The day started out like any other. Cold shower, I threw on a bathing suit (because if you’re going to sweat, you may as well sweat in a bikini), and then I put on some shorts and a loose neon shirt. I was travelling through India with my sister, Ashley, and our adopted Indian family [...]
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Today’s post comes to us from Alana, a twenty-something traveler trying to figure out life one place at a time…and writing about it at Paper Planes. You can see more stories and photos by following her on Facebook and Twitter. When I went to India I had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself [...]
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With its mist-covered mountains, heaving cities, colourful festivals and wonderful food, India is one of the most popular destinations for backpacking today. There is so much to see that anyone would find it hard to spend less than a few weeks in this vast and varied country. However, it’s important to ensure that you are [...]
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I only started travelling by train quite recently. Most of my trips up until two years ago had either involved long plane rides or a few scattered family drives; you know, the ones where you are shoved into the back of the van with your sisters, grandma, a rampant pet, and you are then poked [...]
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Visiting the markets is one of my favourite things to do when travelling. Not that I’m an avid shopper who spends her weekends at the mall, but set me loose in a market and every first edition book and antique camera cries out to me. India only intensified my market hunting instincts. The bright colours, [...]
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Living in a multicultural city like Toronto, my high school days were spent becoming acquainted with Indian music, food and cinema. At school I shared a locker with a friend who was really into Bollywood. As a result, the place was plastered in photos of Indian actors, dancers and singers. I must admit I wasn’t [...]
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Mornings in Mumbai were surprisingly peaceful; the sun slowly rising behind an overcast sky, while men meditated by the turbulent seas. The beckoning Gothic architecture of Victoria Terminus (now known as Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus), and the inner chaos that ensued as men and women jumped on and off trains. The taxi driver who drove us [...]
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30 Minutes in a Rickshaw I had been warned about drivers in India, but my experiences in Mumbai had taught me that drivers knew what they were doing. As a matter of fact, I found them to be quite talented; weaving their way through traffic, cutting off taxis and ox-drawn carriages, braking within millimeters of [...]
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No, no! I did not get a tattoo, that would involve pain and needles and permanence. But while I was in Goa last summer, several of my friends did. It began with one girl wanting to cover up a scar on her shoulder and escalated to another girl daring a guy to get a fairy [...]
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I am greeted with a moist kiss to the cheek, her perspiration clinging to my face as a warm welcome to Mumbai. I’ve never met this woman before, but she has driven to the airport in the wee hours of the morning as a favour to an old friend. Her teenage son Shan towers next [...]
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