ABOUT INDIA

WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN TRAVELING TO INDIA:

A guide for International Intended Parents visiting Kiran Infertility Centre (KIC)

This is a guide through which we intend to prepare our Intended Parents before travelling to our centre and moreover to India for tourism purpose.

This is a small snapshot to help you in planning your sight-seeing, dining-out and general information about the culture of India.

Welcome to India,

“We Indians join our palms and greet you with a Namaste as we think that God resides in every Human Being.”

Namaskar, India a land of diversity, where culture echoes, and tradition speaks, beauty enthrals and diversity delights. Astounding diversity of religions, languages, and cultures of India is unique and unparalleled.

It is correctly also referred as a subcontinent rather than a country. Bounded by the lofty Himalayan ranges in the north and edged by an endless ocean in the south, clustered by several beaches, India is a vivid form of landscapes, captivating historical sites and royal cities, misty mountains, colourful people, prodigious cultures and festivals.

The timeless mystery and beauty of India has been waiting for you for, always warm and inviting, a place of infinite variety – one that favours you with different aspects of its enthralment every time you visit India.

About Indian Culture

• The Main religion is Hinduism, you also a find many people following different faiths such as Islam, Christianity, Jainism, Buddhism in India.
• Most meal options at hotels or while you are dining out will be vegetarian, chicken, lamb and fish. Only in star hotels or exclusive places other meal options such as beef or pork will be available.
• Ideally Indian food is spicy but tasty and many foreigners like it, other cuisines such as American, Italian, Mexican, Chinese, Arabic or that of middle- east, Turkish are easily available and there are many restaurants that cater to these cuisines in major cities and tourist destinations of India
• Fast-food chains like: Dominos, Pizza Hut, KFC, McDonald’s, Subway, Coffee Day are available in India.
• Nightlife: In all major cities and tourist destinations in India you find Lounges, Star Hotels, Bars, Pubs and Discotheques.
• Indian people are generally friendly. You may occasionally be requested to be clicked in a photograph with them when out in the city.
• Women in India are shy and very secure of their surroundings, please take care and exercise caution.
• Please discourage beggars in India
• In India bargaining is the best part and is a great place to test your marketing skills.

Myths about India

• Major myth about India is that due to its proximity to Middle East there is increased chance of Terrorist attacks. In-fact India is most peaceful region south east Asia and in last few years there has been no major terrorist attack or any kind of mass violence in India.
• There are precautions such as screening and security checks in all major places in India and is carried out to ensure safety.
• It is advisable for women to not get dressed up in revealing clothes. You can wear tank tops, shorts, skirts, and dresses.

Sight Seeing Options in India

Tourist Places in North India

North India comprises of Indian states Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and union territories Chandigarh and Delhi.

Major Tourist Destinations in this region are

• TAJMAHAL, one of the seven wonders of the world,
• Kashmir -“the heaven on earth”
• Sanctity of “Ganga” and its amalgamation of Indian Culture is visible in places like Haridwar, Varanasi (Banaras), Rishikesh
• The Glory of ancient “Himalayas is visible in Hill Stations such as Ladakh(Leh), Dharamshala, Kullu, Manali, Shimla, Palampur, Dehradun, Mussoorie, Nainital etc.
• Historical places include world heritage sites such as the Valley of flowers, QutbMinar, Red Fort.
• Temples like Golden Temple, Mathura, Vaishno Devi, Kedarnath, Amarnath, Badrinath, Jama Masjid, and famous temple town of Varanasi is present in this region.
• Other cities in North, worth a visit are Delhi, Chandigarh, Srinagar, Allahabad, Mathura etc.

Tourist Places in South India

South India comprises of Indian states Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, TamilNadu, Telangana and union territories Pondicherry (Puducherry) and Lakshadweep Islands. This region is famous for its numerous Temples, Classical Music and ‘IT cities’ – “Bangalore(Bengaluru)” and “Hyderabad also called as Hi-tech City”

Major Tourist Destinations in this region are

• This part of India has enormous beaches, water falls, forests, lakes, backwaters, Wild Life Sanctuaries etc. The classical dances of India like “Bharat Natyam” and “Kathakali” have a South Indian origin.
• You can enjoy back waters in Alappuzha(Alleppey), Kottayam
• The must visit hill stations are Munnar, Coorg, Kodaikanal, Ooty(Ootacamund), Araku etc.
• The beaches here include Mangalore in Karnataka, Kovalam& Fort Kochi in Kerala, KanyaKumari in Tamilnadu.
• Forest Areas here include the famous Bhadra Forest Reserve, Srisailam Forest Reserve etc.
• South also is famous for its temples such as Tirupati, Madurai, KanyaKumari, Guruvayur, and PamdmanabhaSwamy Temple in Tiruvananthapuram which off-late is in news due to its recently discovered vast treasure and mysteries and is also now amongst the richest temples of the world.
• Other cities in South India worth of visiting are Bangalore (Bengaluru), Chennai(Madras), Hyderabad&Secunderabad, Mysore, Kochi(Cochin), Visakhapatnam (Vizag), Pondicherry (Puducherry) etc.

Tourist Places in East India

Indian states Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Sikkim, Tripura, West Bengal and union territories Andaman and Nicobar Islands constitute East India. East India is culturally rich and is the most scenic and unexplored regions of India

Major Tourist Destinations in this region are

• East India has Hill Stations like Darjeeling in Bengal, states like Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh are unexplored and have various beautiful Hill Stations. This region has mesmerising scenic beauty and captivating tea farms.
• The ruins of ancient Nalanda University can be found near Rajgir.
• This part includes many pilgrimage centres for Jains and Buddhists. Bodhgaya and Puriare the most famous pilgrimage centres in this region.
• Sunderbans in Bengal offer a one in a life time experience to people interested in exploring forests and more so interested in famous Indian Tiger.
• Must visit cities in this region are Station, Kolkata, Itanagar, Shillong, Gangtok, Imphal, Tawang, Aizawl, Kohima, Dimapur, Agartala, Cachar (Silchar), Dispur, Guwahati, Gaya, Patna, Jamshedpur, Ranchi, West Garo Hills (Tura), Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Puri(Konark), North Sikkim (Mangan) etc.

Tourist Places in West India

Indian States of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan and union territories Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Goa, Daman and Diu constitute West India. Rajasthan is famous for its Palaces, Havelis, historical places and itsancient history. Mumbai –is also known as a city of “Fashion, Glamour and Bollywood”, and Goa is the most preferred destination for foreign travellers in India.

Major Tourist Destinations in this region are

• “Pink City – Jaipur”, Palaces of Udaipur, “the Lake City”, Raigad, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer are few places where you find the taste of rich Indian History. Chittorgarh Fort is considered as the biggest battle fort in world/
• Hill stations in these areas include Lonavala-Khandala, Mahabaleshwar, Mount Abu, Matheran, Panchgani, Saputara Taranga Hills etc.
• Nashik, Ajmer, Pushkar are few of the pilgrimage centre’s located in this region.
• Beaches of Goa are world famous and are amongst the dream destinations for all traveller be it Indian or foreigners
• The must visit cities in this region are Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Alibag, Dwarka,

Tourist Places in Central India

Central India comprises of Indian states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. This region is famous for its temples, historical heritage and culture.

Major Tourist Destinations in this region are

• This region houses Wild Life Sanctuaries like Bandhavgarh National Park, Kanha National Park, Satpura National Park, Sanjay National Park, Madhav National Park, Van Vihar National Park, Mandla Plant Fossils National Park, Panna National Park, Pench National Park etc.
• Some of the famous places in this region known for Historical significance are Gwalior fort, Sanchistupa in Sanchi, Khajuraho temple etc.
• The must visit cities in this region are Bhopal, Indore, Ujjain, Gwalior etc.