India is a country of stark contrasts. This is a country of magnificent beauty, ancient temples, towering mountains, steamy jungles, and hot, dry deserts. It’s also a country that is overpopulated and in some areas impoverished. Travel to India and you will love it and hate it, rejoice in its beauty and become disheartened with its squalor, fall in love with the people but get exasperated when they just won’t leave you alone.
It is no secret that we were not big fans of India during our five week visit here. In fact, we considered skipping the last several weeks, shortening our itinerary and traveling to Myanmar or Thailand early. But our time in India changed us in so many ways…how we travel, who we are as a family, and how we think about our place in the world.
It’s funny how time can change your perspective. Now, I look back on India with fondness. Even though not everything we experienced was pleasant, we did make some unforgettable memories. Sometimes, the things that challenge you the most leave the deepest mark on your soul.
Now, several years later, as I pour through our photos, I am feeling nostalgic for India. Journey through India in photos and just maybe get inspired to visit this land of stark contrasts.
India in Photos
Sunrise on the Ganges River in Varanasi
Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Mumbai
Kara’s view from our hotel in Jaisalmer
Oh, the food!
India street art in Udaipur
Here’s a little more
One of our best memories…on the Ganges River
Yes, elephants really do walk down the city streets in India
So do cows
Here are more cows
Cows are found everywhere. This is the city center of Jaisalmer.
Monkeys also roam wild…with the perfect sunset in the background
Coolest memory for our family in India…an overnight camel safari in the Thar Desert
Ghats on the Ganges River in Varanasi
Chowpatty Beach, Mumbai
Kara getting a henna tattoo in Udaipur
Here she is a few days later…
People loved taking our photo
It was almost impossible to escape the attention
Sometimes we would attract a huge crowd of people, with photo sessions lasting over 15 minutes. At first, we thought this was fun, but as time went on, this was something that became aggravating.
But we loved the people. And we took photos of them as well.
A guard in Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur
Of course, there is the Taj Mahal
And beautiful Ranakpur Temple
And sexy Khajuraho
The blue city of Jodhpur
A city street in black and white
Boats in Varanasi
A crowded street in Delhi
Taj Mahal seen from the Red Fort in Agra
Kara with a snake charmer in Jaipur
Laundry day in Varanasi
Walking the streets of Jodhpur
Walking the streets of Jaisalmer
One last view of the Ganges River in Varanasi
And finally, Tyler with a sadhu
More Information about India
FAVORITE EXPERIENCES IN INDIA: Our favorite experiences in India was visiting Darjeeling during Diwali, seeing the Taj Mahal, trying street food in Mumbai, going on a camel safari in Jaisalmer, and walking through Old Delhi.
THE BEAUTY OF BHUTAN: Journey through Bhutan in our collection of photos and read about our experience exploring the highlights of Bhutan.
TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY: For more information about the camera gear we carry, check out our Travel Photography Gear Guide.
Are you planning a trip to India? Read all of our articles about India in our India Travel Guide.
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Comments 14
Thank you for sharing this valuable information. It’s really insightful and helpful
I guess you clicked roaming cow photos in Udaipur. But now visit here for a memorable trip as the city is now transforming into a new place.
Hello,
U have a wonderful Blog and Beautiful Pictures. But I feel you have missed a lot in INDIA. NO offense but as per itinerary you just a small portion of it. You must plan a visit to India and this time try Visiting the hidden gems like Khumbhalgarh, Havelis of Kajra, Jhunjhunu, Orcha, Datai, Ajanta & Ellora caves, Bhimbetka, Kerala, Munnar etc. These are a few suggestions which might interest you as they are not only among the beautiful places but also will give you the a peek into the diversity of India in terms of architecture and culture and food.
Author
I agree. We would love to come back to India and visit places we haven’t been yet. Thank you for writing in with your suggestions and we will take a look at those places when we plan our next trip. Cheers, Julie
It’s quite embarrassing to see cattle roaming freely in streets but I’d say that you’ve captured the real India very beautifully. I wish that you’ll see a better India whenever you’ll visit here again 🙂
Thanks for sharing your amazing experiences and journey.
I have been following your website for a while. You guys are doing a wonderful job in posting each of your travel experiences. Thanks a ton. Thats helping me and others a lot.
I am from India and I need to comment this. Looks like you just visited northern part and mostly the suburbs. There are lots of places which are so neat, ancient, natural and of course rich in south and north east part of India. Yes, you definitely need a re-visit.
Good luck.
Thanks,
Senthil.
Author
Yes, hoping to revisit India soon!! Cheers, Julie
After reading your blog on India, I was very disappointed about your experiences. We spent 3 weeks in 2017, mostly in Rajasthan (side trip to Nepal) and absolutely fell in love with the country and the people. Yes, it is dirty and sometimes smelly but if you expect to experience that, that’s what your experience will entail. We (me and my husband of 45+ years) fell in love with India long before we arrived…the colors, the culture, the spirituality and the total happiness we found was completely true upon arrival. I do realize that coming from the USA where we have everything and basically want for nothing, it is very hard to understand how people can be happy but yet so poor. The most valuable thing we both learned is “do not judge a book by its cover” – embrace their differences, don’t judge their lives and try to understand the amazing culture and spirituality of India. In fact, we loved the country so much, we are planning to return for another 3 weeks in October 2019 (side trip to Bhutan). I do admire you for giving these wonderful adventures to you children. They are already better people for all of these amazing experiences. When we were raising our children (all in the 40s now), we could not afford to travel like you (camping was it for us). I only wish we could have exposed our children at an early age to what’s out there in this wonderful world. The good news is…now they are starting to travel more with their own children. We have taken our grandchildren on a few US trips (National Parks) but hope when they are done with college, we will be able to bring them on some of our fabulous experiences. Thank you for blogging about your travels. This is something I’ve wanted to do for a very long time, from a seniors’ point of view. You have inspired me! Hope you are still traveling!!!
Author
We thought that we were prepared for India, and in our case, a shorter trip, like 3 weeks, would have been perfect for our first visit. The last 2 weeks was the hardest, especially dealing with dengue fever. Hopefully sometime soon will be planning a return visit to India, because I know we missed some great spots. Cheers, Julie
Hi Julie-just want to say congrats on your fabulous website . I am so delighted to see your family going to such adventurous places like India! Our son is now 21 but when he was younger we spent two different year-long sabbaticals with him–one in South America and the other in Africa and Eastern Europe. I can’t stress enough the value of travel to teach your children to accept diversity, esp. in this politically charged time (let’s just say I’m with you on this one). My husband and I have recently sold everything to travel long-term, and after over 100 countries altogether we finally made it to India. I love your assessment of that crazy place and your photos. I too got dengue fever there! Anyway, thanks for the great blog and the memories. I’m hoping we can connect up some day, somewhere wonderful! (Maybe on the Bourbon Trail 🙂
PS (I post on mytripjournal.com/RumskyRambles if you are ever in the market for travel ideas or want to revisit places you’ve been! I also published a book about our travels in South America called BYOC: South America!)
Author
Hello Robin. Wow!!! Over 100 countries…fabulous! Thank you for the wonderful compliments. Yes, it would be great to meet up some day. 🙂 Tim and I talk about traveling long-term again in the future. Congrats on going again and again and again. We really admire you. Happy Travels, Julie
You guys have been an inspiration. My sincere thanks to you for great information and amazing blogs. You guys are doing an excellent job and inspiring so many people like myself. I know that maintaining this website and providing all that information itself is also a huge task. Congratulations and please keep up the great work. I will be reaching out to you soon for my Sweden/Norway vacation plan for next summer.
Author
Hello Jayant. Thank you so much for the very nice compliment. Yes, you are correct, this website is a lot of work, but it is so worth it. We love sharing our experiences with everyone, hopefully inspiring people to travel more, and giving advice about the things we have learned about. We look forward to helping you out with Sweden and Norway when you are ready. You picked great destinations! Cheers, Julie