(Part 2)

A month already had passed travelling a totally new world for me.

India considered as the home to the ancient Indus Valley Civilization is a region of historic trade routes and vast empires. It is a journey in history when traveling the country. The cultural wealth is present everywhere. To appreciate every piece of it will take probably more than this life time.

In the state of Gujarat I visited 3 more cities: Anand, Vadovara and further south Surat. In Anand I visited friends. I had the opportunity to get close to daily life as I stayed with the family. It made the journey more personal while enjoying great meals and sharing interesting discussions. So I learned more about that city known as the Milk Capital of India. It became famous for Amul dairy and its milk revolution. We did a daily excursion to Vadodara where we visited the Lakshmi Vilas Palace that was once the residence of the Maharaja of Baroda and the royal family. The Palace compound is impressive and has been built according to the Indo-Saracenic school, an architectural style movement introduced by British architects in the late 19th century in British India, while next to it there is a museum where a huge collection of artifacts and works of art are being displayed. After one more night spent in Anand I took the train to travel to Surat where a friend was waiting for me. The journey way comfortable, though I was moving around with my luggage. It is said the city was first mentioned in the Sanskrit epic, the Mahābhārata, when Lord Krishna stopped there on his way from Mathura to Dwarka. It is a fast expanding city that has been declared in 2013 the first smart IT city in India. It was an overnight stay just to visit my friend. The next day I was on my way to Mumbai, the renowned Bollywood capital and the most populous city in the country. Indeed, this was very apparent while driving through the city: Traffic jam and crowded roads. It is a highly financial, commercial and entertainment capital of the country. I had chosen a hotel not far from the coast, so I was able to enjoy a walk by the sea, view the Gateway of India and the surrounding.