The Toy Train, a loss-making heritage line, still uses these narrow-gauge and uncomfortable carriages. The train is hauled by a diesel engine these days, not steam alas.
Off to join the Raj in their summer capital March 9th 2013 We'd spent yesterday amid the clamour and cacophony of Delhi's characterful monuments and charismatic markets (see A capital with a capital 'C').
At five o'clock this morning, a more different view could hardly be imagined.
There was only the merest hint of daylight. There was a chill in the air. There were no buzzing tuk-tuks, no honking horns, not even a background hum of traffic. ... read more
Asia » India » Himachal Pradesh » Shimla 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 in... ... read more
Once upon a time, I was something important in the UK travel industry, where I spent more than 35 years of my working life roaming the globe at someone else's expense. So, if you dream of living overseas on less than 10 Dollars a day, be warned: I'm an experienced, mature traveller - not a backpacker. You won't find stories here about me thumbing my way across the Sahara, slumming it in cockroach-infested hostels, or sharing a room with giant mosquitoes!
Oh, and I'm British - so you can expect a stiff upper lip in times of adversity and a sense of humour that's often not understood by other... full info