Full Stop India

As of June 28, 2010, the USA Department of State issued a revised Schedule of Fees for Consular Services. Beginning July 13, 2010, these changes take effect with some startling new fees imposed for common services. The hefty increases are a result of the need to cover “actual operating expenses for the 301 overseas consular posts, 23 domestic passport agencies and other centers that provide these consular services to U.S. and foreign citizens”.

Vegetarians be damned, the seaside city of Pondicherry is a traveler’s golden opportunity to experience seafood done right in India. A lazy walk up and down, scanning menus, perusing the dining areas and asking locals for recommendations is what this laid back, miss mash city begs from tourists.

Nag-Panchami is an important all-India festival and is celebrated on the fifth day of the moonlit-fortnight in the month of Shravan (July /August). This is the time when serpents invariably come out of their holes that get inundated with rain-water to seek shelter in gardens and many times in houses. As such they pose a [...]

Deceptively cool morning air tricks the mind into wearing heavy clothing. Within an hour, direct sun shining on an open-top jeep and increased heart rates warm the body both inside and out. We’ve come on a mission. Forget the introductory speeches about the slim chances of hitting the safari jackpot. Like all tourists to the national parks of India, hopes remain high that we will be the fortunate ones to see the iconic orange, black and white stripes.

Young and old generations collide in Fire, the story of two daughters-in-law united through marriage who find solace in each other. The first of writer and director Deepa Mehta’s Elements Triology, Fire questions the traditions of Indian marriage, the duties of a wife, and the type of relations in which society is willing to accept.
The [...]