"Incredible India!" India by Hexepatty

I ate the food, prayed for the people, especially the children, and LOVED the country. Truly a unique country, in short.

Hexe at the Potters Wheel in Jaipur

THE MOVIES! I kept seeing movies from India and they were so colorful and even fragrant, if you will. Watching Bollywood films and musicals made me want to see the country that could produce SO MANY movies! When Slumdog came out it, I was hooked. I had to find a way to visit this magical, rhythmic country with color! Lucky for me, a work colleague / friend found out that her alma mater was creating a Group Tour for "Duke University" Alumni and family/ friends. She asked if I was interested and I said yes!

We had a 17 day trip and were part of a small group (19 people total) that took buses, trains, boats and small flights primarily in Northern India. Delhi, Jaipur, Khajuraho, Agra and Varanasi, plus the Rhathambore Animal preserve. We even spent one night in a small rustic retreat in a rural village. We got to visit a school and a small village. The children were sweet and enjoyed touching my curly hair. Apparently they don't see that much!

We saw so much! We ate amazing food. We learned a great deal. We quickly got overwhelmed with sights, sounds and historical facts. We got overfed with curries and learned how to make paneer! We became good at haggling / negotiating for good prices and bought 'stuff' with no mercy! We learned to ignore the touts and manipulative beggars.

As a small group that got along great, we learned to eat, pray and love around India.

We enjoyed "Karan' so much (and we truly think he enjoyed us almost as much!) that we got swept away and almost took him home with us! Great sport!

In short, I'm eternally grateful to our group tour director, Karanveer Singh. While I know we are never supposed to advertise guides, I will say Karan ROCKED! If you need more information on him, please let me know. He's very professional, solves problems effortlessly with no hesitation, aims to please, knows his history, and more importantly, he has an amazing energy level and you sense that he enjoys what he does. The man never broke a sweat!

• Pros:Great people, great historical attractions, great food!
• Cons:Touts are omnipresent as well as beggars
• In a nutshell:You have to go... Even if just once. It's a 'Must See' kinda place!