How to see India in 12 days

Feels like another lifetime that we went for our ‘Grand India Trip’. Just thought I’d tidy up my itinerary and share it with you.

This guide is for anyone who is interested in seeing as much of India as possible in a limited time, in this case – just shy of 2 weeks. If you can afford more time though, I would recommend taking the extra days to see more or rush less.

In our 12 days, we visited Delhi, Jaipur, Agra, Leh (and environs).

Why these places?

Most international flights only fly into Delhi anyway. Not visiting Delhi when you come to India is like not going to London when you visit England for the first time. However, because of this, there is a very high chance that you will encounter scams from the moment to exit the airport (best place to find unsuspecting international tourists, fresh of the boat). My advice is to make google your best friend – read up on common scams before the trip so that you are aware and on high alert, and if you can, get a local SIM card with data to cross-check any information someone feeds you.

Besides that, Delhi itself is an interesting mix of historical monuments, crazy mess India, hip & cool, and modern. There’s a good mix of ancient sites, bazaars, a wide range of dining establishments, and shopping malls (if it so pleases you).

Rajasthan (the state that Jaipur is in) is literally translated ‘land of kings’. It’s a state teeming with grand forts and palaces. Jaipur is the most visited one simply because it’s the nearest to Delhi. On a separate weekend trip, I’ve been to Udaipur, and other popular destinations within Rajasthan include Jodhpur and Jalsaimer. It is definitely worth it to pick out one or two of these places, but not all. In my opinion, it gets repetitive after a while (kinda like visiting every duomo in every city in italy). Unless, of course, you’re really passionate about forts and palaces.

Agra is where the Taj Mahal is. Fullstop. To be honest, there’s nothing much in Agra worth staying for. Instead, ask yourself: I’ve flown myself all the way to India, can I leave without seeing the legendary ‘Taj Mahal’? If the answer is ‘yes’, go ahead and skip it. We decided to just do a day trip to Agra from Delhi.

We chose the Ladakh region because it was so different from what you imagine India to be. And it really met and exceeded our expectations. Only an hour and a half by plane away from Delhi, Leh is at an altitude of 3,524m (11,562ft) and within the Himalayan Range. I’ve never been to Tibet, but I’m going to venture a guess that the region has been largely influenced by the Tibetans.

This is one of my favourite Indian destinations – the people were so so so hospitable and friendly, and the scenery was truly one of a kind.

So, how does everything fit into 12 days?

Day 1 – We flew in to Jaipur directly.

Day 2 – Full day in Jaipur. We hired a auto-rickshaw to take us around. (He tried to convince us to to go to a factory at the end of the day but we firmly refused).

Day 3 – Morning train to Delhi. Afternoon in Delhi.

Day 4 – Delhi.

Day 5 – Day trip to Agra.

Day 6 – Delhi.

Day 7 – Morning flight to Leh. Acclimatisation day, so light activities like walking around the market place.

Day 8 – Area around Leh.

Days 9-10 – Nubra Valley.

Day 11 – Pangong Lake.

Day 12 – Morning flight back to Delhi and out of India.

For my personal detailed itinerary, click here.

When to visit?

India gets unbearably hot in summer. The heat can really distract you from any kind of fun – and this is coming from someone who has lived on a tropical island her whole life. For Delhi, Jaipur and Agra, the dry winter months (November to February) would be the best. The temperature goes down to ‘nice and cooling’ and ‘may need a cardigan in the evening’.

Ladakh, on the other hand, freezes over in the winter months, the lakes will be frozen and it will be bitterly cold especially with the lack of good heating. The tourist season starts from April and lasts till.. maybe August? I’m not sure, but I’ve heard it’s nice and warm in the summer months. We went at the end of October and it was quite chilly. There wasn’t much in terms of bustling tourist scene and it felt like things were winding to a close for the year. In fact, we saw a sign along the way to Nubra Valley that said that the road would be closed starting from 1st November (we were there from 30-31 October!). The guesthouse we stayed at in Nubra Valley already had their electricity and water supply cut off or the year. From what I understand from the owner, they do that after the summer months and they have to start getting their water supply from the well. On the flip side, we got every place all to ourselves – no pushy tourists in all our photos (in fact every shot was a good shot), the peace and serenity you would expect from a mountainous region, and fiery golden autumn leaves.

In conclusion, I think September would be perfect for a trip including all these places. It won’t be too hot in Delhi, Jaipur and Agra, yet not too close to the winter months in Ladakh.

My current desktop wallpaper – look and drool | Photo credit: Juxxtapose

While drooling, you might want to check out my previous posts on Ladakh with even more drool-worthy photos of the region, Nubra Valley and Pangong Lake.

The Highs and Lows of the Silk Route

If you haven’t read about how we stumbled upon this fall/winter experience, you’ve gotta read that first.

Read it? Good. Now you know how we got here and I can tell you about what we did next.

The third thing we learnt about Leh and the Ladakh region was that the people there are extremely friendly and hospitable. The hotel staff told us to call the reception anytime around the clock for help upon learning that we were feeling a bit unwell from the high altitude. He even followed up the next day asking how we were. After being fully and comfortably acclimatised, we were ready to head for higher ground.

Our plan was to stay a night in Nubra Valley. To get there, we would have to drive through the mountains, over a pass called the Khardungla pass, widely touted as the highest motorable road in the world. As we traveled along, the landscape changed from wide sandy plains to rocky slopes, then little pockets of snow started appearing amongst the rocks. Soon, snow filled almost every available bit of ground on both sides of the car.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

When we reached the lofty 18,380 feet, we stopped for photos and a toilet break. The moment I stepped out of the car, an icy breeze hit me, I knew I definitely needed the toilet break. Like, now. So we headed straight for the toilets. Parts of the road had become frozen to ice, and so in a bid to avoid slipping, I chose to step on the part with snow instead… and that’s how my feet ended up in a 20 cm deep layer of snow (I’ve never wanted to pee more). The toilets were less toilets and more row of cubicle huts with holes in the grounds and open windows overlooking the grand snowscape. I would have enjoyed the view more if I weren’t so cold and slowly losing feeling in my feet.

By the time we walked back, I felt like I was walking on two blocks of ice. So I quickly warmed them up a little in the car before we continued taking in the sights. From the other end of the road, towards the direction we were heading, the range of snow-capped mountains seemed to go on and on…

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

I’ve read that in the peak season, it would be crowded here in Khardungla pass, with many rushing to squeeze in a picture with the sign and the views. But as we later found out, the road to Nubra Valley would be closed for winter in 2 days, so we were really traveling during as off-peak a season as it could. The road closes in November and only opens again in June, when the throngs of tourists would be back for the summer.

Next was the long windy descent to Nubra Valley which sits at 10,000 feet, lower than Leh itself. We breathed easy and I felt relieved. We stopped at a guesthouse to drop our overnight bags and grab some hot black tea (which seems like a staple here). Most guesthouses were closed for the year, in fact, we were the only ones staying over that day. The kind owner apologised for the lack of heating and running water because of the time of the year. According to him, further along the year, they would themselves have to get their water supply from a communal well.

Our day wasn’t even close to being over. Next we sped over to the sand dunes just beyond Diskit (the town we were at) to catch a glimpse of the Bactrian camels. These camels were born to habitat harsh desert-like conditions with extreme temperatures of -40 to 40 degrees celsius. They were also used for transport along the ancient Silk Route, which used to run in part, along Nubra Valley.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Okay, we did more than catch a glimpse. How could we resist? They looked absolutely adorable and the space between their humps looked like a rather comfy spot. To top it all off, the backdrop looked amazingly surreal. It was like we were riding into a painting.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Cheeky, camera-ready camel lounging in the cool weather with his friends. Rides were going at Rs200 per person – very worth it, in fact, it is cheap for the experience. Never thought I would ride a camel twice in a single month. This experience trumps the other, hands down.

Still reeling from the camel experience, we had lunch and ascended to Diskit Monastery for a visit. This might be my favourite monastery visit. For one, the views of Nubra Valley from the monastery were spectacular.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

You can see the valley stretching out into the horizon. Even if you aren’t into monasteries, this place makes the books just based on its views. The monastery itself felt like a quaint village in itself, with narrow cobbled alleyways and steep steps. It was quiet (probably because it’s off-peak for tourists) and a perfect place for meditation. If I ever wanted to be alone and feel at one with nature and quiet, this would definitely be the place.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

We stayed the night and drove back to same way to Leh the next morning. But along with us came beautiful memories of the place. I would recommend Nubra Valley to anyone planning a trip to India. For sure.

Our Accidental Fall/Winter Encounter

I don’t know why it did not occur to us that Leh and its environs would be dressed in its autumn best, on the verge of winter. I checked the weather forecast, both on my iPhone’s weather app and through a brief google search. It said highest 18 degrees celcius, lowest 8, or something like that. And somehow, that didn’t sound so cold… right? Thankfully, being the tropical creatures we are, we packed excessive layers in case we felt too cold. And I’m glad we did.

The first thing we learnt about Leh is that the weather forecast doesn’t seem accurate. The day before we flew there, we checked the temperature again on iOS and google, and it said 26 degree celsius. Right, I’m sure it is.

I took a snapshot of it to prove how crazy the weather app looked. 28 degrees and then 13 in the next?

That being said, as we flew over the Himalayas and we saw the snow-capped peaks, I don’t know why it never occurred to us that we would encounter snow in the Himalayas which incidentally also boasts the highest mountain in the world!!  When we saw the snow, which was beautiful by the way, and heard the captain announce a ground temperature of 2 degrees celsius at 10 in the morning, we got worried.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

The next thing we quickly learnt, was that there was no cell service for the India Vodafone pre-paid SIM cards that we were using. Only the hubs’ work phone, serviced by Aircel received mobile coverage in Leh, albeit still no 3G network. Upon further research while huddled in an internet cafe, we found out that mobile network was only available for BSNL and Aircel post-paid cards.

Our first day in Leh itself was an acclimatisation day. Due to its altitude of 11,500 ft, all vistors are advised to allocate at least 24 hrs at the same altitude doing light activities. A few hours after we arrived, we felt the onset of migrain-like headaches and waves of nausea. We were also ‘acclimatising’ to the cold especially since the heater in our room wasn’t working well. When we got tired and decided to sleep a little, we kept waking up feeling like we were gasping for air. I remember wondering how we were going to survive the next 5 days. True story.

Thankfully, things got way better the next day. We had sightseeing planned at places at roughly the same altitude. We saw the point where the great Indus river and the Zanskar river came together. No white water rafting though, because it was too cold.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Shivering and perching at the edge of the mountain road, I looked out and listened hard. Nothing. Utter silence. I make it sound like it’s a bad thing. But the near-deafening silence made me feel like everything was at peace and that everything was okay. It is this feel of seclusion that probably makes the place attractive to many who want to escape the hustle and bustle of modern life. And it is probably also the best kind of place you would want to isolate yourself for meditation. Which leads me to our visit to our first monastery – Alchi Monastery.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Trees proudly showed off their brilliant yellow and orange hues. We followed an old monk with a bunch of keys around the compound while he unlocked the doors of each temple in turn for us to have a look around.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

No photos were allowed in the temples so I will try my best to do them justice with my words. The temples varied in sizes. The largest one consisted of a larger area upon entry and smaller rooms with statues of Buddha in the them. Like the smaller ones with only a statue in the middle of the room, its stone walls were covered from ceiling to floor with old paintings of Buddha and depiction of stories of good versus evil. It was unlike anything I’ve seen so far in my travels. Not even in Singapore where we have Buddhist temples.

The entire place overlooked the mountain range and its tranquility was of the kind that would be near-impossible to find in the city. Even as I close my eyes to listen now, I can hear the soft humming of generators, the occasional honks of vehicles, and my neighbours moving about in their apartments. This realisation convinces me of the charm the Ladakh region has that continually draws herds of visitors every summer.

To be continued…

Our Grand India Trip

I dropped of the face of the digital world for a while there because the hubs and I finally went for our Grand India Trip (yes, that’s what we’re calling it). We figured that we would leap at this opportunity of being stationed in India, to explore the country, based on the assumption that once we get posted out, we would no longer have to chance to return. So far, I’ve tagged along/extended his work trips to Mumbai and Calcutta, and we celebrated our first anniversary in Udaipur (in a palace, no less).

This latest trip, though, was a thing of if-this-was-your-only-trip-to-India and how-to-see-the-different-faces-of-India. So we extended the Public Holidays for Diwali, and set off!

Here’s what we picked:

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Jaipur to see the shimmering Diwali lights along the Bazaars in the ancient Pink City. It’s no wonder Jaipur’s usually included in the typical tourist itinerary of the Golden Triangle of India. It’s on the the few cities in Rajasthan that bore witness of the many kings that ruled. Grand palaces and forts are a facet of India that is a must-see, and Jaipur’s proximity to Delhi makes it an appealing destination. Above is the view from Amber Palace.

We then took a train to Delhi. Booking the train via the website required a bit of random clicking and figuring out at the start, but it was surprising convenient and easy after the initial confusion. Choosing Delhi was a no-brainer. Capital of India and possibly the most accurate glimpse of modern India? Yup, Delhi’s down next.

Of course, then, we couldn’t not include a day trip to Agra to take a peek at the legendary Taj Mahal, could we? We dutifully allocated one day to rub shoulders with the world famous tomb (along the the thousands of other people there).

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Last of all, we wanted to include something special and different. Somehow (I don’t remember how right now. Obviously, we’ve been planning this trip for ages.) we heard about Leh and the Ladakh region. Almost everyone said it was beautiful, and India couples often chose to spend their honeymoon in that part of the Himalayan range. Okay, the fact that it was in the Himalayan range was a major draw and definitely the something special we were looking for. It was also a short one plus hour flight away from Delhi. All the better.

Photo credit: Juxxtapose

Here’s a sneak peek at Nubra Valley in the Ladakh region, a part of the ancient Silk Route.

I’m definitely excited to share more, perhaps in the coming weeks, and I’m thankful that we got to see so much of India (despite still having a lot left unseen).