India here i come...

Travel itinerary so far

Tuesday October 29 travel to Auckland either by my good friend Dave or on the ferry from Coromandel.
Wednesday October 30 at 15:15 I am flying out of Auckland on Singapore Airlines to Singapore.
Flight time 10 hr 40 mins. There I have a 5 hour wait til I board leg 2 of my journey from Singapore to Delhi.
Flight time 6 hours. After a 7 hour wait I board for the last leg from Delhi to Chandigarh.
Flight time 1hr 10 mins.
So leaving Auckland 15:15 October 30 arriving Chandigarh 31 hours and 5 mins later but is 14:50 Oct 31 local time.
On arrival at Chandigarh I take the bus to town (another 30 mins) and then head out to Aura Pottery, another 20 mins west of the city.

Chandigarh is in Punjab province, north western India.

Northern India showing Aura Pottery and Chandigarh.

Aura Pottery on the outskirts of Chandigarh

I am going to be staying at Aura Pottery for 8 weeks on a long stay pottery retreat.

Aura Pottery

I am also organising at train trip around the country.

Train trip

Travel day 1 - Chandigarh to Delhi.Distance 264 km - Time 4.5 hours - ₹745 NZ$16
Travel day 2 - Delhi to Kharagpur. Distance 1735 km - Time 35 hours -  ₹2580 NZ$56
Travel day 3 - Kharagpur to Chennai. Distance 1539 km - Time 26 hours - ₹2350 NZ$51
Travel day 4 - Chennai to Mumbai. Distance 1281 km -  Time 24 hours - ₹2100 NZ$46
Travel day 5 - Mumbai to Bathinda. Distance 1849 km - Time 32 hours - ₹2725 NZ$59
Travel day 6 - Bathinda to Chandigarh. Distance 253km - Time 4.5 hours - ₹1130 NZ$25

Total travel distance 6921 km
Total travel time 126 hours or 5 1/4 days
Total cost NZ$253.....yes $253!

I will be stopping off at the cities for a look and so won't be doing this in a rush. There are numerous options to stop off at intermediate stops as well. 
I just have to be in Bathinda Jan 24th or thereabouts for the Vasant Panchami festival.

Vasant Panchami is celebrated in different ways by the Hindus of the North and South India. While it is a kite festival in Punjab, it is a harvest festival in Bihar. While it is celebrated as Saraswati Puja in educational institutes in the North, it is mostly a temple festival in South India. But universally, yellow rules the colour of the day, as it heralds the arrival of spring and signifies the positive energy of life and nature. It is also the colour of mustard flowers that bloom during this season.

 It has been an exciting time with list and things to do, like getting my passport renewed, booking tickets, applying for a visa, sorting out IT and communications while away.

Meanwhile, I am assisting in Coromandel Town with some clearing and native tree planting on an amazing property. Also we are making slow progress at the Pohutukawa Chalets with benchtop replacements and new cupboard doors and drawer fronts.
I have also been set building for the new play at the Coromandel Theatre, Last Legs. A Roger Hall comedy set in a retirement home.

So it is all go at the moment.

Til next post, safe travels everyone.