Author: Praful

There was a perfect blue-sky for a day trip to Chittorgarh – the fort (garh) at Chittor. It’s the largest fort complex in India and rises from the plains of the valley that seem to go on forever. It looks like an island 6km long and elevated 150m from the ground. The origins of the … Continue reading / view photos Chittorgarh

Whilst strolling around looking for a place to eat, I came across the Bagore-ki-Haveli, an 18th century mansion. There were some similarities to the City Palace with the advantage that it was deserted with just a couple of other visitors. Intriguingly, it has a turban museum, with the world’s largest turban! An American and I … Continue reading / view photos Bagore-ki-Haveli

It’s back to Western food. Breakfast was a bland porridge perked up by fresh orange juice and my Marmite 😄 I also accidentally found a nice little restaurant, Grasswood Cafe, that made vegan pizza with freshly made cashew cheese. Surprisingly good especially because I also had a chocolate milkshake 😁 View photos Grasswood Cafe

The exquisite City Palace – with its balconies, towers and cupolas – overlooks the beautiful Lake Pichola. It’s Rajasthan’s largest palace with a facade 244m long and 30m high. The Construction began in 1599 and continued in phases upto the British Empire. I didn’t think I’d stay in the palace so long but it is … Continue reading / view photos City Palace

The Jagdish Temple is an Indo-Aryan temple built in 1651. It has been a working temple ever since then! It has wonderful intricate carvings. View photos Jagdish Temple

On my first day, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how attractive Udaipur is! It’s got some beautiful historical buildings. I’ll show these in later posts. I’m referring to the Old Town, which is where I am. It shows signs of having changed to cater for the sort of tourists who come here, which, going by … Continue reading / view photos Udaipur, the Blue City

My detailed action plan for my first trip to India when I was in London last year – now updated with status: Fly to India ✅ Visit family in Gujarat ✅ Visit North India ❌ Visit South India ✅ Fly to UK ❌ 😄 View photos Mumbai airport – half way there?

So far, I’ve found Indian domestic airports to be especially efficient if you have no check-in luggage. Security checks are quick and they let you carry liquids like suntan lotion, water and,most importantly, Mamite! There’s been power to charge devices, water stations to drink water or refill your water bottle, and ample seating whilst waiting. … Continue reading / view photos Goodbye Cochin

I went to the town centre in the afternoon only to find that most shops were shut. Living timelessly, I forgot today was Sunday and even Indians need to rest on one day of the week. So just walking around, I was reminded of a few things. There are many features of a hotel you … Continue reading / view photos Alappuzha

In the end, I was impressed with what had been created at the ashram. Over 25 years or so, they’ve created a warm environment with processes in place to make people feel welcome as well as keep running costs down. One consequence was that it was relatively cheap to stay at the ashram. A shared … Continue reading / view photos Hugging mother’s creation