Ways to see india

Amazing ways to see India

 India is a country of different cultures variety of languages with different taste,and flavour. It is the most colourful, chaotic and life-affirming country in the world – but planning a trip can feel daunting. The best advice is to curb your ambitions. 

Dont cover too much on a first visit

Trying to cover too much ground on a first visit is a mistake. You will get much more out of a leisurely exploration of a small corner, mixing just a few major tourist sites with downtime in villages or wildlife reserves. Nothing evokes the spirit of India more than strolling through a village during the sundown “dust hour” as the cattle make their way home along dirt streets to mud-brick houses bathed in a soft orange glow. The best time to visit India is from October to March, unless you are travelling north into the foothills of the Himalayas when the air is warmer in April and May and the forests full of colour. 

1- India through window of Railgadi(Train) India is having one of the largest train route network world wide, reaching into every corner of the country. The view through the train window is often far more interesting than that from a car or coach. And there are plenty of opportunities to meet the locals. there is unique experience once you travel throug train. From Delhi to Kolakata you will see lush green farms. In central part of india  in state madhypradesh you will find green hiil sorrounded by green dense forest. small stations  will give you new experience. includes time in Varanasi and Agra as well as rides on two of India’s famous hill railways up to Darjeeling and Shimla.

 2. Kerala nature`s pride

Kerala is a world of spices . You will get all kind of cusines here due to international influnces , from the breakfast rice idlis and dosas to the ginger-and-tamarind pickle accompanying its delicate curries and fragrant birianis. Explore the highlights of Kerala on an 12-night Explorer tour with Kuoni, from Cochin to Kumarakom, including a cooking demonstration and meal in a local family home, a tour of a spice garden in Periyar, an overnight cruise on Kerala’s backwaters and lunch at a local working farm which cultivates various ingredients including coconut, nutmeg, cocoa, bananas, peppers and other spices.

 3- Classic Rajasthan

Rajasthan is the cultural capital of India: the homeland of Hindus who fought with Mughals and British Crown to preserve their cultural identity. The result is a feast of flamboyant architecture and traditional arts and crafts that give pleasure at every turn. See my other article specially for jaipur detailed itinerary for the perfect holiday in Rajasthan offering a unique and carefully-tailored tour of some of India’s most fascinating sights. Wild Frontier’s Ultimate tour of Rajasthan 

 4-Beauty of both east

 On the river To cruise along the Brahmaputra River in Assam is to step back in time. Even the teak-decked riverboats are replicas of those used a century ago to bring tea planters and colonial officers into this remote part of north-east India. 

 5. A walk through village India

Village Ways pioneered walking holidays in rural India, working with communities to establish guesthouses and train guides. There’s a choice of five areas for inn-to-inn walks but the Kingdom of Kumaon is the most scenic. Designed as a tailored experience for a couple or a group of friends, you walk with a guide along gentle trails through terraced farmland and the wooded hills of the Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary in the foothills of the Himalayas. Luggage is carried separately by porters. 

 6- In the saddle 

In Kerala Pedalling along country lanes watching India go about its daily business is a constant pleasure. Adventure tour specialist Explore offers small group cycling adventures in Rajasthan and Kerala. Its Kerala tour is graded easy and offers a diversity of rural rides from the highland coffee and tea plantations and forest hills to leisurely explorations of coastal communities and unspoilt beaches. 

Varanasi ...Historical city | Travel Varanasi |Top 10 best places in Varanasi

Varanasi the eternal city

Varanasi is one of the best religious tourist destination . Jyotirling of lord Shiva Vishweshwar  Mahadeo (Kashi Vishwnath) is situated here .

Varanasi is situated at the left bank of River Ganga ,that's why morning of Varanasi is considered as best morning in the world  (Subah-e-Banaras)  . There are 84 Ghats in Varanasi at the bank of rivers these Ghats holds beauty and culture altogether.

Varanasi is not a city, Varanasi is living style, Varanasi is a culture to perform. This city is regarded as sacred city for Hindus,Buddhists,and Jains.  It is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and the oldest in India.   People can also referred this city as  "the city of temples", "the holy city of India", "the religious capital of India", "the city of lights", "the city of learning", and "the oldest living city on earth.

Being a tourist spot this city is very famous for many diversified things like Paan, Banarasi Sarees, Banarasi Towel (Gamcha). Sweets, wooden toys etc.

PLACES TO VISIT

Saranath Baudhist Shrine

Bharat mata temple

Sri kashi vishwanath temple

Baba  kal bhairav

New Vishwanath temple BHU

Bharat kala kendra

Manas Mandir

Ganga Boat Ride

Important Ghats are :

Kedar Ghat

Adi keshav ghat
Panch ganga

Manikarnika Ghat

Manikarnika
Dashashwmedh ghat

Manmandir Ghat Observatory like Jantar Mantar

Kedar ghat
Harishchandra ghat

Chet singh ghat
Tulsi Ghat
Asi Ghat

Tibbetean temple

Nepali temple

Chunar fort

Ganga arti

Windham fall

Lakhniya dari fall

Ramnagar museum

Ramnagr fort

Sankat mochan temple

Durga temple

Tridev Mandir

Banarasi sarees

Varanasi is famous for Banarasi sarees also. Variety of colours,design and traditional pattern you will find here . Once you visit varanasi you can purchase sarees . Most of the genuine saree shops are situated at near by chowk area.  Price ranges from  1000 to lacs .

Banarasi Sarees

Alert

Varanasi is very crowded and congested city. Since this city is very old so road are confined into narrow lane. You will always struck into traffic jam if you travel with car. So, it is better to go with electric auto rikshaw.

How to reach

Varanasi is very popular city with international airport so you can reach either by train ,road or air . Connectivity is very good.

Banarasi taste

Varanasi is known for its taste and varieties in food you can enjoy following things at following places.

Banarasi launglata Rajbandhu and Ram bhandar

Banarasi pan Keshav pan

Banarasi dum aloo chowk

Kachori  lanka Rajshri kachhari

Malaiyyo chaukhambha

Malayi puri tha theri bazar

Kalakand

Chena dahi bada

Thandai Godowliya mishrambu baba thandayii

Choora matar lanka deena chat

Laxmi tea toast

Lassi Ramnagar

Ideal time to visit Varanasi

Varanasi becomes very hot during summers and very cold during winter so ideal time to visit varanasi is from October Before Navratri to March up to holi

Ganga

River Ganga

is the only place where River ganga is flowing from South to north direction  .So visiting Ganga, bathing in Ganga will give you a pious feel and you will enjoy a lot .Most of the rituals are being done at the bank of river. Ganga is every thing for Varanasi. You can enjoy boat ride also. Boat riding in Varanasi is very amazing ,rates are cheaper but bargaing is very high, in 300 to 500 you can easily book a boat from Dashashwmedh Ghat to Assi ghat. 

Varanasi is not a city . Varanasi is tradition if you visit Varanasi don't judge by roads cleanliness or traffic . But enjoy the feel of being Banarasi . Enjoy the taste and culture of this place.

Best area to stay

Varanasi is very congested and crowded city here one km travel is equivalent to 3 km of other city due to poor traffic sence,crowd  and encroachment so try to book hotels as near as possible to ghats. don't rely on online booking platforms like mmt,oyo, once book the hotel always check the location on hotel from map. you can stay at near by Godowlia,Assi,Ravindrpuri,shivala, Lanka,BHU, Bhelupur, these areas are safe and very near to main attraction points.

Naag Koop

Pink city Jaipur: The city of glory and pride

Pink city Jaipur

The city of glory and pride

Jaipur is capital of Rajasthan, this city tells the glorious history of rajputs and royal culture of Rajputana.

Jaipur was founded by Sawai Raja Jai singh. This city is also called as pink city due to terracotta paint on walls. Jaipur is very lovely city and people here  are very friendly  and peace loving in nature.

How to reach

Jaipur can be reached via train,road,and air

By Road

Jaipur is located on National Highway No.8 connecting Delhi and Mumbai. National Highway 12 links Jaipur with Kota and National Highway 11 links Bikaner with Agra passing through Jaipur. RSRTC operates bus service to major cities in Rajasthan, New Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab and Gujarat.

By  Train

Jaipur Junction railway station is well connected to all major cities of India like Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Indore, Lucknow, Visakhapatnam and Ahmedabad. Other stations include Gandhinagar, Durgapura, Jagatpura, Ninad Benad and Sanganer.

By Air

Jaipur International Airport is in Sanganer, 12.2 km (8 miles) from the centre.  . The airport operates regular domestic services to major Indian cities Including Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chandigarh, Raipur, Chennai, Delhi, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Indore, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Pune, Surat, Udaipur and Varanasi. International destinations served include Dubai, Muscat, Bangkok, Sharjah and Kuala Lumpur.

Best areas to stay in Jaipur

Since Jaipur is big city and very open with wide roads and clean city so,you can stay every where but try to stay at near by hawa mahal because most of areas are closely situated at very near by of hawa mahal.

Local cuisine

Dal bati and churma. Bajre,makke ki rot ,khichda, saag,

Tuck into a spread of local mutton specialties such as spicy lal maas & jungli maas with bajra roti.

Pair street food snacks like flaky lentil-stuffed kachori with a cooling yogurt-based lassi.

Aware

 Jaipur is pure tourist city,tourist visit jaipur to see cultural heritage of india ,so bargaining in local markets is very high , be aware with frauds and cheating in local market like hawa mahal market,bapu market and in jauhari bazar.

Things to do

Amer fort

Amer sound and light

Albert palace and museum

City palace

Jantar mantar

Nahar garh fort
Hawa mahal

Jay garh fort
Rambag palace
Craft museums
Jal mahal

Govind ji temple
Jaipur fabric shopping

Raj mandir cinema hall

Bapu bajar

Jauhari market
Birla planetarium
Chowki dhani

Jhalna leopard safari

Crafts :

Some of the crafts include bandhani, block printing, stone carving and sculpture, tarkashi, zari, gota-patti, kinari and zardozi, silver jewellery, gems, kundan, meenakari and jewellery, Lakh ki Chudiya, miniature paintings, blue pottery, ivory carving, shellac work and leather ware.

When to visit

Best season to visit Jaipur is from September to march

Suggested day plan

You can make 3 days plan to visit Jaipur but if you have more than 3 days to visit jaipur you can enjoy marketing,other places listed above and taste local cuisine.
Brief overview of the tour:

Day 1: Govind dev ji temple ,Albert palace museum.,City palace,Hawa mahal, Take light Lunch ,Jantar Mantar, then go to Amer fort in night enjoy sound and light show of Amer fort.
Day 2: Enjoy Marketing at Bapu bazar,Jauhari Bazar,Birla planetarium and then go to Chowki Dhani and see night show in rajmandir cinema hal
Day 3:
Nahar Garh, Jai garh fort,leopard safari or if you want to visit khatu shyam ji or Rani sati you can on third day in one day you can cover both places.

Know 10 ways to relax yourself while travel

Know 10 ways to relax yourself while travel

Do you love vacations but hate travelling? If so you wouldn’t be alone. For many, even the thought of travelling is enough to make them extremely anxious. Whether you need to travel for work or business, there are ways you can ease that travel anxiety. It could even be that you get anxious and stressed while on vacation. No matter what the cause of your stress, below you’ll discover the top 10 ways to relax while you travel.

1.  Prepared your self with enough water and snacks.

One of the main contributors of anxiety and stress during travel is low blood sugar.  When you become dehydrated and hungry, you start to experience mood swings. This applies to both adults and children. So, before you head off on your journey make sure that you have enough snacks and water to keep your body replenished. This also gives you an opportunity to pack healthier snacks so you aren’t relying upon expensive junk food throughout the trip.

2. Relax with mode of travel

If your anxiety comes from flying,  Don't panic with flights because flights are  safest among all modes of travel. One of the best is to keep your mind on the facts. It’s easy to assume that flying puts you at a higher risk of an accident. However, did you know that the chances of experiencing an air accident are around three million to one? You’re actually more likely to have an accident on the way to the airport. So once you are there, you can relax in the knowledge that the most dangerous part is out of the way.

3. Don't  put  burden on your mind

Sometimes you need to really force yourself to relax and the way to do that is to distract your mind. Thanks to technology there are a lot of ways you can do this. From playing games on your smartphone or tablet, to watching a DVD or simply reading an eBook. Ensure you have plenty of entertainment both for your journey and throughout the duration of the vacation.

4. Don’t overdo it

One of the biggest mistakes people make when they head out on a vacation is to try to pack too many things into the trip. As featured on Apartment Therapy, if you over-schedule yourself you could end up getting extremely stressed and you won’t be able to enjoy the getaway. In fact, it could be a good idea to actually schedule relaxation time into your break.

5. Drinking may be OK but  don't over drink.

By far one of the most popular methods people choose to ease their travel anxiety is to have a drink. Now, having one or two drinks before you travel can really help to ease those nerves and get you into the holiday mood. However, it is extremely important that you don’t overdo it. There is nothing fun about trying to find your way around a new destination when you are intoxicated.

6. Leave tension behind

Leave all office related ,home related worries at home because vacations means to charge yourself with the good memories of vacation, not to disturb you with  pending works. Always think without you the world is never going to end.So keep calm and enjoy the present.

7.Think about mode of pleasure not mode of travel.

Many times people get nervous that they never travel in passenger rail.or they never face crowded journey ,this fear  hinders there enjoyment and there journey become burden for them.

8.Keep your gadgets charged and up-to-date

During journey your real companion are your gadgets, so keep your gadgets like camera,phone,tab,ear phone fully charged and up to date.All tickets should be at one click in mobile/tab. 

9.  Prebooking  of hotels,trains and flights will  reduce your worries

Pre booking of hotels,trains flights will keep you tension free and will protect yourself with greedy,cheeky brokers and at most of the time you can get good online deals which are not  only cheap but good in service also.

10.Don't carry to much money

To much money means to much tension,so always try to buy thinks through payment apps,or debit card or credit card. Some times you can struck in problem due to unavailability of cash and Atms as well. So always try to expend in digital money in maximum manner. 

Shimla :Queen of mountains : Best place to recall your romance

Himalayan Queen Shimla 

         Shimla is one of the best and romantic hill station of india.  Where you forget all tensions, worries and pressure of daily life.  That's why Shimla was said as British Summer Capital . Visit once Shimla is mandatory for every traveler . Shimla is not only popular tourist destination of India but also having long history of Britishers in India.

Indian Flag at Ridge Area

Night View of Ridge Area

How to reach  shimla 

Actually there are three ways to reach shimla one is via road,other one is via rail or flight . 

Train route can be considered as  best for travelers because it will  make your journey more memorable and romantic. 

You have to pick train from Kalka Railway Station  . From Kalka to shimla the route is narrow gauge and trains are quite smaller in size and they have very limited bogies. Trains which are running frequently are Himalayan Queen,Shivalik Deluxe,Rail motor,and Shivalik express. 

Rail motor

Rail Motor

Rail motor is very special train. Rather we called it as a motor car with capacity of 14 members running on rail track  with speed.of 30-40 kms per hour . 

Stations in between 

There are several stations in between shimla and kalka most of them are very small sized stations and peaceful stations .  Here you will find 10 to rarely 15 person at the station maximum . 

Tunnels and bridges 

On the route of Shimla Kalka  track in 98.9 km distance there are 102 tunnels and more than 540 bridge are there. Most of the bridge are arc  shaped  bridge. Kan

oh bridge ,dunkans brigade, dhampur bridge is really fine architecture of man made creations. 

Highest arch gallery bridge : Bridge no. 541 near Kanoh

Duncon's Bridge

This arch gallery bridge is an unique example of excellent mix of civil engineering techniques and use of economical local construction material i.e. stones and lime mortar for building a sturdy and solid abutment. It is situated at about 64 km from Kalka near Kanoh railway station. It is still the highest arch gallery bridge on Indian Railway. It is 52.90 meters long, 23.00 meters high and has 34 arches. Its special features include 4 storeys (tiers) of arch galleries, each with different configuration of arches, track on a steep gradient with a 48℃ reverse curve and withstanding the moving landmass of Himalayas over more than 100 years.

Badog tunnel 

Badog Tunnel is longest tunnel of the route with one km of length, where you can see both end points in straight line. Badog railway station is very small and beautiful railway station. With lush of greenery and mountain a side . 

Barog Station

Epic related to the tunnel reveals that Engineer Barog, responsible for the construction of this tunnel was fined Re.1 by the authorities as he failed to connect both ends of the tunnel while burrowing. He committed suicide as he failed to digest his failure. The Barog railway station is named after him. The old tunnel and grave of this Engineer are still there, just a Kilometer away from the existing tunnel. The tunnel was finally constructed under Chief Engineer Mr. H.S. Herington at a cost of 0.84 million rupees.

Barog Tunnel

Rail route

of Shimla kalka is very mesmerising because of lush green mountains ,full of vegetation and  devadar trees, tunnels and bridges as well as small bollywood style stations make the route really memorable . 

Another way to reach shimla is by road either you can hire taxi or you can take bus of himachal roadways. But this journey is never going to be so romantic because whole route is smelling like burnt disel and fuel .Do my advise is go through train.

Newly developed airport is also situated near to shimla at jubbarhatti but flights are costly and connectivity is very limited.

Hotels 

Since shimla is a tourist destination so there are a many   hotels are there some are a bit expensive and some are budget hotel . But my advise is if you want to enjoy shimla try to book hotel very near to ridge . Because in shimla there is nothing except ridge and Ridge area of shimla is very popular. In most of the cinemas and pictures you will see famous christ  church of shimla situated here. From this place whole shimla and chhota shimla can be seen . This are is a bit costlier than rest area. Here you will find library,Old GPO , shimla municipality building,auditorium  and park. This place is rich cultural space of shimla. People often visit this place when the come shimla. Here at the ridge you can see every thing photographers roaming for photos in himachali dress,horses for ride,ballons etc. The positive vibes of ridge will full fill your all desires.

Ridge Area

Night View of Ridge Area

State Library

Kufri

Kufri is 20 km away from shimla, due to more height and less crowd this place can be said as   this  one of the most sought after holiday destinations, and more so for couples.

While there's not much to see in Kufri as such, but the panoramic views and temples .

Narkanda

Narkanda is famous for Skiing & Winter sports. Waiting to be fully explored, Narkanda is among the India's oldest ski destinations with undulating beauty of nature. During these days the slopes come alive with skiers.

Naldehra

High altitude Golf course near Shimla, it  needs membership for entry. Golf course is surrounded by open area where you can roam.  Don't  ride by pony .  Go up by walk.

Because pony owners charge too much cost for small distance. Once you ride via pony you will feel cheated . 

Naldehra is a very quaint and serene town in Comical Pradesh. It is of course, known for its 9 hole golf course. It is the best place for you to visit if you think you can splurge a little. However, if you do not want to visit the place for Golf, then you can easily take a walk or hire a pony around te course. It is a lush green expanse and if you have kids going along wit you, they are going to love it.

From Naldehra you can see apple farming done by the local farmers.

Jakhu temple 

Jakhu temple is one of the ancient hanuman temple of shimla where large statue of lord hanuman is situated . According to Hindu mythology lord  Hanuman stopped at the location to rest while searching for the Sanjivni Booti to revive lakshmana . Try to visit on sunday because on sunday you can enjoy prasad of jakhu temple in form of  langar that is being  distributed on sunday

The temple is accessible by foot, horse, taxi or ropeway. The Jakhu Ropeway is an ariel lift  that links a point near the centre of Shimla to the temple. 

Shyamala devi  

Shimla was named after shyamla devi . The incarnation of kali ma. Temple of Shyamala devi is situated at very bear to ridge area of shimla.

Green valley

Green Valley is Situated on the route of Shimal Kufri. Basically green valley is nothing but a forest of pine  trees which can be seen from very far away seems like a dense green carpet is laid down . Green valley is surrounded by hill.It seems like green Carpet laying on the earth.

So what are you waiting for ,go pack your bags for shimla trip.