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A GREAT DESTINATION
ETERNAL
INDIA
encyclopedia
tiger to be brought to their hotel room — as I believe they almost do
in some of the well-known safari destinations of the world.
One could write pages about some highly worthwhile and excit-
ing packages to other destinations in India but because of limitation
of space I would content myself with a passing mention of some.
For many tourists, a visit to India would not be complete without a
journey to Calcutta, the “City of Joy”, the oldest ‘Raj’ city of India-
-quaint and exotic mixture of typical third-world poverty and afflu-
ence, pavement-dwellers and elegant five-star hotels, man-pulled
rickshaws and a very modern underground metro. For those who go
for “local colour and smells” it is Calcutta and Varanasi (in the
aforementioned state of Uttar Pradesh) which bring out the real
India. Incidentally, Calcutta is the birthplace of the Nobel laureate
Tagore, who was perhaps among the greatest poets of this century
and a really versatile artist—a remarkable painter who has also left
for posterity a great treasure of music in the ‘song-style’. Calcutta
could be the base for some memorable forays into some of the most
fascinating hill-destinations like Darjeeling, Gangtok and many
other smaller resorts in Mizoram.
Lastly, I would like to speak of some excellent golf courses
which now serve the ever-increasing number of keen golfers in the
country. The courses at Calcutta, New Delhi and Bangalore are of
international standards and many of these are available for tourists
who would like to sample unfamiliar and challenging courses while
visiting India. Some very high-quality golf is available in India at an
unbelievably low cost compared to some golf resorts in other parts
of Asia (Bangalore, which already boasts of at least four golf
courses, will soon have a new golf resort near the City, planned by
Jack Nicklaus Junior).
(T.P.I)
QUOTE
The modern tourist is not in search of adventure. He is not even
romantic and the Orient is no longer mysterious. He travels be-
cause travel has become a status symbol or because he wants to
see a different pattern of life and things that are unique: the Taj in
Agra, the remarkable rock-cut temples of Ellora and Ajanta, the
erotic sculptures of Khajuraho, Meenakshi Temple in South India,
Angkor Vat in Cambodia and tigers, rhinos and elephants in the
wild life sanctuaries. How else can one explain the phenomenal in-
crease in the number of tourists going to Kathmandu in the last few
years? Kathmandu has never been publicised in an organised way
by any official or non-official agency, but in the tourist world it has
come to be described as “out of this world.”
The tourist wants to see all this and have comfort too. He de-
mands all the modern conveniences in the most out-of-the-way
places. So the Shikar outfitters or the game organiser in India sets
up a camp with an electric generator in the heart of the forest, 50
miles from the nearest railway station and provides iced drinks and
fans for the big game hunter.
In India this problem is further complicated by two factors : the
size of the country and the fact that most of the places that a tourist
would like to visit are remote and inaccessible. Most of the tourist
attractions of India are remote and inaccessible. Many of the
tourist attractions of India consist of ancient and medieval monu-
ments. Most of the national highways and the arterial railway lines
that have been built during the past 100 years do not pass near the
great centres of old kingdoms. Among other attractions that India
offers to tourists are its mountains and a large variety of wild life.
The mountains are, in any case, inaccessible and most of India’s
wild life is in remote forests — it is nocturnal in habits and it takes
a great effort to see it even in the wild life sanctuaries and national
parks which have been created in the past 30 years. The modern
tourist, however, is in a hurry and wants to see everything quickly
and easily.”
—S.N. Shibi, written in 1962