After 10 days of traveling around India’s Golden Triangle I think we might have an inkling of what it’s like to be a celebrity! Apparently, having your picture taken with a foreigner is a thrill, and we were very good-natured about it but wow, is it weird, especially when they want you to hold their child!
India hits every one of the five senses. There is something eye-catching around every corner. The cacophony of honking horns is ever-present. An indescribable odour of Eau de BO, garbage, and spice wafts through the air. Tantalizing dishes tickle your taste buds, and the heat envelopes you completely. This country is Alive!
India has an incredibly complicated history that was beyond me to summarize succinctly. Very quickly, along with Egypt, Mesopotamia, and China, it is one of the oldest civilizations in the world and its influence has been widespread. Noteworthy moments in its history were the Maurya Empire (322 BCE – 184 BCE), which embraced Buddism, Jainism and Hinduism and whose legacy is the caste system. The Gupta Empire (319 CE – 550 CE) used Hinduism to unify its empire and is recognized for its contributions to astronomy, metallurgy, mathematics, and the decimal system. The Mughal Empire (1526 CE – 1857 CE), whose rulers practiced Islam, was responsible for many of India’s architectural marvels, and finally, the British Raj (1858 CE – 1947 CE) coincided with the Industrial Revolution. The Republic of India gained its independence in 1947, becoming the world’s most populous democracy, and as of 2023 it is also the most populous country in the world, with a current population of 1.43 billion, surpassing China.
Just a heads-up, this is a long blog post, we covered a lot of territory during our ten days!
Dollars – On the whole, we thought India was very budget-friendly. Of the three cities we visited, Delhi was the most expensive in terms of accommodation (about 20% higher than Agra and 40% higher than Jaipur). The most expensive meal we ordered was $30 CAD (in Delhi) and that was because we mistakenly ordered an extra entree – turns out a “Full” order on that restaurant’s menu feeds two people! Most meals for the two of us were closer to $20 CAD. A ride on the metro was around $0.50 and trains between the cities were anywhere from $15 to $21 CAD/pp.
| Cost/Day (2 people/10 nights) |
What’s Included? | |
|---|---|---|
| Basic day-to-day living expenses | $134/day Canadian ($98 USD / €91) |
Accommodation, trains between Delhi-Jaipur-Agra-Delhi, sightseeing, groceries, restaurants, and local transportation |
| All-inclusive nomadic expenses | $206/day Canadian ($140 USD / €150) |
Basic expenses above plus: entry visas, flight from Vietnam, health insurance, data packages, subscriptions (Netflix and other streaming services, website hosting, Adobe Lightroom, VPN, misc apps, etc.) |
Environment
Delhi: We stayed in the Karol Bagh neighbourhood in central Delhi, which is a mixture of residential and commercial buildings and is best known for shopping. We picked it for its proximity to the metro lines. The unit was enormous. Two bedrooms (each with a full ensuite), a dining room, living room, laundry room, and large kitchen. The building had a 24/7 guard and we think it was just one guard – he was there when we arrived after midnight the first night and on the morning we left at the ungodly hour of 4:45 am, he was resting on a bench with a blanket, instantly jumping to his feet when we exited the elevator. Our Airbnb hostess operates a dental office in the same building and this apartment must have originally been her home because the walls were full of family pictures – very strange for a rental unit.
Jaipur: We stayed in a 250-year-old haveli (a traditional townhouse/mansion/villa) right in the historic center of Jaipur. Our hostess had converted one of the rooms in her villa into an Airbnb with a private ensuite and a small sitting area. We also had access to a larger common sitting room and the courtyard patio. This unit harkened back to the original Airbnb concept – a “homestay” where you meet the host, engage in meaningful conversation, and are made to feel like you’re part of the community. This was one of our favourite Airbnb experiences.
Agra: We stayed in the Radisson, which is one of the recommended hotels near the Taj Mahal. Exactly what you’d expect from a large chain hotel; it was very clean and comfortable, had a decent buffet breakfast included in the room rate, and was well located to get to the Taj Mahal and the Agra Fort – the main attractions in Agra.
We had an early morning flight out of Delhi and spent one night in a B&B in the Hauz Khas neighbourhood in southwest Delhi. Though not as conveniently located to metro stations as the Airbnb in the Karol Bagh neighbourhood, this was a much nicer area and if I had to make a recommendation between the two districts, I’d choose Hauz Khas.
Tips, Tricks & Transportation – Finding accommodation in India took more effort than expected. We had no intention of cooking for ourselves and were only staying in each city for three nights, so a basic hotel room was going to be just fine. Typically we use the aggregators Booking.com or Agoda for hotel reservations, and although they are susceptible to fake reviews we’ve never run into a problem. India was the exception. I’d find what appeared to be a highly-rated hotel with a good nightly rate, the pictures of the rooms and the common areas looked great yet once I started sifting through the reviews they all sounded suspiciously similar and often there would be a handful of reviews pointedly stating the positive reviews were lies, the hotel was in fact a dump. And it wasn’t just a few hotels, this pattern was pervasive whether I was looking at places in Delhi, Jaipur, or Agra. It was extremely frustrating! Both reservations we ultimately made through Booking were based on personal recommendations.
India’s Golden Triangle is a 720 km / 450 miles circuit connecting the cities of Delhi, Agra, and Jaipur. Planes, trains, and automobiles traverse the route and many organized tour options are available. Agra and Jaipur could also be done as day trips from Delhi, albeit those would be loooong days. We opted to organize our own trip around the triangle and did it by train.
Indian Railways is the fourth largest national railway system by size, with a route length of 68,426 km / 42,518 miles. It employs more than 1.2 million people and is the second largest employer in the country after the military. The pictures you see of people hanging off the sides of trains was not the reality we experienced. We did pass several trains with cars that were packed full, with bodies filling the vestibules, but no one was clinging to the side. We did not book those cars. We booked seats in the “Air Conditioned Chair Cars,” which was a very civilized way to travel, with one caveat, I do not recommend venturing in (or even near) the toilets.
All of our trips were less than 5 hours and the chair cars were perfectly fine. From what I’d read no matter the length of your trip, you do not want to book a sleeper car. Train travel is very popular and tickets sell out quickly. Depending on the route, tickets go on sale 30-60 days ahead of departure. We reserved our seats on the Delhi to Jaipur and Agra to Delhi legs about 45 days in advance, and the only seats still available in a chair car from Delhi to Jaipur were on the 6 am departure. The Jaipur to Agra route opened for booking 30 days in advance. Supposedly foreigners can book tickets directly through the IRCTC (Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation) website but we couldn’t get it to work so used 12go.asia – we’ve used that website quite a bit in SE Asia for booking transportation and it’s a very straightforward system, although does charge a small service fee and we didn’t get to select our seats. The email with our confirmed tickets contained a link for tracking trip status which was particularly helpful when the train from Agra to Delhi was delayed for a couple of hours, and it was much nicer to wait out that delay in our hotel room rather than standing on the hot, crowded station platform. Indian Railways moves roughly 13 million people daily and we were impressed with its mechanics: departure boards were in English and Hindi, platforms were clearly marked, and overhead digital displays noted arriving trains and train car numbers.
While we did not encounter any problems, we had been warned to be on guard for scammers at the Delhi train station. These guys are often in official looking uniforms and will try to convince you that your ticket must be validated, or it’s the wrong kind of ticket, and they will “help” you. As long as you have purchased your ticket in advance and have it on your phone you DO NOT need to show it to ANYONE at the station. You simply confirm your platform on the overhead status boards and head directly to that platform to wait for your train. Once you’ve boarded, and after the train has left the station, a conductor will check your ticket.
We highly recommend the metro for moving around Delhi. Fares are based on distance and Howard would just use Google maps to show the cashier where we wanted to go and we would get charged accordingly. Typically each trip was only $0.50 CAD/pp. You do need to pass through security screening each time you enter a metro station, actually, there is security everywhere in India. Multiple armed guards are at every monument, near public buildings, the undercarriage of our taxi was even searched before we could enter the hotel parking lot in Agra. But I digress, back to the metro … Do pay attention to which security line you go through in the stations; there is a “Male” line and a “Female” line and you cannot go through the wrong one! In 2023, ridership on the Delhi metro was clocked at 4.62 million daily and 2.03 billion annually. It is a well-oiled machine and an ideal way to get around Delhi, although we got the distinct impression very few tourists make use of the lines and our white skin drew constant staring. It was never hostile, just pure curiosity – still an odd sensation.
In March 2024 a new corridor was added to the Agra metro line and lucky for us one of the stations was right across from our hotel. For $0.20/pp this line took us right to the gates of the Agra Fort! No staring on this train because there was only one other person aboard – and I think he was an off-duty armed guard!
The metro line in Jaipur didn’t run anywhere we wanted to go, so occasionally we used tuk-tuks (auto rickshaws) when the heat had sapped our strength. We’d been told to barter with the drivers and always managed to get them to agree to a lower price. Invariably the driver would ask for ₹200 rupees / $3.30 CAD and we usually paid half that. We were very proud of our negotiating skills until the morning we left. The young man who carried our bags down to the street hailed a tuk-tuk for us. He told the driver we were headed to the train station (about three times the distance of any of our previous tuk-tuk trips) and the driver didn’t hesitate to tell him the rate was ₹50 rupees / $0.80 CAD!
Out and About
Delhi:
We eased into our India experience with an organized walking tour in Old Delhi, booking one of the “free” tours through Guruwalk.com. We had a nice young guy walking us around, doling out lots of interesting tidbits, and even got to sample some food. It was a fun morning and we tipped him the equivalent of $35 CAD for the 3.5-hour excursion. There were only six of us on the tour because apparently we were visiting this part of India in their off-season (April).
We started inside the Digamber Lal Jain Temple, where we learned a bit about the four religions in India: Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. The main focus was on Jainism, since we were in their temple. It is one of the oldest religions in the world, originating in India more than 2,500 years ago. Much like Hinduism and Buddhism, the spiritual goal of Jainism is to achieve moksha (nirvana) and be released by the endless cycle of rebirth. Jain monks take five principal vows: satya (truth), asteya (not stealing), brahmacharya (chastity), ahiṃsā (non-violence), and aparigraha (non-possessiveness). The last two vows are observed in rather extreme ways. Jain monks do not bathe, believing that a bath destroys the microorganisms that are present on the body and in the water, but not visible to the human eye. And those monks who observe the vow of aparigraha in the strictest sense have rejected all worldly possessions, including clothing – I was a bit unprepared for that sight!
From the Jain temple we weaved our way through narrow winding streets, stopping in front of the Jama Masjid (Friday mosque) built between 1650-56 during the peak of the Mughals reign in India, before finishing in the Spice Market. Fortunately, the day of our tour was a holiday and the spice market was closed. Even so, enough spicy particles were still present in the air such that all of us on the tour were coughing and sneezing – I cannot begin to imagine what it would be like on a day when every stall was open!
Three of the young girls on our tour were originally from India but had moved overseas for schooling, and ultimately job opportunities. They were back in India for a wedding. Although their parents had resigned themselves to the fact that none of them remained open to an arranged marriage, that is still standard practice in the country, and, depending on your caste (Hindu social hierarchy), the wedding ceremony can be exceedingly extravagant. These girls were specifically in Delhi to buy their attire as guests and were planning on shelling out several hundreds of dollars for custom clothing they expected only ever to wear on this one occasion! One week later when we were in Agra we learned that April 23rd is considered an especially auspicious wedding date, and from the picture window in our Agra hotel room we were entertained by some pretty spectacular firework displays spread across the city skyline.
After we left the walking tour we popped over to the Red Fort complex, built in 1639 when Shah Jahan (the same fellow responsible for the Taj Mahal) relocated his capital city from Agra to Delhi. Boldly displaying the emperor’s favourite colours, red and white, the complex became the principal residence for Mughal sovereigns. We opted not to go inside. Popular tourist attractions have two-tiers for admission – one price for residents and a foreigner rate that is often 10 times higher. I appreciate that we can generally afford the higher price tag, but they do tend to add up. We cherry-picked what sites we wanted to pay for and the Red Fort didn’t make the cut, the exterior was enough for us. The Agra Fort is reportedly very similar, and the better of the two forts built by Shah Jahan, so that’s where we allocated our foreigner dollars.
Day two in Delhi we made great use of the metro and worked our way around to a couple of different sites – both of which were free!
From the 7th through the 19th centuries, step-wells were a necessity in western India. To alleviate the water shortages which plagued the country during the dry season, huge wells were dug to catch the monsoon rains. Once the rain stopped, the gigantic surrounding stone walls shaded the collected water protecting it from evaporation and leaving it available for drinking and irrigation during the four months of drought. The Agrasen Ki Baoli is 60 m / 196 ft long (including the 108 steps to the bottom) and 15 m / 50 feet wide. No records exist to date the well, but based on its architectural style it was likely dug in the 14th century.
The Mehrauli Archaeological Park encompasses roughly 200 acres and is the only area in Delhi known to have been continuously inhabited for over 1000 years. Serious restoration work in the park only began in the late 1990s and it is an interesting mix of tombs, step-wells, mosques, and crumbling urban foundations.
Jaipur:
A fortified city founded at the behest of the Amer ruler Jai Singh II, and named in his honour, Jaipur is one of the earliest planned municipalities in modern India. It was established in 1727 to accommodate a growing population and increasing water shortages, and shortly thereafter Jai Singh II shifted his capital from Amber to his new city. Its nickname, the Pink City, dates back to an 1876 visit by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert when the ruling Maharaja decreed that the city buildings all be painted pink, the colour of hospitality, and to this day most have retained that hue.
The Hawa Mahal (City Palace) built in 1799 was just around the corner from our Airbnb. We opted not to pay to go inside and just marveled at its exterior. The magnificent five-story honeycomb-like facade is actually the backside of the sandstone palace. The latticework on the 953 small windows called jharokha increased air circulation helping to cool the palace in the summer heat. Royal ladies could also conceal themselves behind these intricate designs and surreptitiously watch the world go by.
Adjacent to the Hawa Mahal is the Jantar Mantar (calculating instruments), which was definitely worth the price of admission – ₹15 rupees / $0.25 CAD for Indians / ₹200 rupees / $3.30 CAD for foreigners. It is a collection of 19 astronomical instruments commissioned by Jaipur’s founder to measure time (it has the largest sundial in the world), predict eclipses, and navigate the celestial heavens. The instruments date from roughly 1734 and are still in working condition with the most recent restoration having been completed in 1901. It was quite overcast the day of our visit so we couldn’t fully attest to their accuracy.
Surprise, surprise, the tuk-tuk driver who picked us up from the train station also offered his services as a private driver around Jaipur. We knew we would need someone to take us out to the Amber Fort and he was quite a likeable guy, so we agreed to have him pick us up the next morning. He insisted we start our morning with a cup of coffee at the Indian Coffee House. The first Indian Coffee House opened in 1936. It has since become a chain with more than 400 cafes around the country. In 1962 one opened in Jaipur and I don’t think they’ve made a single update to the interior, including the price of a cup of coffee (very good coffee) – ₹40 rupees / $0.66 CAD. As we were sipping our coffee, sharing our respective life histories, we had a surreal moment of role reversal when Rahul heard that Howard had been an IT consultant. He wanted Howard’s help setting up an online presence for his private driving services, so Howard got him set up with a Facebook business account – click here if you need a driver in Jaipur – I thought we outsourced tech support TO India!
After coffee, we headed outside the city walls to the Amber (Amer) Fort/Palace, about a 20-25 minute ride by tuk-tuk depending on how many cows you have to avoid. Looking down over Maota Lake, the main water source for the palace, the sandstone and marble Amber complex is gorgeous and massive. Built in 1592, over the next 150 years successive Mughal rulers expanded and improved upon its construction. It is full of nooks and crannies and one could lose themselves inside for days. Admission for foreigners is ₹550 rupees / $9 CAD.
Heading back toward the historic city center, we stopped for a few pictures at Panna Meena Ka Kund (Amer Step-Well). Built in the 16th century, its geometric staircase is mesmerizing. We were delighted that you are no longer allowed to walk down the stairs, which allows people to truly appreciate the beauty and ingenuity of the Indian architect who designed this well, without hordes of Instagrammers marring the scene. The well is no longer in use, home now to a few turtles – I assume when people were drawing water from it, it was a less virulent shade of green.
Beginning in the early 18th century, members of Jaipur’s royal family were laid to rest in the Gaitor Ki Chhatriyan (Royal Gaitor) – gaitor is believed to be a mispronunciation of the Hindi phrase Gaye ka Thor which means resting place of the departed souls. These beautifully carved marble and sandstone mausoleums are a blend of Islamic and Hindu temple architecture. This was one of the few places where the entry fee was not based on nationality, everyone paid ₹50 rupees / $0.80 CAD.
We finished our tuk-tuk tour of Jaipur at a textile shop where we watched them hand-stamping meters and meters of fabric. It was very interesting, requiring painstaking precision, unfortunately Howard got guilted into buying three of the most expensive bandanas he’s ever owned. When one is constantly dripping in the heat and humidity it is most advantageous having a cloth handy to dab ones brow. Howard lost his somewhere between Vietnam and India. As the owner was trying to convince us we needed some custom-made shirts and dresses, Howard casually mentioned that all he wanted was a new bandana. Well, they had just the thing and before he knew it they were cutting the fabric, committing him to a purchase price far more than he really wanted to spend! But it is organic cotton, you know, and truthfully quite absorbent.
Travelling with just a backpack and a carry-on suitcase leaves little to no room for souvenirs. I’ve been using my fingers to accumulate memories, adding a butterfly to my elephants from Thailand and unity circles from Bali. Jaipur is famous for its silver jewelry and according to the charming jeweler with whom Howard struck up a conversation one day while walking down an alley, and whose shop we later visited, the rings I bought in both Thailand and Bali were likely shipped from an Indian wholesaler.
Agra:
Without question, the main draw in Agra is the Taj Mahal (crown palace). The Mughal emperor Shah Jahan was heartbroken at the death of his favourite wife, who died during childbirth. She had been his constant companion during their 19 years of marriage, and in 1632, one year following the death of Mumtaz Mahal (Chosen One of the Palace), the grieving emperor commissioned the construction of a tomb worthy of housing the remains of his beloved. Over the next couple of decades, more than 20,000 workers from India, Persia, the Ottoman Empire, and Europe would labour together to bring his dream to fruition, in white marble. The mausoleum was completed in 1638/39, with work on adjacent buildings and decorative detail continuing until 1647. The Taj Mahal is considered to be the finest example of Mughal architecture, blending the best of Indian, Persian, and Islamic styles. Local folklore says the Shah had a grand plan to build his own mausoleum, from black marble, directly across the river, with the two monuments connected by a bridge. Alas, in 1658 he was deposed by one of his sons and spent the remaining eight years of his life confined to the Agra Fort.
The Taj Mahal attracts close to 8 million visitors annually, although interestingly only about one million are from overseas. As with many of the monuments in India those foreigners pay a significantly higher entry fee: ₹45 rupees / $0.75 CAD versus ₹1050 rupees / $17 CAD – totally worth it! As a Muslim monument, the Taj is not open on Fridays, otherwise, it is open from sunrise to sunset or approximately 6 am to 7 pm – if the sun rises earlier than 6 am you will be allowed to enter. We bought tickets the night before, through the official government website, so we could be amongst the first visitors at sunrise. The best-laid plans …. there was some glitch with the ticket and although it said we had purchased 2 adult tickets only one QR code would display, and we spent quite some time trying to sort it out with the guard before he just shook his head and walked away, which we took to mean we were free to enter, and did. This iconic symbol of India is breathtaking and it is magical watching the mausoleum slowly turn from a dusty greyish white to a soft lemony hue as the rising sun strikes the marble.
Even with its celebrated status, the Taj Mahal has not been immune to neglect. The first major restoration was not undertaken until the early part of the 20th century and air pollution continues to cause damage. It has also been the subject of some religious friction. Several Hindu nationalist groups object to its cultural importance given its Muslim roots and night viewings were banned between 1984 and 2004 because of concerns it might be targeted by Sikh militants.
Speaking of night viewings, we purposely planned our visit to Agra to coincide with the full moon. There are no external lights illuminating the Taj Mahal after dark, just two small windows from which a tiny bit of light can emit. No visitors are allowed on the grounds after sunset. An exception is made on the night of the full moon plus the two nights on either side of it, excluding the month of Ramadan. On each of those five nights, 400 tickets are available to allow eight staggered groups of 50 people 20 minutes to capture the white mausoleum bathed in moonlight. Nothing other than a camera may be brought onto the grounds, and by nothing, they mean no bags, tripods, or cellphones, even if your cellphone is your camera. And they’re not kidding, ticket holders are scanned and frisked! Several people in Howard’s group were slightly annoyed to learn about the cellphone restriction and one of them sidled up to Howard to ask if they might exchange email addresses so that Howard could forward them one of his pictures; he readily agreed. Howard wasn’t entirely convinced the nighttime viewing was worth the cost ($15 CAD) and with no tripod it was a challenging scenario, but with his years of night photography experience, and a good DSLR camera, he captured a pretty unique shot.
The Mughal Empire seized the fort in Agra in 1526. It is more like a walled city than a fort and served as the main residence for the Mughal emperors until 1639 when they relocated their capital to Delhi. Shah Jahan (1592-1658) is responsible for Agra Fort as it is seen today, as he reimagined the complex according to his own esthetic. We did pay to see the interior of this fort (₹650 rupees / $10.60 CAD) and were somewhat disappointed to find several of the rooms closed to the public for some inexplicable reason.
Us – India was never a “must-see” destination for us. It has always seemed too gritty for our comfort level and we were very excited that a couple of days in an Indian port of call were included on the cruise we’d planned for May – we could still “experience” the country yet have the luxury of returning to the ship at the end of the day. When that cruise was cancelled due to the conflict in the Gulf of Aden I confess I was a tiny bit disappointed that India was no longer on our horizon. Then, in a stroke of serendipity, the most economical route for us out of Vietnam to Europe turned out to be the one through Delhi, so we took the plunge!
Everything we’d heard about India was true. There is nothing subtle about this country. It is hot and loud and rather pungent, yet fascinating, and while neither of us feels the need to return, we are very glad we took the opportunity to expose ourselves to this vivid nation. Off to Vienna, Austria by way of a night in Doha, Qatar!
Restaurants – Butter chicken is Howard’s preferred choice of Indian dishes and we were on a mission to find the best one. After several attempts, The Grill Restaurant in Jaipur had the winning version, which coincidentally was where I had the most delicious Paneer Lababdar, my new favourite dish. Lababdar is a Punjabi curry with a chunky cream gravy base full of onions, tomatoes, and cashews, heavily spiced with cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, chilis, garlic, and cumin. It can be made with either chicken or paneer, which is a soft white cheese made with either full-fat buffalo or cow’s milk (my personal choice for a protein, who doesn’t love a full-fat cheese) … yummy, yum, yum.
We had been forewarned to avoid street food at all costs. “Food courts,” however, were safe. A food court has an admission fee, generally ₹20 rupees / $0.33 CAD, and is just what you’d expect it to be – food stalls surrounding a courtyard full of tables for eating, but because they have the entry fee there are some hygiene regulations in place. Strict adherence to those regulations may be slipping at Masal Chowk in Jaipur. We tried a masala dish, that we can’t remember the name of, and Raj Kachori, a crispy hollow puri (deep-fried bread) filled with potatoes, sprouts, chutneys, yogurt, and spices topped with crispy sev, which are crunchy deep-fried noodles made from chickpea flour paste seasoned with turmeric, cayenne, and ajwain (carom seeds, similar to caraway). Sounds tasty, doesn’t it? Our taste buds agreed, our tummies did not. Yeesh, we were a bit nervous about our 4-hour train ride the next day from Jaipur to Agra, thankfully our innards cooperated for the duration of the trip.
Speech – In a country with a population as large as that of India it’s not surprising there are a multitude of languages spoken – 121 to be exact. The constitution recognizes 22 of these as official languages, just not “the” official language of the nation. That distinction goes to the oldest language in the world, Hindi, however Hindi doesn’t stand alone. After nearly 90 years as a British colony English had become a lingua franca (bridge/common/trade language), and in the 1960s when the government planned to formally adopt Hindi as the sole official language they faced significant resistance from the, not insignificant, non-Hindi speaking population. As a result, Hindi was declared the first official language, with English as the second. Interestingly, English is the primary language used in business and higher education.
Being that we were in fairly high-touristed areas, we found most people spoke either very good English or enough to get by, and almost without fail taxi or tuk-tuk drivers would ask us the same four questions: where you from; what your good name (which we quickly learned meant first name); what your job; and how many childrens, including gender. If they had reasonably good English the conversation would continue, if not they knew enough about us to be satisfied.
I am more kindly disposed toward India after reading your blog. The architecture is breathtaking, for one. I do not like lots of noise, so when I see something on TV featuring India, I am overwhelmed by the noise. Reading about your journey obviously removed that barrier, so this has been a very enjoyable trek through parts of the country.
Pingback: Qatar - A Quick Overnight Stop - D2 Detours