Experience of a Solo Woman Backpacker in India
India is a challenging destination for a wide variety of reasons that include the population density, extreme weather, transportation delays, the proliferation of scammers, Delhi belly, culture shock, etc but at the same time it is beautiful, historical, fascinating and a land of many hidden jewels with beautiful hearts. It started with complete nervousness “I was very skeptical to come to India and travel all over India alone with such a young company. My first night of the experience was when I was the most nervous, I had to take a train from Kochi to Bangalore where my experience was to begin but I had a hard time locating the platform on which the train was supposed to come, India can be unorganized at some times. All the anxiety, the fear, the terror came onto me once and my uneasiness gripped me hard. I knew I was being nervy and just needed someone to reassure me that everything is fine. So, I contacted my experience captain at The Tarzan Way. He made me realize that this is very normal in India and I just have to find platform number 3 and board the train there. When I finally got on the train and settled in, I lost the signal on my phone. I couldn’t contact anyone but I knew the train is the right one, the people are nice and I could reach out to The Tarzan Way if I had any kind of emergency” You can plan your own personalized experience with The Tarzan Way at their Travel Support page. My first location, the Garden City “I reached Bangalore, the Silicon Valley of India, and started my travel journey with TTW. Loved the architecture in India! Bangalore was mainly a transit city so I didn’t have many plans to explore the city. I had a lot of curiosity to visit and see the beautiful structure of the IIM Bangalore built by the very famous award-winning architect but due to some unforeseen political problem, I wasn’t able to visit it. The hostel I stayed in was amazing and a perfect fit for youngsters but the only little problem I had was that the size of the room. I was lucky enough to experience the beautiful and colorful annual flower show festival held in Lal Bagh Park and tried some amazing fish in one of the cafes around. I also ensured my visit to the National Gallery of Modern Art as the best way to experience one’s culture is through the art they create.” Ahmedabad was just amazing for me! “As I wanted to experience all the modes of transportation in India, TTW managed my travel from Bangalore to Ahmedabad by flight. Ahmedabad, the city endowed with a rich architectural heritage, was one I was really fascinated about, so I decided to stay there for 5 days. The vibe of Ahmedabad was great! TTW beautifully crafted my itinerary and managed to include everything I wanted. First thing was to visit IIM Ahmedabad, which was one of the reasons for my whole trip to India, and it was amazing! Then I visited the National Institute of Design and met some of the architecture students who suggested me some places to visit as an architect and soon I realized that the moment you open up and initiate some conversation, people are more willing to help and discuss with you. They love to show their culture, suggest their favorite places, and show local activities. Very close to the sunset, I saw a beautiful Riverfront flower park. I wanted to take the picture of a flower so I went inside where a guard saw me and insisted to pay for the entry and the camera. He insisted to take me to the ticket booth and forced me to follow him as he wanted to take advantage and make me pay because I was a tourist…So when we quit the park, I just stopped following him and went out of that area. Le Corbusier was a very famous modern architect and one of my major reason to visit Ahmedabad. He built some famous houses and museums that I wanted to visit. Ville Shodan was a success as the family allowed outsiders to visit. The day ended with a very delicious dinner at Gordhan Thal suggested by TTW. The people there were very nice and helpful. Overall, Ahmedabad was chill and I didn’t hesitate to go to some institutes or unis and chill in their green area, the food there was cheap and the ambiance was peaceful.” Next stop, meeting the TTW Team and exploring Delhi “I took the night sleeper train to Delhi. Everything was fine, people were kind and even if I didn’t understand, I saw how their bond began to evolve. At first, no one knew each other, so it was a little awkward to sit like that. But soon people began to talk, to discuss and then after 2-3 hours, they were friends. I reached Delhi and met a sari seller in Old Delhi bazaar who taught me how to deal with sellers as a tourist. I was lucky to always meet people who were nice and respectful. The heritage of Delhi was just mesmerizing My hostel in Delhi was really cool and clean. So after I refreshed myself in my room, I met Naman, The TTW member who planned my trip. He along with another TTW member came to take me from my hostel and we went to have lunch together. They showed me how to use the metro, how to deal with the drivers, and so on. I had some knowledge and experiences so it was not entirely new for me. But for someone who is new to Indian culture, this service is just amazing!! Then we went shopping and since we get along pretty well,
