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Sightseeing
Sights that enthral
and appall. When
Foster wrote his
Passage to India in
the 1920s he reached
the stunning
conclusion that
there are "a hundred
Indias". There are.
And if you go out to
discover each of
these you can count
on spending at least
a year in this
stupendous country
with its phenomenal
repertoire of
surprises and
delights. Blessed
with probably the
widest array of
topographical and
cultural diversity
that was ever packed
into one time zone,
there’s an India for
everyone.
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India’s
jungles,
rivers and
streams are
simply
bursting
with
wildlife;
much of it
protected in
her 80
National
Parks and
441
Sanctuaries.
Popular ones
are Corbett,
Rajaji and
Dudhwa
(Uttar
Pradesh),
Kanha, Pench
(Madhya
Pradesh) and
Sasan Gir
(Gujarat). |
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Sariska and
Ranthambor
(Rajasthan),
Kaziranga,
Manas
(Assam),
Mudumalai,
Bandipore
and Wyanad (Nilgiri
Biosphere
Reserve-Tamil
Nadu,
Karnataka,
Kerala) are
the other
well known
game
sanctuaries.
Keoladeo
Ghana,
Bharatpur
(Rajasthan)
is a famous
bird
sanctuary.
Find
yourself as
you lose the
cares of
life in the
city. |
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The
temple
trail in
India just
trails on
and on and
on....
winding past
the
monuments of
man’s love
for the
divine. The
gilded
gurudwara in
Amritsar,
ancient
weather-beaten
cathedrals
in Goa,
‘dargahs’
(mausoleums)
of Muslim
saints and
grand
temples to
the
innumerable
Hindu
deities;
these houses
of worship
are as
precious as
works of
art.
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Catch the
trail as it
runs through
Ajmer,
Delhi,
Fatehpur
Sikri,
Varanasi,
Madurai,
Sarnath,
Gaya, Orchha,
Tanjore,
Trichy,
Tirupati,
Mathura,
Ayodhya,
Jammu,
Badrinath,
Haridwara
and
Rishikesh.
The legacy
of
spiritual
succour
lives on in
the land of
exotica. In
Pune,
Pondicherry,
Puttaparthy
and
Dharamsala,
Osho,
Auroville,
the Sai Baba
and Buddhist
monks
explore a
new life, of
what is and
what could
be.
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Explore the
same along
turquoise
blue and
breezy
beaches
along the
coast.
Windswept or
sunny,
India’s
beaches are
peculiarly
Indian.
Crowded and
cheery,
sometimes
dirty,
always
delightful,
you’ll find
them in
Kerala’s
Kovalam, in
the Andamans
and
Lakshadweep,
in Goa,
quiet
Gokarna, and
‘templescaped’
Puri,
Kanyakumari
and
Mahabalipuram. |
Ruins of
forts,
palaces,
picturesque
‘havelis’
(large
private
houses) and
mausoleums
pepper the
landscape.
In and
around
Delhi, Agra,
Rajasthan,
all over the
country
actually,
historical
sites
intrigue the
history
enthusiast. |
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Important sites are
Hampi, Khajuraho,
Mandu, Aurangabad,
Bikaner, Goa,
Gwalior, Jaipur,
Jaisalmer, Jodhpur,
Udaipur,
Mahabalipuram,
Tanjore and Mysore.
Museums, business
centres, nightlife,
large markets,
embassies and
consulates mark
space in the bigger
cities of
India. Bustling with
activity, bristling
with high voltage
energy,
busy-busy-busy,
New Delhi, Mumbai,
Chennai, Calcutta,
Bangalore, Pune and
Hyderabad make up
India’s urban
landscape.
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The world’s
highest
mountains
form a tall
2500 km long
wall along
India’s
northeast
frontier and
are prime
climbing
territory
for the
outdoor
types. The
mountainous
regions of
Sikkim,
Himachal
Pradesh and
Leh are high
altitude
trekking
options.
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The "blue mountains"
of the Nilgiri Hills
in the Deccan, and
the lower reaches of
the Himalayas in
Garhwal, Kumaon and
around Darjeeling
are simpler and
ideal for a
leisurely hike.
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From stark
white
mountains
framed
against
sheer clear
blue to
forested
hills that
enclose
rushing
streams,
there is
endless
variety for
the hiker.
In the
hills, in
tiny towns
with winding
‘mall roads’
survive the
British
legacy of
"hill
stations".
These cool
getaways
from the
simmering
plains
continue to
entertain
weekend
tourists in
the summers.
Shimla,
Manali,
Kasauli and
Mussoorie in
the north,
Shillong,
Darjeeling
and
Kalimpong in
the east,
Ooty and
Munnar in
the south
are the most
popular.
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So
much to do, so much
to see.....so little
time! That holds
completely true for
the Indian
experience. Don’t
push yourself to do
it all because
that’s well nigh
impossible but
choose well and plan
little, open your
mind and be gathered
up by the experience
that the world calls
"India". |
