Unusual India & Unheard Indians

Unusual India & Unheard Indians (Tour Code: IN/018) – India is all about wow and oh !!! where each step takes you by surprise and no wonder surprises that raise your eye brows and leave you gasping with what you touch, see and hear. We show you the magnetic hills of Leh, African tribes in Jambur, world’s most lock-less town Shani Shignapur, Sanskrit speaking village of Mattur in this modern age India and the ancient caves of Ajanta & Ellora. On this tour you also see the contrasting modern cities of Delhi, Ahmedabad and Bangalore. Of course Lion heaven Gir National Park too forms a part of this exciting 14/15 days tour.

Itinerary

Day 01  Arrival day in Delhi

On arrival in Delhi, our representative will meet, assist and transfer you to the hotel. Check-in at the hotel and day up to lunch at leisure. Post lunch you will be visiting Red Fort, Qutub Minar and Chandni Chowk. Late evening back to the hotel, welcome dinner along with a briefing session at the hotel and overnight at hotel in Delhi

Day 02  Delhi / Leh

Early morning breakfast and check out from the hotel and transfer to airport in time to connect your flight to Leh (1.5 hrs). Arrive Leh and transfer to hotel. Check in at the hotel and day up to lunch at leisure. Post lunch visit Magnetic Hills (30 kms). Magnetic Hill is a gravity hill which is alleged to have magnetic properties strong enough to pull cars uphill and force passing aircraft to increase their altitude in order to escape magnetic interference; in reality, the effect is an optical illusion created by the gravity hill. Back to hotel by evening. Overnight at the hotel in Leh.

Day 03  Leh

Breakfast at the hotel and post breakfast we depart for AM Sightseeing tour to Spituk. Spituk monastery which was founded by Od Lde, in the 11th century AD. In those days the gompa belonged to the Kadampa School but Gelukpa order was introduced during the region of King Dragspa Bum ilde, when Lama Lhawang Lotus restored the monastery & & Hall of Fame (war museum). Later we drive back to hotel on time for lunch. Later in the afternoon, guided sightseeing tour visiting the Sanker Gompa, which is towards the north of the Town, it has an impressive). Later visit Shanti Stupa, The Japanese for World Peace built the Shanti Stupa, at Changspa, on the hilltop, and was inaugurated by Dalai Lama in 1985. Its state of the art work attracts a lot of tourists to Ladakh and is spectacular to watch. From there one can see the nice spectacular view of Leh town. Back to hotel by evening. Overnight at the hotel in Leh.

Day 04  Leh / Delhi / Ahmedabad

Early morning breakfast and check out from the hotel and transfer to airport in time to connect your early morning flight to Delhi and later from Delhi connect your flight to Ahmedabad (1.5 hrs). Arrive Ahmedabad and transfer to hotel rest of day at leisure. Evening you have an option to explore the city and later back to hotel for an overnight stay at the hotel in Ahmedabad.

Day 05  Ahmedabad / Veraval

Breakfast at hotel and post breakfast we visit Sabarmati Ashram (Gandhi Museum), Sidi Sayed Mosque and Heritage Houses of Poles. (room extended till this evening). Back to hotel and later check-out from the hotel to be transferred to Railway station with packed dinner in time to connect your overnight train to Veraval (430 kms / 9 hrs). Overnight on board your train.

Day 06  Veraval / Sasan

Arrive Veraval in the morning and drive to Sasan (40 kms / 1 hr) and you will be transferred to Jungle Resort. Breakfast at the resort and day up to lunch at leisure. Lunch at the resort and post lunch you will take a Jeep Safari to explore the Gir National Park famous for its Asiatic Lions. Later back to the resort. Dinner and overnight at resort in Sasan.

Day 07  Sasan / Jambur / Sasan

Morning pre-breakfast safari at the park, back to our resort for breakfast. After breakfast at resort you will visit Jambur Village : A little Africa in India which is home to the descendants of Africans who were brought to the subcontinent as slaves and many others who traveled as mercenaries, merchants and sailors. They are known as Sidi Tribes. The Sidis of Jambur are supposed to have originally come from Kano in Nigeria via the Sudan and Mecca after their Hajj pilgrimage.The shrine in Jambur houses the tomb of a saint known as Nagarchi Baba – Drum Master.The Sidis say he was an Arab who visited Africa some 900 years ago, before settling in India. The only remnant they retain of their African lineage is their music and dance. Back to our jungle resort in Sasan and overnight at Sasan.

Day 08  Sasan / Rajkot / Mumbai / Nashik

This morning post breakfast we will drive to Rajkot (200 km / 4 hrs). Upon arrival in Rajkot we will be transferred to airport in time to connect our flight to  Mumbai. From here our exclusive car will drive to Nashik (170 km / 4 hrs). Arrive Nashik by dinner and overnight at the hotel in Nashik.

Day 09  Nashik – Shani Shignapur – Aurangabad

Breakfast at the hotel. Post breakfast checkout from the hotel to drive to Shani Shingnapur Temple (160 kms / 3 hrs) dedicated to Lord Shani. Unlike other pilgrimage centres, devotees here can perform puja or abhishek or other religious rituals themselves.One of the unique aspects of the village Shiganapur is that houses here have no door- frames or locks on them for safety. They are in fact not needed. The people here believe that it is the benediction of the god that no crime ever occurs in this village. They lead a disciplined life abstaining from Liquor and meat. The social relations of people are marked by trust, co-operation and empathy. Their life styles are based on reverence for nature in other words ecologically compatible, besides socially and economically sustainable norms. Post this tour we will drive to Aurangabad (90 km / 2 hrs). Check-in at hotel and overnight at the hotel in Aurangabad.

Day 10  Aurangabad

Breakfast at the hotel and post breakfast we will visit Ajanta and the Ellora caves. Dating back to the 2nd BC and artistically built over a few centuries, the Caves of Maharashtra have an extraordinary appeal and aura. Nestled in the formidable Sahayadri Mountain Range, these caves have been home to monks of different religions. Be it the paintings in the Ajanta caves or the sculpture of the Ellora caves, the visitors have always and will always continue to be spellbound. Evening return to the hotel and overnight at the hotel in Aurangabad.

Day 11  Aurangabad / Bangalore / Shimoga

Breakfast at the hotel. Post breakfast check out from the hotel and transfer to airport in time to connect your morning flight to Bangalore via Mumbai. Arrive Bangalore by early evening and drive to Shimoga (300 kms / 6 hrs). Reach Shimoga and check in at the hotel. Overnight at the hotel in Shimoga.

Day 12  Shimoga – Mattur – Shimoga

After breakfast you visit Mattur : a village where Sanskrit is the main language. The village of about 2,000 inhabitants is located about 8 km south of Shimoga. The Tunga river flows gently on one side of the village. Its fame as the Sanskrit Village has spread far and wide. Sanskrit is the spoken language of over 95 per cent of the people here. Soft and dulcet, a conversation sounds like a Vedic recital. Though it is a journey, which began about 500 years ago, Sanskrit has been modified according to modern needs here by Sanskrit Bharati. As one enters the village he is greeted with ”bhavatha nam kim? (What is your name?), “coffee va chaayam kim ichchhathi bhavan? (What will you have, coffee or tea?). The pronunciation of “Hari Om” instead of ‘hello’ and “katham asti” instead of ‘how are you?’ are common here. Everybody-men, women, children, literate or illiterate-freely speaks Sanskrit. Even the Muslim families speak Sanskrit without hesitation and as comfortably as is spoken by the Hindus. Their children are found in the streets reciting Sanskrit shlokas. There are families who have written on their doors-‘You can speak in Sanskrit in this house.’ This is basically to tell the visitors that in case they are fluent in the language they can talk to them in Sanskrit Back to hotel. Overnight at the hotel in Shimoga.

Day 13  Shimoga / Bangalore

Breakfast at the hotel. Later check out from the hotel and drive to Bangalore (300 kms /6 hrs). Arrive Bangalore, transfer to hotel and  check in at the hotel. and rest of day free to explore this Silicon Valley of India ( IT city of east). Overnight at the hotel in Bangalore.

Day 14  Bangalore / Delhi / Home (or fly out from Bangalore / Mumbai)

After breakfast check out from the hotel and transfer to airport in time to connect your morning flight to Delhi. Arrive Delhi and later you can fly to home.

Tour Highlight

This tour in itself is a highlight, where you experience and see unusual India and unheard Indians. Learn about the Magnetic Hills at Leh meet the African tribes in Jambur and can you imagine the world’s most lock-less town Shani Shignapur, where no lock is used, even the bank is left open and the Sanskrit speaking village of Muttoor in Karnataka.