GRcade

I've been to America quite a few times, starting in 2004 and going back every couple of years. Each time I go, the homelessness and poverty on show almost seems to double.

Even affluent cities like San Fran and Seattle are blighted by it. "Blighted" is maybe a cruel world to use, though I don't mean it to imply the homeless are a blight, more that the sheer lack of social safety nets in America allow people to easily slip through the gaps and end up on the streets. People should be allowed to make mistakes or bad luck and not just be left with absolutely nothing. It doesn't just rob people of physical goods, but also of dignity and hope. What's worst, America's philosophy of meritocracy (those who do well and get rich have worked the hardest) means that homelessness is normally attributed to a fault of the person themselves.

We were walking past The Ferry Building one day and there was a guy wondering about with no trousers with a tree branch as if it was part of him having a full blown conversation with him self. It was so sad.

Anyone been to India, specifically the golden triangle cities of Delhi, Aggra and Jaipur?

How would you recommend travel between them - train or rented driver?

And does anyone have any accommodation recommendations? Been tricky to research so far as some are very cheap, but maybe not in the greatest of areas, whereas the more Westernised ones tend to be very expensive.

Parksey wrote:Anyone been to India, specifically the golden triangle cities of Delhi, Aggra and Jaipur?

How would you recommend travel between them - train or rented driver?

And does anyone have any accommodation recommendations? Been tricky to research so far as some are very cheap, but maybe not in the greatest of areas, whereas the more Westernised ones tend to be very expensive.

Yeah I've been to India. We did a bigger route than just the golden triangle cities but one that incorporated them. We ended up booking a package tour from Delhi that we probably got ripped off on but was still likely cheaper than booking it in advance online I guess. We used a combination of driver and train. If you pay a bit more and get an air conditioned bunk bed the sleeper trains are generally fine I would say although it depends what your standards are and some are definitely better than others. I'm not sure when you're going but make sure you're not travelling during a religious festival as my experience was they don't bother checking tickets-we went via sleeper train to Varansi on Diwali and I counted about 30 people in our 6 person carriage. That was fun

Drivers make it very easy and if you get a good one can be good fun. I think we had one to go from Delhi to Aggra as the trains weren't running and he invited us round to his families house for dinner in the evening and we watched cricket with him while his wife served us one of the best curries I've ever had And he took us round Aggra giving us a lot of good local knowledge.

Overall though, I would say train is more than doable.

Yeah, we are going at the end of October/beginning of November.

Not only does this coincide with Diwali, it's also during the cricket world cup.

I'm guessing hiring a driver may be preferable during the busier dates then. I would definitely like to do one train journey, mind.

Which site did you use to book your train/driver?

Hah yeah I would probably avoid train then....

We didn't use a site, we booked everything through a travel agent in Delhi. They put it all together for us, which probably wasn't the most cost effective way of doing it but everything worked well and was organised perfectly.

If you go by train, just make sure to show up on time...

Today, I am in Bruges, and I paid a visit to the Koningin Astridpark

I can confirm that there are definitely alcoves to be found there.

Just a reminder that I now live in Chicago so hit me up if you're ever over this way. Also very happy to have anyone stay at mine - I will have a spare room with a double bed by the new year and my flat is pretty well located.

Vermilion wrote:Today, I am in Bruges, and I paid a visit to the Koningin Astridpark

I can confirm that there are definitely alcoves to be found there.

I've heard it's like a fairytale town.

Moggy wrote:

Vermilion wrote:Today, I am in Bruges, and I paid a visit to the Koningin Astridpark

I can confirm that there are definitely alcoves to be found there.

I've heard it's like a fairytale town.

It is, certainly can't imagine the sort who would say it wasn't their thing.

I mean come on, how's a fairytale town not somebody's strawberry floating thing? How can all those canals and bridges and cobbled streets and those churches, all that beautiful strawberry floating fairytale stuff, how can that not be somebody's strawberry floating thing, eh?

Off to Hanoi next week for the first time which I'm really excited about. Though its meant to be raining the entire time which is a bit depressing.

Doing Sapa, Ninh Binh and Ha Long Bay plus a few days either side in the city.

Rocsteady wrote:Off to Hanoi next week for the first time which I'm really excited about. Though its meant to be raining the entire time which is a bit depressing.

Doing Sapa, Ninh Binh and Ha Long Bay plus a few days either side in the city.

Sounds neat, probably best to pack an umbrella though.

Be sure to post some pics here.

Rocsteady wrote:Off to Hanoi next week for the first time which I'm really excited about. Though its meant to be raining the entire time which is a bit depressing.

Doing Sapa, Ninh Binh and Ha Long Bay plus a few days either side in the city.

I hope you're staying at the Hilton.

Rocsteady wrote:Off to Hanoi next week for the first time which I'm really excited about. Though its meant to be raining the entire time which is a bit depressing.

Doing Sapa, Ninh Binh and Ha Long Bay plus a few days either side in the city.

That's Hanoiing.

Rocsteady wrote:Off to Hanoi next week for the first time which I'm really excited about. Though its meant to be raining the entire time which is a bit depressing.

Doing Sapa, Ninh Binh and Ha Long Bay plus a few days either side in the city.

I loved Hanoi. I used it as a base for the surrounding area for about 3 weeks when I did my 6 months in S.E. Asia a few years back and am tempted to go back next February. It's chaotic, busy, and a bit dirty, but it's also very charming. Lots of pretty old colonial buildings, interesting landmarks, and great food. Chilling out with an iced Vietnamese coffee, watching the bikes whiz by is great fun. I preferred it to Saigon for sure, which was a bit too Westernized for me.

Ninh Binh is also really nice. Super picturesque. The climb up Hang Mua is a slog, but you can get amazing views out over the area. We didn't do Ha Long Bay, but did Bai Tu Long Bay as it is a bit quieter, and really enjoyed our little cruise. It was only a night (I think) but it was weirdly one of the best nights of sleep we got the whole trip

I'll plug my girlfriend's blog as she has a bunch of posts on Vietnam including Ninh Binh, Bai Tu Long Bay, Hanoi, and food https://curioussparrowtravel.com/category/vietnam/

Victor Mildew wrote:

Rocsteady wrote:Off to Hanoi next week for the first time which I'm really excited about. Though its meant to be raining the entire time which is a bit depressing.

Doing Sapa, Ninh Binh and Ha Long Bay plus a few days either side in the city.

That's Hanoiing.

I hope you have a good time though.

thanks!

SandyCoin wrote:

Rocsteady wrote:Off to Hanoi next week for the first time which I'm really excited about. Though its meant to be raining the entire time which is a bit depressing.

Doing Sapa, Ninh Binh and Ha Long Bay plus a few days either side in the city.

I loved Hanoi. I used it as a base for the surrounding area for about 3 weeks when I did my 6 months in S.E. Asia a few years back and am tempted to go back next February. It's chaotic, busy, and a bit dirty, but it's also very charming. Lots of pretty old colonial buildings, interesting landmarks, and great food. Chilling out with an iced Vietnamese coffee, watching the bikes whiz by is great fun. I preferred it to Saigon for sure, which was a bit too Westernized for me.

Ninh Binh is also really nice. Super picturesque. The climb up Hang Mua is a slog, but you can get amazing views out over the area. We didn't do Ha Long Bay, but did Bai Tu Long Bay as it is a bit quieter, and really enjoyed our little cruise. It was only a night (I think) but it was weirdly one of the best nights of sleep we got the whole trip

I'll plug my girlfriend's blog as she has a bunch of posts on Vietnam including Ninh Binh, Bai Tu Long Bay, Hanoi, and food https://curioussparrowtravel.com/category/vietnam/

Cheers man will have a good look at that before we head off.

It was you/your mrs that recommended some amazing places in Rome to eat eh? Will defo check out the food places she's listed there.

Although looking at a couple of these places, my mrs is vegetarian which looks like it may be a bit of a struggle

Rocsteady wrote:
It was you/your mrs that recommended some amazing places in Rome to eat eh? Will defo check out the food places she's listed there.

It was indeed.

Hmm, your Mrs might struggle a bit for vegetarian options as most stuff has fish sauce etc. in it. Lots and lots of pork, too. Your best bet might be the more western friendly places in the old town. They're obviously more expensive, but are still very tasty and typically have vegetarian options. Something like Noodle & Roll near the big lake.