Barefoot and Breezy

As humans, we have a tendency to generalise our whole preconception of what a country will be like from the few iconic images encrypted in our heads from the likes of TV and advertising. It probably shouldn’t be that way, but I think it’s fair to say it is an accurate representation of how many of us think. After spending a couple of weeks in varying levels of chaos, arriving in the state of Himachal Pradesh was like a little slice of paradise, and a picture far from the one we had conjured up in our heads of India as a country. The long bus journey from Amritsar was less than comfortable. As we neared our destination of Dharamkot, the twisting of the roads intensified and we arrived in delicate states. However, nothing could take away from the quite sensational views that rolled out before us. We were staying in a beautiful (for once!) hostel, nestled right up in the mountains where the Himalayas begins to roll out into all it’s glory. The cooler temperature was a welcomed br...

After Jaiselmer won us over with it's golden feel and chilled vibes, it was always going to be difficult for the next place on our journey to live up to it. However, we were't quite ready for the stark contrast that Bikaner brought to the party. Maybe we should have known bad things were coming after a less-than-comfortable bus journey. After once again being hassled for selfies at the bus 'station' (this time going up a notch after being passed a small child and having a full family portrait) we boarded the 12 noon bus. It is worth noting at this point that our bus seemed about 40 year older than it's counterparts, with it's battered exterior and clunky noises as it pulled away. Nearing the end of the 10 hour bus journey, and by this point it was pretty crammed full. Bodies occupied the entire aisle and sleep was pretty much out of the question. The man sat in the aisle next to Butty started to touch her leg, whilst looking slightly (very) worse for wear....

Arriving in Jaisalmer was like a breathe of fresh air... literally. A break from car fumes, endless beeping and grid-locked roads was most definitely welcomed and we instantly took a liking to the 'Golden City'.  We went for a wander around the maze of walkways and markets and were astounded to find we could actually browse the little shops without being hassled to buy something until we were half way down the street! After a VERY hot night in our hostel room (apparently air con isn't a thing in Jaisalmer!) we were up at the crack of dawn, ready to embark on a two day camel safari. We were driven into the heart of the Thar desert, where our guides prepared us a breakfast over an open fire. Once we had eaten, we were paired up with our trusty steeds for the next two days! Butty was riding 'Desert King'; thirteen years of age and quickly turned out to be the hungriest Camel in Jaisalmer. I was riding 'Orky'; a little brown camel who was only six and loved t...

As mentioned in our previous blog post, our wonderful tour around the city of Jaipur came to an unfortunate end when we ended up paying a whopping £26 (it's a lot when you have no income!) to give one elephant five minutes of 'affection'. (On a side note, it is undeniable that there was another contributing factor to our current state of sorrow at this point. We popped into a local supermarket that evening to buy a few essentials and came out really shocked at the sum of £8 we had handed over for binbags, 2 x cans of coke, a loaf of bread, pot of jam and some cheese slices - nothing in the supermarket was priced. It was only when we got back to the hostel and looked at the receipt we realised we had paid.... wait for it..... 4 POUNDS for cheese slices. Robbed.) Throughout the following evening, we tried multiple times to shake off the feelings of irritation and justifying all other ways in the world we could have wasted £26 (there are many). But when our tour guide t...

A whole week has passed since we started our adventure... but honestly, with all that has happened, it feels like a lot longer!! We arrived in Jaipur with no plans and no accommodation sorted (Katie's idea). We walked to 'MI Road' which apparently has LOADS of places to stay (Katie's research). We wandered up and down said road, backpacks on, sweat dripping, and being stopped every few steps by either someone asking for money or someone asking for a selfie. Turns out: there is NOWHERE to stay on 'MI Road'!!! With only 80 rupees to hand (equivalent of 80p), and no phone battery, we found one little backstreet hotel with extortionate prices. Using their electricity to charge our phones, we found the name of a cheaper hostel and then make a swift exit. After a lot of faff attempting to withdraw cash, and a lot of steps later, we were in a Tuk Tuk off to 'BunkStop' (Great hostel for anyone planning a trip to Jaipur!). Our first night was pretty cool. ...

Mumbai was certainly an experience..... however, if anything, I think it just reconfirmed to both of us; we are just not city people. After a long sleep to recover from the previous day's travel, we were up and ready to explore by early afternoon (because obviously the hottest part of the day is the best time to go and explore the local markets!). We got all of about ten steps out of our hotel before being stopped by an Aussie guy in his fifties who was delighted to be bumping into two other tourists for the first time in his week long stay. He asked us where we going, and we told him. He quickly stepped in and told us we were heading in the complete wrong direction, and redirected us with his questionable looking map. Us, being the slightly naive people that we are and having no idea where we were, happily accepted his help and set off again. Turns out.... he just sent us on one massive loop, and about an hour later we returned to pretty much the same spot. Lesson learnt: have ...

So here we are.... the first day of our big trip, and what better place to start than the quiet, serene city of Mumbai. After a long flight we finally arrived around 9.30pm, and were feeling ready to conquer India. We got our Indian SIM sorted, found an ATM and then headed out to face our first challenge..... Indian Uber. We decided Uber would be the best shout for our first use of public transport, seeing as it was late by that point and we would be able to jump in without any hassle (or so we thought). We sat outside the airport with about 40 locals, dripping in sweat as our bodies went into shock at the humidity, and waited patiently for the lovely Abdul to come and pick us up. Car after car passed. Each time a new driver came round the corner we would jump up in hope, only to see someone else hop in and happily drive off to their destination. 45 minutes later..... still no Abdul. Feeling like failures at the first hurdle, we remembered you can now make a call regarding your ...