Well it has been nearly a year since I have been on my blog - I have well and truly neglected my duties and as it so happens my time in Delhi is nearly at an end.
It has been a busy, stressful, happy, unhappy year... So much has happened that has made it memorable for good and bad reasons. There has been sickness, health, death, birth and travel. Lots of travel.
Some of the places we have ventured to this year include Australia (our annual pilgrimage home), Jaipur, Amritsar, Mumbai, Agra, Rishikesh, Mussorie, Ranthambore. Plus we went further afield and visited Dubai, Italy, Croatia.
I might do a quick recap on each place over the next couple of days and give my best bits!
Jaipur - I've been to Jaipur a bit over the four years and I still love visiting. My top things include:
stay at the Samode Haveli. It's not too far from everything, the rooms are huge and full of old world charm. The hotel restaurant has wonderful Indian food and the wine is very reasonably priced. Breakfast is served in an amazing room, painted intricately to keep you entertained over your coffee.
Visit the Jantar Mantar but get a guide as they make everything clear and easy to understand and make this a really interesting site. Take an elephant to the top of the Amber Fort and enjoy fantastic views on the way up while checking out the beautifully painted hathi's.
Eat lunch at Anokhi café - yum salads and pastas and fresh food. A nice break from Indian cuisine.
Get a copy of Love Jaipur by Fiona Caulfield as she has the best shopping tips in one easy guide. A trip to Old Jaipur is a must. As is a sunset visit to Nahargarh Fort, it's spectacular.
Amritsar - Amritsar has two wonderful things to do - Wagah Border and the Golden Temple. The Wagah Border is fantastic and a must see. It is a ceremonial event held every night at the border of Pakistan and India. It's a display of country pride, pomp and pageantry! The flags of each country are lowered simultaneously after much stomping shouting and yelling of HINDUSTAN/PAKISTAN!!!!! Foreigners have a special queue which is very welcome as we get a great view of the spectacle.
The Golden Temple is wind blowing. I had the great pleasure of travelling there with my sister. We visited late at night (9pm) and again for daybreak. When I first saw this beautiful building at night it took my breath away. It was as if it was floating and the reflection was spectacular. Luckily for us it was quiet and everything was closing up which made it additionally peaceful.
The morning visit gave the Temple a new light. Luckily my sister encouraged the early morning visit... I was happy to stay in bed! It was truly lovely in the morning, chanting, prayers and again not many people. We visited the huge kitchen, ate fresh chappati and it was wonderful. It will come with me as one of my fondest memories.
Ranthambore Tiger Hunt!
We took the kids to Ranthambore National Park in March to see some tigers. We took Second class AC (2AC) train on the Saturday morning from Nizamuddin to Ranthambore. The train left at a reasonable hour and took about 5 hours. The train was great, no issues at all. There was plenty of space for the kids to sleep, read, eat or watch the iPad. It was a very easy way to travel this distance.
We stayed at Khem Villas which was a very lovely property and they arranged pick up from the station. At Khem we had our own little cottage so it ensured ultimate privacy and the kids could make a bit of noise without us being too self conscious. Khem also had amazing grounds. We went for nice walks, sat around the campfire at night, swapped tiger stories and ate good food. The gin and tonic's were nice too!
You organise your safari's separately. I took our four year old but I wouldn't recommend it for anyone younger than this. You have to be quiet on the hunts and sit still which every little person has trouble doing. However we had a great safari. We saw lots of deer, birds, peacocks, a crocodile and one beautiful tigeress. It was amazing.
In the afternoon the hotel let us use their jeep and a driver and we took our 15 mth old and 4 year old into the national park, but not on an official safari. We drove around, went to the Fort and had a lovely trip. Very casual and easy for the kids, although the walk to the Fort is steep and riddled with monkeys.
I highly recommend this trip - it was a winner!
Agra - So we could 't leave Delhi without taking the kids to the Taj Mahal. Tom and I have been a few times each before but I really wanted to the kids to go and have a pic if front of India's icon. We decided to splash out and stay at the Oberoi. It is a swanky property with lovely views of the Taj from your balcony. Although jury is still out on whether it is worth the prices they charge!
From Delhi we took the relatively new freeway through Noida and on to Agra. It is a very easy drive and very quick compared to the long rode before the freeway opened. All in all it took about 2,5 hours on the way down there. My advice on this one is you don't really need to spend the night in Agra, unless you are particularly driven to see the Taj at sun up or sun down. Once you visit the Taj and the Agra Fort you can easily wind your way back to Delhi in one day. It will be long but it's doable.
However we did stay, we saw the Taj, the kids got their cheeks pinched and photos clicked by Indian tourists and we then took refuge back at the hotel and hit the amazing pool. It was a very nice respite from the dusty streets of Agra.
In the past I have visited the Agra Fort and Fatehpur Sikhri in addition to the Taj and both are worth a visit if you have the time.
Rishikesh and Mussorie
Our most recent trip was over the Diwali weekend to Rishikesh and Mussorie.
We flew into Dehradun and took a taxi to Rishikesh to the Glasshouse on the Ganges, where we stayed for 3 nights. The taxi drive took about 1 hour (even though everyone told us 2 it really isn't that far). The Ganges is spectacular, the hills amazing and the air fresh. The hotel option was ok but our friends stayed at a river camp and if you can bear the thought of drop toilets and cold showers this is a great option. With our little ones we thought the accommodation would be better but not sure ...... I'd like to try the other to compare.
Either way watching and listening to the river make its way through the hills is amazing! I loved it and was so glad to see the Ganga! We made a trip into Rishikesh at 5 pm to see the Ganga Aarti which was good. Rishikesh is disappointingly dirty and doesn't feel particularly spiritual to me but it was nice to hear the chanting and watch the candles float down the river. Kids thought it was fun.
Then it was onto Mussorie..... well what a drive!!!!It took about 3 hours from Rishikesh to Mussorie and the last hour is winding road all the way to the top. The kids were great on the way up (not on the way down) but it is a pretty incredible feeling ascending to the mountain top and into the clouds.
The architecture is also amazing..... the thought of bringing everything up to the mountain to build a property sounds awful and difficult but some lovely places have been constructed.
We stayed at two different places over the two nights. First we tried The Amber which is a lovely small hotel with magnificent views of the hills. The Amber has a really lovely feel and the kids loved the playground and The Company Garden which is a short walk down the hill.
The second night we went to the new swanky JW Marriott. It only opened a month ago and is very different from The Amber. It is big and 5 star, so which you choose really depends on what you are after. The food at the Marriott was lovely and there was lots of space for the kids to run around. There was also a pretty cool kids club. One of my favourite things about the Marriott was at 4.30pm they set up games on the lawns, had bbq'ed corn cobs, masala chai and cake and you could play with the kids, meet other guests and enjoy the beautiful fresh air of Mussorie.
The only thing to be prepared for is the cold and the inevitable vomiting on the way down the mountain if you have travel sick kids.
So that is it for our 2014 travel around India - with Delhi as our base. Next we move base camp to Mumbai and start new adventures from there!
It has been a busy, stressful, happy, unhappy year... So much has happened that has made it memorable for good and bad reasons. There has been sickness, health, death, birth and travel. Lots of travel.
Some of the places we have ventured to this year include Australia (our annual pilgrimage home), Jaipur, Amritsar, Mumbai, Agra, Rishikesh, Mussorie, Ranthambore. Plus we went further afield and visited Dubai, Italy, Croatia.
I might do a quick recap on each place over the next couple of days and give my best bits!
Jaipur - I've been to Jaipur a bit over the four years and I still love visiting. My top things include:
stay at the Samode Haveli. It's not too far from everything, the rooms are huge and full of old world charm. The hotel restaurant has wonderful Indian food and the wine is very reasonably priced. Breakfast is served in an amazing room, painted intricately to keep you entertained over your coffee.
Visit the Jantar Mantar but get a guide as they make everything clear and easy to understand and make this a really interesting site. Take an elephant to the top of the Amber Fort and enjoy fantastic views on the way up while checking out the beautifully painted hathi's.
Eat lunch at Anokhi café - yum salads and pastas and fresh food. A nice break from Indian cuisine.
Get a copy of Love Jaipur by Fiona Caulfield as she has the best shopping tips in one easy guide. A trip to Old Jaipur is a must. As is a sunset visit to Nahargarh Fort, it's spectacular.
Amritsar - Amritsar has two wonderful things to do - Wagah Border and the Golden Temple. The Wagah Border is fantastic and a must see. It is a ceremonial event held every night at the border of Pakistan and India. It's a display of country pride, pomp and pageantry! The flags of each country are lowered simultaneously after much stomping shouting and yelling of HINDUSTAN/PAKISTAN!!!!! Foreigners have a special queue which is very welcome as we get a great view of the spectacle.
The Golden Temple is wind blowing. I had the great pleasure of travelling there with my sister. We visited late at night (9pm) and again for daybreak. When I first saw this beautiful building at night it took my breath away. It was as if it was floating and the reflection was spectacular. Luckily for us it was quiet and everything was closing up which made it additionally peaceful.
The morning visit gave the Temple a new light. Luckily my sister encouraged the early morning visit... I was happy to stay in bed! It was truly lovely in the morning, chanting, prayers and again not many people. We visited the huge kitchen, ate fresh chappati and it was wonderful. It will come with me as one of my fondest memories.
Ranthambore Tiger Hunt!
We took the kids to Ranthambore National Park in March to see some tigers. We took Second class AC (2AC) train on the Saturday morning from Nizamuddin to Ranthambore. The train left at a reasonable hour and took about 5 hours. The train was great, no issues at all. There was plenty of space for the kids to sleep, read, eat or watch the iPad. It was a very easy way to travel this distance.
We stayed at Khem Villas which was a very lovely property and they arranged pick up from the station. At Khem we had our own little cottage so it ensured ultimate privacy and the kids could make a bit of noise without us being too self conscious. Khem also had amazing grounds. We went for nice walks, sat around the campfire at night, swapped tiger stories and ate good food. The gin and tonic's were nice too!
You organise your safari's separately. I took our four year old but I wouldn't recommend it for anyone younger than this. You have to be quiet on the hunts and sit still which every little person has trouble doing. However we had a great safari. We saw lots of deer, birds, peacocks, a crocodile and one beautiful tigeress. It was amazing.
In the afternoon the hotel let us use their jeep and a driver and we took our 15 mth old and 4 year old into the national park, but not on an official safari. We drove around, went to the Fort and had a lovely trip. Very casual and easy for the kids, although the walk to the Fort is steep and riddled with monkeys.
I highly recommend this trip - it was a winner!
Agra - So we could 't leave Delhi without taking the kids to the Taj Mahal. Tom and I have been a few times each before but I really wanted to the kids to go and have a pic if front of India's icon. We decided to splash out and stay at the Oberoi. It is a swanky property with lovely views of the Taj from your balcony. Although jury is still out on whether it is worth the prices they charge!
From Delhi we took the relatively new freeway through Noida and on to Agra. It is a very easy drive and very quick compared to the long rode before the freeway opened. All in all it took about 2,5 hours on the way down there. My advice on this one is you don't really need to spend the night in Agra, unless you are particularly driven to see the Taj at sun up or sun down. Once you visit the Taj and the Agra Fort you can easily wind your way back to Delhi in one day. It will be long but it's doable.
However we did stay, we saw the Taj, the kids got their cheeks pinched and photos clicked by Indian tourists and we then took refuge back at the hotel and hit the amazing pool. It was a very nice respite from the dusty streets of Agra.
In the past I have visited the Agra Fort and Fatehpur Sikhri in addition to the Taj and both are worth a visit if you have the time.
Rishikesh and Mussorie
Our most recent trip was over the Diwali weekend to Rishikesh and Mussorie.
We flew into Dehradun and took a taxi to Rishikesh to the Glasshouse on the Ganges, where we stayed for 3 nights. The taxi drive took about 1 hour (even though everyone told us 2 it really isn't that far). The Ganges is spectacular, the hills amazing and the air fresh. The hotel option was ok but our friends stayed at a river camp and if you can bear the thought of drop toilets and cold showers this is a great option. With our little ones we thought the accommodation would be better but not sure ...... I'd like to try the other to compare.
Either way watching and listening to the river make its way through the hills is amazing! I loved it and was so glad to see the Ganga! We made a trip into Rishikesh at 5 pm to see the Ganga Aarti which was good. Rishikesh is disappointingly dirty and doesn't feel particularly spiritual to me but it was nice to hear the chanting and watch the candles float down the river. Kids thought it was fun.
Then it was onto Mussorie..... well what a drive!!!!It took about 3 hours from Rishikesh to Mussorie and the last hour is winding road all the way to the top. The kids were great on the way up (not on the way down) but it is a pretty incredible feeling ascending to the mountain top and into the clouds.
The architecture is also amazing..... the thought of bringing everything up to the mountain to build a property sounds awful and difficult but some lovely places have been constructed.
We stayed at two different places over the two nights. First we tried The Amber which is a lovely small hotel with magnificent views of the hills. The Amber has a really lovely feel and the kids loved the playground and The Company Garden which is a short walk down the hill.
The second night we went to the new swanky JW Marriott. It only opened a month ago and is very different from The Amber. It is big and 5 star, so which you choose really depends on what you are after. The food at the Marriott was lovely and there was lots of space for the kids to run around. There was also a pretty cool kids club. One of my favourite things about the Marriott was at 4.30pm they set up games on the lawns, had bbq'ed corn cobs, masala chai and cake and you could play with the kids, meet other guests and enjoy the beautiful fresh air of Mussorie.
The only thing to be prepared for is the cold and the inevitable vomiting on the way down the mountain if you have travel sick kids.
So that is it for our 2014 travel around India - with Delhi as our base. Next we move base camp to Mumbai and start new adventures from there!
