Escaping the heat of Hampi, we figured our next best bet would be Mysore. Yet once again, the trains sent us for a loop. With a plan to head over to Hubli a few hours away and connect to a comfy, 2nd class AC car all the way to Mysore, we were set. But the first train arrived minutes after our connecting train left. So we had 24 hours in Hubli. Not a major tourist destination - in fact, not even on most maps - Hubli is a small national buisness hub. But with our amazingly cheap hotel room, and lifted [View Full Entry]

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We headed over to the ruins of Hampi - 14th century capital of one of the greatest empires of the world - are some of the most magnificent in all India; a world-heritage site strewn across a 26 mi. radius hidden amongst gigantic free-standing boulders. The main Hampi Bazaar or market has been re-inhabited by locals in the last few decades in pace with the growing tourism. We decided to stay away from the bustling market-side and across the Tungabhadra river, reachable only by a motorboat crossing which closes at 6pm everyday. Our first hotel was airy and lush, with manicured [View Full Entry]

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Patnem Beach happened to us as a stroke of luck. After the sauna-circus we came out to discover that we'd missed the last bus to Gokarna, and so decided to just head to Palolem/Patnem. On the way, we overheard a conversation with a young ex-pat who seemed to know the area, and directed us towards quieter Patnem, as well as the cheapest of beach huts... This is basically how we ended up for the next 5 days at "Bonkers" . This beach shack hosted some fantastic multi-cuisine in a laid back, easy-going atmosphere with some of the best service we'd found [View Full Entry]

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After 2+ weeks kickin' it with le hippies in Arambol, we finally decided it time to mosey on South. . . We figured Anjuna must be worth a look, since it is the infamous party-spot of infamous party-Goa. But, as we'd been warned, it really was a stain compared to our first experience - sprawling concrete "beach huts" and restaurants lined the beach, which was actually mostly rock anyway. The crowd we saw in our day there was mainly Russian, and generally not much to look at. We were sick at the time, so didn't feel like floundering around for a [View Full Entry]

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Leaving Bombay turned out to be a bit like trying to enter the Pentagon with a turban on... We headed to the beautiful VT Terminal, 2nd flr, Booth #54, where we were assured to be able to book the "tourist quota" tickets that the Indian Govt. leaves open for impressional foreigners like ourselves - but after waiting in line for over 45 minutes we came to the window to be informed that the trains were full (of tourists like us) for the next week - But gloriously, they reassured us, 16 hour sleeper buses were available. Arranging one of these turned [View Full Entry]

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Back to Bombayyyy, we headed, after a terribly short stay in beautiful Matheran. But such is the travellers burden, as we'd planned to meet up with Lex's good friend Alex. Sadly, it fell through; we'd both been looking forward to his arrival. In anycase, a few more days in flashy Mumbai! We ended up crashing in Colaba, a prime central location in the vast metropolis and the cheapest place to stay amongst other backpackers... Lex and I arrived, exhausted as usual, to find that the cheap & clean Red Cross hostel was full~ so we continued looking along Arthur Bundur Rd. [View Full Entry]

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When we had finally seen the magestic Ellora Ajanta caves, we knew it was time at last to head to Mumbai, or as I've been told, more properly still called Bombay~ Yet this rustlebustle city is still by far the most expensive in India, so we sought a refuge from the city for a few days - within easy reach - but a relaxing spot where we could await the arrival of Lex's best friend, Alex... And we found Matheran. Considered the most picturesque of the Hill Stations in Mahareshtra, this little town called to us~ we hopped a local train [View Full Entry]

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After a long chill out in Varanasi, we trained on ahead to the glorious caves of Ajanta and Ellora. My second time here, sure, but definately worth a second round- and not to be missed by any artist in India, especially Alexis~ We arrived on an overnight/overcrowded sleeper train in the morning in Jalgaon where we then jumped aboard a local bus for the rickety ride to the hidden horseshoe shaped cliffs of Ajanta. In the blaring heat of the winter sun, and with Lex barely able to walk from exhaustion, we stumbled in, paid the admission (the usual 250 Rupees [View Full Entry]

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Arriving in Varanasi from Delhi was like taking a gasp of fresh air after holding your breath for a tic too long... Somehow, defying the dreary expectations of our book, we found an amiable rikshaw driver who took us to a comfortable and cheap hotel with a pleasant rooftop restaurant not far from the ghats; our cute room hosted a private bath, pink walls (even a roll of pink toilet paper!), and even included a sizeable balcony. Our first day we hired a priavate rowboat to tour of the surprising breadth of the ghats - various platforms and stairs that decend [View Full Entry]

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As one not so often has the chance to explore india, and as one would generally do everything in one's power to get the hell out of delhi and never be there again, we decided it important that Lex get to see the mighty Taj Mahal. The same driver who'd picked us up from the airport, Shambu, ended up being our escort for this day. We got up fairly early and so when we finally arrived in Agra some 5 hours after we'd left, we were famished and in need of sustainance. Yet our driver was absolutely determined to show us [View Full Entry]

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