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Published: November 11th 2013
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Made my first trip to India in September. I was admittedly a little bit nervous, having heard all of the catch phrases related to travel in India; sensory overload, in your face, overwhelming, depressing, etc. I visited Mumbai, Dehradun, New Delhi, and Bagalore. I don't know that I have the time to go through each city in detail but overall, I absolutely loved it. And because most of my travel is a mix of business and pleasure I don't always have time to see all of the touristy spots. It may sound strange but India reminded me Brazil in many ways. I don't know how many times I have been to Brazil but I think having so much experience there unknowingly prepared me for India.
MUMBAI: I compare this city to Rio de Janiero (minus Copacabana and other famous beaches). It is hot, sticky, on the water, intimidating in some ways, but beautiful. The culture in India is incredible. So many colors, smells (good and bad), and tastes. Like many places, it is a city of extremes. Extreme wealth, and extreme poverty. I stayed at the Trident Bandra Kurla, in the "new" financial district, one block away from the US
Embassy. Security at all hotels in India is a step above any other place I have been in Latin America. Security gates, metal detectors, etc. I have never felt safer in a hotel. Went to a restaurant called Khyber (
www.khyberrestaurant.com), superb. I didn't have any problems with food in India but then again I didn't touch the street food. And I was very strict with my water consumption, which is not usually the case. I only used bottled water, even to brush my teeth. If you want to get sick in India, it is very easy, just eat on the street.
DEHRADUN (Mussoorie): Never been to a place like this in Brazil. One of my favorite spots in India that I visited. Sits at the foot of the Himalayas and is breathtaking. We drove from the airport in small cars to a small mountainside village called Mussoorie. It is my understanding that it was once a very elite weekend destination for the British. Stayed at the Jaypee Residency. Wasn't amazing but it was very cool. The location of this property is hard to beat and the views were incredible. Only ate at the hotel because there weren't many options
with our limited time.
NEW DELHI: I compare this city to Brasilia. It was basically built in the middle of nowhere to be a capital city. Stayed at the Westin Gurgaon (financial district). Very nice property, excellent food, great gym, pool, etc. And I need to say the the service level in all of the hotels was excellent. Hotel staff tend to be very young in my opionion but they are very hard workers and do their best to make sure you have a great stay. Had a weekend here and made the 8-hour roundtrip drive to Agra to see The Taj Mahal. In a word, phenomenal. I have been to some pretty cool places but the visual you get when you walk through the entry gate at this place takes your breath away. And I will also say it was one of the hottest places I have ever been. There was no wind that day and man, it was sticky. The people watching factor at The Taj is reason enough to go but the structure itself it amazing. Not much else to say here. If you get a chance, go. Delhi also has a beautiful airport.
BANGALORE:
Very quick stop here on my way back home but this was my comparison to Sao Paulo. A city that has crazy amounts of people. Traffic, while crazy in general in this country, stepped it up a notch in Bangalore. Non-stop traffic. Stayed at the Hyatt Bangalore. Rooms were very small but the breakfast was great and the service was also very good.
I flew domestically on Jet Airways. No complaints. They served food on every flight, almost always vegetarian, and very tasty. One of my flights was on a brand new 737, probably the newest plane I have every flown on.
Traffic in India is an experience unlike any other. You have to add an extra 45-60 minutes onto every drive because of the traffic factor.
Food was excellent. Again, I stuck to nice restaurants and hotels so I guess I shouldn't be surprised.
Next year I will be adding Kolkata, Madurai, Mahabalipuram, and possibly a pre-India trip to Myanmar. I will let you know how it goes.
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