Already long before we started this journey, we had been talking about Sikkim. The Indian state of Sikkim is nestled between Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet in the Indian Himalayas. The former kingdom just joined India in 1975. This part of India was completely new to us. We imagined it to be a very different from …
This year our Christmas was different. Instead of spending it with our families at home we spent it with the wonderful Gorkha people in North India. Our Christmas drink wasn’t traditional Finnish Glögi, nor Austrian Glühwein, but the “champagne of teas “. We did visit a church (and became special guests there) but we also …
Darjeeling – Christmas surprises, Buddhist monasteries and local tea Read More »
After relaxing for over three weeks in South India, we were full of energy and eager to continue traveling. We wanted to spend the Christmas in the North, so we decided to travel 1800 kilometers in one go – a 32-hour train ride from Hospet (next to Hampi) to Kolkata, in West-Bengal. We spent only …
A day in Kolkata – Street food, Christmas vibes and manifestations Read More »
We spent 11 wonderful days in Hampi in December. We wrote notes about our days there like we usually do for our blog, but by the time it came to publish this text, everything has changed. Hampi, as we know it, doesn’t exist anymore. At the beginning of March 2020 the authorities bulldozed down the whole part …
Om Beach, close to Gokarna in India, is a special place for us. It’s where we met each other for the first time almost ten years ago. It’s also a nice, peaceful alternative for the more crowded beaches of Goa. We had our first longer stop on this journey at Om Beach. After three months …
Holiday at Om Beach – new friends, Old Monk and mysteries Read More »
Pushkar is an ancient, sacred city with a holy lake in the middle of India’s desert state Rajasthan. The city being sacred meant that there were dozens of Hindu temples. Holy men bathe in the ghats of the lake and perform rituals. Cows decorated with flowers or colorful fabrics walk freely on the streets. Chanting …
Pushkar, the sacred (and commercial) city in the desert Read More »
Who would have thought that we’ll also become Bollywood stars (aka extras in a music video) during our long journey? We spent two fun days in a luxurious 5-star hotel in Jaipur, acting on a music video for UK based Ash King’s song Gud Khake. We got to know a friendly and professional film crew …
Four minutes of fame: Being extra on a Bollywood music video Read More »
In Jaipur, on our guesthouse’s wall, there’s a painting that says: Don’t make plans for India because India already made plans for you. This couldn’t have described our stay in Jaipur any better. Our initial plan was to do one quick sightseeing day in the ”pink city” and then continue our way to Pushkar and …
Jaipur – The pink city full of palaces and surprises Read More »
One of the reasons we had, out of a few options, chosen to visit Palampur after Dharamshala, was the fact that we could travel the whole way from there to Jaipur by train. There was an old narrow-gauge train running from Palampur to Pathankot. From Pathankot there would be a night train to Jaipur. The …
Everyone has heard of Darjeeling tea and Assam tea, but how about Kangra tea? Palampur is a small city in the Kangra Valley of India’s Himachal Pradesh, known for its tea plantations. The Kangra Valley Express, a narrow-gauge train, is running through Palampur. That was one of the reasons we wanted to have a stop …
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