3 wks-delhi, dharam,amritsar,rajast,agra?

steven_ber

You go south from Amritsar and cross a river after about 60kms, there is a station there, but I can't find ANY of the 3 maps I have of the region.

Makhu or something like that, but I've a feeling the train from that place gets to Bikaner at an awful time.

I've just thought of a way to find out....

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Train information.

steven_ber

Train 9224 - Makhu 15:12, Bikaner 00:45 (2A, SL.)

But I'm sure I can find a better option than that.

steven_ber

Oops, can't find a better option, even taking a bus all the way from Amritsar to Bhatinda doesn't offer a great option, there is an overnight slow train from Bhatinda to Bikaner (SL only), and for others who may be going to Shekhawati, there is an overnight train from Amritsar to Hisar (SL only).

But I can't find anything useful (and time saving) for Amritsar to Bikaner.

There is a late departure from Ambala Cant (then Patiala) (Train 4887&4887A) that gets to Bikaner at 11:10, but you would have to get a train from Amritsar at 18:15 (train 3050) to connect with it.

tacita

steve,

i found the earlier thread and, in a moment of brief infidelity to IM, also found one in...another forum.

it looks like this route has confounded more travelers than me. one tour site i visited appears to cover it by bus for its participants. i dont mind hiring a car, but what a waste of time! i was hoping to do it (or something approximating it) overnight by train, with as few changes as possible. maybe that's just not realistic.

thanks very much for your help, steve, as always.

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tacita

exactly where is makhu relative to amritsar, and how far? i can't seem to find an appropriate map.

actually, this isn't such a bad option, although i would lose the day to travel. but i expected to lose all or most of that day anyway. i could use the train time to write up my trip to that point and not, like my sikkim trip, still not have a trip report 6 months after the fact.

capt_mahajan

http://www.fallingrain.com/world/IN/23/Makhu.html
http://www.bahutbadhiya.com/Punjab/Makhu

and another IM thread, where steven says makhu is 60km from amritsar.

Amritsar - Bikaner - Jaisalmer

and

http://www.google.co.uk/search?sourc...ndiamike%2ecom

tacita

thanks, captain.

the more i work with this itinerary, the clearer it becomes that i can't cover all that ground in rajasthan without being rushed and exhausted. heck, i could lose half a day just trying to get something to eat and find my way to a fort or elsewhere from my hotel!

i simply need to pick fewer cities (how, i don't know), and remember that rajasthan will still be there for a next trip. this sort of leap-frogging was feasible in sikkim, but the distances/time weren't as great, even after you factor in the mountain roads. moreover, there were only one or two sites to see in each town.

as one personal favorite mantra goes: "keep it simple".

capt_mahajan

Yes.

Sikkim covers an area of about 7000 sq km.
Rajasthan, 340,000

machadinha

Anyone have any suggestions on the pros and cons of private cars (time and hassle savers vs. scariness of traffic, etc.)? I never used them so can't really comment. Did plenty of busing and the occasional catching a ride with someone though, both day and night, never bothered me despite a mild collision or two (I think my very first bus did a sloppy overtaking maneuver by daylight. Crashed into the back of the truck involved. Nothing serious however, except for us driving on with glass shards of the windshield flying all about with no one batting an eyelid ), although it could be hard to catch some sleep for fear of every moment being your last. My habit of sitting up front in buses so I could "see something" wasn't helpful here By day it'd mostly be alright with me really, if uncomfy at times (traveling with your head against the roof half the time sitting in the back on lesser mountain roads, etc.)

Many others here seem to have a "no way" approach to it though, so I just don't know.

Janice, a note on Ajmer: Many seem to find it a place to miss & head straight to Pushkar. Passing by there anyway, I really recommend checking out the town. Chishti's tomb is quite an experience, if you can manage some pushy keepers of course. There are one or two ruins of some ancient forts or mosques or whatever, severely dilapidated if they still are, but mildly interesting. There's a pleasant stroll along the lake if there's any water in it (popular picnic spot, it's really quite romantic), and a pleasant little bazaar. Moreover there are blissfully hardly any (Western) tourists for the above reason, if this is still the case. Another sight here I haven't visited but is said to be quite something is an amazingly baroque Jain temple, see http://www.indiamike.com/photopost/s...hp?photo=14566 . Seeing that pic made me hate not having stepped in there.

Anyway, I slept in town for the night then spent the day before busing it to Pushkar at night (short ride) and found it a very pleasing introduction to India, my first stop after the madness that was (or so I found) my arrival in Delhi. Arriving in Pushkar at dusk was likewise ever-so exotic to me btw. The smells and camels and stuff as you ride up the mainstreet, the lake and lit-up temples and religious chanting by night, sitting on your rooftop just observing and chatting to some nice fellow travelers, dogs howling in the distance... Ahhh If you just look past all the hippies and package tourists (nice folks among them, btw, of course), it really has a vibe all of its own. Oh, and do ignore the self-assigned "brahmin priests" by the lake who'll give you a coconut and garland and do some 2-second "puja" with you, then ask you to "pay as you like" -- which needs to be preferably astronomical of course, as proven by a booklet with signatures from happy previous victims to that effect

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jenk

there's a night train from Udaipur to Jaipur now (admittedly with a switch in Kota in the middle of the night) train 2966 - check Indiagroove.

Its supposed to be a bumpy 5-6 hr drive Udaipur to Mt. Abu - cant see much point in doing it that way unless you want to go to Mt. Abu otherwise.

capt_mahajan

Trains are more comfortable. Flights are faster. As for cost, if three or four people are travelling, a car is usually cheaper than the airconditioned class of the train, or flying.

Safety, if you are a decent driver and drive yourself, or if you hire a decent driver.. it is safer than the bus, specially in hilly areas. (Even though folks will tell you that cars get smashed by buses in accidents)

For sheer feel of the country and its size, the countryside, stopping when, where and for how long you want and maximum flexibility, I would take a road journey anyday. It is also far more relaxing. (Provided the roads are ok, which normally means a national highway in India.)

But I must admit I do not look forward now to driving more than 500 km a day ; it is more tiring than the train, and, fortunately, I am not young anymore.

machadinha

I was wondering about that, yes. With trucks and buses and stuff abounding (not to mention stray camels and bullock carts and incoming bicyclists and whatnot), you wouldn't say this is a concern? I can see how you'd have greater maneuverability and (hopefully) concentration and control though (or hopefully your driver would...)

That was my experience yes, on the few occasions I was so happy. I should add this would be with folks who I'd come to consider friends no matter how briefly, which will surely have added to the experience. Taking you to the best dhaba along the way or their friends in some village etc. I assume having a driver who you get along with might be similar. Not if you don't, I imagine

Good point

steven_ber

Go south from Amritsar till you cross the river, Makhu is on the other side, as you can see, it's the only river crossing in a large area, so there should be plenty of buses.

tacita

oy...i'm getting a headache!

this thread's various turns illustrate what i best like about the site, and what i best like about indian culture: it's all about the collective, with everyone willing to generously contribute his or her time or benefits of experience to someone else's issue, large or small. and on IM, no question is ever so small or obscure that it won't garner at least a page or two of replies. often, the "smaller" the issue or inquiry, the greater the number of replies, witness the "bruised cardamom pod" thread!

between the obstacle posed by the amritsar-bikaner connection and the emerging prudence of scaling back on rajasthan sites, i can't help but wonder now whether i should just fly back to delhi from amristsar and start off fresh in rajasthan from the east, rather than from the north.

tacita

and this may not even be true anymore, huh, what with having to arrive at the airport so far in advance of flights to clear security, not to mention the ever-increasing potential for delay as the skies become more and more crowded.

given my druthers, i'd always choose a train or car (unless i'm driving and unable to gaze out the side window, lost in thought...).