India Travel Adventure Photographer.
It could be said in one sentence: if you have not experienced India as if you have not even lived 😊.
After Sri Lanka, I was again attracted to that East, that diversity, that culture. I pack my bags, bought a ticket and head to India. In fact the incentive for my friend and I to go was that we had met a wonderful married couple from India a year earlier in Thailand and made friends. At their invitation we set off on the roads of India, we were supposed to see them in Goa, however they had to cancel socializing due to business commitments so unfortunately we didn’t see them but that doesn’t mean we won’t go back there again 😊.
The plan was familiar to India as well as Sri Lanka “go with the flow” but this friend from India advised us that we might prefer to take the agency since we are two women alone on the road. And so we decide for one global agency where we found ourselves with people from other parts of the world in New Delhi as a starting point and embarked on an unforgettable journey. I would just like to mention that in India at no time I didn’t feel insecure, on the contrary people were so kind and hospitable that I was left speechless. The point: take a backpack and set out to explore India on your own 😊.
And now I will immediately tell you an example of hospitality and we have not even touched Indian soil:
On the flight Dubai – Delhi, a kind Indian Kunal, who works for Lufthansa and is returning from a business trip from Frankfurt, sat next to us. We start a conversation, he introduces us to Indian culture, writes our names in Hindi and offers us to take the subway to our hotel when we land (he paid for our metro tickets cause we didn’t exchange the money). He lives a few kilometers from the hotel. It seemed serious and confidential. His dad cameto pick him up and they took us from the subway to the hotel 😄. They were waiting for us to make sure we are at the right address and Kunal inviteed us to dinner the next day to meet his wife as well. As we already had plans, we had to politely decline him and thank him for the invitation.
New Delhi
New Delhi is a city we haven’t stayed in for long. We were there exactly one day 😊. A city of millions of people, very polluted air, traffic jam is what I remember from Delhi. But we managed to visit a beautiful temple where, unfortunately, photography was forbidden, so those photos remained permanently stored in my brain. But if you want to see that temple what to say but: India is calling.
On the way to the airport for Varanasi we had time and opportunity to visit the Sikh temple. I used their beautiful turbans in different colors to make one photosession.
Varanasi
A city that simply must be experienced. Not by its beauty but by its culture. After the traffic chaos that is characteristic of India due to the amount of people and cars we came to the hotel.
That evening there was a procession in which they celebrated some of their festivals (what I realized is that in India every now and then there are some processions, celebrations that thrilled me). We took a private tour to see the cremation ceremony on the Ganges river. Honestly, I never thought it would be something wow but Varanasi is known for this so it’s something you can’t miss. We boarded a small boat and watched from the river that flame while creamtion ceremony started at the oldest ghat in Varanasi. One of the interesting things was that 5 types of people were not cremated:
1. pregnant women – because unborn children did not come to this world with their souls
2. children younger than 10 – because they are not yet aware of the meaning of life
3. people who have died from a cobra bite – because they believe that this venom is transmitted by burning through the air
4. people suffering from lepra
5. monks – because they are holy people and have an automatic path to eternity, that is, they will no longer reincarnate).
There is another interesting story about a father and son who would did not realize the simplicity and lesson of life until the father’s death, and the father had only one wish: to put on a sock with which to burn him. He was told that he could not have a sock on his leg because he had not come into this world with it. The point of the story, which is very instructive, is that you came into the world empty-handed and that you will leave empty-handed. Neither money nor all the wealth of the world can help you here, so you should enjoy every day and appreciate the little things because both the rich and the poor eventually die the same way and go to another world – without anything.
The next day, early in the morning we set off again with our guide to experience the dawn on the Ganges river. And I have to admit it was an ingenious experience. Peace, quiet, new day.
Totally different from the previous evening where it was celebrated until morning. You definitely won’t come to Varansi and admire the architecture, but it is a city that you must visit. They say that people come there to die because they consider it the holiest place of Hindus. Hindus bathing in the Ganges river so they clean their sins. Somehow it did not occur to me to bathe in the Ganges, let me carry my sins with me 😊.
Agra
Remember that agency from the beginning of the story 😊? This is where our journey with them begins. We arrive in Agra, a city known for the Taj Mahal. There is no end to my excitement. Taj Mahal. Something I saw in the documentaries is now in front of me. I feel like I’m dreaming. The story behind Taj Mahala is as follows: a husband (a warrior who heard the news somewhere on the battlefield that his pregnanat wife was dying) managed to reach her before she went to another world. She was pregnant with her 14th child. He promised her that he would never marry other women, that he would take care of all the children and that he would build her a mausoleum to which the whole world would come to admire, all as a sign of too much love for her. I have to admit my eyes watered.
Jaipur
Our next destination is Jaipur. There we visit the Amber Fort which is surrounded by 8km of stone wall. The sun is scorching, it’s 100 C in the air outside but we don’t give up. It’s time for a little cultural uplift.
We meet people from the group we travel with and it becomes more and more interesting. Our new friend becomes Carlesha from the USA, to whom we offered a fine homemade rakija (brandy) and she was delighted. We Balkans do not travel anywhere without rakija 😊 (and especially to countries where our stomachs are not used to food).
The next morning we head towards Tordi Sagar, one of the villages inhabited by their poorest caste. If you didn’t know there are castes in India (I won’t write about them now because there will be 100 page text).
Mostly the village was full of children and we are of course always the main attraction for taking photos of. But there I also took a couple of photos and one of them won the 1st prize in a photo contest and I was really happy and proud.
1st prize photo
The kid in the picture had lice, just like the whole village(that we heard during the tour). What to say, each city has its own story and its own anecdote but that is the essence of travel.
Pushkar
After Varanasi also a holy city for Hindus. A city where drinking alcohol is forbidden and meat is not eaten. It would be said to be an ideal place for detailed detoxification 😊. Both bodies and souls. Because that’s exactly what that city is for. The only thing that would really suit a beer in the late warm evening hours but none of that. One of the interesting things I heard there is taht camel is synonym for love because if you can love a camel, you can love anyone 😊. Interesting, right ;)?
Udaipur
One of my favorite cities, they don’t call it Venice of the East for no reason.
After sightseeing the city we enter a shop of all kinds of carvings with an Indian pattern and there we met our new friend Piyush (as I said India is full of amazing people).
His mom prepares us the finest lunch in the world and we spend a few hours hanging out with them and getting to know them and their culture. What an unexpectedly beautiful day. The funniest moment was when Piyush and I took a selfie and he sent it to friends in America telling them that Pink had entered his store. Of course, these people went crazy and fell for the trick and afterwards we couldn’t convince them that it wasn’t the real Pink but just me who looks like her. But there are so many anecdotes in my life when I go out of Croatia. I give autograms, I take photos with people purely to cheer them up when they already think I’m Pink.
Walking through Udaipur we stumbled upon an Indian wedding and it was a cool experience to watch.
Then I thought how cool it would be to take a photos of an Indian wedding. I still want that and I hope that one day I will go there to take photos of the wedding because there are so many beautiful locations that it makes you think.
Mumbai
After Udaipur we took the night train to Mumbai with a passing station in Ahmedabad where we visited Ghandi’s house. The night train experience in India is something you have to experience. When they turned on the air conditioning at 15 C I froze. I put everything I could on myself but it didn’t help.
And here we are in Mumbai. A city where you can’t see end of it. About 20 million inhabitants. Simply wow. At that time another festival (I did not mention 3 more festivals before but as I said in India it is celebration every day ). This time it was the Holy Festival. The craziest experience I have ever had. Throwing color powder everywhere. So my tip here is to wear clothes you want to rid of it ;).
This time it was the Holy Festival. The craziest experience I have ever had. Powder shooting in colors.
Goa
At the end of the trip we were greeted by Goa. Vacation for body and soul on the sandy beaches of Goa. A place to party, although I have to admit after 3 weeks of insane sightseeing in India there is not much strength left for some crazy parties part.
I could still write for hours about India but I have to leave something for you who are reconsidering whether to go there or not. My advice is to break that in yourself and GO. And be sure to bring rakija (brandy) with you because then the fun is guaranteed without intestinal and stomach problems ;). The food is phenomenal, the people are hospitable and what can I say but: India we see each other again on another occasion.
India Travel Adventure Photographer
