Travel and Food Guide by Mukta

5 BEST STREET FOOD IN JAIPUR FOR VEGETARIANS, INDIA Jaipur capital city of Rajasthan, India  is also known as Pink City is the biggest city of Rajasthan.  The Pink City is known for its various attractions such as Forts, Palaces , Handicrafts and more. Soon I will share all that but today it's Food Time. In today's blog I will mention street food for vegetarians like me and later will share my blog for meat lovers. Before I start I would like to say that I am not a food expert and I have no intentions to judge the food and the place.  I am just sharing my honest experiences. I respect food and the person who cooks. The top on my food tour list is  PYAAZ KI KACHORI BY RAWAT MISHTAN BHANDAR Pyaaz( onion) Kachori is a deep fried bread crispy and flaky from outside but hollow from inside stuffed with a spicy mix of onions and potatoes served with chutney . Also love Mirchi Vada which is a bit spicy as this consists of green chili cut and stuffed with a mixture of potatoe...

Udaipur is a city in the western Indian state of Rajasthan, India . The city was founded by Maharana Udai Singh II and was Former Capital of Mewar kingdom. Udaipur is also called as the city of lakes with many artificial lakes around. If you are coming from Delhi to Udaipur the distance is 568 km with flight duration on a non-stop flight is 1 hour 15 minutes.  The distance from Jaipur to Udaipur is about 398 km. The flight duration from Jaipur to Udaipur is around 55 minutes for a non-stop flight.  Udaipur has so much to explore with its beauty and Royal Heritage. I was sure it was going to be a very interesting visit for me. CITY PALACE  On my first day I decided to visit the City palace of Udaipur which is on the banks of Lake Pichola. Make sure you reach early. It's busy and can take more than 2 hrs( quiet long tour) to see the marvelous beauty of this place and its museum.Yes tiring but worth visiting and spending some time walking around. The colorful Crystal gallery...

Life has become so busy and stressful that we sometimes forget to care about ourselves and ignore our health. The Nature is so loving and caring that it has everything we need to relax and calm ourselves. We just have to make efforts to feel Mother Nature. We all know the wonders of Ayurveda in our life which is a natural system of medicines originated in India . It is based on balance in body system with the help of diet, herbal treatment and yogic breathing. This being said I decided to visit one such place during my last visit to India. Rishikesh is a holy city which is  known as the Yoga Capital and most spiritual center in India.Today I will share my incredible experience in the best AYURVEDA and Yoga Wellness RETREAT in Rishikesh India VEDA5. This is a Resort and Luxury Hotel for yoga and wellness centre surrounded by beautiful nature. The moment you enter the property of VEDA5 you can feel the fresh air with  greenery around you . The Resort is at a good height with...

During my school days studying about the Deserts and sands was very interesting for me. I had no idea what would a desert actually feel as it being a very dry place. The curiosity was always there and as we say everything happens at its right time. Working in travel industry I got many opportunities to explore different places. And Yes this time Jaisalmer the Golden city in the heart of Thar Desert. Rajasthan is famous for its Royal Rajput Historical Forts, Palaces with rich culture and traditions , amazing authentic food and colorful festivals. But there's something more about Rajasthan that is dry land with sands. This dry land is now one of the most famous places to visit in India. The tourists visit from all over the world for the main attraction of Jaisalmer ,  the Sand Dunes located at the outskirts of the city. Today I will share my amazing experience staying in Sand Dunes of Jaisalmer city of Rajasthan. In the month of December enjoying a deserty drive finally reached ...

Ranthambore National Park is one of the biggest and most popular parks of India. The park is located at Sawai Madhopur district of Rajasthan , India with a distance of approximately 14 km.  If planning to travel from Jaipur the distance is approximately 130 km by road. Nearest airport is Jaipur and are regular flights from Delhi and Mumbai Nearest train station is Sawai Madhopur and has regular trains from across india. Ranthambore is known for its wildlife and was once the hunting place of Maharajas of Rajasthan.   Today Ranthambore National Park  attracts many tourists from all over the world. The main attraction is the sight of the magnificent Bengal Tiger and  enjoy Safari around the Park.  It is very obvious to get fascinated by how the animal behave and operate in their habitat . One such moment is when you get the sight of wild cat with face to face. Sole intention to sight Bengal tiger in its natural habitat is what the visitors look forward when at...

India is a beautiful country known for its colorful cultural festivals . The festivals celebrated with family and  friends is a great way to spend time with your loved ones and connect with your family' s culture and traditions . Teej is one such hindu festival which is celebrated by hindu women in different states of India during monsoon season to welcome rains. The festival of Teej  is dedicated to the union of Goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva and is most loved by Hindu women Fast is observed by married and also unmarried girls .Married women fast and pray for their happy married life and pray for good  health and long life of their husband by offering prayers and rituals. This is mainly for married women but bride to be can also fast for their blissful future. On this day married women are  dressed up with colorful dresses preferably red ( Symbol of Love) or green ( symbolises greenery). A day before this festival the women apply Mehendi ( Heena ) on their hands...

BUTTER CHICKEN I am a vegetarian but my family is a big fan of this dish when in India and a MUST HAVE dish. This is a very rich heavy chicken dish served as a main course in lunch and dinner. The Chicken is marinated , roasted and cooked alongwith spices and cream or butter being the most important ingredient.  Delhi and Punjab has one of the best Butter chicken recipes as per my family and friends. SEEKH KABABS Seekh Kababs are long cylindrical shaped made of minced meat of chicken , lamp or beef . It is grilled on skewers. The main ingredients are finely chopped onions, garlic, ginger and green chillies and spices . It can be barbequed or cooked in tandoor and served hot with onions and green coriander mint chutney.  BIRYANI The name Biryani has a feel of royal taste and yes this is considered as a royal delicacy which was originally by Mughals and now one of the most loved among Indians. Today Biryani is  widely spread and served almost of all the cities. Biryani can ...

Puskar- Temple , Camel Fair & Hotel My today's destination is Puskar, India. Puskar is a holy city of India located at Northern State of Rajasthan also called as Temple Town . Pushkar is famous for its Lord Brahma Temple and the Camel Fair which is held every year. According to Hindu belief Lord Brahma is believed to be the Creator of this Universe. Puskar is the only city in  India to have Brahma Temple on the banks of Lake Puskar with many ghats where pilgrims bath in the sacred lake. The temple is known as Jagatpita Brahma Mandir. The distance from Jaipur to Pushkar is approximately 143 km and takes around 3 hrs by road. Every year the city attracts many tourists from all over the world. Puskar is famous for its annual Camel fair which starts on Kartik Purnima which is the Full moon according to the Hindu calendar (autumn month of October and November ) and last for 7 days.The fair is held to invite local camel cattle traders and attracts many  foreign tourists. ...

We all love to go for vacations to the most luxurious destinations or cruises around the world. How about add a little bit of SPOOKY adventure by visiting a HAUNTED place. This is very much possible when you next plan your vacations to Rajasthan, India. During my trip to India last year I was very much interested to experience one of the most haunted places of India, BHANGARH FORT. We were in a group and for sure it was going to be a very exciting trip. Distance from Delhi to Bhangarh Fort  is approximately 5 hrs drive by road. If you are in Jaipur you can plan a day trip since its around 84 km from Jaipur and will take 2 hrs to reach by road. Our first destination was Sariska Tiger  Reserve. It was a long tiring day but great that we had booking at Sariska Palace for the night stay. The Palace is just opposite the Reserve and we thoroughly enjoyed our stay with all the  luxury and comfort. Next day was super exciting as I was about to visit Bhangarh Fort believed to ...

PANI PURI Pani Puri also called as Golguppa is a very popular street food. This is a round hollow shaped puri ( very small puffed fried) stuffed with mixture of potatoes onions chick peas along with spices. Dipped in sweet or sour spicy water to enjoy the taste of water and spicy flavours mixed with Tamarind or Mint chutney . Pani Puri is available almost all the streets of Indian cities but some cities have different names.  SAMOSA Samosa is a crispy triangle shaped deep fried snack which is made up of all purpose flour dough and is stuffed with mashed potatoes and green peas with spices. This is deep fried and served with spicy green mint coriander chutney or sweet tamarind chutney. KACHORIES Kachori is round shaped fried snack made of all purpose flour dough which is stuffed with either mashed potatoes and onion or the cooked white lentil grinded and rosted which is flattened and fried.  After frying it becomes flaky from outside and hollow from inside. This is also s...

Varanasi also called as Banaras or Kashi is considered as sacred city in the Northern State of India Uttar Pradesh.  Distance from Delhi to Varanasi is approximately 800 km . I took a direct flight from Delhi to Varanasi. There's also a direct train as well or you can  travel by bus. Varanasi is one of the oldest cities of India and has been one of the main tourist attraction from different countries of the world.  Many Pilgrimage from India come to The Holy River Ganga to bathe in sacred river Ganges to wash away their sins. The river has almost 88 ghats and each ghat has special significance in Hindu mythology. Therefore dnt miss boat ride along the Ganges to have a tour of all the ghats to observe the religious ceremonies and rituals at different ghats. I like to mention about two such ghats in particular Dashashwamedh Ghat and Manikarnika Ghat . On my next morning I decided to take a boat ride and preferred rowing boat with a Boatman. This made my ride very enj...

Wedding in India is indeed a fun and families consider this more like a huge project instead an event . Indian wedding is an expensive affair but is considered very important  when it comes to culture and tradition. In the year 2018 I got super excited when I got the news of my niece wedding back home India. The moment we NRIs get a chance to go back home we get so much energetic that we start with our everyday Mall shoppings to over stuff our luggage with gifts, gifts and yes gifts for our family members. I took my flight from Toronto to Delhi and finally reached Delhi. From Delhi I travelled to Jaipur by road which is my most favorite road trip. Reached Jaipur, The Pink City of Rajasthan took some rest and started on with my mission Shopping. One of the oldest market in Jaipur Johari Bazaar is the first spot when we think about shopping and street food Today I will share my shopping experience in Jaipur. To start with traditional dresses such as Lehenga Choli the designer...

Agra is a city in Uttar Pradesh state of  northern India. The distance between Delhi to Agra is approx 200 km by road  via YamunaExpressway . It took us around 3 hrs but also depending on the traffic. I would suggest leaving early morning from Delhi . This will help you spend your rest of the day for sightseeing or shopping.  The city of Agra attracts many tourists from all over the world for its beauty which is the magnificent Taj Mahal, the Symbol of love and also UNESCO World heritage centre. It is located on the banks of Yamuna River. Mausoleum built in Agra is made by Emperor Shah Jahan in the loving memory of his beloved wife mumtaz Mahal .Taj Mahal is a very well planned masterpiece of Muslim art and architecture and is among seven wonders of the world. The other attractions are Agra Fort once the residence to Mughals with beautiful Islamic architecture and the Tomb of Akbar the great made by his son Jahangir. Agra is fun and is known for its street food and shoppi...

In my previous blogs I shared my experiences and information about different cities and a little bit about food. India is also known for its Rich Royal Heritage with beautiful Palaces and Samode Palace is one such Royal Palace of Samode, Jaipur in the princely state of Rajasthan. Samode Palace is located approximately 40 km north of Jaipur city of Rajasthan and was a home of a Prince and is now a heritage hotel. Rajasthan is known for its hospitality and this can be very well felt the moment you enter the palace. The guests are welcomed with flower garland and  tilak on the forehead . This is a sweet gesture to welcome the guests and make them feel special. Samode has its Royal Palace with a perfect example of Royal Rajput and Mughal architecture which enhance the beauty of this place. It has an amazing dining with Royal delicacies prepared by one of the best team of chefs .  The accommodation is very luxurious with all the comforts and excellence in service.  We all...

No matter how tasty or heavy meal you have but a day in Indian families is incomplete without snacks. Snacks can be enjoyed during any time of the day . Chole Bhature- Famous in Northern parts of India but now enjoyed almost all the parts of India. Chole which is chick peas boiled and cooked with all spices. Bhature are made of all purpose flour dough which is then flattened and deep fried in cooking oil as Puffed fried bread .  Most of the parts of India has this spicy snack. The only difference you can notice is the taste and flavor of Chana or Chick Peas curry. Different states have different recipes. Whatever the recipe be this food has always been one of the most favorite food in all of India and also enjoyed by visitors from the other parts of the world when they visit India. Chole Bhature are itself a complete breakfast but pickles,Green chillies or onions are optional on the side . If not breakfast you can enjoy as your lunch option. I personally dnt prefer to have this dur...

Travelling is something I enjoy the most as this makes me feel so good and take me close to the beauty of Nature around me. We meet different people, learn about Culture, Food , Tradition, Festivals and so much more and make new friends from the different parts of the world.  Here I am with my another interesting blog and I take you to India's northern state of Uttarakhand , Rishikesh which is around 8 hrs drive from Delhi . Rishikesh is situated on the banks of Ganges River surrounded by the hills. Rishikesh is also known as the yoga capital and attract many tourists from different parts of the world . The moment I entered the city I could feel peace and purity of this holy place. Two nights and three days are good in case you plan a short vacation. The places to visit or rather not to miss are Laxman Jhula which is a suspension bridge across the river Ganges, Triveni Ghat where devotees take ritual baths. The other interesting place is Beatles Ashram ( Named after famous Band ...