South itinerary

volga_volga

i should be able to take next week off and i am desperately in need to switch off from work and get away from Delhi for a while

i am thinking of going down South as i heard so many good things about "gentle" India... but i wouldn't want to spend too much on flights etc

so i am thinking:

flying Delhi to Cochin
moving around Cochin/in Kerala in the direction of Mysore
spending some time in Mysore
taking a train back from Bangalore to Delhi via Mumbai

i would be able to leave Sat night/Sunday and would need to get back to Delhi on Saturday night/Sun morning a week later

originally planned to go to Bodhgaya but i recon by the end of this week i will be looking for a break not for a challenge (is that OK to change travel plans? :-))))))

Volga

beach

Varkala (beach)?
Munnar (hillstation)?

Has anyone visited the Golden Hills near Trivandrum??

AvidTrekker

South India is at least more of the "original" India. Less hassles for everything. (Of course ALL tourist traps have touts.... this you cant avoid..... smile at all of them & keep walking). Ladies are given "seats" in Public buses. Most of the small centres see practically "NIL" "foreign-females-harassed".

Make a rough itinerary, else you will get carried away. Take the Rajdhani Express one-way (whichever) & so on.

The Kerala-Tamilnadu border has the lovely British-Raj Hill Stations. Coonoor is "least touristed". Kodaikanal is quite "English" in many ways. Ooty is popular & tourist-overrun. The border has many jungle lodges & treks good for wild-animal viewing. February is a very good time to "visit" cuz the children are preparing for their annual exams, train tickets are very easily available, most places offer "off-season" discounts(in person, not internet) and of course, the heat, though started, isn't oppressive yet.

Kerala of course, is so popular(foreign-tourist-wise) that I need not mention much, you probably have read more than most about Kerala. Some of the temples in Kerala are very old & antique & own pet elephant/s. Many foreign tourists miss these because there are many "other" things "to do".

Mysore is not in this "circuit" unless you are catching a return train via Bangalore. Better to return via Cochin/Ernakulam. Make a separate circuit out of "Goa-Hampi-Bangalore-Mysore-Tirupati" etc. A week's time is not enough. But then you are the master, you decide what you want to see.

South Indian breakfasts are the very best. I could feast on Dosas for the rest of my life every morning(In Delhi, dosas are avlbl, but not a patch on the real thing.... when in Rome, eat what the Romans eat...... in Delhi you eat Aalu Paraathaa+dahi).

Most places in S. India put more chillies (in everything). Just taste a wee bit with a small spoon, dont put the spoon back into the main dish if you wanna return it.(it becomes "polluted", it cant be taken back, you will be billed for it) Many people in S. India wont take money/food unless offered with the "right" hand, especially in temples, even if you are left-handed. Now most temples allow "non" hindus to go in, but you have to wear a saari, The "formal" dress for India. Better carry one. Buy it from some South-Indian "silk saaris" shop in Delhi. A simple saari will do, but don't you put on your "Sunday Best" to Church?! You put on your best clothes & behaviour for the Lord. Many people take a ritual "dip" in the temple lake & go inside the temple with "dripping wet " clothes. If its warm, you could do it. Hair should be tied or plaited, not loose.(loose hair is supposed to be arousing, meant for the "husband" only) (for long hair at least one knot at the end)(short hair pony/plait will do). If you know all this in advance, you wont be "offended" later on. Many South Indian Temples have the Divine Vibes VERY strong. Even if you do not believe in God, you do believe in "yourself"? Don't you? These temples help to activate/arouse feelings towards your "real" self in the long run. One temple in Kerala has only a "mirror" in a darkened chamber. It shows your own reflection as the "idol". (I forgot which, else I'd have told you right away.)

If you ask me, South India is India. If my stuation ever allows it, I would prefer to settle down in S.India. Mumbai is .... well .... commercial/hectic/hypertensive but I gotta put up with it till I have an alternative.(By God's Grace, many trekking peaks are within a short throw from Mumbai.... they keep my battery charged every weekend).

Make a list of your "niche" interests.... e.g. Ayurveda. Concentrate on this, rather than make a completely "touristy" schedule. Its getting hotter.... better go fast!

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volga_volga

Wow, another hidden chapter of AvidTrekker book has been made available to the public! you are rather a poet.

Luckily I know next to nothing about touristy places in the South. Only saw a picture of Mysore palace and that is why I mentioned Mysore. Ayuerveda - yes!! taking things slowly, catching up on sleep, eating chillis - yes! (love Sri Lankan food which is probably even hotter than S Indian).

and spending as little time as possible moving places.

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My other favourite place is Pakistan Travel Forum

AvidTrekker

Do you wanna go some place where you were "karmically" connected? Yes? Obviously you will feel deja vu when you actually "visit" the place. What if you wanna "plan" these places in advance?

At bedtime, write the "place name" on a slip of paper. Repeat the name mentally, say eight times... slowly. Address the "paper" as if it were "alive". (It is, but we dont feel/know it). Put the slip under your pillow. You will get one dream at least. Trick is to remember & write it upon waking. The dream will give you "indications" (not actual movie scenes, symbolic episodes.) Unpleasant dreams mean "avoid the place for now". If the place is "karmically connected" AND "holds unpleasant experience"; you will not be afforded the luxury of "choosing" it, IT WILL choose You, who will be dragged willy-nilly, screaming & all !! I am talking about options that we have given ourselves "choice" to exercise, for tourism or whatever.

I know, suggesting a conversation with paper slips..... aint I daft? folks? Isn't internet wonderful !!? I can go officially crazy without penalty. Jokes apart, nearly all of my statements are from personal experience/research & not from "journalistic" sources. I have suggested this technique cuz, (I think); Volga is definitely keen to "get over with" a lotta karma "as fast as possible" & get a move on.... with spiritually elevating actions!

SHIMLA

Since you have only a week, why don't you relax in North India? H.P. and Uttaranchal offer a wealth of destinations where you can be one with nature. No need to waste much time in transit too.

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Whoever said money can't buy happiness didn't know where to shop !

volga_volga

well you must be thinking she is mad this girl. yesterday she wanted to sleep in the South and today she is looking at flying all over the North

the truth is, i am curious myself where i will end up this saturday

but i was browing jet airways site for flight prices to the South and found this "unlimited air travel" offer within a particular region of the country. since i am in Delhi if I stick to the North region i get to fly anywhere incl Leh, Jammu, Varanasi, Jodhpur, Udaipur etc. All for only $300 - that is cheaper than a one way flight to Cochin.

well i am a bit of an air travel junkie

when else would i get to go to Jammu? and i have not been further than Jaipur in Rajastan, so Jodhpur/Udaipur would be on my list too.

anyways i am going to book something today otherwise i will never leave Delhi this Saturday...

is there a bus connection btw Jammu and Leh?

volga_volga

AT,

I know exactly what you mean. Some places attract me as magnet... before coming to Delhi this time (or India, for that matter) I had a wonderful dream about Delhi and it came true to the extent that dreams can come true.

It took me four weeks to think about South itinerary and I still hadn't made up my mind, but when I accidentally came across flights promotion in the North it took me half an hour between learning what Srinagar was (the winter capital of J&K - I hardly knew the name at all) and booking a ticket to go there.

And then I learnt about house boats.

I will put this name on the paper tonight under my pillow.

Volga

PS and I will get to try the Kashmiri tea!