As it was clear that I had to go to India for work, it was also clear for me that I didn’t just want to visit the offices there (despite having great colleagues).
What did happen, I haven’t expected.
From a European perspective, you simply immerse yourself in a completely different world. The entry point to this is the opening sliding airport door and the consideration of whether you are currently feeling realistic temperatures, or it was just the activity after the “spicy” (everything is relative I learned during my stay) food on the plane. On the first day we set off from Gurgoan to Taj Mahal at 1.30 AM.
It wasn’t bad because you struggle with the time difference anyway and it’s definitely worth experiencing the sunrise there. At 5:20 AM it is still below 40 degrees Celsius (no joke). We ordered the tour via a useful App GetYourGuide (for sure there are others) and have had a top guide and a transport. Beside this we did as well visit Agra Fort where I managed to take a picture from a monkey quite closely outside a zoo.
As a Google Localguide totally under adrenaline when travelling, I did after this 12-hour trip visit a shopping center in Gurgoan. There was no difference compared to other shopping centers in Europe and USA. Maybe with the exception that in all stores there was a very high service quality. (not yet finished all my shop uploads).
By the way. I felt all the time very save in India (maybe not when traveling several times with the TukTuk
) and there where ALWAYS people who did support me in case I felt lost or have had other traveler problems.
Next day we did visit New Delhi and Old Delhi with all main attractions. Before only in Istanbul I have seen such a beautiful mix of cultures and religions and such colorful shopping possibilities. We did visit all main points and I have uploaded pictures to all attractions on GoogleMaps, but here I share something colorful.
And now the food: I wasn’t aware that people eat so little meat in India. But I wasn’t aware of the fireworks of taste experiences that the numerous Indian spices can conjure up. AND: There are numerous different types of mangoes. Probably as many as apple varieties and prepared very differently. I had never associated mangoes with India before. Now it is the mango country for me.
At the beginning it was extremely unusual for me to eat with my hands, but we also did it at business lunches and even though I only do it with grilled chicken in Germany, it really changes the relationship to food.The beer in India was okay, only the Indian Pale Ale (IPA) was a bit disappointing. Can happen, but the expectation was different
. Anyway, quite popular is Whisky there.
Sure, there are many things in India that could be better for the people there. But it is a country with a different rhythm, a symphony of smells and sounds. It’s fantastic and I really hope it won’t be the last visit to this great country. I definitely have the clothes that will take me back to India.
A view more hints:
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You can mainly pay by card in many places, BUT not always international cards are excepted!
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It is always good to have some cash with you. For eg tip or some small purchases
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UBER App was very helpfull and you could order as from Motorbike and TukTuk to premium service all without to negoziate.
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DRINK WATER, DRINK, DRINK and DRINK
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As written we used GetYourGuide for local bookings and all was fine. For sure there are some other Apps, but use a app or order via your hotel.






