India & Beyond: Trains, Planes & Autorickshaws

22 Days from Delhi to Mumbai
Our Indian Adventure has been a chaotic and exciting journey. From Tiger Safari in Ranthambore National Park to the Taj Mahal in Agra, from the boat trip along the Ganges to the camel safari in Jaisalmer, it has been an action packed 22 days. No doubt travelling India is not for the faint hearted; even the most experienced traveller will be tested at the best of times. The culture shock can take at least a few days to adjust to. And even then, the sight of cows in the middle of the street and an auto rickshaw swinging to avoid them can still starlet you, especially if you are in the back struggling to hang on to anything and praying to God you arrive safely. This is India, alright!
The traffic in India and everything else that resides on the roads can be the biggest culture shock at first. No organized roads, no right of way, seemingly no rules of the roads. Being a passenger in a little auto rickshaw can be a terrifying experience. Car horns filled our ears. In India, they use the car horns at every opportunity possible. My first impressions of the roads in Delhi is how can anyone possibly drive on these roads? Every vehicle imaginable, from buses to trucks, cars to auto rickshaws and every type of bike all vying for a position on the roads. Not too mention cows, beggars and stray dogs to add to the madness. We had some hair rising moments in the back of these auto rickshaws (still the only way to travel in India’s cities). None more hair rising when the, best described as a lunatic auto rickshaw driver in Jodhpur, ushered me in the front with him and gave me control of the reins. We missed an oncoming jeep by inches.
Train was our preferred mode of transport between cities. Making a total of 8 trains’ journeys over the 3 weeks and spending over 60 hours traveling on trains, we spent a lot time at train stations. These train stations can be the most infuriating places in India. Pushy touts / taxi drivers and beggars await your arrival. The inability of any Indian to queue in an orderly fashion and the sometimes inefficiency of the reservation staff added to our woes at the train stations. We have experienced delay after delay after delay, and one day I was running a bit late, the train departs on time and we miss our train. Only in India!
With a total of 5 sleeper trains, we have experienced every class available. From our smelly sleeper (economy) on our first train from Delhi to Varanasi, to the over the top, pricey private first cabin from Jaipur to Udaipur. Most of the time we did not know what we were booking, we do now, 3AC is fine and cheap. The train journeys can be long and boring. The longest train journey was about 20 hours from Agra to Varanasi. The comic genius of South Park, the musical madness of Pink Floyd and the writings of Howard Marks were the best way for me to break up the travelling.
The traffic and the train stations become side notes on our journey. The sights we have experienced in India are unmatched across the whole world. No where I have visited is anything like Varanasi. We seen a corpse been led to the Ganges to be burned within moments of our arrival and seen another one of our way back to the train station a few days later. Death is a public affair in Varanasi. The Ganges River is the centre of the community with people coming to bathe themselves and clean their clothes, ceremonials and rituals are held daily. Children play with kites (a big favourite in Varanasi) and adults socialize and chat. All at the same time, cows, dogs and goats are spread across the city and monkeys wait on the rooftops and in the trees. It’s like no place on earth.
Our tiger safari in Ranthambore National Park(about 3 hours outside of Jaipur) was another highlight. Freezing cold (Yes, it was a lot colder in India than we were let on), at 8am in the morning, in an open top jeep, slowly circling the national park for elusive tigers in which the whole neighbouring town’s reputation and in some way purpose is based upon. Nothing to be seen, it looks like we will go home disappointed until a family of four Tigers appear on a trail. We follow them and photograph them from less than 10 metres. It’s well worth the wait! It instantly became my most enjoyable experience in India to date.
The Taj Mahal is instantly recognisable and recently been awarded the status of one of the modern wonders of the world. When one comes face to face with “ultimate monument to love” you can really appreciated the beauty. Unfortunately, the rest of Agra does not live up with the world class category if the Taj Mahl. Far from it to be honest, but the hindrance and disappointment of Agra is all forgotten when you get that “can’t leave India with this photo”.
Jodhpur the Blue City and Udaipur were both enjoyable stops on our route through Rajasthan. The view of the Blue City from Jodhpur fort, where all the roofs and the walls of the old city are painted blue, is a magnificent sight. Udaipur was probably one of the cleanest cities we have visited thus far, dubbed the Venice of the East with its Lake Palace. Some of James Bond’s Octopussy was filmed here, and locals are still clinging on that fact, showing re-runs every night in some restaurants, bizarre!
Saving the best till last, we spent 2 nights, 3 days out in the desert just outside Jaisalmer. With the help of “Mr. Desert” we explored the Thar Desert on the back of a camel, sleeping under the stars on sand dunes both nights. The stars in the sky were unlike anything I had ever seen. It was like a scene straight out of a Star Wars Movie, thousands of stars lit up the night sky. The meals consisted of rice, vegetable curry and Indian bread which were delicious and even me, a self confessed non Indian food eater, was looking for seconds every time. I didn’t know myself; maybe it was the desert sand!
The food in India has been very good. Although I did have few curries at the beginning, I do found myself going for the continental option more and more recently. Despite a few dodgy restaurants, with disappointing food and service as slow as a snail, we have really enjoyed the Indian cuisine. And of course, our good friend Kingfisher, the beer of choice in India, often differing in price but never in quality, Kingfisher became an instant hit. Unfortunately we didn’t really find a good bar, (with the exception of Steam in Jaipur and On the Rocks in Jodhpur) or any nightclubs, but we can wait for South India and in particular Goa for that.
22 days travelling India has been as fascinating and interesting as one can imagine. The culture shocks become part of our day (No more surprises please). The sights of the Taj Mahal and the Ganges and the excitement of the Tiger and Camel safaris are fast becoming my most enjoyable memories. Now for South India and in particular Goa. A more chilled approach to life, nothing will compare to our Indian adventure but I will look forward to it all the same.

Author's note:
Having finished the blog, my fellow travellers point out that I had omitted one of their highlights, it wasn't one of mine. After a belly full of Kingfishers and long island ice tea in Stream in Jaipur, I was the first to vomit in the auto rickshaw. I was first of the group (but not the last) to feel the ill effects of too much beer!

I have some video but I am struggling to upload it, hopefully it will be up in a few weeks.

Fast Facts
Total Train Journeys (Overnight) 8 (5)
Bus 1
Planes 1
Cities 8
Total Distance covered 4200km (estimated)
Time on Train 62 hours
Time on Bus 8 hours
Time on Planes 2 hours
Camel Safari 1
Tigers spotted 4
Modern Wonders of the World 1
"Time waiting for Colin 2 Weeks" (Adam Kelly)

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