Unlock flavours of life by

backpacking India.

Photos & Words by Chris Rathore(@traveller.chris)

We

all start somewhere, mostly not

realising where it all began. I got into traveling

and photography by accident. Its was during
my high school Examination time,
January/February 2012 and as it is highly
likely that everything around me was far
more interesting that those commerce
books. I tapped into the app store just
doodling on my iPhone and found that a
recently launched photo app "Instagram"
was getting a lot of attention. That one
download changed my whole life. Literally!
And I was hooked to photography. The
magical filters and the amazing
transformation of photos really got me into
the art of taking pictures. So I started with the
most accessible and common subject:
Landscapes!
Every evening and possible mornings, I
started capturing the sunrise and the sunset.
More posts got me more responses. Being
motivated by fellow instagrammers, I started
talking to some popular users which
expanded my knowledge and vision in the
field of photography. Fast forward to fall 2013
and I bought my first DSLR. Knowing nothing
about photography in early 2012, here I was
with a DSLR after almost 2 years of Phone
Photography experience. You can say I
legitimately started from scratch! Now fast
forward another 2 years. How I got into
Portrait from Landscape is another love
affair. Although I still do a lot of Landscapes
after exploring the travel bug in me.
As landscapes were a bait for me I started
traveling places around the world through my
savings and a bit of borrowed money from my
parents.

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B a ck p a ck i n g Ja i p u r a n d A j m e r,
Rajasthan:
You don't have to be a travel savvy to travel
in India, said no one. But this is a fact. India is
the most fun country to backpack. After
seeing places in Europe, Ireland and South
East Asia I decided to back pack Jaipur and
Ajmer located in the western part of India in
the state of Rajasthan. I am an Indian and I
live in the Northern part of India in Dehradun.
I had a preconception that it will be quite easy
and not so surprising to backpack Rajasthan.
Reason being; same language, familiar food,
people and culture, nothing dramatic as of
what I had been through in Prague and Italy.
But I was wrong!
I got a one-side plane ticket to Jaipur with no
particular plan and a backpack on my
shoulders. I was mesmerised by this
beautiful city, the people, the food, the
architecture and the history.

Here is the first photo I posted on my instagram on my first day of travelling in Jaipur:
Wind in my ears, colours in my eyes! Feeling every moment I
could ever dream about. Today has been a roller coater ride.
Seeing Amer Fort, I am mesmerised. Thanks for the lovely gift.
Jaipur has been amazing. Logging good night from Jaipur .
Riding bike of my dreams, see you guys tomorrow with more
adventures and photos #travellerchris Photo taken from
iPhone5. Wind in my ears, colours in my eyes! Feeling every
moment I could ever dream about.Today has been a roller coater
ride. Seeing Amer Fort, I am mesmerised. Thanks for the lovely
gift. Jaipur has been amazing. Logging good night from Jaipur .
Riding bike of my dreams, see you guys tomorrow with more
adventures and photos #travellerchris Photo taken from
iPhone5.

The best season to visit

Rajasthan is the winter
season. I travelled in the
month of February when
the climate is not too hot or
too cold. The food is super
c h e a p a n d ex t re m e ly
delicious. I ate at typical
Rajasthani Dhabbas almost
every day.
If you are visiting Jaipur you
must not miss the Jauhari
Bazaar, HawaMahal, Jaipur
City Palace, Amer Fort,
Jaigarh Fort and Nahargarh
Fort. Each place has its own
beauty and you will love
every minute if you are all
about textured stones, royal
palaces, majestic elephants
and a lot of colours. I spent a
total of 15 days in Rajasthan
and here are a few photos
from my trip.

Hawa Mahal during Sunset

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Inside Amer Fort, Jaipur

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Gate to the City Palace, Jaipur

Beautiful Windows of Hawa Mahal from the inside. Jaipur

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Here is a priceless moment I would like to share with

the readers of Inspiro India. While I was backpacking
Jaipur I hosted an Instameet with the locals.
Jaipur and Ajmer have been a gold addition to my travel diary. The experiences I had while solo
backpacking these places have evolved me in ways I had never imagined. I unlocked the colors of
life and you can too. All you need is a fresh mind, an open heart and a handful of love to share.
The Instameet became too boring inside a Caf, so we decided to head out to a nearby park in
Vaishali Nagar, Jaipur. Everything became alive. I met some lovely kids at the park; I clicked their
photos and gave my camera away for them to see. The smile on their faces was priceless.. I still have
a lot to see in my homeland India. I believe I have only seen 1% of this beautiful country and I would
like to inspire more and more people to backpack India and taste the beautiful favours of life.

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