South Asia Trip: Sri Lanka, South India, Bangladesh, Burma

Jimbojack

In three weeks I'll be leaving to South Asia for a few weeks. This is what I'm planning right now:

10 days in Sri Lanka (Colombo, southern beaches, Yala National park, Kandy and the old cities of Polonnaruwa, Sigiriya, Anuradhapura)

9 days in Bangladesh (Dhaka, Hill tract, 4 days on a boat in the Sunderbarns, chittagong).

12 days in Burma (Yangoon, Mandalay, Bagan, Inle Lake, and some other places, have to read up on it)

Then India, I'll probably cross overland from Bangladesh to Kolkata for a couple of days, the go to Veranasi for a couple of days before flying to Southern India for about 2 weeks. (Chennai, Hyderabad, backwaters of Kerala, ?)

Does anyone have any advice about must see/photograph places in those areas? I've been to quite a few countries in Asia, but these are all new to me (Aside from India, where I've traveled in the north, Rajasthan and Bangalore).

I'd love to photograph the chittagong ship breaking yards, but as far as I know if anyone there sees you with a camera you'll be lucky if they just kick you out.

The plan is just an overview, I'm might spend a few days more in some places and less in others.

Any suggestions are appreciated,

Thanks

tsk1979

Varanasi : Mostly street photography of a religious town. Banks of ganga river etc., people offering prayers etc,.
South india. Lots of backwaters in kerala, and the western ghats(tropical forest).
Make an itenary of what places you want to go to. Things to see and photograph change every 10 miles.
What you are asking is too vague.

LittleLew

I have been to all the countries of SEA several times and Burma and Laos were my favorites.

I was in Burma last year (27 days) and have a lot of info that might be useful. Although there is too much to write here without more specific questions, the most important info is to count on using only cash in Burma (USD or Euros). Bills should be large, clean, untorn. Travchex or CC will incure huge fees if they are used.

Get your Burma visa very early. Visa on arrival not available. Entry from India side is poor or non-existent. Most people enter from Thailand.

I have three sites for you to visit to help formulate your itinerary.

General info:
http://www.lonelyplanet.com- the thorn tree forum section for FAQ and lots of posts on travel in Burma
www.talesofasia.com

Specific lodging,food info http://www.travelfish.org

If you would like to actually have a conversation on the Burma issues, just PM your telephone number and good times to call.

Jimbojack

PM sent

Thanks,

SVN

You could also explore options in Tamil Nadu especially those temple architectures in tanjore etc which are amazing if you are really into those things. I went this march to madurai,kodaikanal, rameshwaram tanjore chennai in a 5 day trip.Iam not a good photographer but some snaps of those regions can be found here

http://toutatis.smugmug.com/gallery/3493505

you can see the map of the places visited.

i would also encourage munnar in kerala- something i missed out on . i have heard and seen snaps of the place. it is quite beautiful. Again , really depends on personal interests but south india offers a lot of variety.

hope this helps

Jimbojack

Well, after thinking about it some more, this is what I'm planning:



I have around 6 weeks for this part of the trip. Afterwards, I'll be flying to the Philippines for a few days to meet a friend of mine before flying home.

I'll probably spend more time in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh then in India, but I'll be going to India a few more times in the next few years. There is even a chance that I'll be moving there for a year sometime in the next few months.

At the end of next year I'm planing on driving an Enfield motorcycle from Delhi to Germany through Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Azerbaijan, Armernia, Georgia and Russia.

Thanks for your suggestions, I'll post a lot of photos when I get back

tsk1979

Regarding overland trips(bike or car) in India you can check out http://www.team-bhp.com
Lots of members there are avid travellers(mostly car, few bikers) who have travelled to places like Ladakh as well as done cross country trips by road.

VinayRao

If you have time, do consider a visit to the Ajanta and Ellora caves in India. They are an overnight train-ride from either Mumbai or Hyderabad. Or you can fly into Aurangabad from New Delhi or Mumbai. The caves are amazing. Here are some pictures

http://lensnlight.smugmug.com/gallery/3953355#229766866

Best,
Vinay

tsk1979 wrote:

Regarding overland trips(bike or car) in India you can check out http://www.team-bhp.com
Lots of members there are avid travellers(mostly car, few bikers) who have travelled to places like Ladakh as well as done cross country trips by road.

Jimbojack

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll see if I have time.

Very nice photos btw.

I'm leaving tomorrow morning, will post some photos when I get back