India – the land of diversity. A land of a billion people who belong to different religions and castes, follow different cultures and traditions, speak different languages and dialects, eat different types of cuisines and delicacies, but yet bonded together as one strong democratic nation that continues to march forward in the 21st century. My earlier posts were about how to travel conveniently by train in India, followed by top 5 heritage and luxury trains in India and last week I wrote on the mountain trains in India. This time, I am bringing forward some the assets of the railways that make the entire rail journey experience easy and convenient for local and international travelers.
Mountain Railway India
Indian Railways play a critical role in transporting Indian passengers across the country. While the majority of the train network is covered on the plains of Indian soil, there are certain rail networks that climb up the steep mountains of India. These train networks are designed to carry up and bring down passengers and goods with safety and comfort, so speed is not really a major factor here. This post is a part of the series on Indian Railways. In my previous post I talked about how to travel conveniently by train in India followed by top 5 heritage and luxury trains in India, but this time, we go up the hills and mountains and discover how these trains evolved in the first place.
Palace on Wheel Landscape
Whenever I think of travel, I think of railways. Although I travel by buses at times, I think of railways as my first mode of transport when I am commuting for work or just taking off for the day. Trains are an integral part of Indian travel and majority of the population prefer to travel by trains. This month I along with my blog friends are focusing on trains because on May 14 the United States celebrates National Train Day. While the idea was to write something about the trains on this particular day, I have decided to celebrate it throughout the month, every Saturday.
Ever since we started our travel blog, we have been getting questions from readers about different aspects of travel in India. In this blog, we have decided to answer some of the questions and provide India travel tips that can help you travel in India safely and conveniently.
The main aspect of this post will be on safety because I believe people are generally a bit scared of travelling to places where they haven’t been and the fear of unknown grips their attention at the back of their mind. After all, there are so many horror stories both true and fake ones that are on the internet.
History, for many of us, was the subject we endured in school, a dry recitation of dates and dusty syllabi. However, the true story of the Maratha Empire isn’t found in a textbook; it’s written in the lightning-fast cavalry charges and the stone ruins of Pune.
Do you love to travel abroad, but don’t have the right budget to do so? To be honest, I’ve seen many of my friends and colleagues talk about how desperate they are to travel abroad to spend great holiday time with their friends, family and life partner, but their limited income and household expenses do not really provide them the room to turn their dreams into reality. Well, I understand that completely because many of my friends have travel abroad and I’ve seen how much money it really takes to make that 10-15 days trip. On the other hand, when you return you may be short of cash and its back to hard work and hectic life. So, I decided to come up with a post that not just attracts Indian travelers, but also help international visitors to come visit India and explore locations that look like any other foreign locations, but at an affordable Indian price tag. Of course, those who have travel abroad would know that foreign locations are cleaner than the Indian counterparts, but my friend, you also got to keep in mind that you’re paying incredibly low for your trip, so you got to compromise somewhere.
So, here are 5 places in India that give you that feel of a foreign location at an Indian price.
The Timex Lextra on my wrist is not the most expensive watch I own. In fact, it is one of the simplest. But it remains the most valuable one to me, because it was a gift from my mother after one of the proudest moments of my childhood.
In my previous post on The Dabbawallahs of Mumbai, I’ve already mentioned about the fast lifestyle of the city. However, to keep that momentum going all the time, without a break you need something that works like clockwork. Yes, in this post we focus on the Mumbai suburban railway network that certainly is the lifeline of the city.
Dabbawallah Art at Kala Ghoda Art Festival
Mumbai, formerly known as Bombay is not just the financial, entertainment and commercial capital of India, but also an important city to the state of Maharashtra allowing the state to churn more money every single day. Nestled on the west coast of the country facing the Arabian Sea, the city has an estimated population of more than 20 million and the numbers grow rapidly each year making it one of the most populous urban regions in the world. People from all corners of the country visit Mumbai to explore it and to make some money that would offer them a chance to lift their lifestyle. The pressure is immense and therefore most residents here have to be on their toes at all times. Hours of commuting across the city, traffic jams, professional commitments, irritating bosses, nagging wives and girlfriends, job insecurities, financial woes and a lot more adds up to the lifestyle making life insanely hectic and stressful. To meet the demands of this hyper-active and not-a-second-to-waste lifestyle, locals need a break – a food break, to rejuvenate, to bust their stress, to have a conversation with colleagues over a cafeteria table and to pamper their taste buds.
While India certainly has a lot to offer there are many tourists that prefer to break their holidays into smaller circuits and make the best use of the limited time and budget they have. Located in the north of India is The Golden Triangle, a tourist circuit that includes Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. Although, it sounds like a smaller circuit it still offers the best experience that one can have in a limited space of a 5-6 days.
The Taj Mahal
What instantly comes to your mind when you first think of India? Let me guess, is it the famous and iconic the Taj Mahal? Or is it the slums and the abject poverty that usually gets highlighted in most Indian and international movies shot in India? Well, to start with the stark contrast between the rich and poor comes out quite clearly in India, no matter which city you choose to live in. However, I am not focusing on what is popular and not quite popular here in the country. This post is going to talk about various more reasons why you should come to my country and what you can get out of it. Let’s get started without wasting more words and time.
Into the monsoon, Maharashtra changes character completely. Highways disappear into mist, waterfalls spill onto road edges, and the Western Ghats turn into long stretches of green and grey movement. What feels familiar in summer becomes slow, atmospheric, and unpredictable in the rain.
Okay, I won’t waste time with any introduction paragraph here. This is the second and concluding part of Savoring the Street Food of Mumbai post. I hope you enjoy it this as well.
I have already mentioned about some of the top street food destinations in Mumbai in my earlier blog post, but this time I am changing the topic slightly. Mumbai is not just about South Mumbai which remains the core part of the city, or about the suburbs where majority of the residents live these days. It is about the entire city that come together and make this city so uniquely beautiful. While I may not be completely happy with the kind of population growth that has made this city over-crowded, bringing people from all parts of the country. However, I also believe that the city would not have been what it is if these changes wouldn’t have happened. In my previous blog about street food, I mentioned some roadside stalls where you can find some great fast food or street food. This time, I am only focusing on the most popular street foods that you can find across the city, I mean literally any corner of the city. No matter wherever you are in Mumbai, all you need to do is walk down your neighborhood and you will find these food items right there. I dedicate this post to all the foodies who don’t care for comfort or restaurant decor, but who care about taste, freshness and are desperately hungry. Let’s get started with it.
Mumbai Sea Shore
There are some things in life that are inexplicable and I am sure you would agree that no matter where you live today, you will always stay connected to your roots and to the city that you were born and brought up. There is this strange bond that ties you up with that city and you always feel like you are an integral part of that city. I share the same bond and feeling for Mumbai, the city where I was born and have lived all my life. Although, the city has changed in many ways and it is not the same city that it was when I was in my teenage years, I still adore it and love it with the same amount of intensity. While there are many locals that have experienced the transformation of the city, I am trying to highlight certain points that international travelers will know about it because the city has never been shown like this before.