This continent is a tumultuous rainbow.

It is like being thrown inside a kaleidoscope, colours everywhere- the muted pink of old city walls, the vibrant pink bougainvillea, jewel bright saris, ice-cream trucks and street vendors with pink and purple and green painted stands… even the buses wear tasselled earrings.

Everything in India is decorated, and joyfully bright. This is a country where you can't help but smile. There is so much beauty, and chaos, and music, the honking horns of rickshaws, the Bollywood tunes. Lone cows sauntering across roads, the odd camel cart parked amongst the taxis, Marwari horses with their magically curved ears trotting among the traffic.. and these are only the street scenes.

 Venture up into the palaces or the forts and the majesty of the architecture takes over. The intricate detailing, the beautiful lines of the buildings, the sheer immensity of it all, is truly breathtaking. I have never once not been in awe here, it truly, wonderfully, always takes your breath away.

 The people too, always generously offering chai, always eager to help and interested in your own story, what brought you to India, what is it like in your own country. It is a place where you can happily lose three hours in a fabric shop, chatting to the owner about vintage Afghan textiles, or sitting on the verandah at any number of exquisite hotels, watching the world go by. 

A country of immense regal beauty with a generously warm heart, one that captured me from my first visit many moons ago, and continues to enthral me every time I land here.