According to Lonely Planet (at least the decade old one I was using on my recent trip to India), Mandu is one of the best places in India to visit if you’re a fan of ancient ruins. With that promise in mind I boarded a rickety old bus in Indore in the height of summer … Read more
If you read my recent post about Ellora Caves you’ll realise that this is basically a sequel, and sequels are never as good (with the odd exception). My day trip to Ajanta Caves started out much the same as my day trip to Ellora Caves, only the bus never arrived and the car I took … Read more
People often say it’s the journey, rather than the destination, where the magic of travel truly lays. That’s not always the case in India. Sure, pushing your way onto crowded buses and trains and then being uncomfortable for a couple of hours probably sounds fun, but after the 10th time (probably less, depending on your … Read more
I never planned to visit Bijapur. I was in Hampi when I realised I didn’t need an 18-hour overnight bus ride to Mumbai in my life, so I opened Google Maps and looked at some options. Bijapur, in the state of Karnataka, was in the general direction I was headed and was only a four-hour … Read more
One of the main reasons I chose to return to India and focus on the south and central regions of the country was to visit Hampi. I have a bit of a ruins fetish (probably not the right term) and I felt Hampi would fulfil my desire to explore ancient temples, decaying palaces and all … Read more
Someone asked me recently what travelling in India is like. I said 80% of the time it was amazing and 20% was horrible, but that ratio can easily change. There will be times when you hate India and curse the moment you thought of visiting in the first place and there will be times of … Read more
If you’ve ever drunk off brand cola, cheap coffee or watched one of those low budget movies that are similar to the latest big blockbusters (like Transmorphers or Snakes on a Train) then you’ll already have some idea what a visit to the Bibi Ka Maqbara (Tomb of the Lady) will be like. It’s pretty … Read more
I once read a blog post about Mysore and what a horrible place it was. The writer painted a picture of a dirty, unpleasant place that you’d do well to avoid. They had clearly never been to any other cities in India. Mysore is by far the cleanest, most orderly city I’ve visited in India. … Read more