Must Do Self-Plan: Journey to India

There are so many things I can do when it comes to Ramadhan, a month where all Muslims in the whole world are fasting. So I took this opportunity to write something for my India trip, next year.

The trip, which is 9 months away from now,is going to be something incredible and challenging. Incredible in the sense that, my buddy and I will have to face the trickiest people on earth, but not impossible. And challenging in the sense that we have to work hard to ensure our seats on the trains are reserved according to the initial plan. Return ticket to Kolkata has been booked which means the trip must go on no matter how.

Many people do not understand why I am so enthusiastic to visit India. And frankly speaking, most of them will pull out disapproving faces which I don't really care. When the subject matter India came up, the only thing most people could see the positive thing is the absolutely famous Taj Mahal, and Kashmir. The negative thing, well, too many too mention here and I don't like to mention it here. Even the seemingly perfect countries in the world have their own flaws, so India is the same...anywhere is just the same. Don't look at the bad things because nothing good can surface and we will end up regretting this and that.

India is more than just Taj Mahal and Kashmir. There are vibrant cultures, architectures and heritages one can appreciate and have good experiences observing these wonders. For those who don't know how to spend their money, India is the perfect place so spend on various fabrics and perfect for various occasions. And those who love photography, I bet bringing extra memory cards and batteries are a good idea. And those who run after the heritage sites (obviously me), India has so many to offer, only if you care to get to them.

My India journey will take 3 solid weeks, covering Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra state. Below is my rough planning for the trip:

18/4/13 Day 1 : Arrive Kolkata, and connecting flight to Delhi, overnight in Delhi
19/4/13 Day 2 : Flight to Srinagar and leisure activity in Srinagar
20/4/13 Day 3 : Srinagar to Sonmarg and Gulmarg
21/4/13 Day 4 : Srinagar to Yousmarg and Pahalgam
22/4/13 Day 5 : Srinagar
23/4/13 Day 6 : Flight to Delhi, and leisure activity in Delhi
24/4/13 Day 7 : Tour around Delhi
25/4/13 Day 8 : Tour around Delhi, depart Jaisalmer by train (evening) ETD 1530, 18 hours
26/4/13 Day 9 : Tour around Jaisalmer
27/4/13 Day 10 : Tour around Jaisalmer, depart for Jodhpur by train (evening) ETD 1715, 5 hours
28/4/13 Day 11: Tour Jodhpur
29/4/13 Day 12: Tour around Jodhpur, depart for Mumbai by train (evening) ETD 1500, 20 hours
30/4/13 Day 13: Tour Mumbai
01/5/13 Day 14: Tour Mumbai, depart for Udaipur by train (evening) ETD 1545, 16 hours
02/5/13 Day 15: Tour Udaipur
03/5/13 Day 16: Tour Udaipur, depart for Jaipur by train (night) ETD 2220, 8 hours
04/5/13 Day 17: Tour Jaipur
05/5/13 Day 18:  Depart Agra by train, Tour Agra (morning) ETD 0615, 5 hours
06/5/13 Day 19: Depart Delhi-shopping in Delhi
07/5/13 Day 20: Depart Kolkata - leisure activity in Kolkata
08/5/13 Day 21: Tour Kolkata
09/5/13 Day 22: Depart for KL

Train travel details (expected)
Delhi - Jaisalmer     : ETD 1530, 18 hours
Jaisalmer - Jodhpur : ETD 1715, 5 hours
Jodhpur - Mumbai  : ETD 1500, 20 hours
Mumbai - Udaipur  : ETD 1545, 16 hours
Udaipur - Jaipur     : ETD 2220, 8 hours
Jaipur - Agra          : ETD 0615, 5 hours
Agra - Delhi           : this is a popular route so booking is unnecessary

To reserve train tickets, it is quite problematic because the Indian Railway company does not except international credit card. International travelers are required to register at the IRCTC website and to complete the registration, Indian mobile no. is required. In this case, it is good to have contacts/friend in India who can lend his/her mobile number, just to get the one time password to activate the registration. And on top of that, the account must be linked to a website which accepts payment from international credit card  provider. Ticket reservation can be done 120 days before departure and can easily get sold out in peak season.

This post is just not a mere post as this can be part of my notes and reminder so that I will not change plan once I have decided this is the best plan, based on the research done. This includes whatever booking I have made, with the hope that I do not have to waste money due to overlapping bookings. This happened before for the Philippine trip which cost me almost RM300 damage.


These are the THINGS DONE for this trip
Return flight by AirAsia Kuala Lumpur - Kolkata
Informing CS friend on my visit to Srinagar

Things TO BE DONE
Book return flight Kolkata - New Delhi (~RM600)
Book return flight New Delhi - Srinagar (~RM300)
Book all domestic train tickets (~ RM250)

I guess that is all for now. I'm so going to bed now...ZZZZZZZZ