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15 Days In the Shadows of the Himalayas - West and South India Tour Package Duration: 15 Days / 14 Nights Priced From: $2,983 (All pricing reflects per-person Land Only expenses) Dates: Feb, Mar, Nov  Sign up for this wondrous 15-day India adventure and let the sights and sounds of the country's southern and western regions flood over your senses and stir your spirit. Our highlights include Mumbai's Mahalaxmi Temple, the immaculately preserved paintings in the Ajanta Caves, colonial architecture, the Maharaja's Palace in Mysore and a myriad of temples and sites of religious and cultural significance. A special treat on our journey, we embark on a houseboat cruise along the backwaters of Kerala and we glean a better understanding of the modern and traditional faces of the country with exploration of bustling centres like the relatively recent foundation of Chennai (circa 1600s) and Mahabalipuram, whose pictographic evidence pinpoints habitation as early as the 7th century. Tour Itinerary Day 1 Arrive in Mumbai (Bombay) Today we arrive in Mumbai. NOTE: Our accommodation in Mumbai is not central. Though our hotel is well-located for what we want to accomplish on our brief city tour, our first consideration is logistics given that Mumbai acts primarily as a hub for our flights to Aurangabad and Goa. Passengers wanting to book extra nights should bear this in mind. They should also bear in mind that hotel space in Mumbai is very tight and extra accommodation may NOT be at the same hotel as used on the tour, especially if you book late. Please also be aware of hotel check-in times (generally 12-2:00 pm) if you are arriving very early on the tour start date (you may need to book an extra night if you want a room immediately upon arrival). Your arrival in Mumbai,your prepaid dinner (If Applicable), Aand transfer to the airport on day 2 Will be provided by a local agent. you will meet your tour leader on day 2 (Llate morning) and continue with the group from there (Your Tour Leader will contact you at the hotel re his/her arrival time). Overnight in Mumbai. Dinner if required. Day 2 Mumbai: City Tour - Aurangabad This morning we have a tour of Mumbai, the business capital of India. From humble obscure beginnings as a set of seven small islands, Mumbai has today risen to eminence as India's most important commercial and industrial centre. Haji Ali's Tomb and mosque are devoted to a Muslim saint who drowned here. They are reached by a long causeway, usable only at low tide. The Mahalaxmi Temple is the oldest in Mumbai and dedicated to the three goddesses whose imaged are found in the sea. Marine Drive is a long gracefully curving road along the buttressed seacoast. The Prince of Wales Museum, built of blue-grey basalt and yellow sandstone, contains some excellent examples of Indian miniature paintings of the Mughal and Rajasthan Schools, as well as collections of jade and chinaware artifacts. The Gateway of India was conceived as a triumphal arch to commemorate the visit of King George V and Queen Mary for the Delhi Durbar in 1911. The city has several fine examples of colonial architecture including the Afghan Memorial Church, established in 1847 which has Gothic arches and stained- glass windows; the Clock Tower - now called Rajabai Tower, the School of Art, built in the late 1800s, where Rudyard Kipling was born; Crawford Market which has bas-reliefs designed by Kipling's father; the massive Victoria Terminus, built of yellow sandstone and granite combined with polychromatic stones and blue-grey basalt and the Municipal Corporation building. Also of interest are the Hanging Gardens on Malabar Hill, from where you get a magnificent panoramic view of the metropolis and the Arabian Sea. This evening we fly to Aurangabad. Overnight in Aurangabad. Breakfast and dinner. Day 3 Aurangabad: Ajanta Caves Hewn from the near-vertical sides of a horseshoe-shaped ravine, deep in the semi-arid hills of the Deccan, the rock-cut caves at Ajanta occupy a site worthy of the spectacular ancient art they contain. In 1819 a small detachment of East India Company troops brought the caves' obscurity to an abrupt end by rediscovering the facade of cave 10. Further exploration revealed a total of 28 colonnaded caves chiseled out of the chocolate-brown and grey basalt cliffs lining the River Waghora. The most beautiful aspects of the site are the immaculately preserved paintings. In addition to the phalanxes of stone Buddhas and other sculpture enshrined within them, Ajanta's excavations are adorned with a swirling profusion of multi-coloured murals, depicting everything from battlefields to boudoirs, sailing ships to city streets and teeming animal-filled forests to snow capped mountains. In its heyday, Ajanta sheltered over 200 monks, as well as painters, sculptors and labourers employed in excavating and decorating the cells and sanctuaries. Inspired by faith and devotion, the Buddhist monks toiled by hammer and chisel year after year. By the 8th century these caves (which date from around 200 BC to AD 650) lay deserted and forgotten until the tiger-hunting expedition of 1819. Overnight in Aurangabad. Breakfast and dinner. Day 4 Aurangabad: Ellora Caves - Mumbai The Ellora Caves lie 29 km (18 miles) northwest of Aurangabad. These rock-cut caves range from tiny monastic cells to colossal, elaborately carved temples, they are remarkable for having been hewn by hand from solid rock. The basic method of construction altered little over the centuries. First the basic dimensions of the ornamental facade were sketched into the cliff face. Next gangs of stonemasons hacked out a rough hole, through which they chiseled deep into the rock. As they worked their way down to floor level, using iron picks, the labourers left chunks of raw rock for skilled sculptors to transform into pillars, devotional friezes and stupas. Whereas the Ajanta Caves are noted for their paintings, it is the sculpture that is famous in Ellora. In terms of chronology, the Ellora Caves start where the Ajanta Caves finish. It is thought that the same builders moved from Ajanta to Ellora. The Ellora Caves are not all Buddhist like those of Ajanta; the earliest are, but during the time of Buddhism's decline in popularity, a later series of Hindu and Jain cave temples were added. Late in the day we fly back to Mumbai. Overnight in Mumbai. Breakfast and dinner. Day 5 Mumbai - Goa We have a morning flight to the former Portuguese enclave of Goa. Goa achieved fame when Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama sailed down the Malabar Coast in 1498 in search of "Christians and spices." Although he found neither, Goa became a Portuguese colony separated from the rest of India by the jungle covered hills of the Western Ghats. Goa's heartland and population is located in the alluvial strip inland from the beaches, a lush patchwork of paddy fields, coconut plantations, whitewashed churches and gently meandering rivers. Our hotel is not located on the beach in Goa. We prefer to stay inland in order to concentrate on the cultural heritage of the area. We will, however, have free time on the beach during our time here. Overnight in Goa. Breakfast and dinner. Day 6 Goa: City Tour This morning we include a sightseeing tour of Panjim. Proceeding onward to old Goa, we visit the Basilica of Bom Jesus, built in 1605 by the Jesuit fathers and still the most important church in Goa. Enshrined in a silver casket in one of its chapels, is the body of Saint Francis Xavier. Across the street is the Se Cathedral with an imposing vaulted roof, massive pillars and fourteen magnificent altars. Later we visit the Convent of St. Francis D'Assisi and the Chapel of St. Catherine. This afternoon is free to enjoy this laid-back town. Overnight in Goa. Breakfast and dinner. Day 7 Goa - Bangalore - Srirangapatnam - Mysore Today we fly to Bangalore and continue by road to Mysore. Until independence, Mysore was the seat of the maharajas of Mysore, a princely state covering about a third of present day Karnataka. En route we visit Srirangapatnam. Srirangapatnam derives its name from Lord Ranganatha. We visit the 1,000 year old temple dedicated to Ranganatha, proclaiming the historical background of the city. Besides the mythological association of the town, the town has assumed significance for the heroism of Hyder Ali Khan and Tipu Sultan in fighting the British in association with the French. It was also the capital of the Vijayanagar representatives and later Mysore rulers, during whose period Srirangapatna had witnessed glorious days. Overnight in Mysore. Breakfast and dinner. Day 8 Mysore: City Tour Today we tour this historic city, including the spectacular Maharaja's Palace. This charming, easy-going city has long been a favourite with travellers--it's a manageable size, enjoys a good climate and has chosen to retain and promote its heritage rather than replace it. The city is famous for its silk and is also a thriving sandalwood and incense centre. Overnight in Mysore. Breakfast and dinner. Day 9 Mysore - Belur & Halebid - Hassan Today we travel to Hassan via Belur and Halebid. Belur and Halebid were both capitals of The Medieval Hoysala kings who built the exquisitely carved temples in the 12th & 13th centuries. Belur is famous for it Hoysala architecture; its Temple of Lord Channakeshava is embellished with carving which has few equals in the world. It took 103 years to complete and you can see why. The facade of the temple is filled with intricate sculptures and friezes with no portion left blank. Elephants, episodes from the epics, sensuous dancers. they are all there - awe-inspiring in their intricate workmanship. Halebid was the seat of Hoysala Kingdom; its great Hoyaleswara Temple was built in the typical Hoysala style architecture. The temple, dating back to the 12th century, is astounding for its wealth of sculptural details. The walls of the temple are covered with an endless variety of gods and goddesses, animals, birds and dancing girls. Yet no two facets of the temple are the same. This magnificent temple--guarded by a Nandi Bull--was never completed, despite 86 years of labour. We continue to Hassan. Overnight in Hassan. Breakfast and dinner. Day 10 Hassan - Bangalore: City Tour Today we travel by road to Bangalore, the cosmopolitan capital of Karnataka. Bangalore is called the Garden City for it's delicate blossoms and greenery that impart a unique beauty to this lovely city. The weather is the city's best feature, with pleasant summers and bearable winters. Bangalore, which literally means the 'town of baked beans', was founded by Kempe Gowda, a chieftain of the Vijayanagar Empire, around the 16th century. He built four towers in four directions to specify its boundaries. Today we tour Bangalore, visiting the Lal Bagh which has a variety of old trees, fountains, lotus pools, terraces and an assortment of tropical herbs and subtropical herbs. We also see the government buildings and the Maharaja's Palace. Overnight in Bangalore. Breakfast and dinner. Day 11 Bangalore - Kochi: City Tour Early this morning we fly to Kochi. The history of European involvement in Kochi, from the early sixteenth century onwards, is dominated by the aggression of, successively, the Portuguese, Dutch and British, competing in their desire to control the port and its lucrative spice trade. From 1800, the state of Cochin was part of the British Madras Presidency; from 1812 until Independence in 1947, its administration was made the responsibility of a series of diwans, or financial ministers. In the 1920s, the British expanded the port to make it suitable for modern ocean-going ships; extensive dredging created Willingdon Island, between Ernakulam and Fort Cochin. On arrival we have a tour of Kochi, including: Chinese fishing Nets - A legacy of one of the earliest visitor to the Malabar coast, these nets are unmistakable as one enters the harbour. Records show that they were first erected between A.D 1350 and 1450. Constructed out of Teak wood and Bamboo poles, they work on the principle of balance. The best place to watch is from Vasco Da Gama square, a narrow promenade that parallels the beach with little stalls that serve fresh seafood, tender coconuts and so on. Santa Cruz Basilica: Built by the Portuguese, the church was elevated to a Cathedral by the Pope Paul IV in 1558. Spared by the Dutch conqueror of Cochin who destroyed many Catholic buildings in 1663, it later fell into the hands of the British who demolished it when they took over Cochin in 1795. For almost a 100 years there was no church on the site, until the Bishop Dom Gomez Vereira commissioned a new building in 1887. Overnight in Kochi. Breakfast and dinner. Day 12 Kochi - Allaphuza: Houseboat We continue by road to Allapuzha (Alleppey), known as the "Venice of the East", situated on Vembanad Lake, the longest in India. A maze of canals and a network of bridges give this busy commercial town its descriptive sobriquet. Alleppey is known for its coir, the retted fibre of the coconut husk and for black pepper. Today we board our houseboat for a very special Kerala delight--a slow boat through its forests and palm-shaded canals. We take a leisurely cruise on the beautiful backwaters, enjoying the magnificent scenery along the waterways and stopping to admire what history and religion have left along the way. THE HOUSEBOAT will be approx 60 feet long and 13 feet wide in the middle. There are comfortable beds, and traditional lanterns. There will be a sundeck for daytime relaxation. The boats are made of local natural fibres that truly echo the villagers harmony with the natural surroundings. As your oarsman slowly and silently propels us along the backwaters, we will enjoy the magnificent scenery along the waterways. We will stop to view working villages and witness locals fishing, swimming, crafting, and bathing (most boats will have oarsman though some will be motorized with a silencer on the motor). Some of the houseboats have the provision for air-conditioning, but most travellers do not care for the all-night gasoline engine noise required to run the units. Most people find that the peace and quiet, and comfort provided by a fan, are preferred. NOTE: Single cabins are NOT available on the houseboat. Single supplements reflect sharing for this one night. Overnight houseboat cruise. All meals. Day 13 Allaphuza - Chennai Today we return to Kochi and fly to Chennai (Madras). Overnight in Chennai. Breakfast and dinner. Day 14 Chennai: Mahabalipuram & Kanchipuram Today we travel to 60 km to Mahabalipuram, the seaport of the ancient Palava dynasty of Kanci. The temples and carvings here date back to the 7th century. They stand out because of their simplicity and the fact that they also depict many scenes from the every-day life of every-day people. It is now recognized as the site of some of the greatest architectural and sculptural achievements in India. Kanchipuram is known as one of India's Seven Sacred Cities and the historical capital of the Pallavas under whom, from AD 6th to 8th century, it became the citadel of Cholas, Vijayanagar Kings, the Muslims and the British. It has been a centre of Tamil learning, cultural and religious background for centuries. Kanchi has magnificent temples of unique architectural beauty bearing eloquent testimony to its glorious Dravidian heritage. After a comprehensive tour of the site we return to Chennai with the balance of the day free. Overnight in Chennai. Breakfast and dinner. Day 15 Chennai: City Tour - Departure Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu, is, like Mumbai and Calcutta, a comparatively modern creation. It was founded by the British East India Company in 1639, on a narrow five-kilometre strip of land between the Cooum and Adyar rivers, a few kilometres north of the ancient Tamil port of Mylapore and the Portuguese settlement of San Thome, established in 1522. The British were repeatedly challenged by the French who, in 1746, destroyed much of the city. Robert Clive ("Clive of India"), then a clerk, was taken prisoner, an experience said to have inspired him to become a campaigner. Clive was among the first to re-enter Chennai when it was retaken three years alter, and continued to use it as his base. Following this, fortifications were strengthened and the British survived a year-long French siege (1759), completing the work in 1783. By this time, however, Calcutta was in the ascendancy and Madras lost its national importance. Our city sightseeing of Chennai includes a visit to the National Art Gallery and Museum which has a selection of ancient paintings from almost all schools of art, as well as a section entirely devoted to modern art. We will visit Fort St George, once a stronghold of the British; St Mary's Church, the oldest Anglican church in India; the San Thome Cathedral where the remains of St Thomas the Apostle are believed to have been buried; the Mylapore Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva and the Light House which is the only one of its kind in the world to be located on top of a High Court. We drive along the Marina, the thirteen kilometre-long beach which, with its shining white sands, aqua blue sea and violet lights at night, is the pride of Chennai. Later we transfer to the airport for our homeward flight. Departure from Chennai. PLEASE NOTE: Many flights from Indian cities depart after midnight, ie just into TOMORROW. If this is the case re your departure, you may consider booking an extra hotel night so that you will have a place to rest prior to your flight tonight. Breakfast. Save time, money and stress! For reservations: Fill out the vacation planner to be contacted byour India Adventure vacation specialist. Contact : Travelwizard.com Phone: 1-800-330-8820 or 1-415-446-5252 11/09 |
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