When life took me to the “dry state” of Gujarat in India, my Northern Irish soul could think of nothing else but Michael Palin’s journey here and the trouble he went to just to have a few beers in his hotel room. I wanted that too. So I made a beeline for the city of…
Read More“In Camden Town; we walked there as the sun went down.” – Suggs I can’t believe it’s been 9 months since myself and two of my best friends, Millwall Neil and Hippy James backpacked through Primrose Hill and Camden Town. London. Whatever the word “hippy” actually means, for me there is a peace with it.…
Read More“Keep on chasing down that rainbow. You never know what you might find. Over the sunset on the horizon, it may be a dream but it tastes like poison. I’m going to take that tiger outside for a ride.” – Noel Gallagher. “A wee carryout, yeooo!!” shouts an Ulsterman! Another of my “must dos” in…
Read MoreWhen backpacking in India, I decided to visit the country’s strictest “dry province”, that is to say, “alcohol free province”, the north western province of Gujarat which borders Pakistan. My reasons for visiting Gujarat dated back to a Michael Palin documentary where I remember Palin had to fill in a certificate or document to collect alcohol.…
Read More“Down in a den in Bombay. Slack jaw, not much to say. I said to the man are you trying to tempt me? Because I come from the land of plenty” – Men at Work. Inspiration for my visit to Mumbai (formerly Bombay) came from a few sources. A Michael Palin documentary on BBC, a…
Read MoreWhen I arrived in India for the first time in 2016, my first port of call was the capital city, New Delhi. I found out about the highly rated Smyle Inn Hostel and made this my base for my first three nights in New Delhi before night training it to Mumbai. When I Facebooked the…
Read MoreMy first stop in India was New Delhi and I loved it there. I was based in the popular Smyle Inn and Hostel. It seemed to be a perfect first introduction to Indian life. Delhi’s chaotic street life is a backpackers dream, my passion for travel was pumped vivaciously on the streets of this sprawling…
Read More“A face like mine, bereft of dreams, and white” – Nicky Wire. Yes. I’m in New Delhi. I am in India! This is perhaps the biggest shock for me to date on my travels and I can’t explain it, it’s just the way it happens. From day one, I always said I had no intention…
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