India (Frommer's, 4th Edition) - Keith Bain [14]
• Eating Alphonso Mangoes in Mumbai: You may have eaten mangoes in Mexico, Thailand, or even in other parts of India, but until you’ve had an Alphonso from Ratnagiri in rural Maharashtra, you’ll be missing a sensory experience like no other. The king of mangoes has a succulent bright orange pulp, bewitching scent, and divine flavor. See chapter 5.
• Eating with Your Hands: Though it may initially go against the grain, there’s something immensely rewarding about digging into a delicious meal with your hands. Indians generally do, and—at least once—you should follow suit. Note that ideally you only use your right hand, and in the north, where the food is “drier,” you are traditionally not supposed to dirty more than the first two digits; in the south you may use the whole hand. See chapter 2, “India in Depth.”
• Sipping a Sweet Lassi: A delicious drink of liquefied sweetened yogurt, this is almost a meal in a glass and should definitely be sampled (some of the best we’ve tried were in Amritsar, Goa, and Jaipur). Do, however, make sure that no water has been added (including ice), and beware the bhang lassi—spiced with marijuana; it can make the usually dreamlike scenes of India a little too out of this world.
• Dining Alfresco on the Rooftop Terrace of the Taj Lake Palace (Taj Lake Palace Hotel, Udaipur): There’s something very surreal about a romantic candlit dinner on the roof of the Lake Palace Hotel. It’s as if you’re watching television at the same time: the History Channel in an IMAX theater, staring directly across the water at the uplit 16th-century City Palace whilst sipping champagne and eating organic, free range lal maas. Be sure to press “record.” .
• Sampling Bod-Jha, Tibetan Butter Tea, with a Buddhist Monk (Leh, Ladakh): Many people gag at the taste of butter tea, made with salt and—you guessed it—a good dollop of the clarified butter known as ghee. It’s an acquired taste, but if you get the hang of it, sipping the buttery concoction with a friendly Buddhist monk when you visit one of the many monasteries tucked in the lunar landscapes around Leh is a truly memorable experience. See chapter 13.
7 The Best Ayurvedic Pampering
For the ultimate Ayurvedic treatment—not so much pampering as a full-on rejuvenation experience that emulates the philosophy of health as a way of life espoused in ancient Indian texts—there’s nothing that comes close to Kalari Kovilakom. The health programs offered there are so special, in fact, that we’ve included them amongst India’s best spiritual experiences, earlier in this chapter.
• The Marari Beach (Alleppey, Kerala): Ayurveda is taken very seriously at this attractive beach resort in South India, not far from Kerala’s tantalizing backwaters. The well-stocked Ayurvedic center is run by two physicians, who dispense sound medical advice as well as treatments, and your program is backed up with special Ayurvedic meals at the resort’s restaurant. Or forgo the rules and just head for the beach, cocktail in hand.
• Kumarakom Lake Resort (Kumarakom, Kerala): The swankiest of Kumarakom’s retreats, this has an extensive Ayurvedic spa—one of Kerala’s most sophisticated, catering primarily to the well-heeled globetrotter—but there’s more besides, like the exquisite, traditionally styled teak-and-rosewood houses with open-air garden bathrooms, a fabulous restaurant, and superslick service.
• Somatheeram (Southern Kerala): This shabby-chic center, carved out of red sandy soil and perched on a terraced cliff overlooking a beach, is more hospital than hotel, but it has been inundated with awards for “Best Ayurvedic Center” (mostly from Kerala’s Tourism Department). Ayurvedic therapy is the primary reason to book here, joining the many European “patients” who shuffle