COUNTRY HIGHLIGHTS

NEW DELHI – New Delhi, the capital of India is a modern buzzing metropolitan city with remnants of the past strewn around the modern buildings. Preparing itself for the commonwealth games 2010, you will encounter a city abuzz with activity. Much of New Delhi was planned by Sir Edwin Lutyens, who laid out a grandiose central administrative area as a testament to British imperial pretensions. Driving around Rajpath - the erstwhile Kingsway - stretched from the War Memorial - now India Gate to the Viceroy's House - Rashtrapati Bhavan atop Raisina Hill, you will not fail to realize that the scale, extravagance and magnificence of New Delhi is much like Washington and Napoleon III's Paris: both cities designed to awe the newcomer with the power of the central State.

Humayun’s Tomb, A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a beautiful symmetrical marble and red-sandstone building I the heart of the city, yet hidden one of the city’s many medieval ruins. The tomb is surrounded by a garden and while taking a stroll around the garden you are sure to forget that you are not in the middle of a huge city.

The Qutub Minar, also a UNESCO World Heritage monument, at Mehrauli area was built over Rajputs territories, by Qutubuddin Aibak. India's highest single tower the Qutub Minar marked the site in North India for the first Muslim kingdom in north India established in 1193. A mix of four major religions, thousands of years of history and cultural development, significant movements of different populations, invasions and colonization, Delhi has one of the most vibrant and profound cultures in the world. 

KANHA NATIONAL PARK – ituated in central India in the Satpura Hill ranges, Kanha Tiger Reserve offers without a doubt, India's finest Tiger viewing.  Spread over 1945 square kilometres with a core area of just 940 square kilometres, the grasslands and deciduous forests also support other mammals such as Barasingha, Chital, Muntjac (Swamp, Spotted and Barking Deer), Sambar, Common Langur and Rhesus Monkeys, Wild Boar, Asiatic Jackal, three of India's four lowland antelopes, Nilgai, Four-horned Antelope (Chowsingha) and Blackbuck, and occasionally Leopard, Gaur (Indian Bison), Sloth Bear, Wolf and Dhole (Wild Dog). In fact Kanha is noted for the last remaining population of hard-ground Barasingha.

UDAIPUR – Dotted with marble palaces, hibiscus - laden gardens and fountain pavilions, Udaipur appeals to the imagination of poets and painters, travelers and writers like no other city in the country. The city's inherent romance and beauty and its remarkable past redolent with episodes of heroism and splendour, continue to enthrall the visitor even today. Udaipur, the City of Dawn, looms up like a vision in white. Surrounded by hills and mountains and set on the edge of three lakes which lead on to a fertile plain - it is a truly enchanting city. Narrow streets lined with vividly colored stalls, gardens, temples and palaces mirrored in the placid blue waters of Lake Pichola, add to the magic of Udaipur.

Perhaps the two most beautiful sites of Udaipur are the dream-like marble Palaces-the Jag Niwas (Lake Palace) and the Jag Mandir, which appear to rise from the blue waters of Lake Pichola.

JAIPUR – The capital of Rajasthan, Jaipur is built of pink stucco and planned in a grid system with wide avenues. The city has a timeless appeal in its colorful bazaars, the ambling camels and cheerful people in multi hued costumes. Founded in 1728 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh, a labyrinth of fascinating bazaars, opulent palaces resplendent with tales of valor and bravery, Jaipur is where modernity and tradition exist side by side. The walled city, vibrant with colors, houses the City Palace, an astronomical observatory and a bustling bazaar where artisans fashion puppets, silver jewellery, lac bangles and other handicrafts in their workshops. The City Palace, a wonderful combination of Mughal and Rajput forms of architecture, is now partly a museum housing miniature paintings, manuscripts, Mughal carpets, musical instruments, royal costumes and weapons, giving invaluable insight into Jaipur's royal past. Some of the instruments at the astronomical observatory are still used today to forecast the weather and the turns of nature. At is short distance is the Amber Fort Palace at Amber, the former capital of the Kachhawah's, the historic rulers of this region. The focal point of the city of Jaipur is the Hawa Mahal or the Palace of Winds, a five storey high Baroque-like structure built to enable the veiled ladies of the harem to observe the street scenes below, unnoticed.