Salawas

SALAWAS INDIAN TREASURES

UNFORGETTABLE JOURNEYS.

The Treasures of India Uncovered for You

India is a treasure trove of colour, talent and design. Touring around this jewelled country provides a daily feast for the eyes and manna for the soul, especially if you have a passion for fabrics, handicrafts and traditional skills. Indeed, India is such a vast treasure trove that it provides an overwhelming challenge for the casual traveller. Just where do you begin?

You could book a tour through one of the major tour operators and find yourself on a large tourist coach being herded around the obvious sites, unable to escape from the schedule to discover the real charms of India and therefore miss the amazing wealth of local crafts that are just off the beaten track. Alternatively, you could go it alone and waste precious time on research and organisation. This is perhaps also a solution for the bravest travellers. India is a wonderfully safe place most of the time but it can be overwhelming and one or two travelling without expert guidance could feel vulnerable.

Specialist tour guide and fashion expert, Jane Shoebridge has come up with the ideal solution. Jane has twenty five years experience of travelling around India. She toured the country buying fabrics for her main business, designing and making clothes for the larger lady. Now, her love of India has taken over and she organises small group tours of Rajsasthan, Gujarat, and Kerala. Working with an Indian guide and a driver throughout, Jane helps groups to explore traditional hand block printing of fabrics with vegetable dyes or weaving of brightly coloured dhurries (rugs). A maximum of ten, like-minded people with a shared passion for handicrafts are taken to visit Indian women and men embroidering saris and throws in their houses or to meet the local village potter as he forms water pots on a wheel set in the earth.

Jane’s tours are ideal for women to explore their own interests for a few weeks. She provides you with an inclusive package of accommodation, transport, food and local tours without you ever feeling as if you are on a ‘package’ holiday. What is more, Jane’s own expertise enables her to point out details of design and technique that may otherwise be missed. She delves a bit deeper to unearth some of the hidden treasures of India to lay out before you.

Accommodation is rarely in the standard, homogenised tourist hotels. Instead, Jane checks you into a series of Maharaja’s palaces, hilltop forts and friendly guesthouses. Many of these buildings are attractions themselves with exquisitely painted walls, carved stonework and beautiful furniture that is often unique to your room.

The tours are extensive but the tone is relaxed and informal. For anyone wishing to play, Jane can arrange camel rides through the desert or thrilling motorised rickshaw rides around winding alleyways. The itinerary is also varied. Jane takes her guests to some major tourists sites but there is also plenty of time to walk along village streets and talk to friendly locals. What is more, she is particularly good at employing the most knowledgeable guides in each area visited. However, above all, Jane’s greatest asset is perhaps her own personality. She is constantly charming, quite gregarious and genuinely interesting to listen to. She cares enough to ensure that your visit to India is special and unique.

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Details of the tours can be obtained by contacting Jane by phone on 01404 841498 or by email at janejohn100@hotmail.co.uk.