India is one of those places that seem so wonderful, beautiful, fascinating… but dangerous. And you’re like “Damn, I wish I could go, but I’m scared”. I don’t think I would have gone without the right motivation. I decided to add India to my trip around the world because I wanted to visit an Indian girl from Mumbai that I had met in Croatia a few years ago. I had really gotten along with her, and she is a great traveller, so I thought she could give me some advice and help me enjoy my trip. Also, another friend of mine, who lived in Mumbai for some years before coming back to France, was really helpful. She gave me a ton of advice and of things to do, but she also warned me about the potential cultural shock I could experience. Thanks to them, I was prepared to go.

I didn’t have much time to spend in the country before going back to France for Christmas, so it was more like an overview of what India is. It is a very big country, so you can’t expect to know all about India and its culture in a week. But what I wanted was to visit my friend, and get an idea of what India was. As I always say, there’s always the possibility to go back another time.

For the first part of my trip, in the North, I booked a planned trip, with a driver and a guide in each city. During the visits, I was by myself (with the guide), so I could (most of the time) follow my own pace. I visited the main monuments of Delhi, Agra and Jaipur (my favourite in the North).

For the second part of my trip, I was hosted by my friend and got to experience Mumbai as a local, tasting the street food, walking around, having an Indian breakfast with delicious fruits, and when my friend was working, I was visiting tourist attractions and museums. I enjoy Mumbai more than the North, as it was warmer and felt less dangerous.

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