Our Overnight train to Mumbai was 12 hours long and I surprisingly had a pretty decent nights sleep despite the loud train honks, people coming and going and a teenie bunk to sleep in. Hopping on board our train at 11:30pm had us arrive in Mumbai around midday the next day.

After an exhausting night arriving in Mumbai I didn’t have a very open mind and all I saw was an over-crowded city, millions of people and more car horns! However the next day once I’d had a good night sleep and some more time to explore my mind was changed. Despite there being over 24million people in this small city after being there for a few days it was quite picturesque. With the hustle and bustle of the city centre to the calming coastal promenade it was almost 2 different cities.

There was a definite change of culture here in Mumbai with multiple schools and universities meant the western culture has certainly been adopted for many locals. Clothing has changed and more and more people out and about eating and drinking in the city. This didn’t change the photo requests and stares I received throughout our stay however.

We only did a couple of tourist stops whilst in Mumbai as we didn’t have to long before we headed to our next destination. The main site was the biggest open air laundry called Mahalaxmi Dhobi Ghat.

I’ve never seen anything like it, troughs of water filled with either cold water or hot water heated by a big water tank set in the middle of the site. And then everywhere you looked, clothing being hung in clinical colour coordinated lines. It truly was a site!

The last stop on our visit to Mumbai was the India gate which was built for George V arrival. Yes a gate was literally built for his trip! The gate is set next the Taj hotel, a wonderfully ornate hotel built back in 1903 mainly for the English. Back when it was built an English architect designed it for Indian builders to complete. When he came back to view the grand hotel, only to find that it had in fact been built backwards with the front entrance at the rear and the back door in the front, What a shock that must have been. In 2008 this beautiful hotel was severely effected by the terrorist attacks and the building and was almost completely restored, you couldn’t tell however as it now looks back to its full glory.

From Mumbai we took a short flight to Goa. Be warned it seems not many internal flights leave on time so if you have a connecting flight ensure you leave enough time!

A few hours later we arrived in the almost tropical region of Goa! 

Goa is most definitely the tourist destination of India for both internationals and locals. It seems the best and cheapest way to get around is by hiring a mo-ped. We hired a moped for 350rupees per day. Be warned you may get pulled over by the police and asked to pay a fine for whatever they decide you’ve done wrong at that time – apparently this happens all the time for Indians and westerners alike however as a westerner you’re likely to get charged more. Just a lovely sign of the corruption here in India. We paid our small fine and went on our way.

There are plenty of bars and restaurants to chose from in Goa, on the beach or  inland. Generally nothing has been too expensive here and alcohol seems to be very cheap. This is very much the reason for so many Indian tourists as they come here for the nightclubs and casinos.

Try to get yourself a boat trip through a tour company. We headed out on a boat towards a couple of islands for some snorkelling and lunch on a lovely secluded beach. The snorkelling wasnt great, we saw a few fish but the water was very sandy/dusty so not all that clear. But the water was warm and refreshing after being on a boat for around an hour so no complaints here.

The beaches in Goa are lovely and didn’t seem too busy but I think we arrived just before peak season which was nice. Be warned, walking into the sea can be somewhat of a challenge as its very rocky in some areas.

Our time here in India has been amazing, the vast differences in culture between regions and especially to the western ways. The colours, the food, the landscape is truly remarkable.

If you haven’t travelled to India make sure to put it on your travel list. It’s a definite must! Give us a call here at big blue and we can help you to plan a trip of a lifetime to this colour world.

Sending colourful vibes to all. Big Blue Travel x

Jaipur - The Pink City.

Our first look into Jaipur was through one of the 7 magnificent city gates into the old town. Jaipur is known as the pink city and you can see why, all of the big buildings and structures made with the red sand stone and painted with the excess to give a pink hue across the city.

Sticking with the colour theme we head to the Amber Fort, a huge fort built for the King and his family, including his 12 wives and their families. The fort has the most beautiful and intricate rooms I have ever seen, my favourite being the mirror room. It is exactly what it says on the tin, the walls fully decorated with mirrors different shapes and sizes in the same state today as when it was built all those many years ago.

Getting to the fort nowadays you can either walk or get a jeep, the roads are cobbled and much smaller leading to the fort so buses can only get you so far. They are also still offering your journey to the fort on elephants. The environmentalists are trying desperately hard to ensure animal abuse is to be cut down and are working to get all the elephants as close to their natural environment as possible so a plea from us, do not take the elephants to the fort, they were not born to do this and should be treated with respect, they are not taxis for tourist.

Jaipur is famous for its precious stones and semi-precious stones, if you’ve set out for something special, Jaipur is the place to ensure you get the best of the best.

From Jaipur onto Bijaipur a smaller town about 4 hours from Jaipur we stayed in an old 17^th century castle, very ‘marigold hotel-esque’ in its look. An old castle now turned into a hotel for tour groups. Bijaipur is much more out in the country and takes us away from all the smog, so so beautiful, with the locals so happy to see you. A simple wave and a hello is all the children are wanting! The local people spend most of their days either at school or on the farms and then selling the crops they grow on their local stalls. Spending most of their time out in the field on their tractors means that they want them to feel like home, you can see this by the amount of decoration they put on their machinery, I’ve never taken so many pictures of tractors!

The Venice of India.

Udaipur is home to several beautiful lakes and is named the Venice of India, and you can see why, the beautifully intricate bridges that climb over the lakes and rooftop restaurants and bars on the lake. It truly is picturesque. I highly recommend heading to a rooftop restaurant for sunset! Quite a picture.

If you were to use the lunar calendar we would currently be in the year 2075. Every full moon in Udaipur home-made natural candles are released onto the lakes and wishes are sent out into the open. Naturally this has now become very touristy but its still lovely to go down and see the lights floating off into the distance.

Looking to follow the tourist route? Head to the city Palace, tourists from all over the world visit here to see where the beautiful palace where the 74^th generation of royals still live today. They have opened a large part of the palace to the public and closed off part for themselves to live. At one end of the palace is also a now very high end hotel. The views of the lakes for the top of the palace is spectacular. You can ‘rent a guide’ or rent a head set for your way round the palace, I would always suggest a local guide for more of a personal feel.

Holy Cow!

Some more culture and history for you. All over the buildings and temples in India are many types of animals but in particular the Elephant, The Horse and the Camel. Elephant for Luck, Horse for Strength and Camel for Love. Although not many paintings of them, India is not short of Cows, although I knew cows were sacred in India I wasn’t sure why. Cows in India only produce 4/5litres of milk twice a day, whereas in the UK they produce almost double. Milk, curd, cheese and butter are part of the staple diet in India therefore very precious to the locals. You’ll notice as you walk around lots of ‘land mines’, (cow dung) the locals dry them and use them for insulation in the homes as it keeps in the warmth for winter and keeps it nice and cool in the summer months. Cow dung also keeps the mosquitoes away! When a cow dies naturally the leather is taken and sold for shoes and bags and the meat left for the animals. Cows in India are very smart, they’ll sit in the middle of the roads as its much cooler for them but also knowing that they wont get hit by oncoming traffic as a hefty fine is given if you were to hit one and if you were to hit and cow and it died you’d spend a few nights behind bars!

Next we endure a 16 hour overnight train…. I’ll let you know how we get on in my next post.

Stay safe, speak soon!

From Delhi to Agra…

We hopped on board a pre booked train to Agra, all very civilised really, reserved seating, bottle of water, newspaper and even breakfast served to you. This I’m sure will changed on our next train journey we have planned. Be warned, the toilets are still not overly delightful.

A 3 hour train journey landed us in Agra, I have been dreaming of this place for years. The city itself seemed quite small and very touristy, unsurprisingly. The build up of familiar coffee houses and fast food chains makes Agra a very surreal place to be in. Only staying 1 night here meant that we (like most others) were only here to see one thing. One of the 7 wonders of the world.

Before we made our way to the main event we toured round Agra Fort also known as the Red Fort. Built by, and the home of the man who built the Taj Mahal for his wife. The beautiful red walls of this fort really are astonishing and the size is overwhelming and the intricate details of the wall carvings keep you intrigued for hours. As a visitor you only get to see 25% of the fort as the rest is used by the military nowadays.

What a Wonder

On to the main event, the Taj Mahal. As the locals are trying to keep pollution away from this magnificent structure you are taken to the gates by electric buses (abit like golf buggies) where you get your tickets and scramble amongst the other tourists awaiting this amazing building. As you walk through the gates and under the archway of the out building to the postcard image of the Taj Mahal it truly is a spectacular sight. You could wonder round the ground for hours and I would still be amazed by the whole thing. Naturally there are hundreds of people everywhere trying to get that perfect profile picture image but please don’t let that put you off going, it truly lives up to the name and is a complete  Wonder! Add it to your bucket list now!

From afar the Taj Mahal is huge but as you move closer and closer to the building it truly is overwhelming how enormous this building really is. Some might say a little over the top for a mausoleum - The Taj Mahal was built for one of the emperor’s wives (his favourite) when she passed away. She asked for only 3 things when she died, To bury her somewhere spectacular, to never marry again and to look after their children. He did all of these 3 things, he built the Taj Mahal, (his other wives were not so lucky, these ladies have a small grave each outside the Taj Mahal which no one visits), he never married again and he did indeed look after their children. His youngest son however didn’t return the favour, He killed is brothers and imprisoned his Father just so that he could become emperor.

I would highly recommend a tour guide for both of these sites, Our guide was so informative about the history of India and the buildings in it and we would have been slightly bewildered without him. 

Cooperative Business

Intrepid travel link up with local businesses called a cooperative business, they help keep family businesses running and keep people employed throughout the country. We were taken to the knotted carpet business today and saw how these exquisite pieces of home décor are made from scratch. The detail and hard work that goes into them is unbelievable. A 1cm line of hand knotted carpet will take a while day to complete! Well worth the money of you get a chance to visit.

We shared an evening meal with Kalyani in her home this evening. (Picture on the right, Kaylani wears the red dress, her Mother, Brother and Husband all work within the family business now). 5 years ago she decided to open her home up to tourist to offer cooking demonstrations of local food. Off the recommendation of her guests she then turned her home into a guest house and B&B. She was so welcoming and I would encourage anyone visiting the area to book (through Big Blue) yourself a demonstration of your own. The food was amazing!

Moving from Agra to Jaipur we took a private mini bus, the journey is quite long, around 5 ½ hours. We came across a slight delay when one of our tyres burst (practically ripped in half), which when you see some of the roads you can imagine happens quite regularly. But having a spare tyre meant that we weren’t hanging around on the road side too long before we were back on our way.

Good Karma

India has many religions and they all live peacefully amongst one another, however 70% of people are Hindu. In the Hindu religion there are millions of Gods, but they don’t necessarily go to the temples to pray to them. Most people take their children to the temples to give positive energy but its not part of their daily routine. They live by the understanding that everything that is useful to you is God. For example our bus driver would pray every morning to his bus and leave incense because the bus gives him a job, the bus helps him provide for his family, therefore the most important thing to him. I absolutely love this sentiment and definitely feel more people should be more gracious to the things around them that get them through daily life.

Do good things and good will come to you…. Speak soon.

Big Blue in the Big Smog


First Stop Delhi..

When you first land in Delhi after a long flight from home all you want to do is get to your hotel. However do make sure you are getting a pre booked cab or specific taxi service to ensure you are not getting over charged, in a state of jetlag and plane haze we just jumped in a cab which definitely wasn’t your standard cab fare.

I had heard the smog in India was bad, but having been to other similar countries I was aware of what it can be like, but the smog in Delhi is like nothing I have ever seen. Most locals and tourists alike wear facemasks and most travel operators advise is to stay inside. 


Beep Beep!


If you have experienced rush hour in a busy city before forget it all as Delhi roads are something else. The road lines might as well be non-existant and the horns on their vehicles are very well used, however I haven’t seen any accidents as everyone seems to be very relaxed and uses their horn as a helpful tool rather than out of anger. A true experience being on these roads. 


Aside from the pollution in the air, on days where the smog lifts and the sun bursts through, India’s capital has some beautiful places to visit. We stayed in two different hotels in Delhi, one very high end a little more out of the city which was beautiful, but as people who like to explore we found this quite difficult so were thankful to move more into the city for our last few days at a middle tier hotel. Spending a only week in the city we did a whistle stop around a few of the main sites including, Inida gate, Mahatma Gandhi’s grave (Raj Ghat) , The red fort, Jama Majid, and various markets.


Some temples in India seem to be closed on Mondays which was such a shame as two of the bigger forts looked stunning from the outside and can only imagine their interior to mirror the external glory. We did however manage to go to Jama Majid a 17^th century mosque, extremely busy but stunning! Most temples that you enter you must remove your shoes and socks out of respect and shoulders and knees to be covered. All women are given a shawl to wear in Jama Majid which will cost you a small sum of 300rupee. 

Raj Ghat was a beautiful park where the grounds have been exquisitely tended to, it is free to enter the park and free to leave your shoes outside the entrance to Gandhi’s grave. (if you wish there is an area you can pay to leave you shoes if you are a bit more wary – I didn’t do this and other tourists seemed okay leaving their shoes with the locals too). Leading to the grave are many spiritual quotes of Gandhi’s giving you an insight to the kind of man he was to the Indian community. The Black marble platform marks the spot of Mahatma Gandhis cremation where a flame burns at all times. It truly is beautiful, even if you don’t know the history, and a must see on your list.

We visited a Sikh temple in the city, of which there are many, again shoes and socks off and dipping your feet in water on entry is a must but once you arrive you are free to worship however you chose. There are musicians playing throughout the day and songs being sang, the floral decorations were like nothing I have every seen! We had lunch in the Sikh temple and all three main meals of the day are cooked buy volunteers for anyone who wishes to eat, no questions asked, it doesn’t matter what religion you are you have the right to come in, sit and enjoy a hot meal together.



Delhi Belly


Naturally I cant not talk about the food whilst I’m here, if you’re a curry ‘expert’ at home then think again when you come to India. The mix of sweet and spicy is amazing. India has a VERY sweet tooth, in every meal you have the mixture of Dahl, curry’s and breads and sugar thrown in their somewhere, are a staple. Although there is some spice in the curry’s tasted so far it’s nothing that’s blown your face off. (great news from me as I’m not a spicy food lover) Who knows that may change as we continue on…
As long as you are sensible, no drinking tap water, see what is being cooked, eat what the locals eat, you are sure to do well. Naturally your body isn’t used to such different food but generally no issues with illness if you are sensible… finger crossed…


First impressions of Delhi if I’m honest weren’t fantastic due to the smog and the dirt but the people have made up for that no end. Smiling faces in a hectic city is very unusual to a Brit and they are most welcome. Possibly the smile towards me are more curious, being very tall and blonde, but nonetheless the friendly faces are wonderful.

Many more adventures to come, so sit tight for more on this colourful world…