Nepal, Bhutan, and India

Marc S

I'm heading to Nepal. Bhutan, and India for two weeks this Friday.

Of course, only a complete fool would leave his camera behind. I don't plan to be that kind of fool. (Other ways perhaps, but not in this case:D "

Anyways, I plan on taking:

Canon 20D
Canon G9
Wide angle lens
zoom
Macbook
Possibly my 580 flash and slave for some interesting shots.

Looking for any advice from you long distant travelers to exotic lands.

Thanks,
Marc S

schmoo

I think your questions will have better luck in the Locations forum!

You're asking about photography in Nepal/Bhutan/India, right? Not technical stuff?

Marc S

schmoo wrote:

I think your questions will have better luck in the Locations forum!

You're asking about photography in Nepal/Bhutan/India, right? Not technical stuff?

Thanks! I thought I had posted it in location. Have no idea why it wound up in the tech part. Thanks for the help

Jimbojack

Wow, 2 weeks is a very short amount of time for these places.
How long are you planing on staying in each?

In Nepal I'm guessing you will not leave the Kathmandu valley. Definately take a day trip to Patan and Bhaktapur. You should be able to get a taxi for the day for a pretty cheap price, a better way to do it is to organize a mountain bike with a guide and go on the backroads yourself. I did that and had a blast!

Another thing you should go see are the burning ghats in front of the Pashupatinah temple. You can get some awesome photos there, a mid zoom would be great so you don't get in peoples way. The famous Swayambhunats buddhist temple is also very interesting, as well as the "monkey" temple, dedicated to Hanuman but containing a buddhist stupa at the top.

Another thing I would reccomend is the Buddha Air flights to the top of Mt. Everest. It's about 1.5 hour flight that goes from KTM around Mt. Everest and back, used to be around $100 a couple of years ago when I was there, but do it as soon as you get there if you decide on it. Many days it's overcast and they will not fly or turn back if there is no visibility.

If you only have 5 days in Nepal, I would not leave the valley. Unless you wanna fly somewhere for a day or two but I don't think it's worth it.

I've never been to Bhutan, I have a problem with paying a $200 a DAY visa fee for that country. I'd love to go sometime, but that will only happen if 1.) I get rich, 2.) they open up a bit more.

I'm guessing you will be in northern India, (ie Delhi, since that's where you would probably fly to/from, right?). Of course Agra and teh Taj are a must, but there is a city not too far from there called Fatehpur Sikrit. Definately go there if you get a chance, a couple of hours walking around would be enough. Veranasi is very interesting, but it takes a while to go there.

If you have 5 days or so in India, you might want to think about hiring a car and driver, it's not too expensive and you can make the most of your time, as well as visit sites that are very difficult to get to using public transport.

Let me know where you are going specifically and maybe I'll be able to give you more detailed advice.

Feel free to PM me if you have any more questions.

BTW, I'll be going to South Asia myself in 2.5 weeks. Plan on spending 2 weeks in Sri Lanka, 2 weeks in Bangladesh, and about 4 in India (mostly the south)

These photos were taken with an ooooold Minolta Dimage 7

Burning ghats in Nepal


Waiting for the cremation


Sadhu in Kathmandu


Potters square in Bhaktapur

Marc S

Thanks for the great information and pics. I have a feeling some of our trip will change in that we will be spending more time in Northern India and then going into Bhutan.

I will have some time to possibly shoot the Everest option you mentioned. Bhutan is a bit expensive. However, well worth it. (at least I hope so).

I'll take the advice you've listed and post some stills in a couple of weeks after fighting all that jet lag.

Regards and see you soon.

Marc S

tsk1979

A car with driver costs 6-7rs/km in India(comfortable AC vehicle)
If you go outstation, you have to pay 100rs per night extra for driver stay.
As for booking hotels and stuff, stay away from agents.
Be a little more specific about what do you want to see in India
There are lots of options
1. Chaos
2. Monuments
3. Deserts
4. Lakes
5. himalayas

The list is endless.
Any carry as less gear as possible. Chuch the G9 and carry a couple of lenses(wide+all purpose zoom)
If you want to spot wildlife take a long zoom(400 or 300)