India

Heritage villas with shaded courtyards turned to hotels and restaurants, catholic churches of immaculate conception dotting the lanes, unending beach strip with sand the color of silver and alcohol available at prices lower than rest of India: well, that could be the tourist giant and party haven, Goa. But lack of shacks by the water or people drinking in public and absence of sun bathing European vacationers or jet skiing Indian weekenders makes it the intimate and cosy, authentic and honest, Pondicherry. It amazes me what Pondicherry could have been – the decadent French speaking town, smugged at its history of having served a colonial power thats not English and a popular beachside getaway close to a big city; much like its alter ego on the other coast of India. But its not. Its better. The roads are not clogged with SUVs driving down from Mumbai, the prices don’t shoot up here on the drop of a hat; the locals are shy but polite and the food has both taste and character. The city was divided into two parts on racial terms: one, the French designed, ocean front “white” town and then on the other side of a giant canal, the Tamil quarter. On either side you see sites emblematic of two cultures very diverse but yet influencing each other. While, the French part feels like small island of history, an open air museum with an air of abandonment and nostalgia of era gone by, the town on the other side continues to move at the speed of any other regular Indian town. The street names are in French, the police still wear French caps called kepis, restaurants serve French cuisine making Pondicherry the easiest place to find croissant in India. However, there is no denying that beyond the white …

Niranjan is passionate about travel, be it long bike rides or treacherous trekking or leisure holidaying or backpacking through the countryside or an engrossing train journey. He dreams of setting foot on every single country on planet earth and meeting adorable strangers and learning new cultures. You can read about his travels at http://www.talesofanomad.com Follow him on Twitter or Facebook  We asked him what are the 3 places every traveler must visit in India? Here is what he said. #1 Gokarna-  Besides the very popular Om beach, Gokarna is a hippie’s haven. With beach treks, secluded beaches, shacks and absolutely nothing to do, this tiny fishing hamlet lures travellers like no other. Laze, walk and enjoy the lovely sunsets over the five beaches that Gokarna boasts of. Two of those beaches are approachable only by boat or by trek. How awesome is that? #2Varanasi-  Varanasi is all about the 3 Gs- the alluring Ganges, the languorous Ghats and the intriguing Gallis (alleyways). Add to it, the chaos, the temple bells and hymns, the famous ganga arti, the sadhus, the numerous temples, the boats, the kulhad chai, the paan and what you get is a cocktail of culture, religion, people and beliefs. Isn’t this more than enough to lure any traveller to the world’s oldest continuously inhabited city? Varanasi can be infectious and there aren’t many who would like to part with the city once they fall for its charm. #3 Varkala- Red laterite cliffs against blue background makes for a terrific landscape in Varkala. Arguably one of the best beaches in the country, Varkala beach is well maintained, attracts hordes of foreign tourists and do not be surprised if you find yourself to be the only Indian out there. With numerous cafes atop the cliff, it is absolutely blissful to stare at the blue …

We may not have electricity tomorrow, hence. Is it the high-altitude and the weather that makes everything taste good in Ladakh!!! We gave you 9 reasons to head to Ladakh this summer, if you are still not convinced, here are some great places to eat that will convince of all the great stuff you are missing. #1 Pumpernickel German Bakery Owned by a Sardarji, it has the freshest bakes. So much so that anything leftover is thrown into trash (saw with my own eyes). The most delicious apple crumble We’ve ever had, sink into apple heaven! #2 Tibetan Kitchen Perhaps the best Tibetan food in the city called ‘Little Lhasa’. Try their momos & exotic sounding nutrition filled Ladakhi dishes. The ambience of the mountains is an added charm and so is the sha-bakleb. #3 La Pizzeria This place with a chilled out feel seems to have perfected the art of making sumptuous Italian fare.Their speciality are the thin-crust wood fired pizzas. The funghi pizza is a delight. If you are lucky you might be treated to an impromptu guitar performance by fellow diners.   #4 Desert Rain Real coffee. Enough Said   #5 Lala’s Art Cafe Situated in the dilapidated old part of Leh, getting here is walking through centuries of history. The walk up to the stairs will be fully rewarded when you are having the bake of the day and freshly brewed coffee. #6 Chopsticks The most chic restaurant in Leh, beautifully lit and with indoor seating. It does a good job with noodles and stir fried veggies. But their Pad Thai is the clear winner. #7 Dreamland Restaurant A trusted traveller favourite for delectable Indian food and curries. You can try the mouth-watering butter chicken or the vegetarian dishes on offer. #8 Mentokling Apple Garden Restaurant Always …

About 18kms northeast of Narkanda is the little village of Kotgarh. Situated just off the old Hindustan-Tibet road, it is where the apple-farming revolution of Himachal originated. Mostly the entire villagers are Orchardist. The Fruiting season starts may onwards and the commonly sighted fruits are Plums / Apricots / Prunes / Strawberries / Peaches / Pears but the main crop on which the livelihood of the orchardist is the Apple crop. The Season for Apple Blossom in this valley is from August till middle of September. The entire valley is laden with these jewels making it no less than the “GARDEN OF EDEN”. We recommend visiting Kotgarh either enroute to Spiti Valley, infact its better on the way back since you will be super tired. And it is a perfect weekend getaway from Delhi, actually try and spare at least 3 days. Driving Time from Shimla is approximately 2hrs. There aren’t too many options for staying at Kotgarh, and you don’t want to keep running around asking villages if you can stay with them. We highly recommend staying at Apple Tree Cottage  They run a nice tour called ‘Apple Blossom Tour’ which is a guided one where an expert Agriculturist walks along with the group and educates them about the various varieties of apples the participants will also are taught how grafting of trees happens to produce this magnificent fruit, followed by how plucking is undertaken in the orchards along with Apple Grading and packing. There are seperate areas which are earmarked for the guests to engage in plucking of the fruit in guidance of expert pluckers. If your idea of a vacation is too spend some relaxing time and the only noise you hear is of birds chirping and your breathing than visiting this valley is a perfect vacation choice. The …

After you visit the Golden Temple, and do eat the Langar served in the Gurudwara premises. Now start wandering in the lanes of Amritsar, you would hardly find any nook and corner of devoid of great food. A heaven for food lovers, Amritsari Cuisine offers a variety of dishes. Here are our top 7 that will leave you craving for more and more. We love the food so much in Amritsar that we dare anyone to find non – tasty food here. Kesar da dhaba (at chowk Passian)-Maah di daal (lentil)+ lachedar parantha +kheer & Phirni sweet dish and other Indian veg meals.One of the oldest food joints and economical too. Amritsari Kulcha–Most of the Amritsari people start their day with this. Originated in Punjab,Kulcha is made with flour dough with stuffing of boiled mashed potato,onion, baked in earthen clay oven.Butter is spread over and served with spicy chole (chickpea curry) and chutney of tamarind, jaggery & onion.served at Kulche wale near Golden temple, Chungi ( maqbool road). Gyan Singh’s Punjabi Lassi (Hathi gate)- has been serving for past 70 years a lip smacking lassi,a tower glass around 500 ml topped with malai (cream) & white butter.  Ahuja Lassi near Hindu College serves ‘Kesar Lassi’ (saffron lassi). It is healthy and a refreshing drink ! Sarson Da Saag & Makki Di Roti- It is Punjab’s trademark food.Nearly every house or village of Punjab, gives a hospitable treatment to their guests by serving this dish. Prepared from mustard & spinach greens while makki roti is rolled out of a dough of makki ka atta (corn flour). Lots of Makhan (butter) adds to the richness and taste. Try this dish at Bharawan da Dhaba (Town Hall) Amritsari fish– The fried fish is one of the popular food items. Prepared by coating fish fillets with …

Imagine 15 different cuisines within a radius of 3km, and all of them equally good and reasonably priced at about 200 per person. You must certainly be in Food Heaven. Look no further, and head to Mcleodganj for your next trip. From Indian to Tibetan to Israeli,  Italian, Japanese, Korean,  it has everything.  Here are the top 15 that you just cannot afford to miss. A trip to mcleodganj is justified even if you come here just to EAT.   THAI FOOD AND BHAGSU CAKES– Missing Thai Food after your last visit to Bangkok, or wondering what is in-store for you on your first visit to Thailand. Head to ‘Tom Yam’ restaurant in Upper Bhagsu, and treat yourself to some find Thai Food, almost at the same prices as what you pay in Thailand. Try their spicy chicken Salad, Pad Thai and pick one of the noodle soups. And they have a huge Dog called Dollar, make sure you get a picture with him. Their ‘BHAGSU CAKES’ are certainly the best in town; we went in for two and ended up eating six. THIN-CRUST PIZZA – This tiny town makes some of India’s best pizzas. If you prefer thin crust with awesome views, then head to ‘Out of the Blue’ in Dharamkot. It is close to the place where the taxi’s or autorickshaws will drop you in Dharamkot.  Try the siciliana pizza, or ask them to make a special one with olives, mushrooms, eggplant and capsicum. THICK-CRUST PIZZA– If you prefer the thicker crust, then you should look for Unity Bistro in Upper Bhagsu. Reach Bhagsu, and then walk up Bhagsu Hill, You should be able to see this place on your left, when you reach the top of Bhagsu Hill. It’s pretty famous, ask around and people will point it …

We asked Bijoy, the cool bespectacled Travel Editor of Yahoo India, the three places one must see in India. He had nothing but the unseen, untalked of hideouts away from the beaten tourist trail on his list. So, here are his unique three picks of places not to be missed in India. Follow his footsteps to the three musts sees of India.   1) Meghamalai in Tamil Nadu One reason to love this place is that it’s soo off the beaten track (and that track is really, really weather-beaten). Only the most hardened travelers make a road trip there. I did it on assignment and, once up there, it was worth every bit of trouble taken. One of the most pristine wilderness habitats I have seen, this hill station in the High Wavy hills of the southern Western Ghats has nothing up there but a remote and aloof tea garden run by some very lonely managers who will give anything for a conversation over endless cups of locally grown tea. The Wood Briar group runs two plantation stays here and both are beautiful but a little pricey. Things to do: Enjoy a plantation tour, pick oranges (in season), take a nature walk, or just gaze at the clouds doing their little dance on the waters of the reservoirs.   2) Kutch, Gujarat I was lucky to experience Kutch in winter. Being a birder, I was after treasured sightings of the feathered kind. However, Kutch turned out to be so much more. The geology — extinct volcanoes, seasonal river beds and the acres of bare salt marsh — was otherworldly. We visited ancient temples, shopped for textiles, crafts and silver, listened to retired traders from Kenya and Tanzania converse in Swahili, gorged on some scrumptious vegetarian fare, had intimate encounters with …

Mcleodganj and Manali are the two most popular Himalayan traveller hotspots of Himachal Pradesh. We have spent a lot of time at both and can’t pick one over the other BUT Here are 5 things which Mcleodganj has but Manali does not. 1. Cakes and Coffee : We know there are too many German Bakeries in Manali but they all taste the same, its like the same person bakes all the cakes overnight and sends them across to all the German Bakeries in Manali. Whereas in Mcleodganj every Cafe, bakery will have its own selection of cakes and each one of them are something to die for. 2. Tibetan Buddhist Monks : The Dalai Temple reigns over the area lending it an environment of peace and quiet. 3.  Smaller Hamlets : There are so many tiny hamlets scattered around Dharamshala that you can easily trek between them, and find your own quiet spots. Trust us there are so many walks and hikes already, you could walk those or devise your own. 4. Dharamkot – A Huge Mountain : It is a part of Mcleodganj and yet a seperate entity in itself. If you want to beat the crowds, and get a hippie feel, you should head here. 5. Amazing momos : there are so many varieties of momo’s available here that you are spoilt for choice.

Tabo is the next pretty town on your way after Nako. Very few people take a diversion to Geu , where a 15th century mummy was found by ITBP soldiers and has become the pride of the locals now. They also claim that the hair and nails of the mummy are growing even today. We missed Geu due to unforeseen circumstances. But we did not miss Tabo and it is a place you shouldn’t miss either. Most people coming here spend one night where they hurry up to see the monastery and head off to Kaza. If not two nights then at least spend proper 24hrs in this gem of a town, you can tick the following things off your list while you are there. #Things to do 1. Tabo Monastery : Undoubtedly the most famous and most beautiful monastery in the entire region, the old buildings were made of mud in 995AD and are still standing strong. In the inner walls you have numerous paintings which have gained Tabo the name ‘ Ajanta of the Himalayas’. 2. Caves : The real Ajanta caves have a date when they were carved into stone, the caves in Tabo have been there since time immemorial. It is the said owing to these natural caves people first settled in this town. 3. Tashi Delek / Hike to Lama’s abode: A 87 year old Tibetan Lama lives in solitude for the last 20yrs 3-4 kms away from the villages, he has stayed in other monasteries in India before moving here about  1990. His daily necessities are taken care by the villagers. There is a bridge between Tabo and the previous village ‘Lari’. Just get off the bus at ‘Lari’ and anyone around, they will guide you. If they cannot understand Lama/ Hermit, simply ask for ‘Tashi Delek’. From …