Namaste Friends,

 As spring warms the landscape, India cuts loose for a day gay of abandon and general hilarity, in the form of Holi. The most lively of all Hindu festivals, Holi heralds the end of the winter and celebrates harvesting of the winter crop. North India, in particular, goes wild, with people smearing brightly hued powders on each other and squirting each other with coloured water from pichkaris. The night before Holi, huge ceremonial bonfires are lit in a re-enactment of the legend of Holika and Prahlad (see box).
     
 
     
  Holika was the sister of Hirankashyap, the demon king of the Asuras. He fancied himself to be the Supreme Being and ordered his people to worship him. However, his son, Prahlad, an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu, refused to do so. Holika had been granted a boon that provided her protection against fire, so Hirankashyap asked her to sit on a burning pyre with Prahlad in her lap. She did just that, but it was Prahlad who walked out of the pyre unharmed, while Holika was burnt.  
     
 
     
   
 
 
Travel + Leisure features Shreyas Resort amongst the top 50 romantic and unusual resorts. “The ashram meets the Aman Resort at Shreyas, a farmland yoga retreat 22 miles outside Bangalore,” says the magazine. Four cottages and eight tented chalets offer all the typical luxuries but no television. The scent of jasmine, frangipani, and rose petals fills the air. Rigorous Hatha yoga classes are held twice a day and the (vegetarian) meals are with produce from the gardens.  
In the latest issue of Travel+Leisure two Indian Hotels have won two of the most coveted awards

T+L Design Awards 2006:
The T+L design jury picked Amanbagh in Rajasthan as the Best Designed Resort
World's Best Values:
T+L readers have picked the Oberoi Rajvilas, Jaipur as the best value

 
The Zagat Survey 2005, often referred to as the “Oscars” of the global hospitality industry, has rated the Oberoi Grand Kolkata as the best city hotel in India. The hotel was once known as one of the four jewels of the East, along with Raffles Singapore, Oriental Bangkok and Strand Rangoon.

Frommer’s, a leading travel publisher, has included Goa in its list of the most interesting affordable destinations for travellers wanting a “different holiday experience”. Don’t forget to do India’s first underwater sea walk when you visit.

Former German tour operator Win De Ruiter, now an author, has rated both the Andaman Islands & Lakshadweep higher than Maldives and Seychelles as areas with the world’s best beaches. His Top 10 list, published in “The Independent”, rated beaches on factors such as quality of sand, colour and depth of water, and angle of the sun.
 
     
 
Two historic Mughal capitals, Delhi and Agra, also 2 of India’s most visited spots, are now linked by India’s fastest train, the Shatabdi Express, plying at 150 km per hour. The 196 km journey to Agra will now be completed in less than 2 hours. The Shatabdi Express trains, which were introduced in 1988 on major routes (including Mumbai-Pune and Delhi- Amritsar), typically operate at the speed of 120 km per hour. They were introduced as an alternative to air travel, and are considered to be convenient, super fast and comfortable.  
 

Ask someone to think of a brightly coloured silk sari with lots of zari embroidery, and chances are the vision they conjure up is that of the Kanjeevaram saree. First woven around 400 years ago in the small temple town of Kanchipuram (from which it derives its name), this vibrant garment is one of the finest and most popular forms of silk in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Kanjeevarams are made of heavy silk, so durable that they last and last (at least 30 to 40 years) to become heirlooms, passed down generations. A Kanjeevaram saree will always find a place in every South Indian bride's trousseau. Prices start at Rs 10,000.
 

 
 
   
     
 
           
 

Amitabh Kant
Joint Secretary, Ministry of Tourism,
Transport Bhawan, Parliament Street,
New Delhi - 110 001.
T: 91 + 11 + 23715084
F: 91 + 11 + 23710518
M: amitabhk@incredibleindia.org
W: http://www.incredibleindia.org

 

While others may claim breathtaking locales, the mysticism of the east, the draw of civilization, the call of the wild.... India is that and much more.....
It is a journey of mind and soul.
It is a journey of the five senses
It is a journey of self-discovery
It is a journey of self-fulfillment.

  
   

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