KOLKATA (DAY 1)

I flew into Kolkata with IndiGo, another of India's fledgling budget airlines, and was incredibly impressed by the whole flight experience – definitely something the likes of Ryanair and EasyJet could learn from in the UK, who seem more obsessed with cramming as many people into their aircrafts as possible. Anyway, the journey from the airport to the guesthouse was a pleasant one despite the traffic jams that typify any city. It was the last day of the 'Kali Puja' festival and as I entered the city I could see lots of pandals, lavish temporary temples, honouring Kali Maa, the Hindu goddess of destruction. These are then taken down to the Hoogly River (also part of the Ganges) by devotees and then immersed into the river. Unfortunately, since I arrived quite late I was unable to witness this.

I arrived at the superb guesthouse that we plan to use for our tours, with each room having a particular theme. I was staying in the Rural India room which had been done up fantastically well. The roof was thatched with straw and the interior walls done in clay with figures painted on the walls, complete with flatscreen TV! It was very compact but very tastefully done. I ventured into the garden area where there were a few tables and met another guest by the name of Randeep, who was also from the UK (Doncaster to be exact – Kevin Keegan's hometown!). Amazingly, he had been staying here for 3 months and was doing training/ internship at the Kolkata Stock Exchange. He had also travelled a lot within India and he told me some of the highlights to look out for in Kolkata. I was due to be picked up in the morning by the guide for city sight-seeing and based on what Randeep had told me, tomorrow should be an exciting day!
- Rahul