Malaysia (Pre Covid 19 - Reminisce My Good Old Days - The 10 Best Places to Visit in India & I) - June 2021

" India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia, it is second most populous country, the 7th largest country by land area, and the most populous democracy in the world. India is divided into 28 states & 7 Union Territories " 

Ancient civilisations, British rule & colonial heritage (1612>1947), 38 UNESCO World Heritage sites, Himalayan range, mountain railways, religious & cultural heritage, chicken biryani, Indian mangoes - all these have enthused me very much in visiting India. With this in mind, I plucked up the courage & made my first visit to India in July 2007. The cities I visited were New Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, Srinagar / Kashmir, Lamayuru, Leh / Ladakh, Manali, McLeod Ganz (Dharamshala) & Shimla ! A real eye opener for me in this maiden visit ! My subsequent two visits were in Nov 2018 & Sept 2019 with my travel buddies & that was after a lapse of 11 years. Yearning very much to see a greater, fascinating & incredible India, these two recent visits (also re-visits) took me to New Delhi, Agra, Varanasi, Sarnath, Bodhgaya, Rajgir, Nalanda, Patna, Hajipur, Lucknow, Amritsar, Hyderabad, Aurangabad, Shirdi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bhopal, Sanchi, Khajuraho, Allahabad, Kolkata, Gangtok & Peeling City (Sikkim) & Darjeeling. In Dec 2023, I visited Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Jaipur, Mumbai, Goa, Hampi, Bengaluru, Mysuru, OOty, Mettupalayam, Coimbatore & Tiruchiarapalli. I have yet to visit major tourist sites in Southern India ie Kerala, Bhubaneswar, Puri, Kamataka, Chennai (Madras), Mahabalipuram, Puducherry, Thajavur, Madurai ... so I will keep in view (KIV) & focus on this region in my future visits to India ! 3 nearby countries bordering India I had visited in recent years were Nepal, Bangladesh & Sri Lanka. If opportunity arises in the near future, I would be keen to visit Bhutan, Assam & Nagaland (both are states of India) ! 

The 10 Best Places to Visit in India highlighted in a travel video presented by touropia are (I score some brownie points having visited 9 out of the 10 Best Places to Visit in a country called Incredible India) :

1. Jaipur
2. Agra
3. Kerala (yet to visit)
4. Varanasi
5. Ellora & Ajanta Caves
6. New Delhi
7. Goa Beaches 
8. Ladakh
9. Amritsar 
10. Udaipur 

Enjoy good memories.
But don't spend your remaining days
here looking back,
wishing for the "Good Old Days"

" Incredible India " - behind every travel, these were the picture of my Good Old Days free & easy travelling in India (2007, 2018 & 2019) 

1) My Good Old Safari Days in India (Nov / Dec 2023, by trains & buses = totalled 

2) My Good Old Safari Days in India (Oct 2019, by trains, buses & car hire = totalled 4,013km) 

3) My Good Old Safari Days in India (Nov / Dec 2018, by trains & buses = totalled 3314km)

4) My Good Old Safari Days in India (July 2007, by air, train & buses = totalled 3630km) 

1) Jaipur, India (visited in July 2007)

2) Agra, India (Nov 2018 & July 2007) 

3) Varanasi, India (Nov 2018)

4) Ellora & Ajanta Caves, India (Sept 2019) 

5) New Delhi, India (Nov 2018 & July 2007)

6) Ladakh, India (July 2007) 

7) Amritsar, India (Nov 2018)

8) Udaipur, Rajasthan, India (Dec 2023) 

9) Goa, India (visited in Dec 2023)

10) Kerala, India (yet to visit) 

KIV for future visits:

- Lake Pichola, Udaipur (visited in Dec 2023)

- Taj Lake Palace Hotel, Udaipur

- Nainital Lake

- Haldwani

- Rock Garden of Chandigah

- Jaisalmer Fort (visited in Dec 2023)

- Haridwar

- Munnar Valley, Kerala

- Mehrangarh Fort Museum, Jodphur, Rajasthan (visited in Dec 2023)

- Kumbhalgarh Fort, Qila Kumbhalgarh

- Agrason Ki Baoli Well, Delhi (Barakhamba Road Metro)

- Bala Fort, Rajasthan

- National Museum, New Delhi

- Wagga Attari border ceremony (visited in Dec 2023)