Background: The Indus Valley civilization, one of the oldest in the world, dates back at least 5,000 years. Aryan tribes from the northwest invaded about 1500 B.C.; their merger with the earlier Dravidian inhabitants created the classical Indian culture. Arab incursions starting in the 8th century and Turkish in the 12th were followed by those of European traders, beginning in the late 15th century. By the 19th century, Britain had assumed political control of virtually all Indian lands. Indian armed forces in the British army played a vital role in both World Wars. Nonviolent resistance to British colonialism led by Mohandas GANDHI and Jawaharlal NEHRU brought independence in 1947. The subcontinent was divided into the secular state of India and the smaller Muslim state of Pakistan. A third war between the two countries in 1971 resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. Despite impressive gains in economic investment and output, India faces pressing problems such as the ongoing dispute with Pakistan over Kashmir, massive overpopulation, environmental degradation, extensive poverty, and ethnic and religious strife.
April 6th 2008Asia » India » Uttar Pradesh » Varanasi Varanasi 4-6 April 2008
This holiest of holy Indian cities opened our eyes to the spiritual life of this country’s unique population and gave us a great introduction into India’s many fac ... 12 photos[full story]
May 11th 2008Asia » India » Uttar Pradesh » Varanasi Actually, it's not but it made a great title!The only very nasty things are presently a) The overwhelming heat b) Scam merchants scamming away at full scam c) The alleyways full of dung/litter and fli ... 17 photos[full story]
May 10th 2008Asia » India » Uttar Pradesh » Agra Well I originally held off publishing this next blog until I had enough new material, but it now turns out I have more than enough!! In the past month I've been travelling a lot for work, including go ... 30 photos[full story]
May 9th 2008Asia » India » Uttar Pradesh » Varanasi O in my last blog-entry i was just off to Tiannamen Square in Beijing for some May-Day celebrations and to see what all the fuss was about. As i walked out of the subway i could feel the buzz of all t ... [full story]
May 8th 2008Asia » India » Uttar Pradesh » Varanasi Unfortunately, the Andaman's didn't last as long as planned. The weather moved in and turned the paradise into a washout and it was time to go. It was fantastic while it lasted though. I got my Pad ... [full story]
April 29th 2008Asia » India » Uttar Pradesh » Agra We are now starting our tourist part of the trip and we had a tour guide, who took us to see the Red Fort, which is just up river Yamuna from the Taj Mahal, where the early mogul emperors lived in the ... 1 photos[full story]
April 30th 2008Asia » India » Uttar Pradesh » Agra Today we were away at 5.45am to see the sunrise over the Taj Mahal. This was well worth the effort and we saw all the different colours and all the views before it got too busy and too hot. It was alr ... 3 photos[full story]
April 29th 2008Asia » India » Uttar Pradesh » Lucknow I was still not feeling too well and the rest or the group went out into the town to knock on doors and find any children who had not been caught in yesterday's Polio Push. Later in the morning they w ... [full story]
April 14th 2008Asia » India » Uttar Pradesh » Varanasi I'm writing, rather squelchily, from a 42 degree Varanasi, the last stop in the India leg of my journey. It doesn't feel like I have only been in India for 3 months. By that I mean that it feels more ... 21 photos[full story]
April 19th 2008Asia » India » Uttar Pradesh » Agra Jamas arrived on Thursday night. I went to the International Airport and waited for a little over an hour. Jamas' flight was a little late and I waited in a little seated area while mosquitoes swirl ... 57 photos[full story]
Map of India
India's Flag
