What People Around the World Find Fascinating About India

Ask a dozen travellers what India means to them and you will get a dozen different countries. One talks about the Himalayas, another about a road in New Delhi. One remembers temples, another remembers lunch. I put the same question to bloggers and readers from Britain, Germany, Canada, the United States, Russia, Spain and Austria, and their answers kept circling the same handful of ideas — scale, noise, colour, food — while arriving from opposite directions.

These are their words, grouped roughly by what pulled them in.

A country that changes character every few hundred kilometres

The most common answer was variety: the sense that crossing a state can feel like crossing a border.

“Everything! The fact that the culture and landscape are so incredibly diverse and two things that fascinate me most about India – from the far north to the deep south it’s like being in a different country and one of the reasons I keep going back. I am captivated by the sights and sounds that are continuously unfolding before my eyes – life in India is never dull! For some strange reason, I am also drawn to the chaos. Although mostly it’s organised chaos!”

“I must have visited India close to twenty times, some long trips and some short. I’m always planning another trip to India!”

— Kirsty Bennetts, UK, Kathmandu and Beyond (@KathmanduBeyond)

Bylakuppe Buddhist Golden Temple, Karnataka. Photograph by sandeepachetan.com via Flickr.

Jade, who has been twice, puts the same feeling more simply.

“Everything! The incredible diversity, the rich colour, the intensity, the assault on the senses and the fact that it is like no where else I’ve been. I’m pretty fond of the food too.”

“I’ve been lucky enough to visit India twice and I know I’ll be back sometime in the future. I just can’t stay away.”

— Jade, UK, All That Happens (@AllThatHappens)

“The richness and diversity of its history, culture, and food. I am always fascinated by the complexity of Indian traditions, beliefs, and practices.”

“I’ve been to Rajasthan, Delhi, Kerala, Goa, Ahmedabad, Varanasi, Rishikesh and Mumbai.”

— JJ Berman, Chicago, The Urbane Nomad (@theurbanenomad)

The noise, the colour and the chaos

For others the first impression is physical: the volume of the place, the colours, the number of people. Nobody pretended it was restful.

“I never thought chaos could be so beautiful.. and then I came to India. On my first day that I was here, I stood on a busy road in New Delhi and I felt a sensory overload that was both good and bad at the same time. I saw things that were funny, beautiful and also shocking.”

“Having lived in Europe all my life, moving to India for a year was an experience like no other. There is never a dull moment in India because something or the other is ALWAYS happening.”

“Yes, I love India and would love to live in this beautiful country again, but this time in the Himalayas.”

— San, Germany, Drifter Planet (@DrifterPlanet)

“The sheer mass of sounds and colours everywhere you look. When you step foot in India, it’s that that hits you smack in the face! It’s all non stop and I love that. It’s busy in a very different way to London (where I live). There’s a lot more colour and a lot more smiles!”

“I visited India in 2008; spent two weeks trekking in the Himalayas, one week in Keylong and then a week between Agra and Delhi.”

— Hannah, London, That Adventurer (@Adventurehan)

“How it kind of works being so crowded! I went there for 5 weeks last year itself.”

“They say you either hate it or love it and trust me, you want to be in the second group!”

— Inma, Galicia, Spain, A World to Travel (@aworldtotravel)

Food, faith and looking up at the buildings

Architecture came up again and again, along with temples, spices and the plain pleasure of eating.

“The architecture! Buildings in India are so varied, ranging from beautiful crumbling monuments, pristine mosques and temples to modern day sky scrapers. I never get bored of looking up when I’m in India!”

“I’ve visited Delhi, Kashmir (Srinagar and Leh) and Agra. Next year, I am visiting Mumbai and the Golden Triangle.”

— Alex Smith, London, Gin and Giraffes (Instagram: ginandgiraffes)

The Taj Mahal. Photograph by Trey Ratcliff, Flickr.

“The Culture, religion, temples (Taj Mahal of course, but all the others too). The doodh too! I LOVE India”

— Doris, Austria

“The people, the majestic Himalayas, the cuisine + the spices! The great variety of cultures and languages are so fascinating.”

— Eva, Vienna

“The culture, history, music, people, cuisine, traditions, Bollywood, the women, animals, cities, rural areas, ancient places, religion, politics, dances – everything!”

“I hope to be able to visit India some day.”

— Vitali, Russia

The ones still waiting to go

Not everyone I asked had been. Some of the most interesting answers came from people still planning the trip, and what they wanted was often specific.

“The culture of India fascinates me. I think because it seems very different to my home country of Canada. I know a few people who’ve been to India, and it seems like no matter who you are, or how long you are there for , going to India is kind of a life changing trip. It seems like it could be a challenging country to visit, but one that would be worth visiting.”

“I have not visited India. but it is a country I hope to visit at some point in the future.”

— Alouise, Edmonton, Canada, Take Me to the World

“While there are many things I would be interested in, currently, getting to explore the cuisines from different regions would be my number one.”

“I have not visited India, but hopefully some day!”

— Megan MacNee, USA, Travelling 9 to 5er (Instagram: traveling9to5er)

“The natural environment and the cultural background. Also the traditional cuisine. India for me is a rather exotic place, that I have known only from documentaries or books. I would really like to visit it once in my lifetime.”

— Eleni, Austria

The Himalayas seen from Palampur. Photograph by Korinna, exploreronabudget.com.

What the answers have in common

Read the whole set together and a pattern appears. The people who love India do not describe it as easy, calm or tidy. They describe it as loud, various and impossible to forget. Almost every one of them says they will go back.

If you have your own answer, I would like to hear it — and if you are planning a first trip and want to know how to begin, ask in the comments. That is how the next conversation starts.