India A to Z

Here's how to spend your time on the sub-continent:

A
start an Anokhi addiction and shop for gorgeous hand block printed clothes and linens.
watch Aarakshan, a Hindi socio-political film about caste based reservations in education.
get an Ayurvedic treatment in Kerala. 
B
eat some Burfis - pista, badam, kesar, pick your sweet. 
join the crew on a Bollywood film set in the caves at Badami. 
watch Bharatanatyam at a temple in Chennai. 
peel a Banana or feed one to a temple monkey.
C
ride a Caracol across a river. 
cringe at the boy hacking open your Coconut with a machete for the nutritious and refreshing water inside.
D
explore Delhi by speedy metro and avoid the traffic.  
Dosai for breakfast, lunch and dinner. 
E
ride, feed or help wash an Asian Elephant at a sanctuary.
F
where are all the Fakirs? 
read Five Point Someone by Chetan Bhagat for a good laugh (and a bit of a cry) at students attending India's well regarded engineering institution. 
peel the banana leaf off a Keralan Fish Curry.
G
feel the spirit of Ghandi-ji. 
break the cycle of reincarnation by taking a dip in the Ganges.
skip big hotels and feel at home at Tree of Life Guesthouse in Delhi. 
admire the Gopurams in a South Indian temple.
H
stay with the friendliest and most accommodating hosts at Fort Cochin's Daffodil Homestay. 
climb boulders, take in the gorgeous view of rice fields, and marvel in the legacy of the Vijayanagar empire at Hampi. 
leave it all behind and savor the quiet and green on a backwater Houseboat off Kumarakom or Allepey.  
HONK!
I
start the day with Idlis, sambar and chutney.
J
look out for freshly fried, toothache sweet, glowing orange Jalebis.
K
stare at Saif Ali Khan (yum) or be bombarded by billboards of the king of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan. 
end a meal with a sweet, creamy Kulfi. 
blend in by wearing a Kurta with some salwar pants or churidar.  
get your Kama Sutra on at Khajuraho.
L
offer Rs10 or some grass to temple elephant Lakshmi and get blessed. 
cool off the chilies with a sweet or salty Lassi.
M
Malayalam, is it the only language in the world that's a palindrome? 
listen to the excellent Mehranghar Fort and museum audio guide and shop for quality local products in their gift shop.
N
wear Anokhi's flattering-on-anyone Nehru tunic. 
rip off a piece of buttery, cheesy Naan. 
place a garland on a Nandi.
O
say OK in Hindi - aacha, Malayalam - shedi, Tamil - sari.
P
cure your sinus troubles with a Panchakarma treatment. 
eat stuffed Parathas and fresh Papayas. 
chew on some Paan.
Q
drink Qua, the most expensive bottled water from the Himalayas - Rs 50 for a 200ml bottle.

R
scoop up your saag with nearly transparent Roomali Rotis. 
live like a queen and splurge on a night at Roopanghar palace and fort. 
hop on the Indian Railways for a ride away from the smog and noise.

S

drink a fresh, sweet lime Soda. 
run your fingers through a Mysore Silk, a simple Keralan cotton, or chiffon Sari in any market or silk emporium or just buy one and have a tailor custom make you some western styles. 
suck on the fruit and then spit out the seeds of a Seethaphal.

T
say Thank You in Hindi - dhany wad, Urdu - shukrya, Malayalam - nani, Tamil - nandri and Kannada - wanda ne golo. 
get around town in a Tuk-tuk. 
indecisive about what to eat? order a Thali and have a little of everything.

U
make a bee-line to the beautifully painted rooms at the palace or the lake view in Udaipur.

V
wander through the dung and sadhu-filled streets, sit and contemplate at the ghats, or people watch in Varanasi.

W
read Aravind Adiga's White Tiger, a dark tale of growing up on one side of the social ladder but ending up on the other.

X
go to a fancy shopping mall or take the metro but be prepared to get frisked and place your bags through the X-ray machine.

Y
strike a morning Yoga asana with Surya Namaskara.

Z
adopt a lion or an elephant for Rs 100,000 at the Mysore Zoo.


It's no exaggeration, India IS incredible!

Hampi Rocks

Maybe it was all the temple visits making me feel religious and fated to not get there. In addition, I was getting in one of my "I'm-sick-of-traveling-and-being-a-tourist" moods and had no more motivation to plan and arrange transport, hotels and things to see.  After purchasing wait listed train tickets, then only getting one seat, attempting to purchase bus tickets but the internet at the tourism office was down, and finally giving up on public transport and sucking it up by hiring a car to get there, we eventually got to Hampi. As usual, in hindsight, I'm glad we made the long trip there because it is another one of those spectacularly, unique places that is in grave danger of being transformed as we speak and will probably not be the same on the next visit. But more about that later.

We also got what we had been missing throughout India (with the exception of Kerala), breathtaking nature. Here is the best of both worlds: the vast Vijayanagara empire (1336 to 1565) of temples, monolithic statues, palaces and systems of water collection engineered from cut stone; running along side it, the Tungabhadra river; and all throughout - a landscape scattered with boulders and emerald-green rice fields to break up the greys, browns and oranges. 

Virupaksha Temple

Snuggling with a monolithic Ganesh

At the Vittala complex, the centerpiece is a lovely chariot with wheels that formerly turned. The central temple itself has large stone pillars with thin columns carved within and the usual set of dancers and characters of the Hindu pantheon.

Then there's the sprawling royal enclosure with its Arab-influenced arched hall, a step well, several pavilions with detailed carvings of royal life and the Ramayana told on a wall enclosing a temple.

Details of the king's pavilion above

Ramayana in stone

If the main 25 sq km site is not big enough for you, head over to the other side of the river (also part of the Hampi World Heritage site), Anegundi. If you thought Hampi was gorgeous, it gets even better here! It's much less touristy and with The Kishkinda Trust, it's doing a great effort in empowering local people socially and economically while preserving its cultural and architectural heritage. We met up with its fierce and relentless director, Shama who provided us with a guide for the town.  After lunch, at her beautiful home next to the river, she treated Alex to a custom painted bindi.

 We opted to stay in the characterful, backpacker-y, scruffy, cow filled area known as the Hampi Bazaar. If you're looking for creature comforts, you won't find them. Basic, family guesthouses are the rule rather than the exception. Foodwise, head to the street for the great eats like gundpangala, dosai, and India's version of the munchkin - all served with a healthy dallop of spicy, coconut chutney. 

Gopi Guesthouse

Gundpangala, poori and chutney, aka breakfast!

Indian smoutebolle

But Hampi is undergoing some controversial change these days. Since residents in the main bazaar area live within the stone temples, they are beginning to be forced out of their homes, livelihoods and transferred to a resettlement area away from Hampi proper, all in the name of preservation. Skeptics believe it's a ploy by the government to bring development (read: fancy, expensive hotels and shops) to the area. Here are what the streets look like today but they may look very different in the near future. 

Fancy fountain fun

In the Silicon Valley of India there is also LA. We stayed in the Beverly Hills of Bangalore: UB City. Here's where the IT wealth gets spent. Haute couture, expensive restaurants and pricey lodging. The best free thing (and the most fun): the fountain.

Mysore, No Eyesore

Our final state in India: Karnataka. (At least, for this trip.) Upon arriving, we visited Marc's friend Pavi in Bangalore. She was in her 38th week of pregnancy, looking like she literally swallowed a watermelon, but had as much energy as Alex. It was a relief to come over and then have a home cooked Indian meal. Being Keralan, she and her auntie prepared some delicious curried lamb, veggies and wholesome red rice!

As the Silicon Valley of India, you can indulge in the most authentic international cuisines. And you'll pay for it too. We splurged on sushi and a bacon beef burger. (Yes, the sacred cow, medium rare, please, and slap some greasy, fried pig on top of it!)

Green, green, green with lots of parks and gardens throughout the city. However, there wasn't much else for us to see or do, so we headed out of the green to keep some green in our wallets. Back on my favorite of all trains, the Shatabdi Express headed to Mysore. Mysore, like Bangalore, has stretches of big, wide, tree-lined streets. The difference, less traffic and more beautiful, older buildings. 

Hit the Devaraja market (because one can never get enough colorful market action and it's the best cheap touristy thing to do)...

Reminds me of Dutzi bags

Chew on these

Hot!

Grate some of the fruit below with these

Wouldn't be India without a cow

More floral temple offerings

Jaggery for the ultra-sweet Mysorepak.

Plastic woven bags

...visit the palace interiors by day...

...and watch it light up like a Christmas tree on the weekends by dark...

...and pay a visit to some caged (but well taken care of) fauna at the Mysore Zoo.

Week old dholes

White tiger. Forget any wild sightings. This is the best we got.