These are pots of powdered paint displayed in Mysore Market. This market is one of my favorite places in India because of the beautiful fruit and vegetable stalls, friendly vendors, and the air of vibrancy and decay that makes India feel both old and new all at once. It is also where I overcame my shyness as a foreigner by learning the age old art of haggling. I lived in Mysore for four months and worked as a volunteer at a free medical clinic on the outskirts of the city. I lived in a house with three other volunteers at the clinic and we would share shopping duties. We chose shopping at the market instead of the modern price fixed grocery stores. At the market food was fresher, the prices were better, and the atmosphere timeless. Scenes like this made the heat and hassle of living in India minor inconveniences.

While traveling around India I learned to expect the unexpected. Every turn delivered a surprise. When I was in Calcutta, a traffic jam forced my guide and I to abandon our tax ride to the Marble Palace. As we stumbled out the cab door we found ourselves amidst a frenetic fruit auction. My guide, who grew up in Calcutta, told me she'd heard rumors of this fruit market but had never been able to find it. She thought it was just a myth. The fruit vendors—all men—seemed just as startled to see two women running past the piles of oranges and bunches of bananas. The market was so frenetic that became swept up in the hustle and eventually reached a dead end. Our only choice was to turn around and run the citrus gauntlet again. Vendors waved slices of oranges in our face and we finally stopped and agreed to have a taste, which brought about cheers from the fruit hawkers. I was so amazed that simply stepping down the wrong street could put me in this crazy moment.

If you manage to make it to the southwestern tip of India, where the backwaters of Kerala lay, you can commission a houseboat and spend a day or two floating peacefully along the vast waterways that weave through fishing villages and paddy fields. There isn't much to do in the late afternoon but to lean back and sip a fresh coconut or sweet, milky tea as you watch the horizon and the water melt into one, and the other houseboats make their way back to shore across the water's pearly surface.

Refuel with citrus salad, fennel risotto with cherry tomatoes and saffron, and chocolate bread pudding at the new outpost of Indigo Delicatessen. Photo courtesy of Indigo Deli. This appeared in the November/December 2012 issue.

I happened upon this moment at a night market in Jaipur, India, which has some of the best shopping for beaded crafts, jewelry, ceramics, carpets and textiles. This jewelry stand in Johari Bazaar was crowded with women interested in the necklaces, bracelets, and trinkets on offer in abundance. Markets all over India are fascinating, colorful places and provide a great sense of nearly every aspect of the culture, whether it be the degree of religious devotion, the styles of dress and adornment, or the delicious gastronomy. Soak it all in, but give yourself plenty of time....

Opened in 2007, Blue Frog is a theater, restaurant, club, and record label housed within an old textile mill. From a futuristic pod, you can watch live musical performances by artists such as composer and percussionist Talvin Singh. 91/(0) 22-6158-6158.

Sikhs and non-Sikhs go to Amritsar for one reason – to see the Golden Temple (Hamandir Sahib) so, that is what I did on my most recent trip to India. Except, I went on Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday which is a national holiday in India and because of that, I expected the place to be crowded with locals enjoying a day off. It was indeed crowded so much so I could barely walk. I returned the next day thinking it would be better and it was but it was still packed with people. I did manage to see the place but not quite in the way that I wanted to experience a holy site. So, I hopped in a taxi and went down the road to Tarn Taran Sahib. There, I found a place of religious tranquility and a golden temple that was just as beautiful albeit on a smaller scale. Sikh devotees were out and about but there was not a throng of people. It was just the place I was looking for!

As manufacturing moves out of the city, industrial spaces are being repurposed. In 2011, a boutique, café, and flower shop called Le Mill opened in a former rice mill near the naval dockyards. Roughly half the merchandise is made in India. Highlights include teakwood chairs by the Mumbai-based designer Rooshad Shroff. 91/(0) 22-2374-2415. Photo by Chiara Gioia. This appeared in the November/December 2012 issue.

Dawn in Varanasi lights up the bathers and worshipers along the storied Ghats. It's a flashlight on the stairs that lead to cleansing and devotion. I joined a boat ride at sunrise to be a member of the audience to Varanasi's morning rituals.

The residence of the Maharaja of Tehri-Garhwal (an Indian princely state) is now a 100-acre spa resort in the Himalayas devoted to hatha yoga and holistic and Ayurvedic wellness programs. Prior to arrival, guests fill out an Ayurveda and wellness consultation form so that their classes and treatments can be personalized. A typical day might include morning yoga, an afternoon spa treatment, and a sundown tiger safari. From $3,340 for a five-night yoga package, including meals and daily yoga. 91/(0) 13-7822-7500, anandaspa.com. Image courtesy of Ananda. This story appeared in the January/February 2011 issue.  Find other yoga retreats:Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga InstituteKripalu Center for Yoga and Health, MassachusettsAqua Wellness Resort, NicaraguaJicaro Island Ecolodge, NicaraguaGaia Retreat and Spa, AustraliaComo Shambhala Estate, BaliDomaine de la Grausse, France    

Amritsar is a popular tourist destination in India and people from all over the world come here to see The Golden Temple. But once you're done admiring the beauty of the temple, walk around and observe. Look at how almost every individual is genuinely willing to serve you. Right from taking your shoes before you enter the temple, to washing utensils of those who have just finished their free lunch at the 'Langar'. They volunteer at the temple because they believe that service of any kind here is service to The Almighty. P.S - Do not miss to visit the temple at night. Brilliant experience!

The narrow alleys of Hauz Khas Village are ripe with modern goods. Young designer Gautam Sinha sells gorgeous leather bags and luggage (shown) at Nappa Dori (Ste. 4, 91/(0) 98-1040-0778). The über-hip hang out at Ultrastore, a furniture shop that stocks cheeky housewares (Ste. 50E, 91/(0) 99-7135- 8479). Yodakin is the spot for alternative books and music (Ste. 2, 91/(0) 11-2653-6283). —Jocelyn C. Zuckerman This appeared in the November/December 2011 issue. Photo courtesy of Nappa Dori.

I never dreamed I would ever visit Gujarat. I had no inclination until my cousin moved for work and I ended up visiting her. I discovered small villages, talented award winning weavers, and NGOs working to resurrect a dying art - weaving. Hodka is one such village located in the Rann of Kutch area. I stayed in the village for a few days and was lucky enough to meet Ramji and his family in their home - pictured in the photograph. Ramji makes hand woven bedsheets that he then sells to boutiques and stores around India and even in places such as New Mexico. Hand weaving is a dying art in these areas and Ramji along with his family is trying to keep this trade alive with help from local NGOs such as KHAMIR. Meghwal people are traditionally weavers and even today live in small hamlets of mud-brick huts decorated on the outside with mirror inlays. Ramji is a tall, humble man and invited me inside his home - one of many small huts - and offered me ginger tea. What struck me was that they were so hospitable toward me and my cousin, yet I never saw many women around Hodka. I learnt later that women are typically not seen around the village and they have low status in traditional Meghwal society. You'd never have guessed from the way they treated me. To meet Ramji, ask anyone in Hodka for his house. He will gladly welcome you. Tip: you can bargain a little bit and if you don't speak Hindi or the local dialect you should take a translator with you. http://www.hodka.in/

At the end of a dusty day, we turned from the smooth comfort of good pavement and paused beneath a lone shade tree in the Gadna village of India. The sound of strangers stirred the Banjaras to leave their boiling curry pots and stolen treasures for they could smell the clean scent of fresh prey, and we were it. “Keep a tight grip on your cameras,” the guide said. “Don’t wander off alone.” The ragged children crept to the edge and waited for the mothers with their rustling streams of bright silk and clanging bracelets. As news of the Americans drifted around the thatched zupadas, the men lifted from their naps and tucked away their country-made liquor. Within minutes, the welcome party swarmed with Bollywood smiles and clumsy intentions, bumping change loose from purses and slipping tiny fingers into pockets. “Let’s go,” the guide said. “Hurry.” The Banjaras weren’t eager for the party to end so they scrambled to capture some memory of the visit. A hair clip. A hat. Almost a shoe. “You can’t go,” the guide told the boy clinging to the side of our car. “You have to stay home." (More of the gypsy camp encounter featured on www.brightjourneys.com)

Cochin also called kochi is a bustling town with lots of places to sit back and enjoy. Take a boat ride at sunset and see the scenic fishing nets that line the shore.

In the southern Indian beach town of Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu, you'll find the 'Cow Council' meeting in fair weather just before sunset. All the town's cows meet to check in each evening and then linger for about half an hour. This phenomenon is best observed from the beach, where you have the best chance of a cow approaching to insist on a quick pet. There are a variety of rooftop terraces nearby for those who wish to watch this remarkable gathering from a distance.

Sanctum carries vintage-style home decor, including distressed-wood chests, floral cushion covers, and a bar table fashioned from a street vendor’s pushcart. Photo courtesy of Sanctum. This appeared in the November/December 2012 issue.

New art spaces abound across South Mumbai, notably in the districts of Fort and Kala Ghoda, which hosts the Kala Ghoda arts festival in February. The Chemould Prescott Road gallery focuses on well-known contemporary Indian artists, including the painter Atul Dodiya. Galerie Isa exhibits the work of international talent such as the sculptures of German artist Anselm Reyle (shown).

The 140-year-old Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Mumbai City Museum completed a four-year restoration in 2008 that preserved its Corinthian columns and tiled staircase. The building has long been a home for rare religious statues and 16th-century maps of the city, but Museum Director Tasneem Mehta has pushed to make it a venue for contemporary art as well. 91/(0) 22-2373-1234. This appeared in the November/December 2012 issue.

The Taj Mahal, beautiful as it may be, can also serve as a distraction from it surroundings. Practically every foot of the gardens and the Taj Mahal itself can be found covered in tourists, cameras a flash'n. But look left of the white marble palace and one might discover a less famous masterpiece, with a more peaceful setting.

Varanasi is a city of beautiful chaos. Located on the banks of the Ganges River, it's one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, and also one of the holiest. The river is the pulse of the city and it's worth setting your alarm so that you can be on the water for sunrise. Locals descend the ghats (the stairs leading down to the banks of the river) to bathe, pilgrims perform Hindu ceremonies, and women wash their laundry then hang it along the stairs to dry. Even more fascinating are the burning ghats that send plumes of smoke and flames into the air as they cremate the bodies of the dead. Anyone visiting Varanasi must read Geoff Dyer's book "Jeff in Venice, Death in Varanasi." It perfectly captures the spirit of the city.