Three things that come to mind when I think of Thailand are golden Buddhist temples, the King of Thailand, and Thai elephants.

Buddha temples and the King are spiritual symbols of the country - over 90% of the Thai population is Buddhist; almost every Thai loves their King; but what’s so special about the elephants?

They are cute, friendly in general and useful. Actually, elephants also are closely connected to Thai culture.

In Thailand, elephants are portrayed as the symbol of Peace and Power.

“War elephants” were the heroes and key players for a brief time in Thai history. Their performance determined the results of battles.

All Thai kings had a stable of white elephants to represent their power.

They are the revered symbol of Thailand.

In Thailand, you can enjoy things like elephant massages, watch talented elephants performing all kinds of incredible shows or have an elephant tour walking on the streets. How fabulous is that?

   

In return, you can give them a bath or feed them.

People LOVE elephants, but…

Unfortunately, the population of elephants is decreasing year to year due to various reasons, like deforestation, lack of clean water and food resources.   Some elephants die because they walk on city highways and accidently get hit by cars.

Thankfully, there are more and more elephant preservation centers being established in the country. If you are an elephant lover, you can be a volunteer to help them out. Get up close and personal with these adorable giants; learn their natural habitat and be their good friend!  How sweet :)

If you are interested in travelling to Thailand and having a lovely time with elephants, you can check out our Thailand packages on our Red.Travel, Red.Travel, Red.Travel, Your Travel Agency in China website. 

Myanmar is ranked by the NY Times as the 3rd, out of 45 places that you should go in the world in 2012.

Many people might not know too much about the country, as overall it is still very isolated from the rest of the modern world – a fact that makes it a special place to go to.

Like Myanmar's national tourism website states, the country "remains one of the most mysterious and undiscovered destinations in the world."

People who adore nature should absolutely visit Myanmar, whether you prefer an adventure or simple relaxation. One can hike in the virgin Jungles and snow-capped mountains or simply head to the seaside and bathe in the sun along the beaches of its glorious shorelines.

The country is located in the beautiful Southeast Asia, an area enriched by its storied history and fascinating culture. The food there varies, and is widely enjoyed all over the world. The people are friendly, with a reputation for enjoying some nice chitchat with visiting travelers. One thing to be noted is that their English skills are better than the rest of the Southeast Asians.  If you are interested, maybe you can learn some Burmese from them as well!

Interested in going to Myanmar or Southeast Asia? Red.Travel presents you some fascinating packages to have enjoy the beauty of nature!

Riding in a tuk-tuk in New Delhi.  Visible in the left mirror, me taking a picture with my red camera; on the right, one of my friends takes in the scenery. 

Hello all!

AT last, the thrilling conclusion to this three-part, Indian adventure!

So far, we've marveled at the ever-beautiful Taj Mahal, fixed tires on dusty roads, and ascended to a Maharaja's fort on elephant's back.

At this point in the trip, we were all having a hard time imagining just what else could be in store for us as we traveled to the nation's capital, New Delhi...

 

On the road, again

Never a dull moment:  two colorfully-dressed women catch a ride on a jeep... and can you spot the woman working in the field?

While transits between cities can sometimes be tedious, the landscape between Jaipur and Delhi never ceases to offer up beautiful and interesting scenes...

 

Welcome to New Delhi!

Hundreds and hundreds of cars, seemingly coming out of nowhere, wait in crazy long lines to pay their way into the capital.  

Arriving in Delhi was an unforgettable experience.  While we'd pretty much always been surrounded by people, the traffic at the toll plaza into Delhi was still an overwhelming sight--and that's coming from a native New Yorker!  

 

Sights and sounds 

Beauty and Silence:  The Lotus Temple

Left:  The Lotus Temple up close, with it's reflecting pool;  Top Right:  Two families take in the sunlight on the steps facing the temple and pool;  Bottom Right:  A woman adjusts her sari as she exits the Lotus Temple

The Lotus Temple is one of New Delhi's most famous sights.  Completed in 1986, the building--actually a Baha'i House of Worship--attracts an estimated 4.5 million visitors a year!  It's architecture is based on the lotus, India's national flower.

Three of us decided to make our way up to the temple, in what would prove to be one of the most interesting experiences of the trip.  Entering the building, we were confronted with total and complete silence.

Silence?  In India?  The contrast was surprising, to say the least!

Other Delhi Scenes...

A passerby find himself accidentally in front of my lens in Old Delhi, also known as Shahjahanabad.  Built by Shah Jahan (the man who commissioned the Taj Mahal), Old Delhi is home to many small shops and a large spice market, where you can find just about every delicious flavor Indian cooking has to offer.

Left:  An exhibition showcasing the life and achievements of Mahatma Gandhi, written using both Devanagari (the written system used for Hindi) and English.  The comprehensive display is located in the gardens of his last residence--which, sadly, was also the place of his assassination on January 30, 1947.

Right:  The colorful Laxminarayan Hindu Temple, inaugurated by Gandhi in 1939 in honor of Lakshmi, Hindu goddess of wealth, and her consort Narayana (the Sanskrit name for Vishnu).  No cameras (or shoes!) allowed inside.

The tomb of the Mughal Emperor Humayun is one of Delhi's most famous attractions.  The beautifully crafted main structure and its surrounding complex--a UNESCO World Heritage site built in 1547--contain around 150 graves of ruling family members.

 

Tastes and Aromas:  Sugar and Spice, and Everything Nice

Here's something I forgot to mention-- I developed a very fat personality in India.  I'm talking capital F to the A to the T.

But it wasn't my fault!  (That's my story and I'm sticking to it.)

Simply put, Indian food is too delicious!  So what little self control I had built upon in previous months just fell to pieces in front of these amazing dishes: 

Savory...

Paneer Tikka at Khan Cha Cha, a hip, reasonably-priced eatery located at Khan Market, New Delhi.  Just order and pay, then grab your ticket and (im)patiently wait for your delicious order to be up!  

Cutlet, mango punch, whole wheat toast and butter on the train...on the train!

Delicious tandoori chicken, a veggie curry, and naan bread at a bar/restaurant near our hotel.

Lachha Tokri--I don't remember exactly what's in it, but it was super good!

 

Different nuts and spices being sold in Old Delhi... and, being American, we just couldn't resist India's answer to the Big Mac.  Since beef is banned in India, we were able to try this unique chicken "Maharaja Burger" at McDonald's, seasoned with Indian spices!

...and Sweet!

Gulab Jamun--this is something like fried doughnut holes soaked in a fragrant rose-infused honey syrup

 

Assorted sweets and goodies, topped with some sort of edible metallic-looking icing. On the right, kulfi!  Kulfi is a type of really thick and creamy ice cream--this one tasted like coconut and vanilla!

This is what really became my obsession:  Ras Malai!!!

Is that orange-flavored ice cream?  Nope--try saffron (yes, saffron!) ice cream with pistachios, probably one of the most delicious treats of the entire trip!

Snacks for everyone!  A rhesus macaque nibbles some peanuts on a sidewalk in Old Delhi.

 

Reluctantly, Time to Head Home

Sunset, January 27th, 2012, New Delhi = time for us to head on out!

All too quickly, it was time to head to the airport for our flight back:  back to Beijing, back to work, and back to our "regular" lives (as regular as life gets in China, anyway!).

It was a little bit sad to leave, but we knew we brought with us once-in-a-lifetime memories that we will carry for a long time.

This Golden Triangle tour through Agra, Jaipur, and New Delhi is really the perfect introduction for first-timers to India--from the breathtaking Taj Mahal, to the romantic, ochre landscapes of Rajasthan, and the hustle and bustle of the capital, New Delhi, we got to see it all.  Still, India is so huge and so varied that it seems like a place that you just need to keep coming back to in order to truly appreciate and understand it.

So as for my travels to India, I guess it's "namaste" for now... 

 

...but, like Mr. Schwarzenegger, I'll be back!

Want to start your discovery of the Indian Subcontinent?  E-mail us at booking@red.travel and we'll get you on your way!

 

<3<3  Hello all, and Happy Valentine's Day! 

As nice as it can be, there's something about February 14th that can feel a lot more like April 15th, America's dreaded yearly tax deadline.  I have known many friends (usually my guy friends) to completely forget about Valentine's Day, then break out in a cold sweat over what they could possibly organize at the last minute!

For those of you in a similar position out there, not to worry.

Red.Travel would like to propose a definitely decadent, ridiculously romantic getaway idea, right here in Beijing!:  spending a night at one of Beijing's most luxurious hotels, the Aman Resort at the Summer Palace.

What better gift than to escape together to a place where visitors to the Empress Dowager Cixi would patiently await their turn for an audience?

And the best part?  This 2-day, 1-night package is available until the end of March.

So, no need to rush!  When both of your schedules free up, plan a nice mini-break at the summer retreat of China's royal families past.

To learn more about this trip (and to see some more beautiful pictures of the resort), please see the Aman Resort Summer Palace Getaway on our website, Red.Travel.

And whatever you do, wherever you are, have a wonderful Valentine's Day! <3<3<3

So where were we?

Ah yes, the second leg of India's famous 'Golden Triangle' circuit:  to Jaipur!

Roadside Adventures

So my six intrepid friends and I found ourselves hitting the road, driving about 5 hours from Agra to Jaipur.  But clearly, what road trip adventure would be complete without a little touch of drama?  Right into our second hour of driving, we hear a faint popping sound and pull over to the side of the road--thanks to a nail the size of a #2 pencil, we had a flat tire!

The boys help our driver out.....while the girls investigate the nearby mustard fields

Thanks to the flat, though, we did get to make some new friends--all of which just stopped at the strange sight of 7 foreigners stranded in the middle of nowhere!

Finally, to Jaipur!

After some lunch--and, believe it or not, yet another flat tire--we finally arrived in Jaipur, the capital of India's desert state of Rajasthan.  The weather, already beautiful, shifted to new shades of gorgeous:  nothing but clear, blue skies and temps of up to 25 degrees Celsius.. in January!

(Meanwhile, it's like -3 right now in Beijing.. pfff!)

A major Jaipur highlight:  The Amer Fort (or Amber Fort)

 View from the back of an elephant.

Top left: A woman carries water as she walks along Maota Lake.  Top right:  A view of the main courtyard.  Bottom:  One of the most stylish cleaning ladies I've ever seen, sweeping the sandstone.

The eye-poppingly beautiful Amber Fort, built in 1592 and used as the home of the Rajput Maharajas, is one of Jaipur's most popular tourist destinations--and rightfully so!  A short (nonetheless exhilarating) elephant ride brings visitors up the mountain to a fortress of red sandstone and marble.  Not only is the entire structure is meticulously maintained, but the views of surrounding mountains and valleys are simply breathtaking.

Hanging out in Jaipur

Left:  We had the chance to visit with a local family, where we learned how to cook an Indian meal, make chai tea, and (properly) wrap a sari.

Right:  We also went to see a Bollywood blockbuster, Don 2 (in Hindi!), in a beautiful movie theater that would put any Megabox to shame!

Who wants a midnight snack?  Trying some sweet "paan" at a street stall, dipped in chocolate and filled with rose preserves, coconut, saffron, and a maraschino cherry.

Now for some healthy living:  A morning yoga class in an ashram, followed by some raw, super organic beet and carrot juice.

The roof of the Sarang Palace Hotel, Jaipur... with Orion's Belt making a cameo appearance in the upper left corner.

So the sun eventually set on our time in Jaipur... Check back here soon for the exciting conclusion to this three-part travel tale!

In the meantime, if these pictures are just TOO cool and you can't take it anymore, feel free to check out this India Tour of Ancient Civilization on our Red.Travel website so you can see it all for yourself!

Namaste :)