Travel India Info

Photographic Journey of India Statue of Lord Shivaji lighted up in Delhi, India on the occasion of Maha-Shivratri. Maha-Shivratri is said to mean 'the night of Lord Shiva'. Maha Shivratri is celebrated by Hindus all over India. Maha Shivratri is the day Lord Shiva was married to Parvati. Hindus visit Shiva temples to pray on this auspicious day. Another celebration for Lord Shiva is held on Shivratri which signifies the birth of Lord Shiva. Hindus refer to Lord Shiva also by some other names. Some of the other names are 'Shankar', 'Nataraj', 'Bholenath' Begging with a baby in hand is common on streets in India. You will often see women at street corners and traffic lights with small babies in hand begging. PLEASE DON"T give these women money. If you give these women money you are certainly not helping the baby as these women take turns keeping small babies out in the hot sun for endless hours to appeal to the sympathy of people. For more information visit Babies used for begging >> The Qutub Minar in Delhi is one of the popular attractions for tourists visiting Delhi. Some facts about the Qutub Minar:Qutub Minar Agra. Qutub Minar is 238.8 feet high - Has 399 steps from ground to top - Diameter at base is 46.9 feet - Diameter at top is 9 feet - Cost to visit Rupees 500. A seven meter high iron pillar stands in the courtyard of the mosque. It is said that if you can encircle it with your hands while standing with your back to it, whatever you sincerely wish for will be fulfilled. The tower has five distinct stories each marked by a projecting balcony. Qutub Minar, Delhi is the highest stone tower of India. The history of the monument says that the first storey of the Qutub Minar, Delhi was constructed by Qutub-ud-Din thereafter three more stories were added by Iltutmish. The Qutub Minar complex is today one of the two UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Delhi. The other being Humayun's Tomb. For more information on Qutub Minar visit: http://travelindiasmart.com/dehli.php

Fashions In India are now popular around

the world.

Indian dress styles like shawls, Salwar suits (Indian version of pant suits) have changed in styles over the years. India offers quality workmanship and superb designs for some very trendy dresses and fashion accessories, jewelry and gifts. Shopping in India in many places means bargaining. Prices can vary considerably for the same item as many small shop owners price items on the fly by looking at the customer buying the product. Tourists can save money by comparison shopping. Don't get scammed by offering a lower price as what you offer may still be too high. Many vendors expect you to offer a lower price and hence quote abnormally high prices to start with. For more information on shopping tips, what items to buy in India and from where check our article tiled shopping in India

Cheapest transportation in India. The

Bicycle Rickshaw.

The majority of the drivers of rickshaws don't own their Rickshaws. They rent them buy the day and pay the Rickshaw owners about Rupees 25 everyday from their daily earnings. Some Rickshaw owners can own over a hundred Rickshaws and make a handsome income sitting at home while the poor drivers labor all day. Rickshaw drivers are referred to as Rickshaw pullers by some. Bicycle Rickshaw pullers really earn their living the hard way. They are seen in most parts of India and you will be amazed to see that they not only take passengers but also large quantities of goods. In many parts of India, especially the smaller cities the Rickshaw is used also as a school bus. The Rickshaw drivers pick up school children from their homes and drop them to schools daily. At times they transport about ten to twelve kids at a time.

Modes of Transportation in India - Bullock

Cart

Bulls were used in India to plough fields by Indian farmers in the past. Today bullock carts are used in India as a common mode of transportation of goods. I took this photograph in New Delhi India. I was amazed at the ease at which the bullock cart driver moved around the heavy traffic and congested roads with his heavy cargo. Sadly many bulls used on carts appear to be undernourished. Click photographs to view larger picture. Bullock cart transportation is cheaper than trucking when goods need to be transported locally. Bullock carts used for transportation of goods is not restricted to the villages or smaller towns of India. Needless to say such transportation adds to the already congested roads and traffic jams sometimes take hours to clear up. In many Indian villages and smaller cities you still get to see bullock cart races as this is an ancient tradition for many old-timers. The term used in India for bullock carts is 'Bael Gaadi' where the word 'Bael' in the Hindi language means the Bulls and 'Gaadi' means vehicle.

Shopping Mall in Pune India Shopping

Malls - Shopping Markets in India

Shopping in India can be an adventure, you can shop in India at the most unexpected and sometimes bizarre places. From the very best and grand shopping centers to the most unpleasant and crowded places in the world, you will find them all in India. Photo on right is of one of the many shopping malls in India. Click photograph to view full enlarged picture. While shopping malls are naturally the better way to shop, we cannot forget the Indian bazaar or markets where the majority of the population shops. India has a large population, go shopping in the bazaar and you will certainly be made aware of this! The two photos below were taken in Karol Bagh one of Delhi’s major shopping area with hundreds of shops on several roads in the Karol Bagh area. Karol bagh is considered a bargain hunters paradise by some in Delhi. Click the two photos to get an idea of what its like to shop in a crowd on the road. Looking at the number of people trying to shop in the photo, I would say that if you have something to sell then India is the place to be. With a over 200 million upper class Indians out shopping for just about anything one can imagine, the prospects are quite tempting for many entrepreneurs. Perhaps the multi-national companies know what they are doing when heading to India.

Selling on a pavement in New Delhi.

There are many small stalls selling assorted items mostly to foreign tourists. Photograph shows women selling embroidered cushion covers. Price quoted for a set of four cushions Rupees 1100. Selling price for the set of cushions Rupees 400. Prices usually high here and despite signs saying Fixed Price they bargain. There must be hundreds of thousands of vendors who earn their living by selling on the streets of India. There are no rents to pay or licenses to acquire for these people who set up shop on footpaths usually in areas where tourists visit. Even though they are considered to be selling illegally according to Indian laws as they are not licensed vendors, they continue to survive as people have become accustomed to having them around.

Commuter Train in Mumbai

Mumbai’s popular transportation mode are it's local trains. These local trains carry over 6 million passengers daily. Doors on these trains do not close as the trains move, people are packed into the coaches to such an extent during the morning and evening rush hours that they hang out from the doors. Mumbai local trains are said to have the highest passenger density of any railway system in the world.

Selling Bhel Puri in Mumbai

Mumbai has a snack that is called BHEL PURI. Most street corners have people selling bhel puri. Another famous fast food in Mumbai is called the 'VADA PAO' which is actually a potato patty and a bun, Something similar to a hamburger. Bhel Puri is a popular fast food snack in Mumbai - India. It is a spicy mixture of nuts of several varieties with onions and tangy chutneys. Sold at many roadside stores.

Traffic on a street in New Delhi.

Traffic on the roads can be really congested. The government in Delhi is trying to keep a control on the smog created by the millions of cars now on the roads in Delhi. CNG is now commonly being used in buses and taxis. Diesel use is being discouraged. India now has a large selection of cars and many new models are being offered to Indian consumers by foreign car makers, many of whom have set up manufacturing in India.

Taj Mahal Agra

William Jefferson Clinton President, United States of America while addressing the Indian Parliament on 22.03.2000 said, "The world is divided between those who have seen the Taj and those who have not. Very soon, I hope to be on the side that has seen the Taj." The Taj Mahal is referred to as a symbol of unending love. There is no other monument in the world, which can match the beauty and grandeur of the Taj Mahal. Built by Emperor Shah Jahan. Even though it was built over 360 years ago it has not lost its romantic characteristic, which continues to attract millions of visitors from all over the world.

Black Taj Mahal?

There are stories however that a black Taj Mahal was planned to be built across the white Taj Mahal but Emperor Shah Jahan could not do this as he was imprisoned by his son Aurangzeb.

Snake Charmer

Snakes are supposedly made to dance by snake charmers using a musical instrument called a "bein" a type of a flute. Snakes however cannot hear but react to the movement of the snake charmer.

Auto Rickshaw in Delhi

A scooter rickshaw in New Delhi India. Scooter rickshaws are usually referred to as Auto Rickshaws in Delhi. They can seat three passengers. Their rates are cheaper than taxi fares. In the past Delhi had a severe smog problem. One of the reasons for smog were the auto rickshaws that supposedly to save on the high cost of petrol added cheaper kerosene or diesel oil to petrol to run their auto rickshaws. Apparently the majority of auto rickshaws are not driver owned. The drivers usually rent them form the owners on daily rental basis and pay about Rupees 150 per day to the owners. The cost of petrol for the day has to be paid by the auto rickshaw driver. After paying for the petrol and rent for the auto rickshaw the remainder is the drivers earnings.

Indian Farmer

Many farmers in India even these days plough their fields using his cows to pull the plough on their farmland. In many cases the poor farmer does not even own the land and pays a major part of his produce to the landowners. Heavy agricultural machinery like tractors, harvesters etc are common all over the world. While agricultural machinery is used in India, many farmers still plow their fields with cows. Many villages have farmers with small pieces of lands and they find using bulls and a plough the easier and cost affective way to plough their fields.

PROSPERITY & POVERTY IN INDIA

The Taj Mahal hotel stands majestically in Mumbai India. Yet In another part of Mumbai a slum area where the poor live. In some areas local governments have provided alternate housing but some of these people reportedly move back to slums after a period of time. Living is slum areas many of these shacks have electric power from power lines near by that they get illegally without paying for electricity. Many of them have televisions and believe it or not some even have dish antennas hooked up for television viewing.

Goddess Kali Temple

Some associate The Goddess Kali with death and destruction of evil. According to popular legends, during a battle with evil forces she went on a killing spree and started killing everything in sight. To stop her, Lord Shiva is said to have thrown himself at her feet. Shocked at the sight of Lord Shiva at her feet she ended her killing spree. Many images of Goddess Kali show her standing with her tongue fully out with one foot on Lord Shiva's chest. While driving from Chandigarh to Delhi on the 24 of December 2007 we drove past this Goddess Kali Temple. Sadly I missed the opportunity to visit this Temple due to time restraint. I could not resist taking this photograph. This Temple is visible from the main highway and stands majestically on the outskirts of the City of Panipat. The black colored five story temple is one of the first temples I have seen in India that is fully colored black.

Schooling in India

Meet four year old Mihika Banerjee! During a recent trip to Delhi, I met this charming girl at a function, she is one smart kid! At age four Mihika can recite servral english poems and infact acts them out. She has a very good command of the English language, is polite and confident even when conversing with people she has just met. She is a pre-school student at St Francis De Sales School in Delhi, India. Her parents describe her as a 'very fun loving girl, intellectual, interacting and a very good speaker' I was truly impressed, Mihika's parents and her school teachers are indeed doing a superb job. Perhaps the next Indira Gandhi is in the making . . .