So here I am in Kolkata, the last city before I leave India. Unlike other major cities in India namely Mumbai and New Delhi, Kolkata has a distinctive feature as arts and cultural centre of India. Even though I was going to leave the country very soon, I still have to endure few challenges. When I was there, India was hit by heat wave. In some parts of the country,...

As I was getting nearer to the end of my journey, I thought I have seen it all until I reached Varanasi. Where else can you see dead people burning around the clock on a river bank and human cleaning themselves in the same river. Dead bodies aside, the sacred Ganga is indeed a very spiritual place for the Hindu. Life and death seem to revolves around the river. The...

When I reached New Delhi, I felt like vacation was over. No more peaceful surrounding, no more cold weather and no more clean air. I was back to the India I know; car honks everywhere, dusty air, rubbish strewn all over the place, hot weather and beggars lined along the streets. I have one full day in New Delhi before my next train departs. I did not wish to spend...

Shimla is one of the three hill stations in India. The other two are located in Darjeeling and Nilgiri. All three are listed as UNESCO world heritage sites. The only reason I wanted to come here is to try out the narrow gauge toy train from Shimla to Kalka. From Kalka, I can take another train to Delhi. Like any other state capital in India, Shimla is a little bit...

After enduring almost 8 hours of van ride through the mountainous region of Himachal Pradesh, I finally reached Manali safely at the break of dawn. I didn’t have proper sleep during the bumpy journey. Instead of sleeping after checking in to my room, I decided to do a 4-hour trek up a mountain to realize my dream of touching a real snow. I was totally flat...

As I moved further north, things began to change. When I arrived at McLeod Ganj, I didn’t feel like I am in India anymore. In fact, I felt like I was in Tibet. The climate, the landscape, the people, the food and the culture are everything Tibet. Why Tibet? OK, here is some brief history lesson: Because of the unrest in Tibet during 1950s, more than 250,000...