapore.
The first thing that struck me about Singapore is how clean it is. It's immaculate, you don't see a single piece of litter anywhere. The second thing I noticed is how expensive it is compared to India, particularly for beer. The cheapest I found was £4 a pint but the average was £6!!!!
Anyway enough of that. I spent the first 3 days using (the bargain) museum and gallery pass which I picked up at the National Museum.
The museums, like Singapore itself, were of a western standard only slightly better!
The next couple of days I passed doing the usual tourist things. The botanical gardens and the night safari were particular highlights.
Although the evening were a pricy affair, i still managed to take in a Singapore Sling at Raffles Hotel (which was shit...) as well as an Old Fashioned (better...)
I also got a chance to spend the evening with three old uni friends which was a real unexpected pleasure!
I ft I could easily have spent more than 5 days in Singapore, so I'm glad I'm heading back their at the end of my South East Asia adventure.
Yesterday I arrived in Bangkok and went for a few beers on the Khao San road with some Swedish guys I met. Bangkok is a whole world away from India. By far the most touristy place I've been so far!
To follow I few thoughts on India... (when I get a chance)
Laters
Wednesday 16 February 2011
Arrived in Singapore, checked into a great hostel. Now having a quick beer before bed.
Even though I couldn't watch I stayed up last night waiting for Sacha's text updates!! (was well worth it). Starting to look into the price of return flights from South America at the end of May...
Even though I couldn't watch I stayed up last night waiting for Sacha's text updates!! (was well worth it). Starting to look into the price of return flights from South America at the end of May...
Location:Singapore
Tuesday 15 February 2011
Mumbai
So where to start... It seems like months ago I arrived in Mumbai.
I was lucky on my first few days to be hosted by an old friend Mark from uni (take a bow Mr Trayling). So after meeting up, I seemed to jump in straight at the deep end!
So day one... After a few beers at the Royal Bombay Yacht Club, we took out a yacht and went on a spin around the harbour followed by a bit of lunch (plus obvious beer) at the Taj Hotel, then it was back to the yacht club before later stumbling along to a karaoke bar...
Day two involved a trip to Mumbai's only gig venue before back to Marks for a date with a bottle of Johnny Walker Black Label...
After days one and two it was safe to say I was a bit wiped out so definitely needed a couple of days r'n'r
Since Mark left for New York (allowing my liver to recover) I spent the next few days exploring to sights of Mumbai, watching a bit of amateur cricket and taking in the odd bar.... (Playing endless Bryan Adams, god help us)
Further update when I reach Singapore
I was lucky on my first few days to be hosted by an old friend Mark from uni (take a bow Mr Trayling). So after meeting up, I seemed to jump in straight at the deep end!
So day one... After a few beers at the Royal Bombay Yacht Club, we took out a yacht and went on a spin around the harbour followed by a bit of lunch (plus obvious beer) at the Taj Hotel, then it was back to the yacht club before later stumbling along to a karaoke bar...
Day two involved a trip to Mumbai's only gig venue before back to Marks for a date with a bottle of Johnny Walker Black Label...
After days one and two it was safe to say I was a bit wiped out so definitely needed a couple of days r'n'r
Since Mark left for New York (allowing my liver to recover) I spent the next few days exploring to sights of Mumbai, watching a bit of amateur cricket and taking in the odd bar.... (Playing endless Bryan Adams, god help us)
Further update when I reach Singapore
Sunday 13 February 2011
Mumbai
Just in case anyone had wondered where I've been... Mumbai has by far the worst internet coverage of anywhere I've been in India so far! (and possibly anywhere I been full stop!!) It has no wifi anywhere and about 3 internet cafes in the whole city.
So only time for this quick update. I'll post full details of what I've been up to when I reach Singapore on the 16th Feb.
Good news is, I've had the cast taken off of my foot. Bad news is that the break hasn't healed yet.
Mumbai is good fun as cities go although I'm looking forward to leaving India now
Speak to you in Singapore!!
So only time for this quick update. I'll post full details of what I've been up to when I reach Singapore on the 16th Feb.
Good news is, I've had the cast taken off of my foot. Bad news is that the break hasn't healed yet.
Mumbai is good fun as cities go although I'm looking forward to leaving India now
Speak to you in Singapore!!
Sunday 6 February 2011
Hampi
I thought that Hampi was going to be a bit of a struggle when I found out that there was no booze in the whole town and that is was strictly vegetarian.... But it turned out to be a fascinating place. It's been a fair while now on my trip since I visited a historical area, my time in India for the last month was primarily cities and coastal resorts, so Hampi made a welcome change.
The amount of ancient temples and monuments in one small area in staggering with temples ranging from neolithic to the 17th century.
So what have I been up to...
The overnight bus journey from Panaji was a bit of an ordeal but with that out of the way we found a really nice place to stay. Hampi itself was primarily full of travelers with a few Indian tourists.
After getting my bearings on the first day I hired a scooter for a couple of days to explore the ruins. I'd love to post some pictures to give an idea of the beauty of the area but with no wifi I can't attach them. I'll try and add them later.
Being out and about on the scooter gave me the freedom to explore all of the temple sights some of which we're pretty remote and I had entirely to myself. The only downside to travcelling this far was a slight miss-calculation in the amount of petrol I had... It all worked out for the best though as a kindly passer-by gave me a lift to the nearest petrol station and I hailed a passing tuk tuk taking some tourists to a temple to give me a lift back.
Other highlights we're being blessed by the sacred elephant (bizarre) and a trip to see the underground waterfalls (okay a pretty stupid thing to do with a broken foot...I had visions of 127 hours!)
The evenings passed pretty quietly as you can imagine but it was nice to have a bit of a healthy break. I've now been in a town with plenty of bars for two hours and still haven't had a beer!!!
I catch the trian to Mumbai in a couple of hours so back to city life...
The amount of ancient temples and monuments in one small area in staggering with temples ranging from neolithic to the 17th century.
So what have I been up to...
The overnight bus journey from Panaji was a bit of an ordeal but with that out of the way we found a really nice place to stay. Hampi itself was primarily full of travelers with a few Indian tourists.
After getting my bearings on the first day I hired a scooter for a couple of days to explore the ruins. I'd love to post some pictures to give an idea of the beauty of the area but with no wifi I can't attach them. I'll try and add them later.
Being out and about on the scooter gave me the freedom to explore all of the temple sights some of which we're pretty remote and I had entirely to myself. The only downside to travcelling this far was a slight miss-calculation in the amount of petrol I had... It all worked out for the best though as a kindly passer-by gave me a lift to the nearest petrol station and I hailed a passing tuk tuk taking some tourists to a temple to give me a lift back.
Other highlights we're being blessed by the sacred elephant (bizarre) and a trip to see the underground waterfalls (okay a pretty stupid thing to do with a broken foot...I had visions of 127 hours!)
The evenings passed pretty quietly as you can imagine but it was nice to have a bit of a healthy break. I've now been in a town with plenty of bars for two hours and still haven't had a beer!!!
I catch the trian to Mumbai in a couple of hours so back to city life...
Wednesday 2 February 2011
Pictures
A new batch of pics now up covering China, Tibet, Nepal and India: http://picasaweb.google.com/tumbridge/JTSTravelsChinaTibetNepalAndIndia#
Tuesday 1 February 2011
Panaji
After my intrepid adventures around southern Goa by scooter we packed up and headed up to Panaji the state capital of Goa. Panaji is really nice for an Indian city. It is small and exploring is manageable even with a broken foot.
The first day we were drawn to the casino boats, which float on the river to avoid gambling restrictions. The casino was great fun with much use being made of the free food and drink. The less said about the gambling the better. So having bankrupted myself that evening I decided to take it easy for the next few days...
Next yup was a trip to Old Goa formally the base of Portuguese colonial India. Now notable for the shear number of Churches and Cathedrals in one small area. Well worth a visit, particularly to see the remains of St Francis Xavier which are kept in a mausoleum at the Basilica of Bom Jesus. I'll add that to my list of dead celebrities seen so far (Lenin, Mao...)
Next up is Hampi for a few days, hopefully Internet access will be more readily available there...
The first day we were drawn to the casino boats, which float on the river to avoid gambling restrictions. The casino was great fun with much use being made of the free food and drink. The less said about the gambling the better. So having bankrupted myself that evening I decided to take it easy for the next few days...
Next yup was a trip to Old Goa formally the base of Portuguese colonial India. Now notable for the shear number of Churches and Cathedrals in one small area. Well worth a visit, particularly to see the remains of St Francis Xavier which are kept in a mausoleum at the Basilica of Bom Jesus. I'll add that to my list of dead celebrities seen so far (Lenin, Mao...)
Next up is Hampi for a few days, hopefully Internet access will be more readily available there...
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