India Guide

[barefoot_taka]

sis papemelroti wala pang IT. don't even know yet how many days kami. basta excited na ako.  i want to see and experience a lot. sana nga!
sis yby2476 nagsabi na ako kay hubby and he agreed na. no definite plans yet. don't know kasi when he'll be able to come for vacation so hirap ang scheduling.  but i'm bent on going there talaga next year.

[yby2476]

^oo nga, isa sa mga magagandang see must places ang india...yung isang friend ko na nakapunta dun last year because of her nature of work, di niya trip ang india...mabaho at madumi daw...eh sabi ko, lahat naman ng mga bansa may mabaho at madumi na lugar.

[vain_kixie]

parang pinas lang. ang Delhi parang Manila lang, baka mas malinis pa nga doon ng isang paligo. Ang mabaho, yung mga tao, mas malinis talaga pinoy ng 10 paligo. Hahahah but if you will compare Indira Ghandi Int'l Airport (DEL) to NAIA (MNL), naman, parang maduming banyo ang NAIA. nakakahiya.

mas madumi pa ang Cairo ng di hamak sa India. I am not so fond of Indians ha, pero i just have to say it that you must see India is really worth seeing. Gotta see Bombay though, mas magulo ata doon than DEL.

By the way, I went there alone last year, di naman ako na holdup or anything =) Love love love ko na India. Akala ko nga mabaho at panget so I was shocked maganda pala. Lol.

[yby2476]

hinde naman yata talaga sila mabaho, but its just the food they eat diba?

[barefoot_taka]

korek sis yby2476 kahit saan may madumi at mabaho lalo na if it's what you're looking for di ba? eh kung before pa pumunta dun yung friend mo yun na ang mentality nya mahirap na mabago yun di ba...basta ako ke mabaho man sila i'd still go there. sayang ang ganda ng lugar kundi ko makikita!
sis vain_kixie you have a blog? did you blog about your trip there? if not pashare naman ng experiences mo..kwento naman dyan  kakabilib you went there alone!

[vain_kixie]

^I don't have a blog eh.

I was just able to tour around Delhi and Agra. At that time wala pang visa upon arrival so I applied my visa sa Indian embassy where I was currently residing. Please take note though that I used to be a flight attendant kaya makalas ang loob ko talaga to tour alone. But since we do not have a layover sa Delhi because of the close proximity I had to visit the country during my free time.

Wikitravel helped me a lot. I just booked my hotel sa agoda while waiting for my flight to Delhi. And I purchased my Bhopal Shatabdi express train ticket (first class for around 800rupee) days before that. Puro research lang sa net. I was supposed to stay over night in Agra but I read sa isang travel thread that one day there would be enough since there's nothing much daw in Agra aside from the Taj and the Agra Fort.

I arrived in the morning, slept a little and did some shopping. I bought a very cute punjab (indian costume) for my visit to the Taj the following day. So I took the trains to Agra visited the Agra Fort and Taj Mahal. Madami naman akong pics kasi naaliw ata sila sakin kasi foreigner na naka Indian costume so matatanda and mga bata ng papa picture with me, in exchange ng papa picture ako ng solo.

The only draw back with traveling alone is the hardship of having your pics taken. Thankfully wala naman tumakbo with my camera. LOL sa Taj I hired a travel guide for 200 rupees, para may taga kuha ako ng pictures and to enlighten me about the place. Grabe ang ganda ng Taj. sobra. Mas na goosebumps ako dito kesa sa Pyramids of Giza.

I took the trains back to Delhi.. okay sa Bhopal Shatabdi with food na yung ticket fare nila na first class. I'm used to eating Indian food since I was living in the Middle East then. Going back to my hotel I made a stop sa mga travel agency and I was even able to canvass how much a Delhi land tour would cost. I only stayed for 3 days. So Day 3 was my Delhi Tour. I got a Land tour from a travel agency who's owner is now my friend. LOL he really took care of me and got me a nice white ride compared to the small Indian cars na ginagamit ng iba.

3 of my friend also contacted him as  they do not want to have the same adventure as I had- riding the Indian train alone that is. So pm me if you want to contact him and he will tour you. Mabait ito, imagine I was alone and bad things they could do, but they did not. Yung 2 girl friends ko he toured sa Taj, My guy friend pinakain pa sila for free. LOL


I wanna go back and see Jaipur. Tight sched kasi ako last time. Sabi ni tour- guide- turned- friend ko na he will make me libre a Taj tour narin. Gusto nga namin mag pa pre- nup ng fiance ko sa Taj Mahal. Lets see how our cash flow next year.

[viewfrommyveranda]

I've been to India on business twice - Bangalore and Delhi. I must agree, hindi mabaho. In fact, what I distinctly remember is this fragrant scent from oils and spices. They way I can describe it, it's an exotic/erotic smell. No kidding!!!!  Pero hello pag pinawisan sila (well I suppose anybody in that matter!), medyo ayan na!

Having said that, I cannot say the same about the cleanliness. Parang there is this "layer of earth" anywhere you go. I can't describe is as dust -- parang laging may loose na top soil.

Kaya nga I want to go back kasi I want to show my boyfriend the contrasts -- the breathtaking Taj Mahal against the backdrop of crowds; the intricate patterns of the temple designs vs the tapestry of devotees. It's a feast for the senses!  I just need to convince him that he won't get a bummed stomach as long we don't drink anything with ice. 

[yby2476]

interesting naman yung mga visits niyo sis...naalala ko tuloy yung slumdog millionaire and yung mga pictures ni mariel and robin sa taj mahal...:-) may ganun factor...yun kasi yung mga latest na pictures na nakita ko sa india...yeah, i guess, talagang kailangan pumunta ng taj mahal...:-)

[barefoot_taka]

mas naexcite ako to go to india! 
sis vain_kixie pls give me your tour guide/friend's contact details. mga around how much naman ang delhi tour just so i have an idea. sana maging friend ko din sya para may discount kami!  wow you've seen the giza na din? im so inggit!
sa mga sis din natin who went there can you share the ballpark figure of your gastos there? thanks!
 viewfrommyveranda hope you can convince your boyfie. si hubby ko at first hesitant din kaya when he was vulnerable i asked him again ayun pumayag. haha!  sabi ko wala ng bawian. now he's also excited na din to see india.
sis yby2476 i only read robin and mariel's magazine interview about india this month kaya fresh pa din in my mind.

[viewfrommyveranda]

^^Sis yby2476, super interesting talaga. 

^Nako Sis barefoot_taka, I don't know what to do to convince him, parang kahit na bribe ko pa, di papayag! Hahaha! Iba talaga ang India. It's an experience for the senses!

[yby2476]

yung sister ko, talagang sinasabi niya sa amin, na kailangan isama namin sa amazing races namin ang india...kahit taj mahal lang ang puntahan namin, ok na raw sa kanya...:-)

parang ang budget dito eh parang papuntang south korea din yata...:-)

[viewfrommyveranda]

Mahal lang talaga yung airfare kasi once there, mura na lahat. BUT, for me, dapat sana 4-5 star accommodations kasi anything less than that, I'll be concerned about the level of cleanliness. So di din dapat tipidin ang accommodations. Also, gratuity is excluded in most travel packages, so that should be considered din sa budget.

[barefoot_taka]

sis yby2476 how much ba pag south korea? haven't been there yet eh. pero nasa wish list ko din yan 
sis viewfrommyveranda ay hubby also wants 4-5 star accomodation. sabi ko nga dun na lang sa mga B&B may mga maganda naman feedback sa agoda ay naku ayaw nya. he's kundisyon is we can go to india but he has to approve the hotels before booking. at medyo diskumpiyado daw sya sa safety and cleanliness ng accomodations dun. lalo na kuripot ako hahaha! kaya he wants to make sure ok yung ibo-book ko 

[viewfrommyveranda]

^Nako Sis barefoot_taka, tama si hubby! And their hotels are exquisite! Check out the Taj and Oberoi hotels. Super worth it sila. Yun lang talaga medyo mahal. And kahit na nasa hotel ka, stick to bottled water and no ice in your drinks pa rin.

Ito pa isang tip: if you are joining a tour group, and may meals na kasama na BUFFET, kahit na mag mukhang PG, mauna kayo kumuha ng food!!!! From my experience, the locals usually eat their food with their hands -- like dipping their flat breads sa sauce, etc.  They wipe clean their hands naman, but the serving spoons will get sticky after several rounds. hehe - get what I'm saying? 

[barefoot_taka]

^thanks for the tip. makikipag-unahan talaga ako sa food nyan. 
i already checked oberoi naku hihimatayin ako sa presyo nila..di kaya ng pagiging kuripot ko yun  but it's really pretty. sarap siguro dun noh? the taj di ko pa nakita. will google it nga.

[viewfrommyveranda]

^Mahal talaga Sis.  Just stick to international hotel chains, check against Tripadvisor reviews (I like the traveller photos section) and you'll be fine. I already got in touch with a few India based travel agencies for the heck of. Yung Golden Triangle tour nya inclusive of 5 star hotels parang nasa USD561 per pax. The quote includes Taj and Nikko hotels. Meals and all transpo included. Pero I'm still putting together the cost pag DIY. I have an Indian resto owner neighbor and she said she can help me. 

[barefoot_taka]

^yup im also checking tripadvisor din. which Taj hotel were you referring to yesterday? dami kasing hotels with taj on their name. 
..the golden triangle tour that you mentioned ilang araw yun sis?

[viewfrommyveranda]

^For 5 nights yung nakuha ko na quote. The Taj na kasama is for the night in Agra. But the Taj that I have tried is the one in Mumbai -- yung kasama dun sa Mumbai terrorist attack a few years ago, and the one in Bangalore.

[viewfrommyveranda]

Sorry the Taj that I tried pala is the one in Bangalore. Oberoi yung sa Delhi.

[barefoot_taka]

thanks for the info sis. will tell hubby when he calls me tomorrow