Thanks for the rude awakening, Delhi

So Delhi slapped us in the face like a hot vindaloo curry! The trip from the airport to the central Metro station was pretty easy, but the moment we stepped out of the air conditioned comfort of the terminal our senses were assaulted. Hot, humid, noisy, crowded and not to mention stinky! Public ablution is a standard activity and the combined smell of human excrement, rotting food and stagnant water, all festering in the heat, is overwhelming and gut wrenching.

Trying to deal with the physical onslaught and clearly not from India we became prime targets for dishonest touts. Look, we've met our fair share of scamsters and dodgy caracters throughout our travels, but nothing comes close to what we experienced in Delhi... At first it seems like every other person wants to 'help' and show you the 'right' way. It turns out that Delhi has a network of well organised (well dressed & well spoken) con men with the sole purpose of exploiting tourists. After being taken to three different travel agents to get our supposed 'tourist passes' the realisation that it was all bul*s*it came when one of the agents called our hotel to confirm our booking, telling us our room had been given away because we didn't check in by 12:00. He handed the phone to Wiets (who was slowly losing his patience) and the guy on the other end explained at length why we had forfeited our room... Smelling a rat, we told them to stuff it. Backpacks in tow and back into the heat, we navigated the narrow crowded alleys by foot (with the help of a gps map) and eventually arrived at our hotel... Needless to say, our room was still ours and the clean air conditioned hotel became our sanctuary. We won't be listening to anyone anytime soon.

Almost everyone that's been to India told us to get a travel agent to organise our trip, 'No' we said 'we want to experience India the real way and do everything ourselves'. Perhaps we should have listened...

Anyhoo... Now that we've had our first (and probably not the last) baptism of fire, we are ready(ish) for the rest :)

Elephants, camels and dogs together on the main road... Normal, right?

Our hotel has a rooftop restaurant that serves cold beer and delicious food... bliss!

We could see the busy (read crazy) streets below.

Mumbai Light

We arrived in Mumbai the middle of the night - and what a pleasant surprise. The airport is just beautiful! We checked in at a hotel close to the airport to get a few hours of sleep before the Indian adventure started.

We couldn't have asked for a better introduction to India, thanks Anoop! (Anoop worked with Wiets at RMB) You made our first day in Mumbai effortless :)

Anoop and his driver Muthi(sp) chauffeured us around Mumbai, stopping at all the 'must-see' sights and ritzing us around like VIPs. We stopped at the Dhobi ghat, Ghandis' house, the Gateway of India, The Taj Hotel, Leopoldt and the Mumbai Central Railway station (Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus). But best of all, Anoop introduced us to our first Thali! We went to a restaurant called Rajdhani's Rasovara 'The Royal Kitchen' and feasted on a selection of curries, paneer, pickles, dips and rotis (all vegetarian) - and the food just kept coming! I'm obsessed ;) Later he took us to sample some street food in the form of Puri Pani (little hollow domes of thin crispy fried dough) filled with a cold and spicy coriander flavoured liquid and veggies. They fill it messily from a large vat directly after which you pop the entire thing into your mouth to experience the spicy-cool-sweet-savoury sensation that is a pani puri - delight! 

After a very comfortable 'India Light' version of Mumbai we are now off to Delhi... Let's see what that city holds!

We have never travelled with backpacks before! But after realising what we were in for  we figured that it would probably be the best way... There is a first time for everything ;)

The enentrance to Ghandis' house (it's now a museum dedicated to his life)

Portait of Ghandi

The Dobi Ghat were people send clothing an linnen to be washed... not sure how clean they come back!

At the Gateway to India

Blonds are also tourist attractions in India :)

We had drinks at Leopoldt - and we are actually listening to Shantaram (the book that made the bar famous) while we are travelling!

Caught In a monsoon downpour! (With a street cat :) The rains don't last long, and atleast it's warm.

Thali! This was our introduction to a quintessential Indian meal - I am in love!

Thanks Anoop! 

The end! We polished our trays and every bite was delicious!

The Pani Puri street stall. Everything is freshly made and eaten on the spot.

Our first Pani Puri bites!

The taxis are way kitch! Our late night drive back to our hotel to get ready for Delhi...

Bring on the curries!

We are dreaming of spicy curries, creamy lassis and freshly baked naan bread...

Bring on the Indian food!

INDIA!

In one week we start our three week Rajashtani adventure! 

Update

We still have a few Croatia and Istanbul posts to come! 

As soon as I have half a minute to breath, I'll put them up ;)

Poreč

Poreč is one of the most Northerly towns on the Istrian peninsula and this is where we kicked off our road-trip along the long narrow strip that makes up the coast of Croatia. The town is almost 2000 years old and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997, so it's a beautiful stroll along cobble stone pathways and ancient buildings. Not much as far as food personality or atmosphere, so we didn't mind that our time there was relatively short ;) 

We bought wine in plastic bottles from this wine vendor next to the road

- not half bad, and quite the alternative to a water stop!

It may sound cliche, but the water really is crystal clear.

Winding alleys and cobble streets in Poreč town.

After an un-inspired search for a non-touristy restaurant, we settled on buying fresh ingredientsand cooking for ourselves. 

The white anchovies in this dish were delicious! 

Poreč is a harbour town.

Having yet another Espresso the kick the day off.

Beach day in Croatia

We spent the day lounging at the Valamar Resort near Porec - clear skies, emerald waters and pebble beaches, a great start to our Croatian adventure. 

The restaurant by the pool at the Valamar Resort served delicious seafood lunches.