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In roughly one month's time I'll be flying to Kolkata, India to live for six months. The current plan is to rent a room from my Guru's Guru's sister who lives there. I'm not anticipating this falling through, but in the event it does I plan on just getting an apartment. The main focus of my trip is to go and study music and so I'll mostly be spending time in Kolkata. However I would like to travel on a handful of these weekends since I'll be there long enough to explore. Since I'll be there long enough, I want to take the time to check out a few points of interests with a little more time to soak it in but also find a handful of places that aren't tourist hotspots which may normally get passed up on in lieu of more popular and less out of the way sites. There are only a few spots so far that I definitely plan on checking out: *The great stupa at Sanchi in Bhopal. *The Ajanta caves *Bodh Gaya *Dharamsala Some ideas I'm looking for are some opportunities to see some wildlife, particularly elephants (up close if possible). I'm interested in the Gir national park, but I read its been closed to access even when accompanied with a park ranger due to the state government. I want to check out a few places to find some good food. The travel clinic nurse was telling me to avoid street food, but it seems wrong to just write off the possibility of a neat travel experience like that, does anyone have any thoughts re: this? Also, since the point of my trip is for music, are there any other areas I should check out besides Delhi? In terms of getting around my Hindi is functional and I'm about to start working on Bengali since I'll be surrounded by it for so long. If anyone has taken the time to explore India in depth or has some recommendations for things you'd've liked to have done if you'd had more time, I'd love to hear them.
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Mar 11, 2013 23:21
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Have you been to India before? I would recommend giving yourself loads of time to acclimate, especially coming straight from a first-world country, and especially in Kolkata. "Less out of the way sites" is a really, really good idea, because the smaller towns have nowhere near the crowding, filth or horrifying poverty problems that the major cities do. If you go to Varanasi, make sure you get there before the monsoon or the river will cover all the interesting things and also probably flood and trap you there for a while. Take advantage of the tourist office at the train stations, and always book sleeper trains where possible (even during the day - they'll turn into bench seats). Bring a luggage lock and a chain and use it constantly. Don't bring shoes you care about or anything with a hem line that touches the ground, unless you intend to only wear them on private property (literally everywhere public in Indian cities has some amount of filth and garbage on it). My favorite places in the whole country were Jodhpur (which has an AWESOME palace and an unusually friendly/benign tourist attitude, considering it's only just outside the Golden Triangle) and Khajuraho (which is a small enough town to be relatively clean and prosperous, with a huge set of cool ancient temples right at the edge). Delhi has a lot of cool stuff to see and Agra is worth visiting because as much of a cliche it is, the Taj Mahal really is incredibly beautiful (and Agra Fort is neat too). Jaipur is terrible, don't even bother. Definitely avoid buying any street food anywhere near a river or lake, because that's probably where the implements get washed. If (when) you do get some anyway, it would be smart to stick specifically to food you've actually seen fried in front of you, ideally in a place with a lot of tourists (like Pushkar). Your body is not remotely prepared to fight off Indian-grade stomach bugs. The chai is usually fine, though (I drank it constantly, even from random dudes hanging out on street corners or selling it through the windows on trains, and never got sick from it.) Kolkata's also a regional hub, and you'll probably find there are some good deals for a couple days in Nepal or Thailand worth taking advantage of. Both countries are vastly less polluted and invasive than India and would make for really good mental breaks.
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Mar 14, 2013 11:19
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I spent over a month in Kolkaa and northeast India last year. I would be judicious with street food, and even the milk used in chai can upset un-readied stomachs. Frequent only popular joints that cook their food thoroughly. Even then there are no safety guarantees, and I think getting sick is virtually a rite of passage. I did see plenty of elephants and rhinos at Kaziranga park in Assam. Unfortunately the treatment afforded these animals by their mahouts at the park were not in accordance with practices considered to be most humane, so riding, etc. should perhaps be reconsidered. Also, I don't know that Delhi is a necessary sight if you're staying mostly in Kolkata across the entire country. I'd suggest considering the distances more closely, and look into visiting eastern Nepal, Darjeeling, Sikkim and other areas of northeastern India. Check out the Khasi hills and Nongriat village in Meghalaya, and/or apply for a permit to visit Arunachak Pradesh. MothraAttack fucked around with this message at 12:59 on Mar 14, 2013 |
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Mar 14, 2013 12:55
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I'm planning a trip to India with two of my friends for three weeks in October so I'm excited to see this thread.duralict posted:Jaipur is terrible, don't even bother. What's so bad about Jaipur? It looks/sounds pretty cool and I was planning on visiting at least a day. Jodhpur is on my to-do list as well since the palace/fort there looks incredible so I'm glad to hear it's worth it.
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Mar 15, 2013 02:19
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Ne Cede Malis posted:What's so bad about Jaipur? It looks/sounds pretty cool and I was planning on visiting at least a day. Jodhpur is on my to-do list as well since the palace/fort there looks incredible so I'm glad to hear it's worth it. Jaipur has a lot of really impressive stuff in it, but frankly so does every other city in Rajasthan, and Jaipur's attractions don't really hold up great against their counterparts elsewhere (especially the fort). So you'd be seeing a lot of cool stuff that looks a lot like other, cooler stuff you'll also be seeing in other nearby cities. It's also probably the most aggressively scam-happy city in India (especially the tuk-tuks), comparably expensive, and has all the problems of every other huge Indian city. Basically your time, money and patience are better spent at pretty much any other city in the area. But if there's something in particular you want to see there, you probably won't regret going. I'd just give preference to literally any other city in Rajasthan. duralict fucked around with this message at 04:43 on Mar 15, 2013 |
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Mar 15, 2013 04:30
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Jaipur has the monkey temple which was the coolest thing ever
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Mar 16, 2013 22:03
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I highly highly recomend going to Tamil-Nadu and Kerala states. I have spent a considerable amount of time in both places and found them quite a different experience from north India. I have been to Chenai, ponducherry, coimbatore, and Chidambaram. All were exceptional. I wont rob you of the joy of googling the nature and temples associated with this place, but know Tamil-Nadu is known as the temple state and his home to more old hindu temples than any other state. I specifically thought Annamalaiyar Temple was one of the best man made structures I have ever seen, in any country. Kerala is also a very progessive and interesting place. It's where most Europeans landed on their way to India ( in Kochi). It has numerous religious influences including a sizable synagogue. Most areas in Rajastan were great, but extremely touristy. This area is more desert like than the north and south. Its mostly interesting for the Mughal architecture. The Himalayas being coniferous type forests and the south being jungle so you can choose your own adventure when it comes to nature. The southern states being great places for elephants, though they can be found in temples all over the country.
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Mar 20, 2013 16:54
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To hijack a little as I'm currently thinking about a 1 month trip in the summer that would involve either backpacking from Delhi to Mumbai, going to Iran + somewhere in the region or Indonesia. How is the general "hostel culture" in India? I know budget hotels seem to be more popular and the last time I was in Delhi I stayed in one that was very affordable, but that was before I realized how much more fun seeing places with other people is. Based on my last trip to India, most social activity with the "locals" (the ones who actually talk to you) is likely to lead to a presentation in a jewelry factory or something.
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Mar 22, 2013 15:52
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Geriatric Pirate posted:To hijack a little as I'm currently thinking about a 1 month trip in the summer that would involve either backpacking from Delhi to Mumbai, going to Iran + somewhere in the region or Indonesia. How is the general "hostel culture" in India? I know budget hotels seem to be more popular and the last time I was in Delhi I stayed in one that was very affordable, but that was before I realized how much more fun seeing places with other people is. Based on my last trip to India, most social activity with the "locals" (the ones who actually talk to you) is likely to lead to a presentation in a jewelry factory or something. I am planning on doing a similar trip in June and am also wondering this. I have traveled extensively in SE Asia, but I am not sure if that whole traveler atmosphere transfers to India.
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Mar 22, 2013 18:03
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On the surface they're totally different. India has virtually no drinking culture and the nightlife is terrible almost across the board, so you won't find much of the same hedonism or any of the party-backpacker crowd (aside from Goa). India also has massive domestic tourism so even though there are places that are hugely popular tourist destinations, that doesn't always mean large crowds of foreigners. Even somewhere like the Taj Mahal is usually like 2/3 Indian tourists. The backpackers are a tiny, tiny microculture in India. The closest comparison is probably backpackers in America. Underneath, though, it's actually pretty similar to SE Asia. You'll see a lot of the same kind of backpackers, and things tend to run the same way (lots of brokers and agents coordinating stuff through giant complex networks). Apart from the missing party people, the backpacker culture is pretty much identical. You will have a harder time finding people following the same route you are, though - there aren't really obvious paths everyone follows in India, unlike SE Asia. If you're looking at other things in the region, I highly recommend Nepal. It's got something awesome for everyone and it's extremely accessible from India.
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Mar 23, 2013 00:52
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duralict posted:On the surface they're totally different. India has virtually no drinking culture and the nightlife is terrible almost across the board, so you won't find much of the same hedonism or any of the party-backpacker crowd (aside from Goa). India also has massive domestic tourism so even though there are places that are hugely popular tourist destinations, that doesn't always mean large crowds of foreigners. Even somewhere like the Taj Mahal is usually like 2/3 Indian tourists. The backpackers are a tiny, tiny microculture in India. The closest comparison is probably backpackers in America. These brokers/agents are not exactly the types of people I use but I know enough about India to know that you can get around fairly easily by train and that's relatively "rip-off" free. As long as there's some sort of underlying backpacker infrastructure like hostels in the major tourist spots I think that's ok. I've personally been to Nepal and found it nice, albeit maybe a little overtouristified (SE Asia like levels), I was hoping India would be a little bit more local while still being "easy" to cope in. Any suggestions for India's west coast + Rajastan + Madhya Pradesh? I know you mentioned Jodphur and Khajurao below, I've already been to Delhi and Agra so looking to minimize time in the Golden Triangle for new things.
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Mar 23, 2013 12:48
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The main thing with the train is to always, always use the government-run tourist ticketing office at the main train stations - you'll never get scammed by the clerks there thanks to very strict no-bribe/tip/price-gauging policies, the prices are always cheaper there than through any intermediary, and you'll have a much easier time finding seats. Generally speaking it is actually pretty easy to avoid scams in India, but it's completely impossible to avoid being targeted by them, and the tourism network is actually great for mitigating that - you probably shouldn't book tickets and such through a guesthouse agent, but you should definitely ask them for recommendations and referrals. They can almost always save you loads of time, hassle and usually money just by telling you which places are generally reliable. Also they're great for getting drivers in the cities where drivers hailed off the street always take you straight to their friend's shop (Jaipur). Specifically in Rajasthan, Jodhpur was definitely my favorite and is probably the best combination of "local" and "easy to cope" of anywhere I went in India, and I hear similar things about Ahmednegar and Dharamsala. You'll probably want to avoid Pushkar (it's sort of like a low-key version of the tourist district in Kathmandu). I didn't really go into Madhya Pradesh but Varanasi is just outside it, and Varanasi is possibly the most alien place you can visit, by Western norms. Just don't go there during the monsoon because you definitely do not want to be there when the open cesspit in the streets turns into a low-level flood every year.
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Mar 24, 2013 06:33
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I'm an American with Indian heritage so most of my family still lives in India and I visit southern and western India quite often. I know you specifically mentioned Kolkata but poo poo I'll throw in my 2 cents. I would recommend the region around Pune if you get a chance, the hill stations dotted around the area are magnificent. I remember on a hike somewhere near Karad coming across this incredible art museum just out there in the middle of nowhere with some staggering western, Persian and Indian art. Turns out the local King was a connoisseur of art and had provided housing to over 200 artists to create art specifically for his region and created a museum. I can't find anything online about it or even the name of the place, but things like that are honestly commonplace if you visit the rural areas. Pune itself is a very cool city and has a poo poo ton of things to see if you're interested in military history. The music scene is also thriving here. The Hampi ruins are in North Karnataka and awe inspiring, some of the most elegant architecture out there. Definitely worth a visit. Udipi is also a must in my opinion. The surrounding geography is breathtaking. The food is by far some of the best Indian food you'll encounter - especially the areas around the Hindu temples. The Hindu temples in this region, especially the Madvha ones, are incredible as well. Pajaka alone is worth visiting, it feels less like a temple and more like a monstary. Very peaceful and the surrounding area is just beautiful. Obviously for nightlife, you can't go wrong with Mumbai. Visit Bandra and check out the British influences if you can. I remember paying the equivalent of $1 to some random fisherman to take me out to sea just for the hell of it, that poo poo was awesome. People in Mumbai are used to tourists so that should be to your advantage. Expect to be price gauged like a motherfucker, especially if you're not brown skinned. Just the way it goes, this is a third world country after all. It still happens to me because my American accent creeps into my Indian tongue, a dead giveaway. Expect to use public transportation (like autos and trains) because renting out a car is very expensive. I've never backpacked in India so I can't comment on how the culture surrounding that is. Be careful who you approach in rural areas, poo poo is nuts out there. It's a pretty common occurrence for drunk villagers to simply block roads and demand a "toll" in order to pass through, atleast in my experience. If you travel in rural areas, it's probably a good idea to have a guide or friend with you who is used to dealing with locals.
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Mar 29, 2013 23:11
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I've only been to North India once--Jaipur, Agra, Varanasi, and Delhi. I don't really think there's much for you to see in Delhi. It has a lot of Indian history and museums, but nothing about it sticks out to me as particularly unique, especially since it's *so* far away from where you'll be staying. It's a nice city, and the museums are great, but I think it should be pretty low on your priorities unless you need to pass through it to get somewhere else. I honestly didn't mind Jaipur--the monuments are beautiful, although I wish I had had time to visit Udaipur and some other beautiful cities in Rajasthan. I didn't find the touts in Jaipur to be much worse than other cities. Varanasi was my absolute favorite city! If you have time to visit, I really recommend that you do. It's very low-key--besides the river and Sarnath, you don't really have any grand monuments there, but I really enjoyed just walking around and watching pilgrims. However, you may get to have a similar people-watching experience at other cities in India, and I also hear the Ganges river is much prettier in other parts of the country, so take my recommendation with a grain of salt. I honestly wasn't that impressed by the Taj Mahal. I find that it looks better in my photographs than it did in person. I really like elaborate, colorful monuments, and in general I preferred the Hindu temple architecture to Mughal work--I just really like looking at little details and colors and carvings, I guess. The Mughal architecture in Jaipur is really beautiful because it has lots of inlays and colors, but the Taj Mahal just looked a bit plain to me in person, although it is very beautiful from a distance. That said, since you're in India, you might as well stop by and check it out, because it is very pretty. I can't speak much about trains since I got around by plane. I'm pretty spoiled and I had saved up money to buy the plane tickets directly at kayak.com, but I just didn't want to spend a lot of time on the trains since I only had two weeks in India for my trip. Maybe I will take the train if I'm able to spend more time in India. legsarerequired fucked around with this message at 21:31 on Mar 31, 2013 |
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Mar 31, 2013 21:28
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Thanks for all of the great feedback, everyone. My plans are firming up nicely and I'm beginning to feel more excited than anxious. The advice here is similar to what I'm hearing from my Indian contacts. I'm probably going to spend the first month or so just in Kolkata to get acclimated and try to find a reasonably priced apartment while renting a guest room from a friend of a friend. My teachers guru is going to help me network with family and assured me he'd make sure I don't get ripped off and raped, his words. I doubt I'll completely avoid some gouging, but at least I'll have some people on my side. Some good advice I got was to hire someone to do the market shopping and cooking, since they're always able to haggle and get way more food/$$$ than I'd be able to and it'll likely be cheaper anyway. I'll have a little under two months before the monsoon season starts, so at the very least I'm going to visit Maihar in Madhya Pradesh and maybe Varanasi on the way to Nepal, time depending. Later in the summer, towards August and September I'm going to try and catch Sanchi in Bhopal on my way towards Mumbai and then hopefully see some of South India. I want to get a look at The Cardamom Hills, some of those landscapes look amazing in photos. I'm starting to feel a pull towards Pune, as I'm also hearing about their ICM community. I only regret not being in India for festival season, though that'll probably be the focus of a future trip. Has anybody taken any time to visit Sri Lanka? I'm mildly curious in checking out some of the Buddhist pilgrimage sites there but I'm not attached to it since it'll be another country, though close I don't know if I wanna venture THAT far south.
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Apr 1, 2013 06:10
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dk2m posted:because renting out a car is very expensive. Plus if you have never been to Indian you would have to be loving crazy to try and drive. This could be wrong, but I was also told getting a license in India is more difficult than most places, and licenses don't transfer over like in western countries.
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Apr 4, 2013 01:41
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Coccidia posted:Plus if you have never been to Indian you would have to be loving crazy to try and drive. This could be wrong, but I was also told getting a license in India is more difficult than most places, and licenses don't transfer over like in western countries. Seconding this. Public transport is easily accessible in most places, so don't worry about renting a car. Also, I live in Bangalore. Ask me anything about India!
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Apr 16, 2013 12:28
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I haven't been to India in almost ten years, and I don't speak any languages, also I want to bring my East Asian (Korean, Chinese) friends along with me. I've never felt unsafe in India, I'm more curious as to how much attention we're going to attract and whether any of it will be problematic. I assume most people have never seen an "Asian" person in their entire lives. Also I intend to mostly ride trains and get by with English, pidgin Hindi and hopefully not get mugged or swarmed in any particular area.
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Jun 25, 2013 09:46
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cargo cult posted:I haven't been to India in almost ten years, and I don't speak any languages, also I want to bring my East Asian (Korean, Chinese) friends along with me. I've never felt unsafe in India, I'm more curious as to how much attention we're going to attract and whether any of it will be problematic. I assume most people have never seen an "Asian" person in their entire lives. Also I intend to mostly ride trains and get by with English, pidgin Hindi and hopefully not get mugged or swarmed in any particular area. People are pretty used to Asian-looking folk, seeing as most of the Northeast is just that. However, people from the Northeast are treated pretty badly and discriminated against, whereas people from Korea, Japan etc aren't because they bring the  . There's actually a sizeable Korean expat community in Bangalore, dunno how that is in most other places. Don't bargain too hard, don't get pissed off and start shouting at an auto driver because it doesn't take much to invite a beatdown/rape there these days. Be prepared to walk away (run) to defuse a situation. Above all, stay safe.
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Jun 25, 2013 16:16
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duralict posted:First reply This man knows what he's talking about, listen to him. I've been to most places he mentioned (except Jodhpur) and I agree with what he says, my favourite places were Varanasi and Khajuraho, and I agree that Jaipur can be skipped. I also had a good time in Vashisht, but that was because of the milder climate (don't go to Rajasthan in april and may like me) and the more relaxed atmosphere. If you are in Agra and you have an extra day, go to Fatehpur Sikri, it's an abandonned fortress and it's got a special atmosphere, a little spooky, also it doesn't have as many tourists as the others. Dharamsala is pretty touristy, but I didn't mind too much, the area is very nice, one thing I liked about Dharamsala and Manali is that a lof of middle class Indians go there for their honeymoon or family vacation and it's a great way to meet people who are really keen to talk to you without any commercial agenda. I had a great time drinking whiskey and teaching a Belgian campfire song to a group that was on a business trip near the Bhagsu waterfall, and you'll meet people on their honeymoon that are totally excited to have you in their honeymoon picture album, it's loads of fun. Don't worry about being scammed too much, just use your brain. The better someone's english is, the more you should be wary. People who don't speak english at all probably don't interact with tourists much so they can be trusted the most (in my experience). Travel sleeper class on trains and if you are travelling with 2 backpacks like many people do (one big and one small), but all your valuables in the big one, thieves will always prefer take the small one if you are sleeping. I didn't have a lock and chain for them but it would generally be good advice to have one. Also if you can try to book the top bed (there is bottom, middle and top) as it is harder to get to. I didn't find India a very difficult country to travel in, but I've travelled a lot and i'm comparing it to places like Togo and Haïti Good luck on all goons going to India, my two months there were amazing, and I hope i can go back soon. cargo cult posted:I haven't been to India in almost ten years, and I don't speak any languages, also I want to bring my East Asian (Korean, Chinese) friends along with me. I've never felt unsafe in India, I'm more curious as to how much attention we're going to attract and whether any of it will be problematic. I assume most people have never seen an "Asian" person in their entire lives. Also I intend to mostly ride trains and get by with English, pidgin Hindi and hopefully not get mugged or swarmed in any particular area. I was waiting for a train in a station near the Ranthambore national park and I got talking to a group of american tourists (4 girls). We were sitting on the ground and 10 minutes in we realised a crowd had gathered around us and stood there watching. It was pretty bizarre. You're gonna get some stares duralict posted:The main thing with the train is to always, always use the government-run tourist ticketing office at the main train stations But be wary of the dozens of 'official totally serious government ticket offices' around it, it can be hard to distinguish sometimes
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Jun 26, 2013 11:26
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Apparently Travisa, the previous company they outsourced visa processing to was really good about not being worthless bureaucrats, and probably only cause they're multinational and not Indian based. Within the last month the Indian Government decided to outsource to an Indian based company called "BLS" international, and these guys are absolute loving amateurs. There is no working printer in the DC office, none of them are interested in helping you out or cutting reasonable corners. As an Indian born American national I hold a Person of Indian Origin (PIO) card which effectively allows you to own property and not need a visa for twenty years at a time. However, I had to replace my American passport due to physical damage, and was therefore issued a new passport number. Because the number on my new American passport does not match the original number on my PIO card, the people at the BLS office told me I'd be turned away at immigration in India. I was told that I'd have to cancel the PIO card, a process which requires entirely new applications, fees, and waiting time, before I could even begin to apply for a tourist Visa. I was more than willing to cancel the PIO card in order to hold a Tourist Visa. Even though a PIO card has a lot of practical value, because my immediate life plans changed and I have literally one month to go back to India for the first time in almost ten years, before I have to relocate for school, here in the states. The combined time it would take to cancel my PIO card (again not ideal at all) and then go back and apply for a tourist Visa would leave me with roughly two weeks to spend in India at most, before having to move for school. One would think that perhaps having a PIO card, being born in India along with my entire family, and having a perfectly filled out Visa application that the individuals at the office could be helpful, instead the guy told me to just go to Europe instead. loving pathetic. It was literally easier for my Korean and Chinese friends (who are Americans) to get Visas than it is for me to go to India. Granted making last minute plans to go to India is not ideal and very few people ever have to do this but Indian bureaucracy remains an absolute nightmare. As an Indian I am totally convinced that unless they fix this overall lovely-rear end unhelpful bureaucratic attitude that seems endemic to the entire business culture there India will NEVER be taken seriously as a world power, despite the nukes, despite the secularism and democracy. gently caress India's bureaucratic system forever. cargo cult fucked around with this message at 19:01 on Jul 5, 2013 |
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Jul 5, 2013 18:47
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I might have the opportunity to go to India next year, unfortunately only for two weeks this time, but hopefully again for longer later on. I have vague thoughts of seeing Lumbini up in Nepal, but that's not necessary, and other than that, I'm open to anything. The only catch is that it will almost certainly end up being during monsoon, being the only time I'll be free. I have to admit that I'm kind of curious to see what the monsoon is like anyway, since I live pretty much in the desert. What kind of effects will it have on my trip? I've heard that it should be avoided, but people here seem to have lived through the monsoon just fine. Things I'd like to see are historical sites, especially anything still standing from the Classical Era, religious sites (mostly Buddhist and Hindu, but I'm open to others such as Sikh/Jain, which I don't know anything about). If there's anything interesting like art, theatre, that sort of thing, I'll check it out, but I have no interest in partying, drinking, drugs, or anything like that. I really love Indian classical, even though I don't know much about it. The airports I can fly into are Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, or Tiruchirappalli. I'm pretty much almost completely clueless, so to be honest I'm not even quite sure what questions I should be asking you guys. So volunteer anything you want that isn't already in the thread. Project1 fucked around with this message at 05:32 on Jul 19, 2013 |
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Jul 19, 2013 05:29
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Project1 posted:The only catch is that it will almost certainly end up being during monsoon, being the only time I'll be free. I have to admit that I'm kind of curious to see what the monsoon is like anyway, since I live pretty much in the desert. What kind of effects will it have on my trip? I've heard that it should be avoided, but people here seem to have lived through the monsoon just fine. India is a disgusting mud pit at the best of times, adding torrential rain is really not an improvement. Don't go anywhere near Varanasi during monsoon season (or right after, really), it basically just floods all the time. It'll almost certainly cause some issues with getting up into Nepal (because of the Ganges in the way), so plan ahead for potentially lengthy delays on the trains and buses if you want to go to Lumbini. quote:Things I'd like to see are historical sites, especially anything still standing from the Classical Era, religious sites (mostly Buddhist and Hindu, but I'm open to others such as Sikh/Jain, which I don't know anything about). If there's anything interesting like art, theatre, that sort of thing, I'll check it out, but I have no interest in partying, drinking, drugs, or anything like that. I really love Indian classical, even though I don't know much about it. Outside of Goa there really isn't much of a party or drinking culture in India, so the tourist stuff is very heavily weighted towards the stuff you're interested in. There are quite a few Buddhist pilgrimage sites around but most of the actual temples at those places are quite recent (Sarnak, for example, is a pretty lackluster set of ancient ruins and a couple huge temples built nearby in the last 30 years or so). So be prepared for the fact that archaeologically-important and religiously-important temple sites are not usually the same thing, in India. I would advise you not to try to get to Lumbini, it'll take you probably about two full days to get there and back from just about anywhere you're likely to want to visit in India (although it is only just barely over the border crossing), especially if the trains are delayed getting through the Ganges area (which is likely, during monsoon).
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Jul 19, 2013 07:37
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Project1 posted:I might have the opportunity to go to India next year, unfortunately only for two weeks this time, but hopefully again for longer later on. I have vague thoughts of seeing Lumbini up in Nepal, but that's not necessary, and other than that, I'm open to anything. It depends on what part of the country you're going to. Up North the flooding has apparently been pretty bad this year. I've been in Kolkata for a few months, and as worried as I was about monsoon before my trip, the cooler temperatures are a real respite. Its humid though, all of the time, and random rain showers. The part of Kolkata I'm in hasn't had very bad flooding, but last week a buddy of mine's wife's parents had their street flooded. I've only broken out my waterproof boots once, but I was glad I did for ankle deep water. If it was flooding all of the time I'd be singing a different tune, but depending on the area the monsoon can actually be one of the best times to travel. The trains can get miserably hot and sweaty. quote:Things I'd like to see are historical sites, especially anything still standing from the Classical Era, religious sites (mostly Buddhist and Hindu, but I'm open to others such as Sikh/Jain, which I don't know anything about). Most of the Buddhist pilgrimage sites are in North India, and one in Nepal I think. One or two of them are just a commemorative pillar, but others like Bodh Gaya are nice temples. You also have the Great Stupa at Sanchi, in Bhopal. A lot of cave temples are at Ajanta (Buddhist) and Ellora (Hindu, Jain and Buddhist) both which are near Mumbai, probably a short train ride to the destinations. quote:If there's anything interesting like art, theatre, that sort of thing, I'll check it out, ... I really love Indian classical, even though I don't know much about it. Kolkata has a vibrant arts community, visual arts and especially music. The best time of year to go for both is probably winter, October to March, which is generally concert season in India. There is a 8 day festival in December, and the Dover Music Festival, one of the famous Indian Classical Music fests, is in January. Someone described festival season in Kolkata to me as music going on all day in small events all over the city and you just kind of wander in and out, walk to the next event, eat street food, drink chai, chat with people. Sounds kind of fun, I regret that I'm leaving right as festival starts this year. Pune is supposed to be another center of music and arts. Also Delhi is supposed to be big for Indian Classical, but I haven't heard it discussed to the same extent as the other two. quote:The airports I can fly into are Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, or Tiruchirappalli. I'm pretty much almost completely clueless, so to be honest I'm not even quite sure what questions I should be asking you guys. So volunteer anything you want that isn't already in the thread. Its a sensory overload. Difficult to know where to start. Yiggy fucked around with this message at 10:09 on Jul 19, 2013 |
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Jul 19, 2013 10:01
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Hurrah, this thread is useful to me! I too am going travelling through India for 6 months in October, though I'm starting in Mumbai. I have a couple of questions if anyone could me help me out: 1) Mumbai: is it a hell hole? Will 2 nights suffice? 2) Can you recommend anywhere to stay in Mumbai, preferably Colaba? The cheaper the better! 3) I've spent ages reading and making this map (green dots are places of interest, purple are volunteering places). I've crappily painted a route over it, what to you all think? The plan is to end in Sikkim then cross over to Nepal. Is this all do-able at a nice pace in 6 months? I'm thinking going to Goa for a few weeks right off the bat is a great idea (after the caves). 
Alan_Shore fucked around with this message at 19:58 on Jul 19, 2013 |
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Jul 19, 2013 18:03
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I'll be in (Rajasthan/Delhi) India soon for a friend's wedding. I've been told to pick up some traditional Indian garments to wear at the wedding without a ton of instruction besides acquiring a 'Kurta'. Anyone got any tips on how to get one or two of these made for me in India on short notice? Or can I just buy one off the rack somewhere? How much should I expect to be spending, colors to avoid etc...
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Jul 26, 2013 19:52
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schzim posted:I'll be in (Rajasthan/Delhi) India soon for a friend's wedding. I've been told to pick up some traditional Indian garments to wear at the wedding without a ton of instruction besides acquiring a 'Kurta'. Anyone got any tips on how to get one or two of these made for me in India on short notice? Or can I just buy one off the rack somewhere? How much should I expect to be spending, colors to avoid etc... Go into a shop that sells clothes and ask for a kurta, if you don't see something you like you should be able to get a custom one made up in a couple hours.
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Jul 26, 2013 20:58
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In Delhi for sure but in cities in Rajasthan very probably their will be a garment, clothing market etc., likely an open air market of some sort (there are also air conditioned malls which will have something). The one in Kolkata is a set up with the more upscale vendors in the store fronts, and then immediately to the side in the front sidewalk or walking areas are just people in tents set up. There are several shops where its essentially three or four guys sitting down next to stacks upon stacks of what you want, which is Kurta Pajama, Kurta being the top piece, with size measurements being waste and length of Kurta. The bottom piece, pajama, can be baggy or more clingy, with things usually being looser at the top, and bunch up tightly around your ankles (like cloth bangles). You normally want to but these pretty baggy, my waste is fairly bigger than my music guru's, but in a pinch he had a set my size that fit, as the idea is something baggy, light and airy for the very hot weather. Kurtas range from cheap to expensive. I bought two last week which were cotton, one color, nothing overly fancy, roughly 260-300 rupees each, ~5 us dollars, with the weak rupee. If you want fancier patterns, embroidery, special weave fabric, gold threading, you can find plenty of kurtas in the thousand(s) rupees range, but very nice monocolor kurtas are fairly cheap and still appropriate for nice events. You can get one tailored but buying one is probably easier unless you wanna go all out. Yiggy fucked around with this message at 18:16 on Jul 27, 2013 |
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Jul 27, 2013 16:11
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Finally made it to india for the first time in seven years or so and for the first time as an adult with adult needs (alcohol, tobacco, ganja). People still have incredibly lovely attitudes and sanitation hasn't improved much but globalization has made the country more livable if you have the cash. But Whatever the love/hate relationship will probably stay with me my whole life and is consistent amongst Indian expats, even my parents tell me they could never go live here now even though they threatened me with it on a daily basis as a kid. Hindustan Zindabad!!!
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Jul 29, 2013 08:58
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Alan_Shore posted:Hurrah, this thread is useful to me! Are you sure you can even legally stay in India for 6 months? They can be kind of dicks about visas. My old landlady used to go a lot, and she got sent back once for going twice within a 30 day window (it was literally like day 30, and no, could not wait in airport for 24 hours).
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Jul 29, 2013 10:25
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According to their website a tourist visa for UK nationals is 6 months, so I'm really hoping so!
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Jul 29, 2013 14:20
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Six months is pretty standard for Westerners. I'm pretty sure you can get a 10-year multiple-entry visa, too, if you chunk over the cash.
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Jul 29, 2013 15:09
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So hopefully you goons can help me out with a travel dilemma that I'm facing right now. I'm trying to decide between heading to South America in December or India in February and March (or both if I can pull off the finances). My understanding from a few of my Indian compatriots is that February and early March is a good time to visit India but I wanted to check with this thread. I haven't made a definitive plan of what I want to see yet but I have about 5 weeks in the time frame that I mentioned. Any feedback or recommendations would be appreciated.MothraAttack posted:Six months is pretty standard for Westerners. I'm pretty sure you can get a 10-year multiple-entry visa, too, if you chunk over the cash. An American can get either a 6 month single entry or 5 year multiple entry visa depending on how much cash you're willing to fork over. I think the 5 year was about $170 and a 6 month was $120 last time I checked.
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Aug 30, 2013 14:24
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I'm American and I got a six-month multiple entry visa for about $100 fwiw. But India does this obnoxious thing where it subcontracts its tourist visa fulfillment to vendors so the rules are different depending where you apply. (I got mine in Egypt.) Oh ALSO South America is going to set you back at least $50-75 per country if you're using a USA passport, because of reciprocity with US visa costs. Hooray America. December-April is a fine time to visit either place. duralict fucked around with this message at 08:06 on Aug 31, 2013 |
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Aug 31, 2013 08:04
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So I'm going to be in Bangalore for 2 weeks working at Electronic City. Hit me up with the 'To-dos' please friends 
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Aug 31, 2013 14:09
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kru posted:So I'm going to be in Bangalore for 2 weeks working at Electronic City. Hit me up with the 'To-dos' please friends For all the historic/cultural tourist places, head to Mysore which is around 140km from Bangalore. Palaces, forts, temples and the like. Bangalore used to be known as "Garden City", which went away because of rapid growth. It also had a phase where it was called the pub capital of India, and again that stopped owing to stupid local laws mandating shutdown of bars by 11pm. However it has a very vibrant foodie scene, and you'll find a massive number of high quality restaurants of any cuisine in the city.
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Sep 3, 2013 12:13
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kru posted:So I'm going to be in Bangalore for 2 weeks working at Electronic City. Hit me up with the 'To-dos' please friends Maybe you could go to Hampi. Right now it shouldn't be overcrowded with tourists, yet.
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Sep 7, 2013 16:51
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I'm an American going to India for 2 weeks next month for work. Other than being terrified of poop and diseases I'm pretty excited about it. I'm going to 4 cities and can make my own schedule. I have one weekend to do/be wherever I want to be out of these 4 cities. Which would you choose to spend extra time in and why? Noida, Hyderabad, Chennai, Trivandrum.
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Sep 10, 2013 05:31
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Out of those 4, Hyderabad is the best place to live in. It's a charming mix of mughal-era culture, cuisine and architecture (Old hyderabad) with IT parks, 5 star hotels, fancy restaurants. For a holiday, Kerala (of which Trivandrum is the capital) is an awesome destination. Check out Kerala backwaters. But if you'll be staying in the city and not have time to go out, I'm not sure how much you'll be able to explore the backwaters. Chennai and Noida I found pretty boring.
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Sep 10, 2013 07:43
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Seconding Kerala and the backwaters. I actually didn't get to see much else in India, but these were really beautiful.
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Sep 10, 2013 20:26
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