Category: Asia

Nepal

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  Kathmandu Laura: After a lovely week in Darjeeling we reluctantly headed back down to Siliguri to make our way to the Nepal/India border town of Kakarbhitta. After getting used to the ‘english’ weather in the mountains, we were soon sweating like beasts on the ground. After Ahmad, Max and I got dropped off in Siliguri a man approached us offering to take us to the border for 60 rupees each. We knew it should cost 30 max but we were all hot so we agreed; after all it was only 85p! It took roughly an hour to get to Continue Reading →

West Bengal

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  Darjeeling We stayed in Siliguri for one night and as it was pretty uneventful I will skip straight to the main feature! We caught a jeep from Siliguri to Darjeeling which wound ever so slowly up the mountains on a very slim road (that teetered too near the edge for my liking) for about 3 hours. It was unbearable weather wise in Siliguri but the higher we went, the more blissful it became. I cannot describe the relief we felt after being in a sweatbox for 7 weeks! I was excited to put a cardigan on! We were crammed Continue Reading →

Varanasi

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  Varanasi The train from Amritsar to Varanasi was a memorable one. We took 3AC class and were seated with a doctor, a dentist and an optician (great in case of an emergency)! We got chatting to them straight away because they were intrigued by Ahmad’s family history and wanted to know about our trip. Within a few hours, chai was being bought left, right and centre and the doctor man was referring to us as son and daughter.

Punjab

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  Amritsar We arrived in Amritsar pretty early in the morning and took a rickshaw to our digs, the Tourist Guesthouse. After staying in hotels and guesthouses for so long, this place was a refreshing change. You could stay in dorms and there was a common room so it had a very hostel like atmosphere. Our double room was 250 rupees (£3.50) and had loads of character so it was a complete steal! Immediately we could tell that Amritsar was a special place just from the local people we met on arrival and the hotel owners. The first day we Continue Reading →

Delhi & Agra

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  Delhi Laura: The train from Hyderabad to Delhi left in the morning and arrived the following day. We arrived at a station a few stops away from the area we were due to stay at and took an overland train to New Delhi station. These trains are great, very cheap and everyone hangs out of the doors! We arrived in the Paharganj area and tried to find our hotel, the New King. Paharganj is a chaotic area consisting of bazaars where locals sell everything from pashminas and harem trousers to dodgy rolex watches and flutes! The streets are essentially Continue Reading →

Karnataka

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  Bangalore We had originally planned on being in Bangalore much earlier and meeting up with a guy called Vivek (whom we met in Kenya). Unfortunately we had missed Vivek by 2 days and he had returned to college in the US. We arrived in Bangalore early in the morning and tried to find a hotel, after an hour of traipsing up and down the ‘happening’ area according to lonely planet (MG Road), we found a hotel it was nice but quite expensive, it was also the cheapest place in the area.

Kerala

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  Kannur After an overnight train, we got to Kannur bright if not early. We had intended on visiting Wayanad Nature reserve but decided against it based on cost (something that seems to have become habit). The first thing we noticed stepping off the platform was the heat. It was incredibly hot and humid, so much so that we were covered with sweat by the time we actually left the train station (this around 8:30AM). We got checked into a hotel and lacking much to do we went to see St. Angelos Fort, the fort was somewhat deserted but quite Continue Reading →

Goa

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    Panaji After the overnight train journey into Goa we arrived a few kilometres away in the state capital Panaji. We got off the train and Mike (the Australian we met in Mumbai) was (somewhat irritatingly) waiting for us, he had intended on getting off further south but decided to follow us (a trait that continued). One thing we’ve found incredibly useful throughout India are pre-paid taxi booths. You turn up at the booth, give them your destination and they hand you a slip of paper with a fixed price and allocate you a taxi. This saves you getting Continue Reading →

Mumbai

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Mumbai     As Laura has already said we left Africa with mixed feelings, we were glad to be away and to experience something different (and cheaper) but we were going to miss Africa’s picturesque landscapes, people as well as it’s little eccentricities. Our flight to Mumbai consisted of a flight from Nairobi to Ethiopia, then Ethiopia to Mumbai. Before I continue the smokers reading this will be astounded to know that Ethiopia airport is a smoking zone. Being a smoker I was pleased to have an 9 hour flight split so that I could have a rollie, what I Continue Reading →