"Paul2001's India Page" a India Travel Page by Paul2001

I begin this page with a warning. India is not a country to be trifled with. Going to India is the experience of a lifetime and this does not necessarily mean that you are going to enjoy it. One thing for sure is that you will definitely not be bored in India.
Why I start this page so ominously is because since returning from there I have found so many people who "think" that they might find it an interesting place to visit but not realizing what India is all about. For one, the poverty is overwhelming. Traveling by taxi through Mumbai means you have to be besieged by fingerless lepers begging for money at every intersection stop light. I saw more homeless people sleeping on the streets during my first two hours in Mumbai than there are in all of Canada. The amazing thing is that you seem to get used to it or at least ignore it somewhat.
This is why I say think seriously before you go there. It is not a place you go to on a whim. India is a destination for serious and experienced travelers. If your experience traveling abroad consists of package tours to Cancun or Agadir, then I suspect that you are going to hate India. As I said to a friend of mind just before I left for India, "India is not going to be a walk in the park".
Now the good points. After one week in India I could not wait to get heck out of the place. After six weeks their I did not want to leave. I have been trying to figure out how to arrange the time off for another visit ever since. The word awesome is the best single word that I can use to describe a journey to India. Whether you are awed by something either good or bad it does not matter. You are never going to have another experience like this for the rest of your life. The best single example of a typical India experience is while walking outside of beautiful Jain temple near Jaipur I stumbled upon a pig the size of Golden Retriever lying it the middle of the street. I thought what a dumb place for a pig to go to sleep when I quickly realized that the pig was dead. No one had thought or could be bothered to pick it up. People who have traveled to India can tell you dozens such stories. Go there you will be able to do so too.